Endorsements
"Jamie DeMent believes in the honesty and integrity of fresh food. She knows it’s something you shouldn’t really mess with. The best thing you can do with field peas, corn, squash and tomatoes, she seems to say in her work, is to eat them the minute they are picked. The next best thing is to preserve them for later, when the fields and deep-freezers are barren. That’s the smarter choice, perhaps, the road less traveled that makes all the difference. Last year, this North Carolina farmer, cook and restaurateur published her first cookbook, “The Farmhouse Chef: Recipes & Stories from My North Carolina Farm” (UNC Press, $35). And I took quite a shine to her simple, straightforward approach to the heirloom produce and heritage livestock she nurtures on her Hillsborough farm with her husband, Richard Holcomb. Now I’m just as smitten (possibly more so) with the blackberry jam, peach salsa, bread-and-butter pickles and numerous other delectable preserved foods she showcases in her second effort. . .Once again, when I least expected it, Jamie DeMent, sly as fox and smart as a whip, has hooked me.” -- Wendell Brock, Atlanta Journal Constitution
"Jamie has a way of sweeping everyone within earshot into her sunny, spunky approach to life, agriculture, family, and food. The tantalizing array of recipes in The Farmhouse Chef--and the clear, gently encouraging way they are rendered--will attract readers and home cooks into her food world, one that is seasonal, sensual, and damn tasty! Her stories and recipes are so engaging, you won’t even realize how much you’re learning about southern food traditions along the way. Lookout, Pioneer Woman--the East Coast now has its own rural role model in Jamie DeMent!" -- Matt Lee and Ted Lee, authors of The Lee Bros. Charleston Kitchen
"An immersion into deliciousness, delight, and inspiration, The Farmhouse Chef celebrates eating fresh, seasonal food while redefining what it means to be down on the farm in the twenty-first century. Sharing her personal story of following her passion for cooking, community, and sustainability, Jamie DeMent offers an abundance of appealing recipes with a side of true tales, tips, and humor. Prepare to become dangerously and deeply hungry."-- Nancie McDermott, author of Southern Soups and Stews and Fruit: A Savor the South Cookbook
“The Farmhouse Chef combines good food with a good measure of storytelling. Through her recipes Jamie DeMent illuminates a year in the life of a farm family. These are the best kinds of recipes, reading clear and easy to follow, and this is a cookbook people will use—often." -- Bill Smith, author of Crabs and Oysters: A Savor the South Cookbook and Seasoned in the South