To the Last Bite: Fall
Review By Maria Buteux Reade
Recipes and Ideas for Making the Most of Your Ingredients
Written by Alexis deBoschnek
Photography by Nicole Franzen
Published by Simon & Schuster, 2022
Alexis deBoschnek believes that cutting back on food waste remains one of the most effective ways we can combat climate change. In fact, she created her first cookbook, To the Last Bite: Recipes and Ideas for Making the Most of Your Ingredients, filled with unique—and truly delicious— recipes designed to ensure that nothing goes to waste.
“My mom was a master gardener who practiced sustainability before it became ‘a thing,’” she explains. Ingredients for meals were sourced locally, foraged from the woods, caught in the rivers and streams and harvested from their gardens. “Mom taught me to waste as little as possible through creative cooking, canning, freezing and composting. Everything had a purpose beyond its first use.”
Alexis believes that we all need to think and cook more consciously in order to honor the beautiful food our farmers and producers offer. Th roughout the book, she nudges readers to use as many parts of the vegetable as possible, especially stalks and stems. Fennel stalks, chard stems, broccoli leaves, parsley and cilantro stems, dark green tops of leeks—divert them from the compost bin because they contain the most color, texture and flavor! Don’t pitch your citrus peels— zest them into a dish even if a recipe doesn’t call for it; the flavor boost pays dividends. And of course, veggie scraps and poultry carcasses should be reserved to enrich stocks.
This native of New York’s Catskill Mountains admits she wasn’t raised like other kids. Her family didn’t have a television, and Alexis went to school with lunches that ranged from roasted zucchini and garlic sandwiches, baguettes with thin ribbons of prosciutto and butter and pâté with avocado. Her favorite childhood meal? Rice and kale alongside sole topped with caper butter. Not your typical kid fare.
At the end of most recipes in the book, Alexis suggests dishes that can incorporate any remaining ingredients in other dishes. Prepare once, use twice. Double the amount of rice for shallot and white wine—infused Weeknight Rice then feature it in Crispy Rice Salad the next evening. When you’re roasting cauliflower for Charred Cauliflower with Zhoug and Pine Nuts, make an extra sheet pan and you’re halfway to a comforting breakfast of Cauliflower and Cheddar Strata. With a basic farm-to-table theme, the recipes all weave together beautifully.
Root Vegetable Pot Pie is tailor-made to highlight any combination of your favorite earthy roots beyond carrots and beets. This is a great chance to reach for parsnips, sweet potatoes, rutabaga, fennel or celery root. Save the dark-green tops from your White Wine Braised Leeks and let them shine in Fingerling Potato and Leek Top Frittata, which reminds Alexis of eating sour cream and onion chips.
An omnivore, Alexis admits she loves meat in moderation and acknowledges that she’s privileged to have access to humanely raised pastured meats and poultry. Lamb Phyllo Pie showcases spiced ground lamb enhanced with feta, chilies and fresh herbs ensconced in a nest of golden, crackling phyllo. Leftover red wine? Why not make a hearty Red Wine Braised Short Rib Ragout that marries meaty short ribs with aromatic slow-cooked vegetables and herbs. On the sweet side, the Salted Maple Vanilla Bean Pot de Crème is irresistible, as is Coconut Ginger Pecan Granola that clumps together in a perfectly crunchy way.
After college, Alexis did a four-month intensive culinary program then moved to Los Angeles and worked in food media for 10 years. She is currently a freelance recipe developer. What sparks her creativity? “I want to cook dishes that are approachable, accessible and delicious. Low lift, high reward,” she explains. “I try to create recipes for people who may not have access to gourmet groceries or specialty shops. The majority of my dishes are based on ingredients found in local grocery stores. Except for black garlic, which is one of my favorite splurge items. Buy it online and it’ll last forever in your fridge!”
Recipes and photos excerpted from TO THE LAST BITE by Alexis deBoschnek. Copyright © 2022. Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.
