The Book of Greens by Jenn Louis, Kathleen Squires

The Book of Greens by Jenn Louis, Kathleen Squires ISBN-13: 9781607749844 Hardcover: 328 pages Publisher: Ten Speed Press Released: April 11, 2017

Source: Review copy from the publisher.

Book Description, Modified from Back Cover:
From one of Portland, Oregon's most acclaimed chefs comes this encyclopedic reference to the world of greens. It's for any home cook who wants to cook delicious, vegetable-focused meals, but is tired of predictable salads with kale, lettuce, cabbage, and the other usual suspects. Chef Jenn Louis has compiled more than 150 recipes for simple, show-stopping fare, from snacks to soups to mains (and even breakfast and dessert) that will inspire you to reach for new greens at the farmers' market, or use your old standbys in totally fresh ways.

Organized alphabetically by green, each entry features information on seasonality, nutrition, and prep and storage tips, along with recipes like Grilled Cabbage with Miso and Lime, Radish Greens and Mango Smoothie, and Pasta Dough with Tomato Leaves.


My Review:
The Book of Greens explains how to use 40 varieties of leafy greens in your cooking and provides 175 recipes that include those greens. These are not "healthy" recipes. She adds the greens to dishes that use cheese, cream, eggs, fish or meat and use a lot of oil or sugar. Since she's trying to get a specific blend of taste and texture, I doubt the dishes will taste as good if you remove or replace some of the ingredients. She's traveled a lot, so there are recipes from other cultures in addition to adding greens to more Western foods.

The book is organized around the Greens information pages. The Greens are listed alphabetically and include pictures of the greens and information about what season they grow in, what foods they pair well with, and how to choose, clean, store, refresh, and cook them. After the information page for a specific Green, she provided recipes that used that Green. The recipes usually served 4 but varied between serving 1 and 12 people. Some recipes were simple, while others had many steps and involved more time and effort.

The book also had a few templates, like for how to make a salad (add a food from this list, then add a food from this group, and so on). I did find the information pages about the greens to be useful, but I'd expected a book that helped healthy eaters to find new, tasty ways to eat their greens. But it's more targeted at foodies than health nuts.


If you've read this book, what do you think about it? I'd be honored if you wrote your own opinion of the book in the comments.


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