

John Shields
photographs by David W. Harp
The latest cookbook by the "Culinary Ambassador of the Chesapeake" encourages us to cook in a way that is not only healthy for us but also for the Bay.
Captain John Smith, upon entering the Chesapeake, wrote in his diaries that the fish were so plentiful "we attempted to catch them with a frying pan." That method sums up classic Chesapeake cooking—fresh and simple. In The New Chesapeake Kitchen, celebrated Maryland chef John Shields takes the best of what grows, swims, or grazes in the Bay’s watershed and prepares it simply, letting the pure flavors shine through. Honoring the farmers, watermen...
The latest cookbook by the "Culinary Ambassador of the Chesapeake" encourages us to cook in a way that is not only healthy for us but also for the Bay.
Captain John Smith, upon entering the Chesapeake, wrote in his diaries that the fish were so plentiful "we attempted to catch them with a frying pan." That method sums up classic Chesapeake cooking—fresh and simple. In The New Chesapeake Kitchen, celebrated Maryland chef John Shields takes the best of what grows, swims, or grazes in the Bay’s watershed and prepares it simply, letting the pure flavors shine through. Honoring the farmers, watermen, butchers, cheese makers, and foragers who make the food movement around the Chesapeake Bay watershed possible, along with the environmental and food organizations working to restore the Bay, the land, and food security, Shields promotes a healthy locavore diet and a holistic view of community foodways.
In this scrumptious book, enhanced with beautiful full-color images by former Baltimore Sun Magazine photographer David W. Harp, Shields urges readers to choose local, seasonal ingredients. Presenting what he dubs "Bay- and body-friendly food," he advocates for a plant-forward and sustainable diet, one that considers how food consumption affects both your health and the environment. Shields presents creative and healthy options that nourish us while protecting the Bay, including one-pot recipes for meals like Fishing Creek Seafood Chili, Old Line Veggie Creole Oyster Stew, and Spring Pea Soup with Tarragon-Truffle Oil. To round it out, this holistic cookbook includes directions for canning, preserving, and fermenting.
Shields offers many vegan- and vegetarian-friendly options, as well as innovative new takes on Chesapeake classics. You’ll find recipes for dozens of delicious dishes, from Aunt Bessie’s Crab Pudding and Hutzler’s Cheese Bread to "I Can’t Believe It’s Not Crab" Cakes, Blue Cat Seafood Hash, and an array of savory soups, braised meats, luscious desserts, and green breakfast smoothies—even recipes for a locavore cocktail party!
With the release of his latest cookbook, The New Chesapeake Kitchen, the veteran author and owner of the newly named Gertrude's Chesapeake Kitchen is once again reimagining regional fare, not only because the bay has changed, but because he has changed.
With his dedication to the Chesapeake region, Gertrude's chef John Shields has been a mainstay on the culinary scene for decades. Give the gift of his recipes in his latest 274-page cookbook.
The perfect gift for lovers of all things Chesapeake. John Shields takes a 21st century look at what grows, swims or grazes in the Chesapeake Bay's watershed, with recipes that take local produce and proteins and instruct how to prepare it all simply and memorably.
There is a little bit of the Chesapeake Bay in my culinary heart, which looms large whenever I see John Shields has written a new cookbook. He brings back those recipes I associate with the region, writing about them so refreshingly they are new again. I feel so happy to have this book to read and cook from, and so will you.
John Shields has done an amazing job showing us how to preserve the traditions of the region while also respecting the environment around us—he understands how important it is to maintain our local food economies so that future generations can also know the beauty and the bounty of the Chesapeake Bay.
The Chesapeake Bay is huge, but John Shields brings it right to your tongue! His recipes are distinctive and delicious, and remind us how our food choices relate to the environment. Think globally, eat locally and sustainably! Doing right by the Bay has never tasted better.
To eat a John Shields meal is to truly taste the Chesapeake. He understands how the food we grow here shapes us, from the verdant fields around the Baltimore suburbs to the soft-crab delicacies and flaky rockfish caught on the Eastern Shore. His words are beautiful and heartfelt; his food even more so.
John Shields is the greatest chef of the Chesapeake, and he’s also the wisest—demonstrating that you don’t have to be a killjoy to be an environmentalist. This gorgeously-illustrated book mixes Bay-friendly culinary advice—such as the endorsement of farmed oysters and smaller portions of meat—with local recipes so rich with flavor they feel decadent. You can save the Bay without losing your taste.
John Shields's recipes, from the classics to the contemporary, continue to sizzle. The New Chesapeake Kitchen includes lots of yummy treats for perennials and millennials.
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Starting the Day
2. Appetizing Bites
3. Soups and One Pots
4. Oven Fired
5. Pasta and Flatbread
6. Beans and Grains
7. Salad Bowl
8. Veggies Galore
9. Bread Basket
10
Acknowledgments
Introduction
1. Starting the Day
2. Appetizing Bites
3. Soups and One Pots
4. Oven Fired
5. Pasta and Flatbread
6. Beans and Grains
7. Salad Bowl
8. Veggies Galore
9. Bread Basket
10. Desserts and Sweet Treats
11. Puttin' It Up
12. Cheers!
Key Local Resources
Suggested Reading
Index
with Hopkins Press Books