Granted, most of us are not going to be doing a whole lot of gardening in January, but the book offers tips for the reader who will be doing the gardening, and January was apparently the month when the first gardening catalogues started arriving. It's a prime month for planning out what to plant, so most of the chapter is devoted to information for the gardener. There are a few recipes for the cook, though. (The book carefully notes that the gardener and the cook "are not necessarily the same person.")
The recipes are for vegetables that may be left over from last year's garden. I picked Belgian Waterzooie mostly because I was amused by the name, but Blanchard included it because gardeners might still have leeks outside, buried under a protective layer of straw.
The carrots, celery, and onion shouldn't be too hard to come by, as they are often harvested in fall and store well, and the chicken, cream, and egg yolks will make it a substantial meal for a cold night.
The January chapter also recommends Parsnip Soufflé because parsnips get sweeter after a frost. Apparently, the gardener can just leave them out in the cold and dig them out as needed-- at least until the weather warms and turns the parsnips bitter. (And now I know I'm not a parsnip! The cold makes me bitter.)
This eggy dish is recommended as "a nice accompaniment to roast pork or chicken," reminding me that the '70s had its protein-crazed moments too. (Plus, eggs were cheap back then!)
Considering we still have several more months to go before home gardeners are likely to grow much that will be ready to eat (especially considering the book's planting dates are timed to the author's home in Connecticut), I'm wondering how Blanchard is going to fill out those chapters. I guess we will find out when I report back in February. And March. And April. (My guess: an overdose of asparagus and rhubarb.)
