home greenhouses in general. The
instructions for making hash, rosin, and
tincture are easy enough for hobbyists.
Parts of the book, particularly the chapters on harvest and culinary use, are more
art than practical guide; still there’s
plenty of useful information for newbies.
The stylish presentation of the book and
its useful information give it broad appeal
among open-minded gardeners and
420-friendly readers. (Sept.)
Health & Fitness
The Psychobiotic Revolution:
Mood, Food, and the New
Science of the Gut-Brain
Connection
Scott C. Anderson, with John F. Cryan and Ted
Dinan. National Geographic, $26 (304p)
ISBN 978-1-4262-1846-0
Science journalist Anderson and
researchers Cryan and Dinan outline the
latest in scientific study suggesting that
disorders of the body’s microbiota—its
community of microorganisms—may be
linked to mental-health issues such as
anxiety and depression. These microbes,
called “psychobiotics,” send messages to
the brain via neurotransmitters such as
dopamine and serotonin. The researchers
favor dietary changes and psychobiotic
supplements as ways of restoring the
body’s microbiota to healthy levels.
Regarding diet, they note that American
foods, often processed and high in sugar
and white flour, can be very unhealthy for
microbiota: “Our evolutionary history...
didn’t prime us for glazed doughnuts.” In
a handy guide format, the authors list a
variety of medical conditions, including
Crohn’s disease, diabetes, and even autism
spectrum disorders, annotating which
psychobiotics might be effective in
treating each. In addition, they instruct
readers in reading and understanding psy-chobiotic-supplement labels and list the
brands that have undergone rigorous
testing. This is an accessible guide for a
lay audience (though perhaps not for the
especially squeamish, who may blanch at
this gut-level view of the body) on science
that could radically alter the understanding of anxiety and depression, along
with a host of other conditions. Agent:
Victoria Pryor, Arcadia Literary Agency.
(Nov.)
that wonderfully illustrate the authors’
points: a full-bodied white such as viog-nier can be served with pan-roasted halibut; a tannic red such as cabernet, petite
sirah, or carménère can be paired with
braised beef short ribs with gorgonzola
polenta; and sparkling wine can simply
and satisfyingly be served with, yes,
potato chips. Sage advice on navigating
big-box stores, deciphering labels,
picking the right wines without
spending a fortune (why break the bank
on a top-shelf pinot noir when a lower-priced beaujolais is equally satisfying?),
and saving wine for special people instead
of special occasions further connects
readers with the authors. Light, inclusive,
and illuminating, this volume is sure to
inspire a trip to the local wine shop as
well as the market. (BookLife)
Gardening
★ Grow Your Own:
Understanding, Cultivating,
and Enjoying Cannabis
Liz Crain et al. Tin House, $26.95 (300p)
ISBN 978-1-941040-58-4
Cannabis culture goes mainstream in
this lavishly illustrated artisanal guide to
cultivating and consuming marijuana.
Food writer Crain (The Food Lover’s Guide
to Portland)
and Nichole
Graf, Micah
Sherman, and
David Stein—
the team
behind Raven
Grass, a can-
nabis specialty
store in
Olympia,
Wash.—fashion marijuana cultivation as
a high-end, enjoyable hobby in the style
of brewing beer or growing orchids. Their
guide includes short profiles on a variety
of popular strains—with notes on flavor,
growing tips, and effects of consumption—
before getting into the basics of growing
your own. The authors provide blue-
prints for four types of greenhouses (or
“growing rooms”) along with require-
ments for humidity, light, airflow, propa-
gation clones, and flowering cycles. The
sections on soil composition and pest
management address the needs of certain
strains, but are also broadly relevant to
Kitchen TV show, will be welcomed by
fans of the show. The 150 recipes in the
book are the authors’ favorites for entertaining family and friends and are
accompanied by charming anecdotes
that let readers get to know Lancaster and
Davison better. A chapter on weekend
breakfasts runs the gamut from a simple
recipe for overnight steel-cut oatmeal to
an elaborate eggs florentine to the charmingly named “cat head biscuits” (which
are the size of a cat’s head). Dinners are
homey and as good for a weeknight family
supper as they are for a gathering of
friends. There are a good variety of
chicken dishes, including Alabama barbecue chicken, weeknight roast chicken,
and chicken enchiladas with red chile
sauce. Old-time favorites such as corn-flake-breaded pork chops sit next to elegant preparations such as a fish meunière
with browned butter and lemon. Simple
yet impressive recipes abound, such as one
for spaghetti with lemon, basil, and scallops, as well as a recipe for pomegranate-braised boneless beef short ribs. The
casual-entertaining section offers recipes
for every occasion. It includes recipes for
paella on the grill and Korean fried
chicken wings. Rounding out this expert,
accessible cookbooks are desserts, which
promise joy for the whole family and
include a creamy Texas-style blueberry
cobbler and an impressive banana pudding. (Sept.)
Cook + Cork: A Chef and a
Sommelier Spill the Secrets of
Food and Wine Pairing
Harry Mills and Chris Horn. Heavy Restaurant
Group, $39.95 (288p) ISBN 978-0-692-75100-8
Foodies and armchair oenophiles are
sure to appreciate sommelier Horn and
chef Mills’s collaborative treatise on the
intersection of food and wine and how to
create perfect pairings at home. Instead of
offering up an alphabetical listing or a
varietal tour of wine, the authors start
broadly and end specifically, with chapters focused on a wine’s qualities (
light-bodied whites, sweet whites, tannic reds,
etc.) and how those qualities can complement or amplify flavors in a handful of
dishes. The book pivots on the concept of
“mind mouth”—a term the authors use to
explain how tastes are perceived.
Examples take on the form of assignments
