My Thoughts on "The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook" by Leeann Lavin

         It’s about time Long Island was recognized for more than its traffic, annoying accent, and beaches! Leeann Levin’s new book The Hamptons & Long Island Homegrown Cookbook is a celebration of the natural resources, farmers, and chefs who help preserve the integrity of Long Island’s agricultural bounty. I discovered this resource when meeting Leeann at the inauguration of Stony Brook Hospital’s rooftop garden where we celebrated by eating with some of the cookbook’s featured chefs Guy Reuge of Mirabelle and Amarelle’s Lia Fallon. Leeann has been involved in horticulture for more than a decade, having worked at the Brooklyn Botanical Garden, designing gardens with Duchess Designs, LLC, and writing for Wall Street Journal, Food & Drink, and her own blog about celebrity chefs and their gardens.

 From the Hamptons to Nassau, Leeann takes us into the gardens and kitchens of restaurants that combine our “unique homegrown harvest” with the elegance of restaurant dishes. The book is divided into regions featuring several restaurants, a history of its chef and sister farm, and recipes. Each section showcases vibrant photographs of ingredients, finished dishes, and portraits of chefs and farmers harvesting ingredients by Lindsay Morris and Jennifer Calais Smith.

Recipes are broken down concisely, although prior knowledge of technical terms such as “render,” “score,” or how to trim a fish fillet is required. Since it’s winter, I tried East Hampton Grill’s Salad of Local Beets and Apples, Fresno’s Braised Beef Shortribs, and North Fork Table & Inn’s Roasted Curried Butternut Squash and Apple Soup.  Luckily I am familiar with local farmers markets, but given their seasonal nature it’s difficult to ensure that what you need will be available. Inexperienced shoppers will have to seek out nearby resources, but may substitute when necessary. Cooking instructions are clear and detailed. However, I recommend this book for the advanced home cook since many beginners will not have much of the necessary equipment. I would have liked to make Foody’s Cherry Wood-Smoked Brisket, but don’t have a smoker and my grill would fall apart if I tried to smoke anything for 4 hours. I also had to improvise when making Apple Gremolata since I don’t own a Japanese mandolin.

Overall, I highly recommend this book for its delicious and complicated recipes and efforts to preserve the culinary legacy of Long Island. Whether you’re a chef, farmer, or locavore, you’ll find Leeann’s book an invaluable and noteworthy cultural resource.