As Fresh As It Gets: Everyday Recipes from the Tomato Fresh Food Cafe

Today, increasing emphasis is being placed on the integrity of the way the food we eat is grown. We all dream about produce picked on a summer morning, making its way to our plates by noon. Christian Gaudreault, owner of Vancouver's Tomato Fresh Food Cafe, has spent the last 15 years serving food straight from the farm with delicious results. In their first book, Christian and his wife Starllie share their best-loved and most sought-after recipes; at the heart of the book is their simple philosophy: if you learn how to let farmers' fields and local markets determine your menus, cooking at home can be a fun and uncomplicated experience.

These beautiful recipes feature ingredients that are farm-fresh but widely available in every part of the country. For Christian and Starllie, the heart of meal-making is about acknowledging and knowing where your food comes from; it's also about the communal aspect of eating, particularly at the Tomato, a casual, soul-enriching place where people from all walks of life sit down together and share the common bond of food.

The book features 32 full-color photographs, as well as insightful sidebars on how to pick out the best produce and meats, essential products for the pantry, and of course, a history of the tomato, in all its juicy glory.

Recipes include: Crab Cakes with Peppercorn Aioli; Pan-Seared Scallops with Mushroom Risotto; Grilled Long-Bone Pork Chop with Pear Chutney; Roasted Tomato & Artichoke Salad; Mediterranean Couscous Salad; Heirloom Tomato Gazpacho; Lemon Meringue Tart; Peach Blueberry Galette.

Christian Gaudreault spent his childhood in Quebec, Canada, where he grew up in his family’s restaurant. He has worked in Europe and in Vancouver with famed chef and restaurateur Umberto Menghi. Gaudreault became co-owner of The Tomato Fresh Food Cafe in 1995 and sole owner in 2001. Starllie Spilos’s lifelong interest in food and in baking began by watching her mother create desserts. A graduate of the Dubrulle French Culinary School, Starllie received a Les Dames d?Escoffier scholarship to The Culinary Institute of America ? Napa Valley. She is also a baking instructor at a Vancouver high school.