Book Review and Contest: 1000 Vegan Recipes!

Now that the holidays are over, it's time to give one lucky reader what they really wanted for a gift but didn't receive. Yes, that's right......this mammoth tome of incredibleness. 1000 Vegan Recipes is from Robin Robertson. I was fortunate to be a tester for this book and got to try a wonderful variety of delicious recipes.

The book opens with a thorough introduction including "Seven Steps to a Plant-Based Diet" and an explanation of protein, which is a frequent question vegans face from omnivores. There is a lengthy and very useful section on ingredients and stocking the pantry, as well as kitchen equipment and presentation.

This intro launches the book into the twelve (!) recipe chapters. But the quantity of recipes in this book would mean little if the recipes weren't terrific. The good news is that they are. The chapters are what you'd expect. They include Appetizers and Snacks; Salads, Sandwiches, Pizza and More; Soups; etc., all the way through to Desserts and beyond. One thing that I particularly like is that the book divides the Pasta and Noodles chapter from the Main Dish chapter for those times that nothing will do except pasta. By the way, the fresh pasta recipe is the best I've tried.

You can see some of what I've made in this earlier post. Since then, here are a few more dishes.

Apricot Walnut Scones (minus walnuts, plus white chocolate chips)

The perfect accompaniment for a hot cup of tea or for breakfast.

For those times when pasta is essential, here are the Linguine Puttanesca and the Pad Thai.

This Puttanesca is almost exactly like the dish we get at a local Italian eatery owned by a Sicilian chef. That's high praise!

The Pad Thai is tangy and bright - full of flavor.

Seitan with Ancho-Chipotle Sauce

This fantastic dish is easy to make and has a terrific texture. (I know, this one is in the earlier post, but just in case you don't click back, it's too good to miss.)

True, it's easy to be overwhelmed by the sheer size of this book. It weighs in at 4 pounds! But don't be so floored by it that you let it sit on your shelf or just flip through it on your coffee table rather than using it in your kitchen. With so many choices, my suggestion is to view each chapter as a smaller book. Pick one chapter and choose a recipe from that chapter to get started. Next time, pick a different chapter. Before you know it, you'll have tackled a few recipes and will be hooked. As always with Robin's books, she suggests you tweak the recipes to please your own palate.

Be sure to check out Robin's blog for lots of sample recipes. For a chance to win this book, all you have to do is leave a comment on this post. The winner will be drawn at random in a week or so. Be sure to check back in case I can't get in touch with you.

Good luck!

Update 1/19/10: the contest is closed. The winner will be announced later today. Thank you for reading!