I lived in the Pacific Northwest for several years in the '90s and consider it my second home. I fell in love with the area while living there with a military husband. This cookbook is reminiscent of the West Coast and the time I spent wandering the forests looking to identify edibles. I love the pictures. I love what this cookbook aspires to be. The thing that holds me back is the feeling that the recipes are somewhat unattainable. As the author says in her introduction...

"The recipes are simple yet the ingredients a bit esoteric. Some you may be able to find seasonally at the farmer's market or grocery store, but the fun is in finding your own patches of rose hips and huckleberries."

It's not that the recipes are overly-complicated or filled with hard-to-find ingredients, but they feel like they are more well-suited for a gastronomist. A little amuse bouche that you find off-menu at a five-star restaurant. But I love the endeavor, and the heart and soul of this book, and I recommend it for the hard-core food crafters who are always looking for something new to try, or those who live in areas of the West Coast with lots of areas in which to forage. Beautiful photography and ambitious.

Forage. Gather. Feast. is an accessible and beautifully photographed tutorial and recipe guide by Maria Finn. Released 9th April 2024 by Sasquatch Books, it's 304 pages and is available in paperback and ebook formats.

This guide is divided into two main sections. The first, a thorough primer aimed at the western areas of the USA including the coast, gives readers a capsule survey of identifying and responsible and safe foraging wild foods from the coast, forests, and other areas including suburban and urban. The second part of the book includes numerous recipes featuring the wild foods gathered.

Foraging guides include seafood items, seaweed, mushrooms, pine items, fiddleheads, greens, berries, and flowes. The recipes are varied and quite fancy with artistic presentation and aesthetic. It's not a strictly plant based cookbook, there are seafood items like clams, prawns, and other seafood included.

Recipes include an introduction, bullet list of ingredients, and step by step preparation instructions. Ingredient measures are provided in imperial (American) units only. Many of the ingredients will require both foraged items and access to a well stocked specialist grocer.

Many (but not all) of the recipes are accompanied by full color photos, including preparation pictures. The photos are a high point of the book, and serving suggestions are very attractive and well styled.

Four stars. This would be an excellent choice for public library acquisition, home use, for smallholders and self sufficiency folks, and for gift giving.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

We do love the wilderness, the outdoors and cooking of course. In this book you will find all the pleasure of food, cooking and the outdoors. And although I don't think I would be game enough to forage I will try to find the ingredients I need to make these wonderful and fun recipes.

This is such a fun and interesting cookbook, the recipes all sound tasty, I love the photography and can't wait to try the recipes. Just reading this book and perusing the pages makes me want to get outdoors and have some fun.

Thank you NetGalley and Sasquatch Books for giving me the opportunity to read and review this book.

This is a beautiful book with fun foraging tips and recipes. I can't wait to make some of these recipes once some of these ingredients are more in season!

Book Review: Forage. Gather. Feast. by Maria Finn

Rating: ⭐⭐⭐⭐

Maria Finn's Forage. Gather. Feast. is a delightful ode to the abundance of nature, offering a tantalizing glimpse into the world of foraging along the West Coast. With over 100 recipes that celebrate the flavors of the wilderness, this cookbook seamlessly blends the thrill of exploration with the comforts of home cooking.

Finn's emphasis on foraging safely and responsibly sets the tone for a journey into the bountiful landscapes of forests, shores, and urban spaces. While the book's primary focus is on the West Coast, its principles can easily be applied to foraging adventures worldwide. The inclusion of recipes like "Flaming Pine Needle Mussels" and "Grilled Porcini on Rosemary Skewers with Porcini Butter" showcases Finn's creativity and culinary expertise.

One of the standout features of Forage. Gather. Feast. is its stunning photography, which not only enhances the visual appeal of the book but also serves as a source of inspiration for readers. The lush images of ingredients sourced from nature evoke a sense of connection to the land and its offerings, making this cookbook a feast for the eyes as well as the palate.

Whether you're a seasoned forager or a novice in the world of wild foods, Maria Finn's cookbook is sure to ignite your culinary imagination and expand your appreciation for the flavors that surround us. Forage. Gather. Feast. is not just a collection of recipes; it's a celebration of the beauty and bounty of nature, waiting to be explored and savored. This book is a perfect gift for anyone looking to unlock new flavors and embark on a delicious journey through the wilds of the West Coast and beyond.

⚠️This review was written based on personal opinions and experiences with the book. Individual preferences may vary⚠️

Forage. Gather. Feast. focuses on how to forage and use what you can find in nature. The cookbook says how to forage certain ingredients for example seaweed. Even if you are not into foraging the cookbook is still useful on different ways to use ingredients in recipes. The photos in this cookbook are beautiful. The recipes are unique and there is even desserts using foraged food like piney ice cream with candied pine cones.

The sections are The Coast, The Forest, The Edge and Urban Foraging. Each recipes have a little blurb about the ingredients or recipe, the ingredients, directions, and some have pictures (not always a picture of the end result tho). There are sometimes multiple recipes built into one main meal. Disclaimer:many of the coast sections and a few recipes in the other sections include fish or shellfish.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Forage. Gather. Feast. Is a lovely book filled with information on foraging safely along with more than 100 recipes. While the author focuses on foraging along the West Coast, this book will appeal to those in other regions as well. And if your idea of foraging is at the farmers market, you'll still enjoy the recipes featured in this book. Some of the recipes that interest me are sea salt (made from sea water), sautéed mushrooms with soba and miso, candied pine cones, wilted greens, wild onions and fiddlehead ferns, preserved lemons, and salt-fermented blueberries. Most of the recipes in this book are vegetarian but there is a section about the coast featuring seaweed but also small sea creatures.

Thank you to the publisher for the digital copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Forage. Gather. Feast. by Maria Finn is a lovely book about what it means to forage, how to forage (including safety and best practices), connecting with nature, benefits of spending time outdoors and enjoying foraged food. Over one hundred recipes are included. Many dishes have more than one component so you can prepare the entire dish as written or just parts. The foraging focus is on the United States but I live outside the US and find the information relevant. I like the seaside foraging section as this is often excluded.

My greatest passion is foraging, especially for mushrooms and white truffles in Croatia. What is more fulfilling than being immersed in the outdoors, identifying and collecting food and preparing it with your heart? If you're the tiniest bit intrigued by foraging or forage already, be inspired by the recipe ideas.

I love to cook and bake and am excited about the wonderful recipes here, some of which are unique and unusual, my wheelhouse. Amongst those I anticipate the most include Seaweed Butter from Scratch, Steamed Clams with Pea Shoots and Green Garlic, Wild Berry Mignonette, Mushroom Pâté with Wine-Soaked Walnuts, Porcini Butter, Hedgehog Mushroom Dumpling Soup with Chrysanthemum Greens, Pickled Pine/Spruce Tips, Stinging Nettle Gnocchi with Brown-Butter Black Trumpets, and Berry and Peony Pavlova. As I have celiac, I will adjust recipes for my needs.

My sincere thank you to Sasquatch Books and NetGalley for providing me with a digital copy of this delectable book.

While I am located on the east coast, I’m originally from further west. I love the information in this book in regard to foraging and sourcing ingredients. I particularly like the recipes for seaweed pasta and the mushroom shortbread cookies. The photos are lovely as well! Can’t wait to try some of these dishes.