Fresh from the Garden Food to Share with Family and Friends

Sarah Raven's new book focuses on dishes to share, based on in-season fruits and vegetables. Fresh from the Garden is full of tempting recipesboth with and without meatthat are centered around seasonal produce. This sumptuous collection, illustrated with specially commissioned photography, features more than 400 recipes that are timed to highlight what is at its peak freshness, to inspire gatherings of family and friends for any occasion throughout the yearweekend brunches, spring picnics, summer barbecues, Mother's Day, or Thanksgiving. Sarah Raven's recipes are sure to appeal to locavores and the growing numbers of foodies interested in healthy food, organic living, being closer to the land, and reducing their carbon footprint. Among the mouthwatering recipes are sesame salmon with pea pesto, barbecued corn with chili and garlic butter, duck and red cabbage salad with plum sauce, pumpkin and kale salad, and upside-down raspberry cake. Due to her extensive horticultural background, Raven has a special way with fruits and vegetables. Smart new ideas abound, such as making basil ice cubes for cold soups, smoothing out hummus with roasted squash, or dressing potatoes instead of pasta with puttanesca sauce. This book will inspire you to plant a kitchen garden, visit your local farmers market, and transform produce into a luscious bounty of party-ready dishes. "Sarah Raven may teach us a thing or two about cooking, but the real lesson is learning how to eat." Dan Barber

Sarah Raven conducts cooking, flower arranging, and gardening courses at the school she set up in 1999 at her farm in East Sussex, England. She also is a columnist for the Daily Telegraph and the author of In Season.