Forest + Home by Spencre McGowan ISBN: 9781524867652
Published by Andrews McMeel Publishing on September 27, 2022
Genres: Cookbook, Nonfiction
Pages: 216
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Connect with nature through your kitchen, no matter the size or location. Food that feeds and heals the body; a book that inspires and nourishes the soul.
Forest + Home connects you with nature through your kitchen, no matter the size or location. This is a book that inspires and ignites the palette while nourishing the soul; it shares food that both feeds and heals the body. Discover the world of plants through food with cook and certified herbalist, Spencre McGowan, author of Blotto Botany: A Lesson in Healing Cordials and Plant Magic. Organized by season, the recipes are designed to meet the natural movement of time and the world we inhabit. They include:
- Nettle Pasta with special healing qualities
- Rose Petal Lemonade with the benefits of a herbal punch
- Roasted Asparagus with Chamomile and Ghee to soothe your nerves
- No-Bake Peanut Butter-Reishi Cookies incorporates healing mushrooms
- Dandelion Pesto helps get your digestive groove on
- Lemon Balm Mojito for a refreshing way to chill out
Through personal stories and photography, explore the icy mountains of Montana and the wild seashores of Maine and Nantucket. With a focus on simplicity, no dish in this book requires one to be an experienced chef, possess a knowledge of medicinal herbalism, or own expensive kitchen tools. In addition to a foreword by bestselling author Hilarie Burton Morgan, the book includes glossaries of kitchen and medicinal herbs; an exploration of adaptogenic herbs and edible flowers; and information on sourcing, growing, drying, and storing your own herbs. Forest + Home is a love letter to our environment, encouraging us to reflect on the things we feel when we are connected to nature and the things we take home with us.
Credibility/Research: 7, there’s a bit about the science/logic behind the herbs selected, but most of it seems driven by flavor rather than medicinal purpose, which is in keeping with the purpose of this cookbook (which clearly isn’t to educate you in herbalism, but provide a gateway through your tastebuds). The author’s confidence and some of her flavor combinations make me trust that she knows these recipes and vouches for them.
Authenticity/Uniqueness: 8, I’ve read a lot of cookbooks, including several homestead-style ones. Generally, while inspiring in a cottagecore sort of way, those cookbooks are very out of reach for me as a disabled woman who doesn’t have land for a garden (and I imagine also for people who don’t have several hours a day to spend on foraging, canning, cooking, and baking). Not so, this book! While she doesn’t use crockpots or air fryers in her recipes, Spencre McGowan freely admits to using a rice cooker to save time, being unable to successfully grow nasturtiums, having a bit of an obsession with rose petals in food, and other “flaws”. She makes room for substituting herbs and adaptogens in recipes, a flexibility I appreciate, and the recipes range from “I could do that” to “I bet one of my able-bodies friends would make that for me”. Overall, it’s nice to be intrigued and inspired by recipes, rather than feeling guilty because I’m not eating healthily enough.
Writing: 8, I found her writing really charming in its storytelling aspect and approachability. She peppers little vignettes about the seasons (in Montana, Maine, and Nantucket, her primary haunts) between chapters, and each recipe includes a personal note about it. Overall, the tone is aspirational whilst being authentic and realistic to the fact that most of us aren’t foraging homesteaders with a degree in herbalism. I also appreciate the warnings she has about gathering in parks where herbs may have been sprayed with pesticide (I did this in early 2021, gathering dandelions and friends, it was not a good time) as well as foraging precautions.
Personal Impact: 9, damn do I want to be able to gather nettles and make a nettle cake. Or burdock- which I think I’ve had in soda before and loved. I lack a garden of my own, and even the shared lawn in this complex gets sprayed with pesticide, so sadly, several of these recipes are out of reach for me. But not all! I plan on asking at this Saturday’s farmers market if anyone has nettles I can buy, and I happen to have some reishi powder that I’m absolutely going to make things with. Also, she has things like herbed pizza dough and simple syrups one can make with bulk-bought spices. I dog-eared about 20 recipes to try (starting with fire cider dip over roasted potatoes).
Intrigue: 7, the photos were pretty and the stories were engaging. I did find myself skimming a few recipes once I realized I couldn’t really make them, but also spend awhile on a few of them, noodling over them (and appreciating the photos). The blueberry lavender pie…..I mean, why would I make a pie for just myself? But also, I might be making a pie for just myself.
Logic/Informativeness: 8, the recipes are very approachable and all of them were relatively short (I think each was one page or less, with the exception of the herbed cheesecake). There’s flexibility in there for vegans, vegetarians, those with food intolerances, and picky eaters, with a range of sweet and savory recipes. They’re organized by season, which is charming- and thankfully the subject index in the back is comprehensive.
Enjoyment: 8, as cookbooks go, it’s one of the better ones I’ve read. I can’t wait to start making some of these delightful sounding (and rustic/hearty) recipes, and reading this has got me considering how to incorporate more nervine and adaptogen herbs into my daily eating habits.
*I received an e-ARC of this book from NetGalley for the purposes of reviewing it. This in no way impacted my review.
NOTE: I just made the Creamy Adaptogenic Pasta Sauce (with fennel sausage ravioli) and it was SO freaking good. I used ashwagandha powder, not her recommendation of maca, and it’s a new favorite.
Reading this book contributed to these challenges:
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