cookbook

Cookbook Review: Therapeutic Chef

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A few months ago Kristin Doyle sent me a copy of her new cookbook Therapeutic Chef that is filled with “recipes to prevent cancer, heart disease and diabetes.”  The first few chapters of this book are informational and discuss how to use the book, as well as suggested items for the Therapeutic Chef Kitchen.  These first few chapters of the book are great and are important to read to really understand the purpose of the cookbook and how the recipes can help in preventing heart disease, cancer and diabetes. There is also a “Seven Day Meal Plan For Good Health” which is a great resource especially for those who aren’t sure how to kick start a new healthier way of eating. 

Coming from a family that has faced heart disease, cancer and diabetes I have found that this cookbook is a great resource for my own health and when I am cooking for family and friends. All of the recipes are plant based and whole foods, which means that all of the recipes are processed and refined food FREE! Now the best part is that these recipes are delicious and nutritious.

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  I have been cooking up a storm from this book and my dream is to attempt all of the recipes.  So far I have tired:

  •  Cream of Broccoli-Kale Soup
  • Creamy Chickpea Soup with Lemon and Parsley- Husband and parents really liked this
  • Squash Apple Soup
  • The Cleansing Omega 3 Spread
  • Walnut Miso Spread
  • Favorite Tempeh Marinade- This was a favorite of mine and I will be making it again!
  • Savory Marinade
  • Creamy Thai Kale
  • Garlic-Curry Sweet Potato “Fries”- these were absolutely amazing
  • Favorite Portobello Mushrooms
  • Ginger-Garlic Brown Rice
  • Celtic Shepherds Pie with Miso Gravy- This was popular with the family and the miso gravy is so delicious
  • Mom’s Favorite Veggie Burgers

Sounds like a lot right?  I haven’t even made a dent in this 486 page book and the yummy sounding recipes don’t seem to end.  Kristin Doyle gave me permission to give you a sneak peak from Therapeutic Chef with her recipe for Pressed Kale Salad:

Review: PETA's Vegan College Cookbook

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PETA’s Vegan College Cookbook is targeted at college students who are without a kitchen or have limited access to a kitchen and/or time to cook meals.  All of the recipes are quick and easy to throw together.  Most recipes are based off meat analogues and packaged products with a few fresh ingredients.  It takes items that college students have easy access too such as veggie burgers, canned beans, ramen noodles and vegan cheese slices and creates easy dishes for the student on the run. 

If boiling water or turning the microwave on is as far as your culinary abilities go then this is a great book for you. This recipe book is rather a guide on how to throw ingredients together and heat them up.  If you already know how to cook and can do more than mix, boil water and turn the microwave on then this cookbook is definitely not for you.  This book is not meant to be anything great and you won’t find me using it but if you know someone who is clueless in the kitchen (or you are yourself) it might be worth picking up, if nothing else it’s comical.

Source

Disclaimer: Sourcebooks Inc.provided me with a free sample of this product to review, and I was under no obligation to review it if I so chose.  Nor was I under any obligation to write a positive review in return for the free product.

Cookbook Review: Vegan Fusion

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I have been doing some cooking from Vegan Fusion World Cuisine by Mark Reinfeld , who also wrote The 30 Minute Vegan and Bo Rinaldi.  This cookbook features recipes from the Blossoming Lotus Restaurants.  Recipes in this book are inspired by European, Asian and Middle Eastern cuisines. This cookbook features live recipes as well as cooked just like the Blossoming Lotus Restaurants.  Since I won’t be heading to Hawaii to visit Blossoming Lotus anytime soon I’m glad I can cook up their recipes at home.

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I made the Radical Roasted Red Pepper Hummus which was delicious.  I brought this to my work holiday potluck and served it up with some carrots and crackers.  We have been feasting on the leftovers at home with pretzels. My favorite recipe however is the Conquering Lion Cashew Cheez:

 

Great Chefs Cook Vegan

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Last night after weeks of debating what I would make I finally cooked up a recipe from Great Chefs Cook Vegan.  This cookbook is filled with great recipes from some of the top chefs such as Thomas Keller, Daniel Boulud, Eric Ripert and Jose Andres, among many others.  It was great to see what these amazing chefs had come up with for their vegan dishes. 

 All of the dishes were really intriguing however definitely not for the amateur cook. Most of the recipes required expensive ingredients or ingredients that are not readily available at your local supermarket, co-op or famers market.  This was one of the biggest challenges I came across when trying to decide which dish I would try out.  I would have loved to have made Potato Leek “Risotto” with Chanterelles and Spinach, but Chanterelles are not easy to come by and cost more than my budget would allow.

 I settled on making the Grilled Polenta with Fresh Shell Bean Ragout by Suzanne Goin.  I had to adapt it a bit using what I could find; I used frozen beans for the fresh and green beans for haricots vert.  I also didn’t grill my polenta since the foot of snow outside did not make easy access to our grill so I popped it under the broiler instead.  This dish turned out great and the flavor was amazing! It was light, fresh and the polenta was nice and creamy- a great contrast to the crisp green beans. 

Slightly adapted Grilled Polenta with Fresh Shell Bean Ragout

Overall this is an interesting cookbook and a great resource for making more sophisticated vegan dishes, however it is definitely not one I will be using regularly.  The dishes are more complex and expensive to make than what I do in my everyday life but I will be sure to pick it up to make great “WOW” dishes for friends and family.

 If you’d like to pick up your own copy or take a peak into the book check out Amazon.com Here.

Blogger Disclosure: Cooking For a Vegan Lover received this product free from Gibbs Smith Publisher.