Customer Reviews

Ani's Raw Food Kitchen: Easy, Delectable Living Foods Recipes

5 star:		(102)
4 star:		(36)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(16)
1 star:		(10)

 

 

I've been a vegetarian since I was sixteen. In the late eighties, that was rough- even more difficult than being a vegan now. In the last year, I made the transition to vegan, but thanks to the work of innovative cooks like Isa Chandra Moskowitz, that just isn't hard anymore. The next challenge? Going raw- very difficult because apparently you need a Vita-Mix, a dehydrator (I don't think I've ever even seen one of those), a food processor, a grinder, and a bunch of other esoteric equipment I've never even heard of- right?

Ani Phyo earned four stars right off the bat by making almost every one of her recipes doable with a blender or, in many cases, a knife. There are maybe three recipes that absolutely require a dehydrator- and even that can be gotten around. For this reason alone, if you've been thinking about raw but you've been intimidated by all of the required equipment, check this out.

The recipes that I've tried- and I've gone a little crazy in the last few days- have been not only simple but really, really good. So far I have made her Miso Soup, Almond Yogurt, Black Pepper Cheeze, Nori Rolls, Coco Kream Pie (oh wow- so good), a bunch of her shakes and my version of her Sunflower Bread (hmm- how did I do that without a dehydrator?). Almost all of this has been accomplished with a blender, and I don't even own the legendary Vita-Mix. In other words, the majority of households can do this.

Every chapter opens with her thoughts and recommendations on environmentalism. I liked most of her suggestions, but I was a little put off by her statements that hers was not a "bargain body" and that she is thus willing to pay more for her premium produce. I applaud her- I even envy her and others like her- but I am disappointed that she doesn't touch on the readers who can't afford organic produce for the most part and live in areas with lousy public transportation systems and recycling. I shudder any time I read something that makes it seem as if health is only for the wealthy.

However, she didn't lose a star for that because her tone, as strident as it may have been at times, inspired me to find a work around for my dehydrator- and I did. Ever make yogurt using a heating pad? If you have a small enough pan- think one that fits into a toaster oven- and some tin foil- congratulation, you have the guts of a make your own dehydrator. I'm still tweaking mine, but I was very inspired by the results with my Sunflower Bread.

This is a soup to nuts guide to going raw, and it won't require you to reoutfit your kitchen. It may, however, inspire you to rethink your approach to food.

This truly is a beautiful raw foods book - in more ways than one. It's beautiful to look at, it's colorful, has lots of beautiful pictures of Ani and her friends, and most importantly - contains some amazing raw foods recipes. Every page is filled with Ani's little tidbits, useful information, and her thoughts and beliefs on doing all we can to make this world a better place to live in. I tried 4 of Ani's recipes, and all I can say is that if the rest of the recipes are anything like the ones I tried, then it's money well spent.

So why did I give it only 4 stars ?? Well, for starters, Ani repeats a lot of stuff in her book. Here are some examples : Reasons to shop at farmers markets, to eat organically, not to put something into your body just because the item is cheap or free, etc etc. Ani says these same things in several different chapters. She probably just wanted to get the message across loud & clear.

Don't get me wrong, I still think this book is a GREAT BUY, and I would recommend it to anyone interested in raw foods, or in eating healthfully. I would also recommend it to anyone interested in "treading lightly" on our planet. If you can only read one book, and want to get information on "living green", eating organically, healthfully, learning about raw foods and enjoying your meals, then buy this book!

One more comment: I thought that it was strange that Ani's book was not printed on recycled paper (I looked 3 times to find some information on that in the book, but couldn't find it anywhere). Consdering all the information she's provided on living as responsibly as possible, I was disappointed to think that she didn't insist that the book be printed on recycled paper, or at least to state somewhere that it's printed on recycled paper - if it is.

i really wanted to like this book. it's got a cute concept, the author seems great, and there seemed to be a good number of recipes within. however, after trying several of them, i have to give the book a big thumbs down. i made one of the breakfast "scrambles", and it was a rather unpleasant texture as it was simply pulverized seeds, with seasonings. i also made a recipe she raved as being so yummy, one of her favorites, a faux mashed potato. what was it ? pureed broccoli with a few seasonings. maybe you have to be in a certain mindframe to get something out of the food offered in this book. the final recipe i tried was the baja nacho cheese. this is by far the worst raw food item i have made thus far. it was pulverized brazil nuts, water and a few spices. how in the world is that even comparable to cheese ? i understand it's raw, but i have tried other raw cheeses, and they were much, much better. this one was gritty and flavorless.
i own four other raw cookbooks, and this one is my least favorite, and i will probably never use it. i really believe that vegetarian/vegan/raw food can still be delicious, gourmet, enticing, etc to the palate. i've made many raw recipes, and they rival the most high end fare you can find. when i have people over for dinner, i want them to be amazed and delighted that they are eating healthy food that's also delicious. i'm afraid with ani's selections, they would either laugh or be spitting it out in their napkins.

I bought this book hoping that it would provide some new and interesting recipes. I have been preparing healthy raw meals for over 2 years. I have a few problems with Any's book: (1) All her recipes use lots of oil and nuts, and many of them a lot of sugar, and therefore they are ultra-high in calories, (2) Most of her recipes are from other cookbooks (not much of originality), (3) I find it very unappealing to see Any's photos on every other page instead of pictures of deliciously cooked food. Honestly, the book from Jennifer Cornbleet is much better for simple, delicious and light raw meals.

I have been borrowing raw books from the library in attempt to come across a uncook book that didn't leave me feeling like preparing raw food is just too hard. Don't get me wrong, I love to cook, and make the vast majority of my meals from scratch (rather than adding pre-prepared jar/canned/frozen ingredients), but so many of the raw books out there require you to soak for 12 hours, germinate for 4, marinade for 2, then dehydrate for 12-20 hours (I've actually got some burgers dehydrating at the moment that I started making 2 days ago). Ani's recipes taste fantastic and aren't heavy with coconut/avocado/olive/nut oils like many raw meals.

What make's Ani's book great is that most of her recipes can be made within 30mins-1 hour, only a handful require a dehydrator, and every recipe I've tried so far works. This is the first of all the books I have borrowed that I have actually bought.

Allow me to get my biases out of the way: I'm not vegan, or 100% raw. I'm a vegetarian living in the Midwest without air conditioning. My goal with raw foods is to use lots of fresh local produce without needing to turn on my oven in summer! I want to go beyond salad, but don't want to spend all day in my kitchen. I purchased this book because I enjoyed Ani's Raw Food Desserts.

I didn't enjoy this book as much. The recipes I've tried were tasty, but most of them require specialty ingredients that are expensive and/or are not available at my local co-op, or don't come in amounts I can use before they spoil. A single recipe may also require several "base ingredients" that are themselves other time-intensive recipes, which require still more specialty ingredients. I got a little lost in the cross-referencing, and a little miffed when base ingredients that I'd mixed up went bad before I could finish them. I really wish the recipes made better use of more common ingredients that are grown and readily available throughout the United States.

This book could have been more accurately titled, "Lifestyle by Ani." It's full of great pictures...of Ani. What space remains is split between recipes and scattered bits of Ani's lifestyle manifesto. This confused me: I purchased a book on preparing raw foods, after all...Is she preaching to the converted, or actually *trying* to lose me by going off-topic? She could have condensed and confined this to the intro. Better yet, put it in a foreword, and have it penned by a more authoritative scientific/health expert.

If, in fact, this book was geared toward the "raw food curious" and beginners, which might excuse the manifesto, the author would have been wise to stick to simpler recipes with simpler ingredients and spend the photo space showing us how it's done.

I have been studying food and nutrition for several years and have been trying to transform to a raw diet for the past year. Not an easy thing to do. I have approximately 3 dozen books on this subject, many of them very good. I truly believe had I purchased this book first, the transformation would not have been nearly as hard. I have had this book for about a week and from the very first recipe I tried, I was hooked! I have always enjoyed preparing food but preparing meals for a family of five day in and day out has truly become tedious. The recipes in this book taste absolutely amazing, are simple to prepare, suprisingly economical and absolutely gorgeous to look at. I truly look forward to coming home and preparing meals again! Produce no longer goes to waste in my fridge as it has in the past and the three teens in my home and my meat-eating husband absolutely love the food. I can tell because they go back for seconds and thirds and look for left-overs for lunch and snacks!! But most important is how we all feel. We are a family of surfers and anybody who surfs knows how much energy it takes to put in an eight hour session. We have always eaten healthy as a general rule, but lots of times just choked down a "healthy" meal because it was good for us, but didn't necessarily like what we are eating. This book has truly changed all of that. We all have so much energy and just feel truly happy. No more brain-fog, no more feeling like we need a nap in the middle of the day and those eight hour surf sessions are much easier to do, especially since we are in the middle of winter and it is COLD!! I don't believe this would have been possible without the help of this book.

The book itself is beautiful to look at and truly inspiring. I have been able, finally, to combine the knowledge I have learned from other teachings, take the inspiration from Ani's book and apply it to everyday meal preperations in a simple, clean and delicious manner. What is so different about this book compared to others is the recipes are truly delicious, the ingredients are easy to find (for the most part), preparation is simple and quick and the ingredients list is short. One other book I recommend using in conjuction with this book is The 150 Healthiest Foods on Earth: The Surprising, Unbiased Truth About What You Should Eat and Why by Jonny Bowden. Combining the knowledge in this book along with Ani's recipes will help you to create absolutely fabulous meals that taste great and are the healthiest combinations I believe to be available. Thank you, Ani, for a truly beautiful and inspiring book and for helping to finally change my life. You can bet your last dollar I will be the first in line to buy your next book!

If you're Raw or considering adding raw foods to your diet, then Ani Phyo's book is a must own. A testament to a good cook book is the number of dishes you actually make after buying it. I have a shelf full of cook books that looked great in the store but that I've rarely used. In the three weeks after buying this book we've easily made 8 recipes from it and have many more book marked to make in the weeks ahead. What's so fantastic about Ani's Raw Food Kitchen is just how easy and quick most of the recipes are. Highlights so far include: Raw Flax Pancakes, Raw Cheesecake and Spicy Avocado Soup. I can't wait to see what Ani does next!

This is the best raw food recipe book I've come across, hands down. Most of the recipes are quick and easy to prepare, there are only 2-3 dehydrator recipes, most only require a knife and a chopping board, or a basic food processor or blender otherwise. It's such a relief compared to many raw books.

I reduce the oil content of the soups a bit to suit my tastes, but otherwise the recipes are close to perfection and remarkably quick to make. A number of times I've found myself standing in front of a big meal after a couple of minutes of preparation thinking "is that it? That couldn't be it, that was too easy! Did I miss something?" If you want to eat healthy, fun, gourmet food on a daily basis, and you don't want to spend all day preparing food, then this is a good place to start. This book will save you time cooking in the kitchen and give you loads of extra energy as well - I've found I require far less sleep on a raw diet.

I rarely got ill on a mostly-cooked vegan diet, but since making the switch to a mostly-raw diet I've not got sick yet and my seasonal allergies have nearly completely disappeared as well. I have no idea how I put up with all the hayfever, cold, flu, and allergy rubbish I had before I went vegan! It's insane what people do to their bodies. I've gained so much and discovered so many fabulous, tasty foods on a vegan diet, and there seems to be even more variety than ever on a raw diet. I don't feel restricted at all - the food in Ani Phyo's book is so creative and has given me loads of ideas for creating my own dishes.

There's also plenty of health and lifestyle information, how to store food, nutrition info, and plenty of other eating tips. It's among the most valuable recipe books on my (fairly extensive!) cookbook shelves. I never thought I'd grow to like salad either, I've never been into crunching through a plate of "leaves", but the dressings and variety in this book is incredible - the combinations of food flavours in her salad recipes are so interesting. For the first time ever I'm happy to have greens as a staple part of my diet. There are some great, rich nut and seed animal-free cheezes, fruity recipes, and dessert recipes, too. Some tasty nut and seed mylks, too - the Mexican chocolate mylk is fabulous.

Ani Phyo has a great attitude towards veganism, with concern for animal rights and personal health going hand in hand in this book. Along with the great recipes, there are positive messages about making healthy choices that benefit the world at large as well as yourself. The healthy animal-friendly, vegan message complements personal health - it's about looking inside as well as outside of yourself and finding a good, solid balance that not only benefits your health, but also shares that health by protecting animals and the environment at the same time. (And all without any spiritual mumbo-jumbo or pseudo-science!)

There are quite a lot of photos of Ani and the food, but there's so much information in this book as well. There's a lot to read besides the recipes! The amount of content in this book surprises me every time I pick it up - it's good humoured and easy-to-read as well. It's refreshing reading and refreshing food.

This is my first book into raw kitchen and I am very disappointed. I feel sorry for Ani, who has surely spent a lot of time writing this book, but I don't find it useful. My comments follow:

- Lack of pictures. There are many recipes, but you can't see how the dish will look like
- Not 'off-the-shelf' ingredients: Many of the ingredients used in the recipe are rare berries, or seaweed, etc which you don't know how they look like. I have other books which introduce all the ingredients with pictures before using them in recipes. This is not available in the book

This is not the kind of book that will excite you and make you look forward to cooking.

I regret having bought this book. I was very interested in the 'breakfast' section, but I found out that all the recipes include ingredients not very easily to find, or that there is not photo of how it would look like after preparing it (instead there are loads of pics of Ani)

I don't recommend this book unless you are an experienced cook, well versed in 'raw' kitchen.