[.ca] The Jimtown Store Cookbook: Recipes from Sonoma County's ... (ISBN 0060197021)

From Amazon.com:
Sonoma County's Jimtown Store, a country market that was dilapidated until it was bought and renovated by Carrie Brown and John Werner in 1987, now serves uniquely good food to locals and visitors alike. Brown and Werner's The Jimtown Store Cookbook, written with Michael McLaughlin, offers 130 of Jimtown's best recipes--robust yet sophisticated dishes that range from Pumpkin Chipotle Soup and Paella Salad with Seared Tuna and Shellfish to Maple-Glazed Meat Loaf and Duck and Olive Ragout with Buttered Noodles. The store also has committed itself to local food producers, and their products help define Jimtown's globe-spanning yet all-American cuisine. This is a truly accomplished blend, and readers will find a ready supply of tantalizing recipes for everyday and special-occasion eating. Brown and Werner first spotted Jimtown on the Fourth of July, so it's only fitting that they've developed a mouthwatering barbecue repertoire, with many accompanying sauces, condiments, pickles, and relishes. These signature items include Romesco Sauce and Lupe's Tomatillo Salsa; a number of these are fitting accompaniments to dishes like Grilled Fish Tacos, Roast Pork Loin with Bacon and Rosemary, and Grilled Chicken Breasts with Herbed Honey Butter. Other Jimtown specialties include sandwiches like roast beef with horseradish sauce and desserts such as Bittersweet Chocolate Pinwheel Cake and Buttermilk Pie. With the purveyors' cooking tips and menus for entertaining, the book, like the store, rewards digging into. --Arthur Boehm

Seasonal best--all year long.:
From a small-town country store in the Northern California wine region, comes a great collection of recipes and entertaining ideas using a variety of seasonal products. Authors Carrie Brown and John Werner (with a wonderful assist from cookbook pro Michael McLaughlin) have compiled the very best of seasonal recipes and menu ideas used in the Jimtown Store and its catering business. The recipes are clear and easy to follow (though I wish that the publisher had worked harder to print the COMPLETE recipe on 1 or 2 facing pages--flipping the page in the middle of food prep is a real hassle!). Overall, though, it is a nicely written volume, which provides ideas for springtime suppers, autumn tailgate parties, Fourth of July barbecues, as well as holiday meals. There is an extensive chapter on salads of all sorts, plus another on sauces, condiments, and relishes, just to give us a few new twists on some old stand-by themes. There are some great weekend ideas in the chapter entitled Breakfast Baking. I've already made the maple-glazed meatloaf for dinner (leftovers make terrific sandwiches), and am now planning Grilled Steak with Backyard Bourbon Marinade as well as Apple-Buttermilk Slaw for some weekend lunch guests. Just in time for summer entertaining, this book is destined to become a year-round classic in my kitchen!

My new favorite:
This has quickly become the cookbook I turn to most often (and I have hundreds of them). Everything I've tried has been so flavorful and so easy to pull off. The roasted figs and Indian cashews are now a cocktail party staple (and I keep getting calls for the recipe). Same goes for the cheese and pecan crackers. The bourbon-marinaded steak has made me a much more frequent meat-eater. And just this past weekend I made the incredibly easy buttermilk pie, to much fanfare. Do yourself a favor and buy this book. It's OUTSTANDING.

Jimtown takes the cake!:
One of those unique cookbooks where you'll want to make every recipe, and where you'll actually be able to. Jimtown's style is unfussy, focused on flavor and experience. These recipes mix old and new, national and international cuisine with witty and informative writing. I'm busy working my way through making the recipes and haven't had a dud yet!