Fruits and Vegetables Books

Nice book lots of information with some nice pictures
Joy Larkcom has written severl other books on gardening
I got the book for my wife and she like it

Very simple instructions. You will paint wonderfull pieces even if you never paint before. Very usefull for actual artists too.

Each word has a photo of the food and a drawing of a child signing the word. (Photos would have been a bit nicer.) Words are: apple, apricot, artichoke, asparagus, avocado, banana, beans, broccoli, cabbage, cantaloupe, carrot, cauliflower, celery, cherry, coconut, corn, cucumber, grapes, grapefruit, lemon, lettuce, lime, mushroom, nut, olive, onion, orange, peach, peanut, pear, peas, pineapple, plum, potato, pumpkin, radish, raspberry, spinach, strawberry, tomato, and watermelon.

Gather some insight into what the kitchen is really like at Dixter! Christopher Lloyd shares his secrets on when unusual fruit are ripe to pick from the tree, and how to cook some of those less common garden fruit and vegetables.

I wasn't sure what to expect when I ordered this book, but was pleasantly impressed immediately with the extreme high quality prints contained within! This should be billed more like a coffee table book, but the information it shares is too good to pidgeonhole as a picture book. I'd class this as a class act entry level book for detailed directions @ starting the process of growing veggies and plants in their infancy. The only negative I'd comment on is that I wish it was bigger. Its hard to cover it all with just one book though.

This is not the first book I ever picked up on gardening, but it was the first that sparked my interest in using heirloom species. The author does a good job of explaining the background story on heirlooms vs. hybrids, pros and cons, etc. The pictures were charming, showing each species in it's place in an old-fashioned homestyle garden as opposed to the more usual catalog-style photos and illustrations I'd come to expect from books of this type.

There were generally two-page spreads on each vegetable, flower, herb, etc. that had a poetic introduction and gave step-by-step instructions in general planting. The author seemed to have picked one example of each garden favorite and expanded in detail on it. For example, the only heirloom apple covered is the Pink Pearl, the only sunflower was Inca, the only pumpkin was Lumina. Beyond that there was no real discussion on a wider scope of different species within that category. That's okay, but I wish there was a little more information on what alternative heirlooms might do well in different zones of the USA. Also, the subjects of pests and disease are treated as though the reader is already expected have enough knowledge to do without it, except to encourage the use of organic methods wherever possible.

So, don't expect this to be a teaching manual for the newcomer to general gardening techniques. But, it is a nice sampling of heirlooms you may never have heard of otherwise. Thanks to this book, I have now tasted the best tomato I have ever had in my life (Brandywine).

I had a hard time finding the book in the begining but I'm glad I keep looking. It is a must for those trying to grow giant vegetables. I had been growing giants for about 5 years prior to purchasing the book, it gave me invaluable incite that has helped me grow bigger veggies. It also tells you a little bit about what Guinness expects when trying to break a world record.

Even the best intentioned of us can have trouble fitting in our daily requirements of fruits and vegetables. Pippa Cuthbert and Lindsay Cameron Wilson's exuberant book Juice! can go a long (and delicious) way to change that. The exclamation poin at the end of the title is important, for this is more than a compellation of recipes - it's a celebration of juice. The 110+ recipes are accompanied by photographs to beautiful that even the cucumber juice mixes looks tempting. Additionally, each recipe has a perfectly thought up one-word description, such as "quenching", "nutty", "fresh", "tart," or my favorite-- "decadent." The book is also packed with information about juicing, the ingredients, and their nutrients.

The recipes are divided into six chapters, based on taking advantage of each concoctions properties (energizing versus calming, for instance):

Seven am: Wake-up call
Twelve pm: Hunger
Three pm: Energizers
Five pm: Cocktail Hour
Nine pm: Evening Relaxers
Cleansers

Juice! is for everyone, but because of all its helpful suggestions and range of recipes, from the simple to the extravagant, it would be particularly helpful to beginning juicers. And you will need a juicer. While some of the recipes can be made with a blender, most require more. Don't worry if you don't have one already - the book provides buying suggestions. But you should at least be planning to buy a juicer to take advantage of the book. Even then, you might not want to take full advantage. All cookbooks have recipes that are just not tempting, and Juice! is no exception. While most are creamy delicious drink calling for oranges or passion fruit or watermelon; there are also some with main ingredients like beetroots, spinach, or radish. There are also some rare ingredients that, while they might inspire you to stretch your culinary horizons, might also be a challenge finding them at your local grocery store. The amazing thing about Juice! however, is that it makes everything sound and look so good, that you might just be tempted to drink what was previously unimaginable.

The other problem with Juice! is that while all the recipes conveniently make one 8-ounce serving of juice (which you can easily double, triple, or quadruple as the case may be), they are not necessarily convenient to make - particularly in the morning, when many of us are rushed for time. Juice is most pleasurable freshly made, which means that many of the "wake-up calls" will have to wait for Sunday brunch. Despite that, Juice! is absolutely worth owning.

This is a vibrant and easy-to-read book for juicing beginners. Recipes are listed according to the main fruit or vegetable used in them eg. under "Apple" you will find all the apple juice combinations. It also contains nutritional information, recipes for health (weight loss, skin conditions) and a useful guide at the end on how to conduct one-day and three-day juice fasts.

Just like the other books in the month-by-month series, this book by Andi Clevey puts you on the right track by providing a timetable for all the necessary chores in the kitchen garden. As timing is crucial for sowing and planting, this book is a very handy reference. The author is a well known expert in this field and the book is a clear and concise guide to beginners and pros alike.