Win a local cookbook: "Simple, Fresh & Healthy"

There's a new local cookbook in my over-crowded cookbook shelves, next to "Dinosaur Bar-B-Que: An American Roadhouse" and "Joey's Italian.'' It's "Simple, Fresh & Healthy: A Collection of Seasonal Recipes,'' by Linda Hafner, with Denise Owen Harrigan (Beaufort Books, $19.95).

Linda Hafner and her husband, Chuck, are co-founders of Chuck Hafner's Farmer's Market and Garden Center in North Syracuse. She's a gardener (to say the least!), mother, grandmother, working woman, busy woman and enthusiastic cook who understands that there isn't always a lot of time to get dinner on the table. She's also a former home economics teacher, a certified fitness instructor and a major proponent of eating fresh food, in season.

"I don't believe you can be healthy if you're eating stuff out of a box all the time,'' Hafner says.

Hafner spent more than three years working on her book. It's divided into four main chapters -- spring, summer, fall and winter -- and contains more than 80 recipes. The book features gorgeous color photography -- a photo with each recipe -- by James Scherzi, who also worked on the "Dinosaur'' and "Joey's'' cookbooks.

The reaction from readers so far: "People love it because it's simple and has a lot of pictures and easy-to-follow recipes,'' Hafner says. "My idea was just to get people to cook. If you can do it simple, you can do it healthy.''

"Simple, Fresh & Healthy'' is available for $19.95 at Chuck Hafner's Farmer's Market, and will be available at book sellers like Barnes & Noble and Amazon in the spring of 2011.

ENTER TO WIN!: I have one (1) copy of "Simple, Fresh & Healthy'' to give away to a reader from Central/Upstate New York. To be eligible to win, leave a comment in the comment field below. Members of my family are excluded. The deadline to enter is noon Monday, Nov. 29. The winner will be notified by e-mail Monday afternoon and must be able to pick up the book in person next week at Chuck Hafner's Farmer's Market, Buckley Road, North Syracuse.

Good luck!

Above: Linda Hafner's Healthy Granola (Page 124) with fruit and yogurt. Photo by James Scherzi.

 

Comments

[Margaret @ Eat First]

Hi, Maureen and Linda -- Thanks for visiting... just a few short hours until I pull the winner's name out of a hat! Good luck!

--Margaret
PS: It really is a lovely cookbook. I LOVE how she has it organized by season. As Joanna points out here, it would be really nice to come home from the market with a bundle of produce and consult this book for inspiration!

[Maureen]

Please let the winner be me Margaret. I love your blog and if you like this cookbook, I know I will too. Thanks for doing such a thorough job finding the best that CNY has to offer.

[Linda / Metro Home Style]

I would love to have a new cookbook, especially a LOCAL one!

Keep up the great work on the blog, glad that you find time to post in spite of the busy holiday season!

[Margaret @ Eat First]

Hi, Katie -- Welcome to Syracuse, thanks for visiting my blog and Happy Thanksgiving! If you ever have any Central New York/food-related questions let me know. Happy to help. Entering your name in the book giveaway -- good luck!

[Katie Didit]

I'm (relatively) new to the area, and I like using this blog (among others) to find out about new healthy places I haven't heard of. I moved from a walkable community where organic and local was normal, so it can be a struggle sometimes. This cookbook would be great to add to my shelves because I love to cook seasonally and it's introduced me to a CNY place I've never heard of!

[Margaret @ Eat First]

Joanna: Hi! Yes, I did change my blog design earlier, quite by accident. Went back to my original design ... now I'm back to the banner at the top I can change at whim (without the squash!). You're right, the seasonal theme of this book is a great idea.
Hello, Balogh... thanks to both of you for visiting. I'm throwing your names in the hat. Happy Thanksgiving!

[Joanna G]

Oooh…like the idea of organizing by season. Would certainly help with the problem of coming home from the regional market with too much of whatever is in season and wondering what the heck to do with it!

btw, did you redesign your blog today? I swear when I clicked earlier there was acorn squash with mysterious white chunks inside—coconut? apple? pale butter?!—in the header. Looks great, very cookbook/foodie.

[Balogh]

I'd love to have some new recipes in the house. Great local blog, BTW. I look forward to your posts.

[Margaret @ Eat First]

Hi, Kathy -- Nice to see you here! This is a really nice soft-cover cookbook. Happy Thanksgiving to you and your extended family.

[Kathy Coffta Sims]

Oh I am so excited. Love your blog and would love the cookbook.
Used the Dinosaur cookbook and the Maya Angelou cookbook with my 7th graders. They were learning descriptive writing and cookbooks are a great source for that. They went on to create some fabulous restaurant menus.
Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours.

[Margaret @ Eat First]

You're in, my friend! If the drawing were THIS SECOND, you'd be the winner. :=) Happy Thanksgiving!

[Claire Brennan Dunn]

I'm commenting, Margaret!
First, I enjoy your blog.
Second, I love to pursue seasonal, local foods and this cookbook looks like a great tool in that quest.
I use my Dinosaur cookbook all the time. Maybe I should take a look at Joey's Italian.
Happy Thanksgiving!