Winner of a Silver Taste Canada Award

"A beautiful cookbook highlighting the province’s signature ingredients." —Forbes

Equal parts cookbook and manifesto, this beautifully photographed collection is the ultimate guide to local eating in Alberta all through the year.

Eat Alberta First presents 90 tried and true recipes in celebration of Alberta’s farmers, ranchers, and food artisans. Alberta Food Tours founder and enthusiastic locavore Karen Anderson’s love of her province is enriched with the experience gained during her extensive global travels. Organized around uniquely Alberta seasons (including “Cabin Fever” and “Harvest Hurry Up”), with mini workshops on sourdough, foraging, and canning, gorgeous food and landscape photography, and an Alberta food sourcing list, the book is designed to help the home cook build reliance on their skills and on the province’s food producers.

Beginning with detailed lists of pantry essentials and an introduction to the skill levels each recipe is organized by, Karen then takes readers through the seasons, from the depths of winter (when the tough get baking), through always dicey springs, full-on summer, harvest, and batch prepping for a busy fall. The book concludes with a chapter dedicated to hosting a diversity of feasts all year round.

Learn to make Morel Mushroom Cheese Spread, Never the Same Way Twice Coleslaw, Slow-Cooked Alberta Bison, Long Life Noodles with Greens, the ultimate charcuterie board, Festive Vegetable Biryani, Summer’s Every Fruit Cake, and many many more. We think you’ll find Karen’s gusto and belief in the power of local truly inspiring.

Karen AndersonKaren Anderson is the owner of Calgary Food Tours Inc. and a columnist for CBC Radio and Calgary’s City Palate magazine. She is co-author of the guidebook Food Artisans of Alberta. She has led seven tours to India and has cooked with chefs all over the country. Since 2006, she has worked with Noorbanu Nimji, testing recipes and teaching Indian cooking classes.

Karen Anderson's profile page

"A beautiful cookbook highlighting the province’s signature ingredients." —Forbes

"A hefty, almost 400-page volume celebrating the Alberta culinary spirit through stories . . . and 90 homespun recipes." —Calgary Herald

"Champion of Alberta food and artisans." —CTV Calgary

"A hefty and informative tome full of useful information for those attempting to keep as close to the local food cycle as possible." —Edmonton Journal

"It's a love letter to the foods and food producers of Alberta, as well as a call to cook and eat local whenever possible. . . [it's] also a great primer; a kitchen 101, perfect for novice cooks learning how to stock a pantry, what to keep in a well-equipped kitchen, and how to cook smartly and naturally, with the rhythms of the seasons." —Alberta Prime Times

"Eat Alberta First paints a picture of not just who we are but where we might be going, through what and how we eat. . . rather than offering prescriptive calls to action or defining what it means to identify as a citizen of this province. Anderson gently illustrates how food practices, and home cooking in particular, are a reflection of Alberta’s culture, agriculture industry and, perhaps most importantly, weather." —Alberta Views

"Eat Alberta First is more than a cookbook. Karen’s engaging voice links the reader with Alberta people, places and ingredients as well as recipes." —Grainews

"I can truthfully say, it's been a while since I’ve seen such a wonderful book that shows the passion for the subject on every page!" —Linda Garson, Editor-in-Chief of Culinaire Magazine

"[A] love letter to the province." —Eat North

"Everyone should have this book in their kitchen." —The Tomato

"Eat Alberta First not only shares stories and recipes to connect people, but also teaches readers how to forage responsibly, how to make sourdough, how to can and preserve, where to source food. . ." —Chestermere Anchor

“Karen Anderson knows food from all over the world, especially from her beloved home province of Alberta. I’m so excited for her latest book! You can just smell the farmland and crisp Alberta air.” —Shelley Adams, author of Whitewater Cooks

“No one covers the ever-changing Alberta food scene like Karen Anderson. She masterfully connects the dots between people, story, land, process, ingredients, recipes, and celebration that make up Alberta’s food culture kaleidoscope. Eat Alberta First has me planning my next culinary adventure, and my next dinner party!” —Jennifer Cockrall, co-author of tawâw