Foraging & Feasting: A Field Guide and Wild Food Cookbook by Dina Falconi. Illustrator Wendy Hollender. Publisher Botanical Arts Press, LLC.

I was lured by the beauty of the art in this book, and by the fact that I'm increasingly interested in foraging, and using "weeds" for food, beverages and medicine in my every day life. And it is gorgeous! However, many the "wild plants" it addresses are well known and commonly used: Apple mint, black and red raspberry (two different chapters), blueberry, lemon balm, American black current and European black current as well as red current, peppermint and spearmint. Even among the lesser-known (for newbies like me), such as mallow, the author has separate pages for mallow, musk mallow, and hollyhock mallow. This book was expensive, and I'm not happy that a book that has "foraging" in the title features so many plants that are very common and widely commercialized. While I will still use and enjoy it, if I had been able to employ the "look inside the book" feature (which was not available for this book), I probably wouldn't have spent the money. Another book recently came out that is equally gorgeous, less expensive, paperback instead of hardcover (which makes it lighter as well as easier to use), much more extensive in terms of variety of plants addressed, and will ultimately get more use.

I love botanical drawings. The artwork is beautiful. Over the last couple years, I've been very inspired to learn the old art of living off the bounty of the land. I figure if animals the size of Dear and even Moose can live off the land, why can't we. I was so excited at the idea of this book, lovely botanical drawings PLUS recipes for using wild plants for your meals. I figured it worth $50. I was a bit let down when I got the book and found the bulk of the recipes are teas and sauces. And there are much fewer plants covered than I'd hoped for. A beautiful book, but not a survivalist tool.

I LOVE this book. The pictures are JOYful and express the love of plants in such an amazing way. I'd buy this book again just for the drawings. But even more delightful are the recipes which are presented in a way that draws out your creativity and draws you out into nature to see what's for dinner.The recipes don't tell you what you must use. You won't find 1 cup of all purpose flour, 1 teaspoon of baking powder, 1 teaspoon of vanilla here. Instead the recipes are "Master Recipes" that give you a vast variety of optional ingredients to choose from. Not 1 cup of all purpose flour, but rather 1 cup of the flour of your choice: white flour, rice flour, arrowroot starch, etc. Each master recipe comes with many variations that allow you to go out into the garden to see what's in season. You could create a vast array of delicious food and never create exactly the same cookie, biscuit, or fruit sauce using just the recipes in this book. The prospect of spending time in the garden accompanied by this book is delightful.If you are a timid cook, this book might just bring you a little out of your comfort zone. If you are an adventurous gardener and cook this book will be your muse.

This is the perfect book for someone who is just getting into foraging and doesn't know very much. The drawings are so easy to compare to real-life plants. Descriptions and detailed drawings for every part of the plant in every season include exactly what parts are edible and when. I have been spending hours walking around my own property and have found so many things that I had no idea I could use. Truly beautiful art work in this too.

Im a huge fan. The illustrations are very clear and the information is both succinct and comprehensive. Great design. It’s difficult to find foraging books that hit on all cylinders and are jam packed with information. This is a definite recommendation for anyone just getting into the freedom of wild food. For long time foragers it’s absolutely the most beautiful of all the books; with this and any of Sam Thayers stuff it’s easy to communicate with anyone curious or worried. Really great book

Very well done,I’m hoping for another book with more recipes and plants, the recipes are easy to follow, the pictures are detailed

After purchasing and reading this book myself, I have bought more copies and given them as gifts. Now I am buying another copy to give to a chef friend of mine for Christmas — he expressed interest in wild edibles and Foraging & Feasting would make the perfect present. I know he will appreciate the attention to both descriptive and illustrative detail in the book.You can take this book into the field to find the living plants, no matter what the season, (as plants often morph in appearance from season to season). The illustrations are that precise. Yet, the drawings are beautiful enough to be considered artwork by themselves. This book could sit proudly on one’s coffee table for all to enjoy, even if one never actually forages.However, Foraging and Feasting is a serious how-to on foraging. In addition to the amazing plant identification pages, the book contains highly useful and informative charts such as the seasonal harvest, plant habitat and growing conditions, and information on each plant's culinary uses.Once you’ve harvested the plants and bring them into your kitchen, the book becomes a very worthy cookbook, offering a full spectrum of recipes, from beverages to desserts and everything in between. There are 100 master recipes to guide you in each plant’s culinary use. From these recipes thousands of new recipes can be made to which you can add your own special touches. This book works on many levels whether you are a foraging and culinary novice, or a seasoned forager and cook. I have tried many of these recipes myself and they are delicious and practical. Foraging and Feasting is a book for foodies; it’s a book for bringing us back to our culinary roots. It’s a book to bring us back to food as nature intended.

ABSOLUTELY beautiful, useful and well worth it! Great job! Do wish it was available in paperback so easier for feild use!

I love it.

Very good packaging, good quality book

Took quite a while to arrive but wonderful book, super nice drawings, great recipes.Just wished the recipes had pictures too..