The First Mess (recipes from a Canadian organic chef)
Learning to cook your own food is empowering, as you no longer have to rely on expensive plastic-wrapped ready-meals and takeaways. Master your favourite cuisines at home. Then every night is restaurant night!
The First Mess is a highly-reviewed cookbook packed with wholesome recipes to eat through the seasons. What makes this book different is that it uses real locally-sourced organic ingredients to create recipes, using seasonal finds from your weekly veg box.
Before cooking, read up on food safety for people and pets (many ingredients are unsafe near animal friends). Bin allium scraps (onion, garlic, leeks, shallots, chives) as acids may harm compost creatures (same with tomato/citrus/rhubarb scraps).
If growing food, read our posts on pet-friendly gardens and wildlife-friendly gardens. Avoid facing indoor plants to outdoor gardens, to help stop birds flying into windows.
What Foods to Eat (and when?)
- Spring – asparagus, spinach, peas, radishes, rocket, kale
- Summer – tomatoes, sweetcorn, strawberries, courgettes, peppers
- Autumn – carrots, apples, pumpkins, parsnips, squash
- Winter – collards, squash, kale
Arguably, the best recipe books are those that use local natural and seasonal produce. Not only better for the planet with less food miles and less packaging, but the ingredients are easy to find, and more affordable.
The author is a Canadian who grew up in a family that ran organic box schemes. She trained as a chef, and also writes and photographs well. So all combined, you end up with a smashing book.
Recipes include:
- Beet & Mushroom Bolognese
- Fluffy Whole Grain Pancakes
- Hot Pink Beet Smoothie
- Broccoli Caesar with Smoky Tempeh Bits
- Vegetable Bean Pot Pies with Potato Crust
- Weeknight Root Vegetable Dal
- Burrito-stuffed Sweet Potatoes
- Romanesco Salad with Meyer Lemon Dressing
- Chilli Tofu Lime Bowls
- Roasted Aubergine & Olive Bolognese
- Earl Grey & Vanilla Bean Tiramisu
About the Author
Laura Wright has been cooking and testing plant-based seasonal recipes for years. Her cooking blog is one of the most popular in the world, packed with recipes that use real affordable ingredients, and turn out well each time. Many of her readers are not vegan, she prefers to simply focus on good food to inspire, rather than be a ‘celebrity chef’.
