Strawberry Love: 45 Sweet and Savory Recipes for Shortcakes, Hand Pies, Salads, Salsas, and More

James Beard Award–winning chef Graubart (Mastering the Art of Southern Cooking) takes a delightful deep dive into dishes that feature strawberries. She kicks things off with an introduction loaded with strawberry trivia (“Ancient Romans used wild strawberries to treat sore throats and even depression,” and Native Americans “steeped leaves and roots into teas that treated gum and internal inflammations”) before getting into the recipes, which are organized into three sections: Bright Mornings, Savory Delights, and Sweet Treats. Breakfast dishes often come with berry-infused sides such as strawberry-orange muffins, which are accompanied by a honey-strawberry butter, or sour cream strawberry waffles topped with strawberry syrup. Desserts run the gamut of everyday fare—strawberry-mint sorbet, cupcakes with strawberry frosting—to special occasion-worthy stunners—an extravagant strawberry meringue stack cake and a strawberry-pistachio bundt cake with lemon glaze. Savory options include fish tacos with strawberry salsa, and pork chops with a strawberry-balsamic sauce. To wash it all down, drinks like strawberry lemon-limeade, mezcal-based smoked strawberry smash, or an old-fashioned strawberry milkshake appear throughout. This is perfect for home cooks ready to take the next step beyond strawberry shortcake. (Apr.)