Braiden's Books

Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia

Upcoming (October 2007)
John Wiley & Sons, $34.95
ISBN-10: 0-471-74685-1
ISBN-13: 978-0-471-74685-0

Follow veteran cookbook author and food-and-wine writer Braiden Rex-Johnson as she guides us along the trail of chefs, winemakers, and grape growers in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia, introducing us to the visionaries who have been instrumental in creating a leading-edge Northwest cuisine. Complete with 88 recipes, 140 color photos, cook’s hints, profiles, and more, Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining is the definitive book to discover what makes this region so special as it celebrates an innovative approach to cooking and winemaking that is influencing the way Americans eat, drink, and enjoy life. To order, Click Here.

Note: For a complete information sheet on this title, please click here.

Recent Review

Publisher’s Weekly, Print and Online Versions, 7/16/07

Pacific Northwest Wining & Dining: The People, Places, Food, and Drink of Washington, Oregon, Idaho, and British Columbia
Braiden Rex-Johnson. Wiley, (263p) ISBN 978-0-471-74685-0

Rex-Johnson, a food and wine writer from Seattle, has created what she calls “a love letter” to the Pacific Northwest, riding the wave of place-based cookbooks. One may not be able to dine at the Herbfarm, in Woodinville, Wash., for instance, but Rex-Johnson allows home cooks to recreate the restaurant’s Sea Scallops with Spiced Carrot–Dill Sauce. Better still, she realizes that some of the simplest and most delicious fare is what winemakers serve to their friends and families. She calls it “vineyard cooking,” and she has persuaded many of its practitioners to offer up their favorites. Most charming are her stories of leisurely and convivial meals spent at the table with her subjects, such as the hearth-baked pizza she shares with Bob Betz of Betz Family Winery. The book is organized by region, and the dishes are eclectic—don’t expect to find things according to course—and each is offered with a wine pairing, usually a varietal. Unfortunately, the recipes are laid out a bit confusingly, with ingredients in a sidebar, and often split over two pages, but the book is comprehensive, and the recipes are appealing and not overly fussy (Oct.)

Pike Place Public Market Seafood Cookbook, Gift Edition

Ten Speed Press, 2005, $14.95

Packed with stalls selling the best quality and selection of fish found on the West Coast, restaurants serving up Pacific Northwest cuisine, and culinary shops of every persuasion, the Market is a fish-lover’s paradise. In this colorful gift edition, best-selling author Braiden Rex-Johnson shares shopping tips, cooking techniques, information on sustainable fisheries, and more than 50 fish and shellfish recipes from the chefs, restaurateurs, and fishmongers who represent the Market community. Filled with candid, colorful photos, the Pike Place Public Market Seafood Cookbook is the perfect gift for any seafood-loving soul or a great souvenir to bring the best of the Market to your home.

To order, Click Here.

Pike Place Market Cookbook, Second Edition

Sasquatch Books, 2003, $18.95

Welcome to the Pike Place Market, the soul of Seattle and home to the Northwest's finest foods. Here chefs and food lovers gather to celebrate the season's harvest. Now you can partake in the sensuous feast with the Pike Place Market Cookbook, the updated and completely revised edition of this best-selling cookbook. Author and long-time neighborhood resident Braiden Rex-Johnson has collected more than 130 recipes from the Market's fishmongers, farmers, restaurants, specialty food shops, and local chefs. Seasonal recipes range from easy-to-make to fancy, soup to nuts, ethnic to all-American, and everything in between. Profiles of individuals and businesses, anecdotes about working along Pike Place, handsome line drawings, mail-order sources, and a produce availability chart complete this festive portrait of the Market experience.

To order, Click Here.

Inside the Pike Place Market: Exploring America’s Favorite Farmers’ Market

Sasquatch Books, 1999, $19.95

The people, places, and history of Seattle’s famed Pike Place Market come alive in this vibrant book of photographs, vignettes, and recipes inspired by the Market’s fresh produce, seafood, and specialty shops.  Go behind the scenes to meet farmers, fishmongers, craftspeople, an herbalist, a hatter, and even a tattoo artist—the personalities who make this nine-acre village in the heart of downtown Seattle a timeless place. Whether you’ve shopped at the Market for years—or are just experiencing it for the first time—this book reveals the little-known nooks and crannies, where to get the best views in the city, and the story of a bronze pig named Rachel. You’ll find it all Inside the Pike Place Market.

To order, Click Here.

Note: This book is currently out of print, but used copies may be available at Half-Price Books and on Amazon.com.