Book Review: Simply Fruit by Laurie Pfalzer

Simple Fruit: Seasonal Recipes for Baking, Poaching, Sautéing,and Roasting
by Laurie Pfalzer (641.634 Pfa)

One of the most impressive, and constantly evolving portions of the library collection is our culinary/cookbook section (the 640s in general). Especially at the downtown library, nearly every day you’ll find new cookbooks featured on the “New Books” displays, and this is one that caught my eye recently.

 

This is Seattle pastry chef Laurie Pfalzer’s first cookbook, and it’s a winner. She chooses to focus on fruits (often, but not always, in combination with pastry), and features recipes that emphasize the natural strengths of each fruit, rather than heavy seasonings that might cover the fruit’s own flavors. There are 49 recipes (with some sidebar/related recipes connected to the main entries), broken into the four calendar seasons — each showcases fruits at their prime in Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter. Beautiful food photos by Charity Burggraaf accompany the recipes — sometimes just images of the fruits involved, but often showing the finished dishes.

 

My mouth watered as I browsed the contents of the book, and I’ve earmarked a few recipes to consider trying myself — unlike many cookbooks which make elaborate and elegant desserts seem beyond the everyday chef, Pfalzer has selected recipes for this book that seem like even a weekend cook would be successful in attempting them. A section at the front of the book itemizes both standard ingredients and basic preparation equipment — most of which would be easily accessible to home cooks. Recipes that stood out for me included: “Rhubarb Fool”, “Strawberry Pavlova”, “Blueberry Cinnamon Crepes”, “Bittersweet Chocolate Tart with Blackberries and Basil”, “Peach Mousse”, “Roasted Peach Bread Pudding (with Ginger Creme Anglaise)”, “Rosemary Apples in Crepes with Rum Caramel Sauce”, “Pear and Fig Pie”, “Maple and Pear Panna Cotta”, “Meyer Lemon Buttermilk Sherbet”, and “Orange, Rosemary and Hazelnut Brittle”.

 

This would be a marvelous cookbook to read through if you are a fan of desserts, of fruits, or of simple recipes.

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try The Peach Truck Cookbook by Jessica Rose.]

[ publisher’s official Simple Fruit web page ] | [ official Laurie Pfalzer Instagram feed ]

 

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library — Public Service

 

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