Home Made Summer

Pretentious cookbook with lots of pretty (trendy) photos. Quirky and unremarkable recipes that don't seem worth putting the effort into. Lots of sweets. Not enough recipes to put meals together.Excerpts: Avocado, cucumber & lime shake, Quark (no suggestions on how to eat this), cherry or berry jam with orange & basil, melon jam with tarragon, Easter: marbled eggs with lavender salt, carrot pie with apple and goat cheese, arugula cake with pine nuts, rhubarb pie with almond paste, super macarons with raspberries and pink mascarpone, summery cake with lemongrass syrup, coconut lime cheesecake, eclairs with lavender filling, a large section on drinks, oysters (with several dressing recipes), crispy chickpeas, chanterelle pate, eggplant caviar, yogurt dip with mint, white bean hummus, preserving your own lemons, cold green soup with horseradish and garlic hangop, cantaloupe soup with goat cheese and basil oil, watercress soup with parmesan flan, cucumber and papaya soup with lobster, infused oils, thousand tomato salad with homemade goat's milk ricotta and coriander and basil oil, stuffed marinated zucchini blossoms with lavender salt, smoked trout salad, asparagus risotto with samphire (sea beans), scallop ceviche, bacalao (salt cod) & shrimp potpies, lamb roast stuffed with oregano, mint, garlic and pine nuts, beer can chicken, gardianne de toro (beef stew), braised veal cheek in clear consommé with fresh green peas, brined pork chops with sweet mustard bbq sauce, crab legs with garlic butter...on and on. There is not a single recipe in this book that I'm inspired to make. Not a warm inclusive book with a collection of accessible recipes. More elitist.

Update:There are a lot of unique recipes in this book, so they are fun to try. I wanted this book because it is nice to take advantage of fruits and vegetables in the summer, when they are abundant and at peak flavor. There are plenty of options in this book, but many of them require long cooking times in the oven. Not exactly practical in most parts of the US during summertime. Also, I'm not too impressed with some of the recipes. I made the corn risotto last night and I thought it was bland. The "puffy" pancakes were heavy, not puffy. The berry cake is very good, but requires a longer baking time than listed in the recipe. On the other hand, the watercress soup with the parmesan flan is simply delicious. One of the best things I have ever made. The preserved lemon salad dressing is also great.This book has been on my wish list for a while, and I decided to buy it. The photos are nice and the recipes look good. I haven't made anything yet. Nothing really jumps out at me, though.

Recipes simply elegant, satisfying,and filled with summer and many happy memories. What a great collection to enhance summer entertainment. Thank you.

I found the recipes down to earth but interesting. I enjoyed the style and the. pictures as well as different ideas to make famiiar.dishes. I own her Homemade Winter book also. I use it frequently. I hope she writes another soon.

While the entirety of the recipes aren't super creative, there are a good number of good recipes- a few of which aren't in the everyday cook book. That said, the book is gorgeous and just makes me happy to read. I highly recommend this book to anyone who loves cook books just for the love of cook books.

I bought this book because I fell in love with Home Made- gorgeous to hold, read, wander through and cook with. That experience caused me to purchase Home Made Winter for my best friend for Christmas. It too was a beautiful book, and yummy recipes! This book arrived and the binding is warped; no cover slip for the book; and a really cheap thin carboard-like binding. I fear it will not hold up in the kitchen, but worse, it is cheap looking and feeling. What gives? Recipes sound wonderful so will keep the book.

Love the photos, artwork, production design, and recipes. However as a cookbook, it's pretty useless. Most recipes call for ingredients you can't easily find in the US or if you can its obscenely expensive only to make pancakes or jam. Still loved the book but appreciate it for what it is.

This is a great cookbook with beautiful illustrations, detailed and inventive recipes. For US readers, it has some great ideas for thinking outside of what we'd consider the norm. Emphasis on making everything from scratch, and often those ingredients are then used in recipes later on in the book. Fantastic ideas for summer entertaining.

Beautiful pictures , great recipes. Easy to follow. I recommend it to every one.Love the books from Yvette van Boven .

Book contains many easy, comfy and appetizing receipts although it's pictures don't encourage me too cook them. My advice for its author to change photographer with next book.

Come me lo aspettavo. ottima stampa, chiaro, bene esposto belle anche le foto. Libro da regalare. Non altro da aggiungere

Great

This book is an awesome addition to my growing cookbook shelf. Beautifully presented photographs, whimsical introductions and stories.The recipes are timely, not too complicated and fun!