Holy Chuckwagon, What a Cookbook!*

I have been very privileged to read Legends of a Range Cook, a cookbook that is in the process of being submitted to a publisher ... and was blown away by it. We know the photographer and while I have always admired his prowess this book highlights it in an amazing way that makes the reader feel as if they were dropped into the middle of the Old West.

How to describe it?

Here is what they say at their site:

This cookbook is the real deal. It isn't written by a historian or a researcher or a cowboy cook wanna be. Legends of a Range Cook is written by a true trail cook whose life's work has been keeping working cowhands happy after a long, hard day with a hot, satisfying meal. Red Cloud Wolverton's recipes are seasoned with memorable stories of the challenges of cooking on the range. Hugh Beebower's photography and the panoramic layout transport the reader into The Real West.

It is a gorgeous coffee table book (check out the photography at the site link above), a fascinating look at the real world of cooking on the range, a book of interesting stories told about his experiences by a seasoned range cook, and a primer on how to recreate this cooking for yourself whether in your kitchen or on the range.


They have gone to the trouble to layout and hand produce several copies, one of which I got to take home but didn't have time to cook from. However, I can tell you that I am scheming to get my hands on one again so I can give some of these recipes a whirl.

Interestingly, Hugh tells me that he has cooked extensively from them and they are both simple and delicious ... as one would expect since they would have been produced from a chuckwagon and yet needed to keep hungry cowboys satisfied at the end of a long day. In fact, one of my favorite stories in the book is about the time when there was a range cook (not Red Cloud Wolverton) who severely neglected his duties in that area.

There is a spot on the site where you can submit some contact info so that you will be informed when the book comes out. Of course, I'll also keep y'all updated on any publishing news.

All photography is the property of Hugh Beebower and copyrighted by him. Used by permission.

Fair Disclosure
Our company laid out the web site for the cookbook. However no business connection would ever make me feel that I had to give a glowing endorsement or any endorsement at all for that matter. Like the cookbook, my endorsements are the real deal. I want this book published ... so that I can buy one! And give one to my parents, and to my sister, and to my brother ... well, you get the idea.

* With apologies to the original King Kong movie which contains one of my very favorite lines, "Holy mackerel, what a show!"