Devour this book!

"Eat Like There's No Tomorrow," my personal mantra, is the title of a new cookbook by Georgia boy Hans Rueffert. What a joy and surprise this read held for me. As a chef, food-a-holic and cookbook gourmand, I could not put it down. Of the stacks, boxes, racks, shelves and crates of cookbooks I currently own, I can't remember any that I have read cover to cover in one sitting; I generally look at some photos and then to the dusty shelf it goes.

Yet, "Eat … " kept me focused on its prose, like when I frantically devour a bucket of spicy boiled peanuts; one page of this book flowed to the next. Each incredible photo and numerous recipes never broke my stride; stories of Georgia, Hans' bout with cancer, family photos of Germany and Norway, stories of hunting wild products and picking fruits, all bound by a feeling. The words resonated with me -- the emotion and passion he holds with food a familiar cloak.

Given to me by my friend Sarah from Out of the Blue, a cooking/gourmet store in Blue Ridge, Ga., the book lived up to her promise. Strictly speaking, the book focuses on Georgia products; there are simple recipes, numerous photos and short, engaging blurbs of everything from going organic to gathering fresh local ingredients, along with some technique and creativity, but that is where the similarity ends with most cookbooks.

The photography, by Hans and his wife Amy, is truly incredible. Pictures of food, plated recipes, family and landscapes are broken by numerous pictures of a chicken or turtle or spider or some other living thing intrinsic to food and the earth. The recipes, "suggestions" as Hans sees them, no matter how pretty or detailed, never seem complicated. "Eat … " speaks to the novice and professional alike, with insights of taste, vision, style and life. It is a book you won't find publicized in your monthly publishing house mailers, but it's one that you should definitely track down for your stores.

After reading this and then looking at the pictures, I was inspired. Never encyclopedic or condescending, "Eat … " made my mouth water though I felt satiated. After all my years in kitchens around the world, gathering truffles, digging cattails and searching for the perfect fresh goat cheese or salumi, I should have been envious, but in the end, all I could do was smile. Thanks, Sarah, for turning me on to this book and to Hans for the inspiration.

"Eat Like There's No Tomorrow" by Hans Rueffert, published by Luna 7, 1st edition 2009. Call Sarah at 877-211-6716 for more information.