Those handsome parsnips from the market could be simmered in soup, but I’d rather roast them. So, how to roast them for maximum flavor and minimum scorched edges? I reach for a new cookbook, a beaming guide to seasonal fare and menu ideas by David Tanis, A platter of figs and other recipes. Open to page 45, Parsnips Epiphany-style, for the simplest solution.  Then spend the morning devouring pages of irresistibly straight-forward recipes with a common theme: it all begins at the market. This is the vagabond’s dream book, not only a tutorial in menu composition but a liberation to improvise with each season’s textures, colors and flavors. The tone of the seasons is heightened by Christopher Hirsheimer’s naturally lit photographs; more inspiration. Characters and a variety of settings bring meals and menus to life, from the goat keeper who roasts parsnips to a Catalan evening at the ballet followed by cava and anchovies on toast. Next time I’m sleuthing Paris markets, the “Bird man of Place Maubert” will be the show to catch – for drama as well as magret de canard. In keeping with the season for a “Bean Soup Lunch”, this week I will stir up a soup, bake almond biscotti, and thank David Tanis for refreshing my culinary imagination!

A platter of figs and other recipes by David Tanis was published by Artisan, a division of Workman Publishing Company, N.Y., in 2008.