“[A] culinary-reader of delights nested together much like a matryoshka doll. With hundreds of recipes, poetic prose pieces, cooking and poetry notes, and lavish illustrations, this literary-cookbook defies simple classification. Authors Myra Kornfeld and Stephen Massimilla offer a lap-filling volume that could be criticized for overreach if it weren’t such a fascinating genre-blending, seasonally-framed journey through history and culture.” — Susan Thurston,
Los Angeles Review
“Cooking with the Muse shows how poetry and food are connected by the cycles of nature, the seasons, the landscape: the stuff poets write about…Stephen Massimilla, a professor and accomplished poet, brings much of his own work to the party… Myra’s banquet of original and sumptuous recipes speaks to the poet in all of us.” — Rozanne Gold,
The Huffington Post
“When writing a cookbook, one of the challenges is to curate recipes that will be universally appealing. The authors have more than met expectations in this regard. They take their inspiration from cuisine that hails from around the world, as well as dishes that epitomize Americana. The recipes are approachable for novice cooks and avid chefs alike. Perhaps even more impressive are the irresistible poems and passages. They make it all but impossible to thumb through quickly in search of a recipe, as one’s eye is instantly drawn to the texts. This well-crafted cookbook would make an enviable addition to any kitchen.” — Jacquelyn Gilchrist, Recommended Review,
The US Review of Books
“Kornfeld and Massimilla were going to write a cookbook; they made a kind of poem instead. Here are historical discussions, contemporary observations; course corrections… analyses of fats such as butter, and of K2 (the vitamin, not the mountain); and the sundry ways and means of the culinary arts. Massimilla…put together a collection of his astonishingly original poems on food… With its wealth of detail and its numerous ways of approaching food, this book must surely have been a labor of love.” — John Paul Russo, Editor-in-Chief, Italian Americana
“Chef Myra Kornfeld and poet Stephen Massimilla are the authors of Cooking with the Muse (Tupelo), a book that presents food with a side of poetry. Kornfeld and Massimilla expound on recipes and culinary poetry, such as John Milton’s lines on fennel from Paradise Lost, ‘[A] savoury odour blown / Grateful to appetite, more pleased my sense/ Than smell of sweetest Fennel,’ paired with a Butternut Squash, Pear, and Fennel Soup with Fennel Oil and Blue Cheese!” — Publishers Weekly
“The table of contents of Cooking with the Muse reads like poetry: Braised Sunchokes with Fennel, Olives, and Thyme; Warm-Hearted Pea Cakes with Sesame Crust and Garlic-Piquillo Pepper Sauce; Mango Chia Seed Pudding with Cashew-Coconut Cream…. These are words that roll gently around the tastebuds, as well as the imagination. The authors freely intersperse recipes with historical and artistic references, lore and verse to inspire your culinary liaison. The richness of the text ensures the recipes will nourish soul as well as body in this love affair between food and literature.” —
Whole Life Magazine
“Some are so moved by the poetic nature of food and cooking that they’ve written a whole cookbook inspired by the relationship. Cooking with the Muse by Myra Kornfeld and Stephen Massimilla explores poetry and cooking by pairing fantastic recipes with thematic verse. One of our favorites is a celebration of spring onions—perfect for this time of year.” — FOOD 52
“Muse casts a wide net into deep waters, submerging the reader into an ardent exploration of an ingredient through its historical roots — such as tracing Brussels sprouts’ popularity during the late Renaissance, paired with a recipe for Shaved Brussels Sprouts with Caramelized Shallots and Grana Padano Cheese. A single line of poetry can offer the cook inspiration, as evidenced in Osip Mandelstam writing ‘And I was alive in the blizzard of the blossoming pear’ (Christian Wiman translation). Who wouldn’t then want to spoon into warm from the oven Apple-Pear Cranberry Crumble? “ — Annelies Zijderveld, Poetry International
“I believe cookbooks can be pleasurable respites and inspiring tools to help you actually feel as if you have more time in your day. No better place to look than the dense book lover’s cookbook, Cooking with the Muse: A Sumptuous Gathering of Seasonal Recipes, Culinary Poetry, and Literary Fare by Myra Kornfeld and Stephen Massimilla, for pure delectable inspiration. Far more than a cookbook offering quick and tasty meals, this wonderfully curated and carefully organized resource is a delightfully poetic read.” — Emily Walter,
Colorado Review
“Though it is certainly more cookbook than poetry anthology, Cooking with the Muse still manages to embody poetry even on pages where no actual poems are present, and is an excellent addition to the poet’s kitchen and the cook’s library alike.” — Caitlin Pryor, Pleiades
“Cooking with the Muse … leaves the reader exulting in every meal they remember relishing, connecting the experience—of shopping for groceries, preparing a mise en place, simply stirring a soup or stew, of spooning the first hopeful bite into your mouth, and then the quiet and happy-sighing meal that followed—of food with something both historic and lyric.” — Chloe Anne Campbell, storySouth
“Getting to Know Stephen Massimilla, Myra Kornfeld, and their new book Cooking with the Muse” — Mass Poetry
“What sets this book apart is the added literary component of culinary poetry on food, cooking and eating, making it my pick as the best cookbook of the summer.” — Diane Worthington, The Chicago Tribune
“A great cookbook is meant to be devoured as much while reading on the couch as while pacing in the kitchen; a great poetry anthology is an inspiring by the stove as in the living room. Cooking with the Muse: A Sumptuous Gathering of Seasonal Recipes, Culinary Poetry, and Literary Fare, a compendium of 150 recipes, 200 full-color photographs, poetry about food and cooking, culinary and historical notes, and literary notes is at home in every room of the house, the stuff of dreams and of action, thinking and making.” — Grace Dane Mazur, Artsfuse.org
“This creative and vibrant effort marries two highly imaginative endeavors.” — Barbara Jacobs, Booklist
“Get good ingredients a French chef might say, and try not to screw them up. The heart of this big beautiful book beats with that philosophy, but also this: respect the food, and please, slow down, and don’t forget to read some poetry along the way.” — Josh Cook, Foreword Magazine
“If I ever had the chance to take off a year and spend it in the country with my family, the one cookbook I’d pack is Cooking with the Muse. Preparing recipes from this book will persuade you to slow down and appreciate the powerful connection between food, poetry, and nature. Come to think of it, wherever you are–enjoying the fantasy vacation of your dreams or anchored to herth and home–Cooking with the Muse will provide you with a tasty new seasonal recipe, and poem, every night.” — Sara Moulton, Chef, Cookbook Author, Television Personality
“This vertiginous, seductive, learned book surprises the palate on every page. Its ranging, awakening recipes and awakening, ranging poems would be more than enough to satisfy any cook or reader. The added notes, though… These are an education, invitation, and testament to the peregrine splendors of human hungers of every kind—for dishes and flavors, for knowledge and history, for the transformations and sustenance that both cooking and literature bring. The only dilemma is where to shelve this—in the kitchen among the cookbooks, or in the library next to Dickinson, Hopkins, and Heaney.” — Jane Hirshfield, Poet, Essayist, and Translator
“A sensual chef-d’oeuvre of culinary prowess seasoned with the cultural notes of poetry and nutritional wisdom–you will savor every page of this holistic masterpiece.” — Kathie Swift, Leading Nutrition Author and Speaker
“I have fallen in love with Cooking with the Muse. What a treasure trove of recipes, poems, quirky and fascination literary references and reflections on food and its meaning in our lives. I don’t knowwhen a cookbook has been such a good read! I find myself underlining my favorite bits, like this from Lucile Clifton: ‘I taste in my natural appetite/the bond of live things everywhere.’ I want to give this book to every poet and cook I know.” — Ellen Bass, Poet and Teacher
“Delicious and captivating–the perfect source of inspiration–literary and culinary arts. What a great gathering of the gifts of poetry and cooking!” — Barbara Sibley, Co-Founder of the San Miguel Poetry Week and Chef-Owner of La Palapa Restaurant
“Part love song, part practicum, part history lesson, Cooking with the Muse is a delightful page-turning compendium heralding the life-giving joy of cooking with the seasons.” — Mary R. Cleaver, The Cleaver Company, The Green Table, Table Green at the Battery
“Prepare your appetites! This glorious compendium of recipes, food lore, poetry, and history offers savory layers of enjoyment in every category — It’s a delicious feast of love.” — Naomi Shihab Nye, Poet and Novelist
“Cooking, like any other art, requires the Muse. She leads us down misty paths of green herbs, tantalizes us with the smells from a simmering cauldron, drizzles sweet rosewater dew on our tongues. Alas, all too often, the Muse escapes us, and we experience a culinary cul-de-sac. In this mouth-watering book, Kornfeld and Massimilla generously mix rich poetry and prose, irresistible recipes, vibrant photographs, and timeless nutritional wisdom to reaswken the sleeping Muse within us. She entices us back to the kitchen, whispering in our ears the long-forgotten names of beloved flavors, inspiring us on every level: to listen, to taste, to celebrate, to cook, to love, and to eat.” — Jessica Prentice, Co-Founder of Three Stone Hearth Community Supported Kitchen
“A golden idea comes to the table in Cooking with the Muse. Of course there is poetry in cooking! Recipes even look like poems–the lines distince and the outcome magically blended. Literally delicious, Cooking with the Muse delights, entices, comforts and enthralls. Each dish is a poem in itself.” — Molly Peacock, Poet, Author, Speaker
“Cooking with the Muse not only guides you through the seasons showing you how to make inspired dishes with global flavors; it does so with words of poetic inspiration, providing a multicultural view of the pleasures of cooking and eating. Cooking with the Muse offers a combination that satisfies both stomach and soul.” — Richard Ruben, Seasons to Taste, LLC, AUTHOR, The Farmer’s Market Cookbook
