Vegan Cooking For Carnivores: Over 125 Recipes So Tasty You Won't Miss The Meat (2012) - Plot & Excerpts
The recipes in here are great and what I really like it that he uses ingredients that are readily available and easy to find. Sometimes, with vegan cookbooks, the authors use these obscure items that can only be purchased online (and who wants to do that?) The recipes are simple, direct, use very few ingredients (which, I like with the exception of my homemade bean burgers) and the pictures are mouth-watering. The whole lay out of the book is great and the afterword by Ellen was thoughtful and wise. I highly recommend this book. I'll start with what worked about this book and try to avoid being too ranty when I get to what didn'tThe author was tasked by his newly vegan employers (Ellen DeGeneres and spouse Portia De Rossi) to transform some of their traditional favorites into vegan-friendly and tasty fare. In this Martin succeeds with a variety of clever techniques and substitutions. Some of the strongest recipes are the naturally vegan ones. Points for the quinoa breakfast cereal (love quinoa!) and pierogi and ravioli.Here's where I get kinda ranty, so feel free to skip ahead.The problem is more of philosophy than execution. Though not vegetarian, I do appreciate good vegetarian food and and a healthier approach to eating. There is so much more diversity to vegetarian and vegan food that does not pursue substitutions or try to duplicate the flavor combinations of meat based (or animal product based) dishes. Vegan dishes can be delicious in their own right and not just when they are trying to fool the palate.When Martin lets go of that, the book does really well. The Avocado Reuben doesn't try to jazz itself up with faux bacon or other meat. A variety of pasta sauces are simple and naturally vegan. The vegetable sides are enticing.But there is far too much "chick'n," tofu masquerading as meat, "better than" broth, and faux cheese. Also, stop trying to approximate things where cheese is the star. Like caprese salad. Despite a claim that "it's not that vegans secretly wish they could eat these animal-based foods," this recipe typifies the deficiencies of ersatz dairy. There are good dairy-free alternatives for other applications (pizza, for example), but this is essentially TWO INGREDIENTS. Fresh tomatoes and fresh mozzarella. Substituting for either of them irreparably alters the dish (even if the results may be tasty) and clearly shows a wish for the taste of cheese. It's just one of those trade offs of vegetarianism.Also not helping this collection are the intro and afterword by the star patrons. The person hesitant about these recipes and lifestyle really doesn't need a weepy story about baby cows and how that inspired you to go vegan. Or an anecdote about how you were "disgusted" that what you were eating "was once a living thing." (Like plants aren't living things.) The implication being that anyone who continues to eat animal products is doing something disgusting. The reasons for choosing this type of eating are varied and personal, and engaging in political/activist discussion in this context and with this type of language is off-putting, IMO. They could have left it at "I love animals more than meat or milk" and it's been healthier for me. Done.Peruse this for interesting meat-free and dairy-free options. Skip over the why and concentrate on the flavorful recipes.
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Would never have anything in stock at my stores. Weird ing. Guess i am no LA enough
—diwiyah
