Cowgirl Cuisine: Rustic Recipes and Cowgirl Adventures from a Texas Ranch

“One of the most entertaining Texas cookbooks I’ve seen in a long time.”  — Patricia Sharpe, Texas Monthly

Four years ago, food writer Paula Disbrowe left her urbane life as a food writer in New York City to become the chef on a ranch in Texas Hill Country. Armed with boots, a cowboy hat, a pick-up, and a horse, she began to redefine her life and the cuisine she served on the range. Part cookbook, part adventure tale, Cowgirl Cuisine tells the story of her transition in and out of the kitchen. Melding the author’s passion for fresh, simple Mediterranean fare with the local ingredients and cooking traditions of South Central Texas, it offers food that is fresh, filling, and easy to prepare. From hearty ranch breakfasts, to big-hearted salads, to belt-busting burgers, and killer watermelon margaritas, the recipes are full of Disbrowe’s signature zest, spunk, and spice.

Throughout, she introduces us to the unforgettable characters (both two- and four-legged) who populate this wild, beautiful land and shares her outrageous ranch escapades (a showdown with wild pigs, runaway donkeys, and one very macho cowboy). As deliciously filling for the mind as it is for stomach, Cowgirl Cuisine reminds us the joys of living life to the fullest.

Who hasn't fantasized about leaving behind the chaos of everyday life and moving someplace where life is simpler? Well, that's just what chef and food writer Paula Disbrowe did when she left New York City and moved to Texas. She traded her subway MetroCard for a pickup truck and her stiletto heels for a pair of down-home cowboy boots.

In Cowgirl Cuisine, Paula tells her story through food. She weaves together romance, adventure, and more than a few laughs as she celebrates the beauty of flavorful food, fresh air, and her own wholesome recipes, all while taking home cooks on a journey well off the beaten path.

Like Texas itself, the recipes in Cowgirl Cuisine are big-hearted and bold—whole-grain muffins bursting with berries, salads loaded with leafy herbs and avocado, and fiery bowls of chili. Paula's food is healthful and full of nutrients, but this is not a diet cookbook—cowgirls don't have time to count calories (besides, they burn it all off hoisting newborn calves, hiking the hills, and galloping off on long trail rides). Instead, this is food that is satisfying and easy to prepare, which leaves plenty of time for living life to the fullest.

From hearty ranch breakfasts to fresh salads, spicy nibbles, seductive desserts, and killer watermelon margaritas, Paula's recipes are full of her signature zest, spunk, and spice. Start your day off right with Canyon Granola or Cowgirl Migas. For lunch, have a nourishing bowl of silky Roasted Pumpkin Soup with Red Chile Cream or Chicken and Citrus Slaw Tostadas. For dinner, try Gazpacho Risotto with Garlic Shrimp or Cowboy Pot Roast with Coffee and Whiskey. And be sure to save room for one of Paula's decadent desserts, such as Chocolate Pecan Squares or Dulce de Leche Flan with Pepita Brittle.

In addition to her recipes, Paula includes humorous and heartfelt vignettes about wild animals on the loose, scorpions in the sheets, and Casanova cowboys. And the pages are filled with lush photographs of food and life on the range. Cowgirl Cuisine isn't just spurs and salsa—it's about following your dream. So saddle up and follow yours.

“Finally. One book that has, between it’s two covers, a recipe for macho steaks, boozy margaritas, a gripping story about birthing large farm animals, and a great photo of the lingerie a cowgirl chef wears---as she’s taking it off! This is one-stop shopping.” - Gabrielle Hamilton, Chef/Owner, PRUNE Restaurant

“This book is like its author -- sexy, playful and fun.” - Suzanne Goin, Chef/Owner, Lucques and AOC Restaurants

“Entertaining...an eclectic selection of mouth-watering recipes.” - Library Journal

“Sexy, irreverent, documentary-style photographs and sweet stories about gathering eggs and skinny-dipping add more layers to a sweet, sassy book that is more than just a cookbook.” - Kansas City Star

“Disbrowe’s goal, she explains in her intro, was to write a cookbook ‘about fresh, satisfying food that is easy enough to prepare while living life to the fullest.’ In this she has succeeded.” - Publishers Weekly

“One of the most entertaining Texas cookbooks I’ve seen in a long time.” - Patricia Sharpe, Texas Monthly