Hudson Valley Mediterranean

Laura Pensiero's "Hudson Valley Mediterranean: The Gigi Good Food Cookbook" could be shortened to just "The Good Food Cookbook." Yes, the recipes are tied to New York’s Hudson Valley and traditional Mediterranean dishes, but good is the operative word -- good on the pocketbook, good for your health, good looking on the plate and deliciously good going down.      Pensiero packages her recipes according to the seasons and encourages you to purchase ingredients fresh from local farmers. That doesn’t mean you can’t make “Pound Cake with Strawberry Rhubarb Compote” in the winter or “Eggplant Fries” in summer. Of course you can. Each recipe includes variations/substitutions along with serving suggestions, nutritional value and what costs are involved. Glossy photographs and fascinating “snapshots” of stories behind the scenes will prompt you to take the book to your favorite reading chair after you are done in the kitchen.
Pensiero knows food and she knows what’s best for the body. In addition to being a chef she is a registered dietician, who was named one of five "amazingly gifted and giving food professionals" by O, The Oprah Magazine. She's worked with some of the best health-care institutions in the world, including Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center.
    The cookbook is akin to a textbook. You’ll learn how to adapt some of your old recipes so they are better than ever and you’ll learn some things you never knew before. For instance, are you familiar with San Marzano tomatoes? When Pensiero calls for canned tomatoes, she specially calls for these. Unfamiliar with San Marzanos, I discovered they are heirloom plum tomatoes grown in the town of San Marzano, Italy, and were first grown in the volcanic soil of Mount Vesuvius. They have been described as having a stronger, more sweet and less acidic flavor than regular plum tomatoes, and are the best tomatoes to cook into a sauce.
They aren’t as hard to find as you might think. Check your local grocery store. Be sure to look for the EU “DOP” emblem on the label which ensures they have been grown in Italy, in compliance with Italian law.
I decided to do a taste test, using one recipe and making it twice – once with a white sauce, the other with tomato sauce.  I chose Spring (and Every Other Season) Lasagna which is packed with the most wonderful ingredients -- pick what's coming out of the garden now or mix it up, just go crazy and load it up! I used fresh peas, zucchini, garlic, thyme, onions and parsley from the garden and fresh mushrooms from the farmers' market. I also opted for artichoke bottoms, which came from the grocery store. I did not add any meat to the dishes but there’s no reason you can’t.
If you prefer a white lasagna, this one is hard to beat. The sauce also works miracles with macaroni and cheese, fettucine Alfredo and other recipes that call for a creamy white sauce.
If you prefer a tomato sauce, you will end up with a sorry-no-leftovers meal.

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