5 Favorite Cookbooks to Brighten Your Spring

Green green green, plus a little sugar.

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Some flowers from my garden this year

Last weekend, I took my first trip of the year to the local farmer’s market. It was a rare sunny morning, and the place was full of local breads and pastries, not to mention some very cute dogs. But it was the abundance of bright spring greens everywhere that caught my eye.

Rob Walker has a wonderful exercise called a “color walk.” You simply take a walk, and try to notice one particular color in your environment. From time to time, I’ll do this on my daily dog walks to help open my senses to the outside world, especially useful when I’ve been staring at spreadsheets or words on a screen all day.

The color I can’t help but notice lately is that almost-neon green, the one with a touch of yellow, the color of new growth. It’s on the ground, in the budding trees, in the garden, and at the farmer’s market.

If, like me, you’d like to bring that bright green feeling into your kitchen, here are five cookbooks from my shelves that have been inspiring that spring mood lately.

Most of these are British or Scottish, which surprised me at first. But then, I think spring is perhaps the most beautiful season in that part of the world (as it is here in Oregon), so perhaps it’s not so unusual.

Greenfeast: Spring, Summer by Nigel Slater

Greenfeast is a two-part series from Nigel Slater, the other of course being Autumn, Winter. It’s full of simple delights made from seasonal produce, described in that spare, poetic way only Nigel Slater has that really helps you inhabit the season. I like the small format of this book. It feels like a handbook to cooking with seasonal produce.

Salad Feasts by Jessica Elliott Dennison

This is a new one to me, purchased used after I ordered a copy of her Midweek Recipes cookbook (which is also lovely). I’ve made 4 recipes so far, and each one has been utterly delightful and fresh. Recently, I made the Spring Greens Orecchiette with a fresh lemon pesto (and homemade cavatellii instead), and broccolini with big beans and a dressing of blended peas, herbs, and yogurt.

26 Grains by Alex Hely-Hutchinson

Beans and grains are my favorite vehicles for fresh spring vegetables, and this book has so many ideas for using them. I particularly like the section that provides a blueprint for creating your own porridge. I eat oatmeal for breakfast almost every day, so this book has encouraged me to try other grains for breakfast, from amaranth to farro.

Grains for Every Season by Joshua McFadden is another great choice, especially because I love cookbooks arranged by season.

A Change of Appetite by Diana Henry

I love the sensuality of Diana Henry’s cookbooks, and this one focuses on lighter dishes, which is often what I’m in the mood for when spring rolls around.

Nancy Silverton’s Pastries from the La Brea Bakery

And along with all that green produce, I have to have my sweets.

I was recently struck by a nostalgia for those moist, sticky bran muffins that were ubiquitous at coffee shops in the 90s. I tried 3 different bran muffin recipes until I found the one: Nancy Silverton’s bran muffins.

Once I made them, I knew I had to hunt down the cookbook they came from. It’s out of print and hard to find, but I located a copy on ebay, and it looks like Barnes and Noble has an ebook available.

I’ve now made three muffins from this book (birdseed muffins, bran muffins, and ricotta muffins with fennel) and they’ve only cemented my devotion to all things Nancy Silverton.

This book is full of muffins, scones, cookies, and breakfast pastries which are perfect to take on a morning picnic walk near the local pond.

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