What it is: In 'The Organic Food Shopper's Guide,' Jeff Cox offers profiles of more than 100 foods (mostly produce but also milk, meat, grains and more), explaining the organic benefits of each, their season, if applicable, and some ways to use them. Storage tips and recipes are here too.
Praise (and quibbles): Cox takes the time to explain why the organic products are better than their nonorganic counterparts, and it's not always limited to the absence of pesticides (although there's that). For example, the texture and flavor of commercially grown cauliflower, he writes, often suffer from the large doses of soluble nitrogen fertilizer used to grow it, and the conventional growing practices for tomatoes make them stay harder so they'll last longer on a store shelf, great for the merchant, not so great for the tomatophile.
As valuable as this information is, we were more drawn to the other features, particularly the list of best varieties of a given fruit or vegetable, the tip boxes sprinkled throughout ('If you like pecans but have never tasted a hickory nut, wow, do you have a treat coming.') and the 100 plus recipes, such as the rosemary pesto and the radish salsa.
Why we think you'll like it: This is a great go to guide for shoppers who want in depth information on why organic matters. But it's also a nice book to have while navigating the aisles of ever expanding farmers markets and produce departments.
By Renee Enna
THE LATEST ORGANIC SHOPPING GUIDE NEWS, FROM THE ORGANIC HOME
Original source: http://www.theorganichome.co.uk/2008/06/organic-food-shopping-guide.php
