The Unofficial "Other Cookbooks Not Listed" Thread
Posted by Tweety on Jul 27, 2010 · Member since Jan 2003 · 3135 posts
I thought I would start a thread for recipe reviews of cookbooks that don't have a thread, and probably don't need a thread.
So if you are using older cookbooks, or cookbooks without a thread, I'd love to hear from you here.
World Vegan Feast
Peruvian rice and coriander soup - I used my big ass dutch oven for this recipe and it filled it up all the way to the top. You definitely get 8 servings out of it! I used soy curls in it and I loved how they soaked up the flavors of the broth. She recommends to use 1 tsp aji panca but I added in 2 tbsps and was happy with how it tasted that way. There's all kinds of goodness in this. Potatoes, cabbage, diced tomatoes, fresh parsley or cilantro, ground coriander, and rice. Very hearty and filling, totally awesome on a cold day.
Vegan Italiano - Fresh broccoli with garlic and lemon
Super easy to make...steam a broccoli to liking....sautee a lot of garlic in olive oil....mix all together in a bowl along with lemon juice and salt. Very tasty way to have a quick and healthy side dish. The lemon at first was overpowering a bit but settled into the broccoli after a few minutes and was good.
From World Vegetarian:
Red lentils with zucchini- I liked this dal. I thought it was a bit soupy with 4 cups of water, though... and the zucchini chunks a bit too big as written. But a savoury dal nonetheless.
From Flying Apron's Gluten-Free & Vegan Baking Book Cardamom Spice Cake with Chai "Buttercream" Frosting.
I made cupcakes rather than a cake. I took them to a party where they got very good reviews from the omnis there. I was the only vegan.
Although the recipe said it'd make 33 cupcakes, it in fact made many more, at least 38! Since they were for a party I thought I'd better not halve the recipe since I wanted 24; if I'd known they'd make so many, I'd have done the math to make 2/3 of a batch. I didn't have enough muffin tins or enough oven space to bake so many at once and the later batches fell since the batter waited around. I think all the cake recipes in this book make either "3 layers or 33 cupcakes" so I'd change other recipes too based on this experience.
I had real trouble with the frosting. Admittedly, I substituted coconut oil for palm oil but some of her other recipes offered that option and I couldn't find palm oil. Then I used water in place of the hot strongly steeped tea called for by the recipe. The frosting came out incredibly runny. More like a glaze than a frosting. So I tossed in an entire container of tofutti cream cheese and it became thick enough to frost. I haven't used coconut oil in frostings before so I don't know if this is typical.
Oh, I also reduced the cardamom in the frosting. I thought 1 tablespoon was far too much.
http://vegweb.com/gallery/albums/userpics/235257/thumb_spicecupcake.jpg
Caribbean Vegan
Curried TVP stew - I feel like this dish was created with me in mind, it was that good. It has bajan seasoning, Madras curry powder, garam masala, TVP chunks, chickpeas, tomato sauce, and etc. It ends up being this super hearty dish that has a really thick curry (I thinned it out a bit) that can be eaten with some Roti or on top of rice. I was being lazy so I ate it on top of rice but do I have to make it again just to try out the Roti recipe in this book.
Carb Conscious Vegetarian
Bacony" simmered collard greens- I'm forever on the lookout for collard green recipes since collard greens are a super green food to include in one's diet for variety. This recipe calls for for soy bacon bits and I used tempeh bacon bits that I had made from another cookbook simmered along with onions and garlic. Pretty good. She calls for 30 minutes of collard cooking time, followed by 10 minutes of simmering. I cut 10 minutes from the cooking time and liked it fine.
World Vegan Feast
Persian Eggplant Stew with Yellow Split Peas and Lime - This should really be called Persian eggplant stew with chickpeas and lime. There are 2 cups of (cooked) chickpeas and only 1 tbsp (uncooked) of split peas in the recipe!! I had higher expectations for the recipe. It took a heck of a long time to make and I don't think I would make it again because of that. It was very tart from the limes. I would also chop the eggplant and tomatoes smaller, into bite-sized chunks next time. Otherwise, nice for a change but not the best recipe. A bit too sour for me (maybe only use 1 lime next time), and I like sour. :(
Yo Sushi!
Miso Soup with Seaweed, Tofu and Spring Onion
I substituted tofu shirataki noodles for the tofu and added a dried shiitake, green beans and carrots. A simple but tasty miso soup.
Does anyone else have Vegan Cooking (Eating for Health)? My uncle just gave it to me, because he used it to make us some Thanksgiving stuff. He did have a couple fails from it...
Are there any short/loved recipe(s) that anyone would like to send me from Nonna's Italian Kitchen? I can't find any online!! :)
Carb Conscious Vegetarian
Old fashioned vegetable soup - Pretty basic and pretty good soup. I used my homemade vegetable stock and it was pretty good. There's no herbs other than flat leaf parsley and it's all veggie flavor. She sautés onions, garlic, celery and carrots for three minutes, and adds cabbage, red pepper (I only had a yellow on hand), and green beans for five minutes prior to adding the rest of the ingredients (zucchini, red kidney beans and mushrooms) and the stock. This brings out the flavors well. She says to simmer for 30 minutes, but I brought to a boil and turned it off and let it sit for a bit while I did other things and this was good. I added a couple of Thai chilies for heat.
http://a2.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/392251_2390346876904_1197836956_32124088_136274064_n.jpg
Trinidadian Black-Eyed Pea Soup from World Vegetarian: As written, this was pretty bland (although I decreased the chili powder). I found it much better by adding Dijon mustard to each serving.
Quick-Fix Vegan - by Robin Robertson. Not to be confused with her other vegan cookbook "Quick-Fix Vegetarian" from a few years back. This book has good, quick easy recipes.
Black bean and green salsa burrito - Good. This is made with black beans, canned green chilies, onions, garlic, chili powder and salsa verde (from a jar, but if one has time one can make homemade). It was quite good. I added a Serrano pepper for a tad bit of heat.
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/404530_2578511380899_1197836956_32197567_1865252560_n.jpg
barbecue pinto-portobello sandwiches - This was very good. She uses minced portobello mushrooms, pinto beans, onions, garlic and creates a bbq sauce quite tasty. I used a food procesor to finally chop 8 oz. of baby bella mushrooms instead of mincing two large portobellos mushrooms. For the tomato puree I ran a can of unsalted diced tomatoes through a food processor as well. I omitted the tablespoon of agave and added cayenne because I like hot over sweet bbq sauce. I think the minced mushrooms give it a nice meaty texture that would satisfy an omni, but then again I just got a comment on Facebook that it looks "revolting". My response was "more revolting than a dead chopped up cow?". It doesn't look real appetizing, but I won't admit that on Facebook...LOL
http://a7.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/377030_2591238779076_1197836956_32203897_1054654148_n.jpg
From a very old cookbook I dusted off. "The New Laurel's Kitchen" , I made Butternut Tostada - Which uses butternut squash instead of beans or mock meat, mixed in with Mexican spices like cumin and chili powder, and topped with salasa, avocado (my addition as the recipe called for lettuce) and pepperjack "cheese".
http://a3.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/377512_2615016013492_1197836956_32215209_1617898658_n.jpg
Anyone else have/see The Vegan Slow Cooker? I bought this book over Christmas. I'm anxious to expand my crock-pot horizons beyond spaghetti sauce and butternut squash soup, so I picked this up. I've got my first batch of split-pea apple soup slow-cooking away in the kitchen.
My first reaction is that she uses a LOT of the Holy Trinity (tofu, tempeh, and seitan) in her recipes. But, she also encourages substitutions with beans, mushrooms, etc. (I tend to not use a lot of the Trinity when cooking for my husband and me.) Other than that, I guess I can't really review until dinner tonight.
I had the Vegan Slow Cooker on my wish list on Amazon but didn't get it. Let me know what you think and I might get it for my birthday. I don't have a slow cooker, but they sell them cheap at a discount store around here. Just don't know if I'd use it all that often.
From World Vegan Feast - Vietmanese fisherman's soup......I found this quite good. It has a lot of different ingredients like pineapple, mushrooms, tomatoes, cabbbage, lemongrass, mint, tamarind and siracha. I cut back a little on the sugar and quickened up the cooking time. Something about the dish though lost it's Asian flare and I think it's the pineapple (a can of tidbits, juice and all) and the tomato (I used a can of diced). However, I know since Vietnam was ruled by France so many years, they have a different twist to their cuisine than other Asian nations like Japan or China. But it just didn't taste "Asian". I served it on top of rice vermicelli noodles to make it a main course meal.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/405334_2695315940940_1197836956_32244952_1960763799_n.jpg
For my first test from the Vegan Slow Cooker I made the Split Pea and Apple Soup.
My biggest issue is that it calls for pureeing everything with an immersion blender at the end. Well, green split peas + orange carrots + immersion blender = brown mushiness... not very appealing. I would consider not pureeing it, but I think the apples in the recipe call for puree. Also, I"ve decided I just don't like nutmeg in savory dishes.
I will say though, that with a little extra salt (my bouillon is salt-free so I say that to every soup) and the recommended balsamic vinegar on top it was yummy, and I've been enjoying the leftovers. And, it was SUPER easy to make. But I just couldn't get over the color/texture issue. It does inspire me to crock-ify my go-to recipe for split pea soup, which isn't blended.
quick-fix vegan - chipotle corn with quinoa and pintos - True to the theme of the cookbook this was easy to put together. It was very tasty and healthy, using only one tablespoon of olive oil. I used a homemade stock that had some beet peelings in it when I made it so the color of this dish is a bit off.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/396403_2715725811174_1197836956_32252289_932702752_n.jpg
quick-fix vegan - Indonesian vegetable and tofu scramble - I really enjoyed this. She says you can crumble or dice the tofu, as as you can see I diced. It has a nice marinade of hoison sauce, soy sauce, spices like coriander, curry powder, cumin, garlic and ginger. She uses cayenne, but I used a large Thai chili for eat. Yummy!
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/396468_2721881725068_1197836956_32255309_1565444240_n.jpg
Vegan Italiano - Italian Grain and tomato salad - Very good. Nothing spectacular, just your standard red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing (I used three tbs when she called for 4) with tomato, basil, red onion, parsley, and cucumber, along with farro. I did appreciate using up some farro that I bought on sale a few weeks ago not knowing what to do with it.
http://a1.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/398721_2721863684617_1197836956_32255304_336907456_n.jpg
World Vegetarian - Ethiopian lentil salad with crushed mustard seeds - Loved this. This is a great way to get healthy lentils in one's diet. It has salt, cayenne, crushed mustard seeds and peppercorns (I was lazy and used black pepper and powdered mustard rather than crush my own), lemon juice and olive oil (I cut it by one tbs to 2 tbs) and green pepper. The mustard is crushed and dished in some hot water from the lentils which releases a pungent taste to it that is tasty when mixed with the other ingredients.
http://a6.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-snc7/401983_2728372767340_1197836956_32257874_723496415_n.jpg
Vegan Deli - Kasha varnishkes - Meh...not thrilled with this. It's simply buckwheat groats, pasta and caramelized onions. Supposedly it's a popular Jewish dish.
http://a4.sphotos.ak.fbcdn.net/hphotos-ak-ash4/408915_2728373367355_1197836956_32257875_1725780941_n.jpg
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