Fruit - (Savor the South Cookbooks) by Nancie McDermott (Paperback)

Book Synopsis

Fruit collects a dozen of the South's bountiful locally sourced fruits in a cook's basket of fifty-four luscious dishes, savory and sweet. Demand for these edible jewels is growing among those keen to feast on the South's natural pleasures, whether gathered in the wild or cultivated with care. Indigenous fruits here include blackberries, mayhaws, muscadine and scuppernong grapes, pawpaws, persimmons, and strawberries. From old-school Grape Hull Pie to Mayhaw Jelly-Glazed Shrimp, McDermott's recipes for these less common fruits are of remarkable interest -- and incredibly tasty. The non-native fruits in the volume were eagerly adopted long ago by southern cooks, and they include damson plums, figs, peaches, cantaloupes, quince, and watermelons. McDermott gives them a delicious twist in recipes such as Fresh Fig Pie and Thai-Inspired Watermelon-Pineapple Salad.

McDermott also illuminates how the South -- from the Great Smoky Mountains to the Lowcountry, from the Mississippi Delta to the Gulf Coast -- encompasses diverse subregional culinary traditions when it comes to fruit. Her recipes, including a favorite piecrust, provide a treasury of ways to relish southern fruits at their ephemeral peak and to preserve them for enjoyment throughout the year.

Review Quotes

"Fruit covers a lot of ground in its 163 pages, in that the South is blessed with plenty of sweet stuff growing on bushes and trees." -- Winston-Salem Journal

"[This] juicy book showcases fruit in both sweet and savory recipes. . . . Prompt[s] readers to think outside the box (or should we say bushel?) -- Taste 2017 Food Guide

"A sharp collection of slim, single-subject volumes exploring Southern food."--New York Times

"McDermott gets a gold star for including mayhaws in Fruit. . . . [A] delightful little volume."--Wendell Brock, Atlanta Journal-Constitution

"McDermott's book opened up my appreciation of southern fruits to many others." -- Myrtle Beach Sun News

"Reinterpret[s] the region's indigenous fruits, such as strawberries and mayhaws, as well as non-native fruits often found in Southern kitchens, like figs and peaches. . . . Prompt[s] readers to think outside the box (or should we say bushel?)" -- Chapel Hill Magazine

"Transform[s] a dozen different signature state produce items into 54 unique recipes." -- Wilmington Star News

"While the book is understandable desert-heavy, with enchanting recipes for Old-Time Persimmon pudding and Fresh peach Fritters, it also features savory recipes that leverage fruit's natural sweetness." -- FLAVORS