This is another book that I really shouldn’t need to review because any vegan who is interested in cooking would already own it. It really is the encyclopedia of vegan cookery and is suitable for anyone who wants to cook more vegan meals, beginner cooks or more advanced vegan cooks. There is something for anyone in this book. When I got it I was already a keen cook and so quite a lot of the information at the beginning of the book wasn’t particularly useful to me – but I know that it would be for many people I know, so I happily skipped past it.There is a chunk of tasty looking photos in the middle of the book, but Flickr has a great range of pictures too, so there’s no need to miss out on pictures.
As I mentioned in my review of Vegan with a Vengeance – the best thing about Isa (and Terry’s) recipes is that they will just work. And very often, the combination of ingredients will work together to totally exceed your flavour expectations. I’ve had the book almost since it was published and I’ve cooked my way through lots of the chapters but I can still flick through it and find recipes that I’ve no idea why I haven’t made them yet! I’ve also made recipes that I doubted, but having trusted and then tasted them I realised I was wrong (the penne vodka and the cholent are great examples of this).
It would take me forever to list the recipes I’ve loved from this. Suffice it to say I haven’t had anything I haven’t liked – from a huge tome! My absolute favourites though, are:
Chickpea noodle soup
Sloppy Joes
Chickpeas romesco (with garlic rice this is probably my favourite meal in the book)
Chickpea cutlets (after a ropey start, I now find these fab and easy)
Potato Kale enchiladas
Aubergine potato moussaka
Pasta with tempeh brocolli
Udon with shiitake mushrooms and kale miso broth
Cooking the Vegan Books 