Title:	The Berkeley Bowl Cookbook: Recipes Inspired by the Extraordinary Produce of California's Most Iconic Market
	Author:	Laura McLively
	Published:	April 17, 2018, Parallax Press
	No. of Pages:	216
	Cover Price:	$34.95 Hardcover, $16.99 Kindle

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If you’re one who likes to add a bit of variety to your fruit and vegetable repertoire, then you’ll want to pick up The Berkeley Bowl Cookbook: Recipes Inspired by the Extraordinary Produce of California's Most Iconic Market by Laura McLively. This informative and fascinating cookbook contains dozens of recipes to use exotic fruits and vegetables that are emerging on the market today.

The Berkeley Bowl, located in Berkeley, of course, is a popular produce and grocery store specializing in exotic produce with an emphasis on a huge variety of tomatoes. According to McLively, the store has over “1200 varieties of fruits and vegetables,” many of which, fortunately, are also available in grocery stores, specialty food stores (my Asian market has several for included recipes), and farmer’s markets.

This cookbook includes descriptions and information on the exotic fruits and vegetables used in the recipes, and there are beautiful photographs of most of the recipes. Also included is a history of The Berkeley Bowl. The book is well-written, and makes one want to visit Berkeley as soon as possible. In the meantime, vegetarians and non-vegetarians will want to try the mouthwatering recipes that are appealing to all. I used up some winter squash that was laying around my kitchen in the Carnival Spice Cake; this recipe gave me the opportunity to serve stone-ground whole wheat flour and vegetables to my unsuspecting family; there were no leftovers. We also loved the Anaheim Chile and Corn Chowder. In the queue are Redcurrant Almond Clafoutis, as well as Roasted Chestnut Chocolate Torte and Vanilla Rhubarb Jam. There are actually dozens of recipes that I want to try.

Cooks who enjoy preparing meals with new fruits and vegetables will enjoy this book; it’s an interesting read, and the recipes are easy to follow and they turn out picture perfect. It’s a good choice for vegetarians and has several good vegan recipes as well.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.