Rating: 
Summary: seems daunting at first, but isn't as horny as a Kiwano
Review: At first it looked daunting and heavy, but it flows. For each vegetable, there are pictures, an explanation, other names for the plant, a history (55% of asparagus production is non-green varieties), and instructions on its basic use. There are instructions on how to select the vegetable, how to store it, and how to prepare it (never eat Rhubarb leaves). Recipes follow, and a "Pros Propose" section for each vegetable describes how professional chefs use it. A pre-index lists recipes by category with page numbers (for appetizers, salads, main dishes, etc.). The vegetables include Amaranth, Banana Buds, Purple and White Asparagus (not green), Blewit (a bluish colored mushroom), Chayot, Cresses (as in water, upland, and winter cress, and nasturtium), Yuca, Tindora, Shiitake, Nettle, Sunchoke, Breafruit, Fenugreek, Oca, Orach, Gyromitra, Loofah (Chinese Okra, which is best when stir fried), Arracacha (the Peruvian parsnip/carrot), and the horned Kiwano cucumber. For those worried that there aren't "normal" vegetables, be advised that there are pages for potatoes (but only colored, new, and fingerling varieties) and beans (fava, lima, cranberry, haricot, dragon tongue, southern pea, snaps, Romano, Dutch-flat, green, and string). There are about 37 mushrooms and eight onions varieties described, and over 133 primary vegetables in all. Even if u never eat more than a potato, the book is an interesting read.
Rating:
Summary: seems daunting at first, but isn't as horny as a Kiwano
Review: At first it looked daunting and heavy, but it flows. For each vegetable, there are pictures, an explanation, other names for the plant, a history (55% of asparagus production is non-green varieties), and instructions on its basic use. There are instructions on how to select the vegetable, how to store it, and how to prepare it (never eat Rhubarb leaves). Recipes follow, and a "Pros Propose" section for each vegetable describes how professional chefs use it. A pre-index lists recipes by category with page numbers (for appetizers, salads, main dishes, etc.). The vegetables include Amaranth, Banana Buds, Purple and White Asparagus (not green), Blewit (a bluish colored mushroom), Chayot, Cresses (as in water, upland, and winter cress, and nasturtium), Yuca, Tindora, Shiitake, Nettle, Sunchoke, Breafruit, Fenugreek, Oca, Orach, Gyromitra, Loofah (Chinese Okra, which is best when stir fried), Arracacha (the Peruvian parsnip/carrot), and the horned Kiwano cucumber. For those worried that there aren't "normal" vegetables, be advised that there are pages for potatoes (but only colored, new, and fingerling varieties) and beans (fava, lima, cranberry, haricot, dragon tongue, southern pea, snaps, Romano, Dutch-flat, green, and string). There are about 37 mushrooms and eight onions varieties described, and over 133 primary vegetables in all. Even if u never eat more than a potato, the book is an interesting read.
Rating:
Summary: A fabulous gift for every occasion
Review: Elizabeth Schneider has made gift giving a snap. Appropriate for a wedding shower, or a birthday present for the bachelor-who cooks, or a house-gift for a hard-to-please vegetarian, or an anniversary present for gardeners who don't know what to do with bountiful crops, or even to celebrate a new diet for aging carnivors seeking variety. This book will delight everyone who enjoys eating, cooking and a little background for fun. The language is clear. The instructions precise. You have the sense of a good friend guiding you through a delightful new passage. The pictures are beautiful, matching the superb detail of the book. Who could ask for more?
Rating:
Summary: A fabulous gift for every occasion
Review: Elizabeth Schneider has made gift giving a snap. Appropriate for a wedding shower, or a birthday present for the bachelor-who cooks, or a house-gift for a hard-to-please vegetarian, or an anniversary present for gardeners who don't know what to do with bountiful crops, or even to celebrate a new diet for aging carnivors seeking variety. This book will delight everyone who enjoys eating, cooking and a little background for fun. The language is clear. The instructions precise. You have the sense of a good friend guiding you through a delightful new passage. The pictures are beautiful, matching the superb detail of the book. Who could ask for more?
Rating: 
Summary: Immediate thumbs up!
Review: I just received this book for Christmas after wanting it since it was first released. It immediately satisfied my questions about the bok choy family (try and figure out the difference between yu choy and choy sum if you're not an expert in Asian produce). I also made a recipe for broccoli raab (one of the four names she mentions) and found it very quick, easy, and relatively low fat. I admit, I haven't used it day-in and day-out like some of the reviewers, but upon immediate perusal it has clear pictures and descriptions and recipes that utilize the main ingredient in its 'natural habitat' i.e. Cuban vegies have Cuban recipes, etc. I'm saving the fifth star only because I am still working through the book.
Rating:
Summary: Great, but why not complete?
Review: I just received this book yesterday and it is AWESOME! It is exactly what I hoped it would be; a pictorial reference to help me identify unusual produce and give me a leg up on how to prepare it. It is more like a text book or encyclopedia than anything else. And it will make a great coffee table book too! I've had it one day and already loaned it out! One warning, though -- as a vegetarian buying a book on vegetables, I was surprised to find that many (but not all by any means) recipes included meat ingredients. This is a minor detraction in my book. Enjoy this FUN book!
Rating:
Summary: AWESOME book; one warning
Review: I just received this book yesterday and it is AWESOME! It is exactly what I hoped it would be; a pictorial reference to help me identify unusual produce and give me a leg up on how to prepare it. It is more like a text book or encyclopedia than anything else. And it will make a great coffee table book too! I've had it one day and already loaned it out! One warning, though -- as a vegetarian buying a book on vegetables, I was surprised to find that many (but not all by any means) recipes included meat ingredients. This is a minor detraction in my book. Enjoy this FUN book!
Rating:
Summary: Good for satisfying curiousity, but recipes are lacking
Review: I worked in the produce department of an upscale supermarket for several years, so I feel like I know a few things about fruits and vegetables. However, this book has more information about exotic (and some not-so-exotic) vegetables than I could have imagined. The descriptions, the histories, and the photos of veggies are all outstanding. Elizabeth Schneider writes with a lot of enthusiasm, and after reading for only a short time, you will want to go out, buy the vegetables, and start cooking and eating! The problem is that the recipes included in the book dont always match the quality of the descriptions. I've tested a handful of them, all for different vegetables, and the final dishes just didnt turn out well. They were all okay, but a couple just seemed, well, bland, and a couple others tended to be dominated by one seasoning (white pepper, for example.) Not that this was a huge problem, and you could easily tweak the recipes yourself, but I guess the quality of the rest of the book led me to expect more. And since about half of the book IS recipes, it was a little disappointing. Since the vegetables are uncommon, they often arent included in other cookbooks. Overall, though, I liked the book, and one of the best things I've found is that it's made me more likely to experiment with the vegetables, outside the context of a prepared recipie, since Schneider gives general preparation and storage tips for all her entries. Her other book, which deals with both fruits and vegetables, is older and consequently has some entries that deal with more common produce. I'd recommend that book too, if you're looking for something geared towards guiding you through the supermarket.
Rating:
Summary: Good for satisfying curiousity, but recipes are lacking
Review: I worked in the produce department of an upscale supermarket for several years, so I feel like I know a few things about fruits and vegetables. However, this book has more information about exotic (and some not-so-exotic) vegetables than I could have imagined. The descriptions, the histories, and the photos of veggies are all outstanding. Elizabeth Schneider writes with a lot of enthusiasm, and after reading for only a short time, you will want to go out, buy the vegetables, and start cooking and eating! The problem is that the recipes included in the book dont always match the quality of the descriptions. I've tested a handful of them, all for different vegetables, and the final dishes just didnt turn out well. They were all okay, but a couple just seemed, well, bland, and a couple others tended to be dominated by one seasoning (white pepper, for example.) Not that this was a huge problem, and you could easily tweak the recipes yourself, but I guess the quality of the rest of the book led me to expect more. And since about half of the book IS recipes, it was a little disappointing. Since the vegetables are uncommon, they often arent included in other cookbooks. Overall, though, I liked the book, and one of the best things I've found is that it's made me more likely to experiment with the vegetables, outside the context of a prepared recipie, since Schneider gives general preparation and storage tips for all her entries. Her other book, which deals with both fruits and vegetables, is older and consequently has some entries that deal with more common produce. I'd recommend that book too, if you're looking for something geared towards guiding you through the supermarket.
Rating:
Summary: Veggies: A Weighty and Useful Reference
Review: I've had a copy of Elizabeth Schneider's "Uncommon Fruits & Vegetables" for about three years and refer to it quite often. Flipping through that book, I note page markings for arugula, cilantro, spaghetti squash, mangoes, radish sprouts, Swiss chard, Chinese cabbage, tomatillos and others. When published in 1986, these items were "curiosities." Schneider's book is recognized today as a classic that influenced cooks and the produce market. Now, 15 years later, Schneider has produced an updated version of the 1986 book. In "Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini," she has dropped the fruits and winnowed out the veggies. Cilantro and other "spice" type veggies are not in the new book. Sprouts, squash, and other single items in the old book are now presented within generic headings. There is lots of new material. The format and presentation of the new book-with large heavy weight glossy paper, 275 good photos, 500 meat and meatless recipes and 220 more pages-is as elegant as the old book is text bookish. The 1996 reprint of "Uncommon Fruits" ...; "Vegetables" goes for twice that! If I had neither and wanted a vegetable reference book, I'd go "Vegetables," price notwithstanding. Schneider has been writing for 30 years, "Vegetables from Amaranth to Zucchini" is likely her magnum opus. It is a 2001 nominee for a James Beard Foundation book award.
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