Summer Delights: Cooking with Fresh Herbs. Rev. ed.

Janet Arnett is the former campus manager of adult education at Ontario’s Georgian College. She is the author of Antiques and Collectibles: Starting Small, The Grange at Knock, and 673 Ways to Save Money.

This is a pretty but confusing little book, with sketches, gardening
notes and tips, cooking hints, and recipes all jumbled together in the
style of a journal that got out of hand.

The focus is on growing and cooking with 19 of the most common herbs,
including mint, parsley, chives, basil, and sage. The style is chatty
and informal but, rather than being a plus in the work’s favor, this
merely adds to the confusion created by the organization and layout.

The recipes are grouped by the herbs used—a forced, artificial
approach. Is the question asked by the cook likely to be, “What can I
cook that uses this herb?” or “What herbs can I use with what I’m
about to cook?” It would have made more sense to group all the soup
recipes, all the fish recipes, and so on. Instead, fish shows up in the
basil section, the chives section, and the dill section.

The recipes, when you find them, are heavy on the side of soups,
salads, jellies, and dressings, with only a few entrées and beverages
included for selected herbs. Desserts and baking, for some reason, are
grouped together regardless of the herb used.

A listing of seed and plant sources and a hard-to-read index are
included.

With so many good herb books available, this seems like one to let go
by.