Customer Reviews

The Rancho La Puerta Cookbook : 175 Bold Vegetarian Recipes from America's Premier Fitness Spa

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There's a point at which reducing fat in recipes becomes a little absurd, and they've reached that point in this book. In spite of having many flavorful ingredients like chiles, garlic, and fresh herbs, the recipes I've tried so far somehow still seem bland. Also, texture can suffer when you completely eliminate all fat. The Chile Cheese Pie, for example, has a texture that's like... well, egg whites mixed with cottage cheese (the primary ingredients). So even though the flavor is good, it's not satisfying. I'll still use this cookbook, but it'll never be a staple.

Although I agree that some of the recipes do suffer from lack of fat and texture, this is a treat just to read. It stresses the importance of fresh ingredients, and uses spices and cheeses to enhance dishes, not overpower them. The philosophy of the spa is carefully presented, and the reader is encouraged--not lectured--to try a new, healthier way of eating and living. A good find.

After reading this book, I thought how nice it must be to stay at the Rancho La Puerta and eat Bill Wavrin's food. I have made several of the recipes and the results were highly successful, although some of the combinations seemed a little odd in print. Mr. Wavrin likes to use lots of ingredients in his cooking, so it helps to have a well-stocked kitchen, but it is worth the effort. His comments in the book show a sensitive approach to vegetarianism and I was struck by his confession that even experience in Mexican and Nouvelle California cuisine did not really prepare him for meatless cooking. If you can't go to a spa, my advice is to pamper yourself for a weekend, with a good workout, a massage from someone you like, some time in the sauna and two days' worth of cooking from recipes in this book, with the best ingredients you can find. The low-fat, low-calorie thing is just a nice bonus.

The recipes in this book definitely lean toward the elegant side. It's hard to go wrong with something like Curried Mango-Peanut Yogurt Dip or Carrot-Ginger Salad with Pineapple. The recipes tend toward the exotic and the healthful, including things like Vegetable Barley Soup, Garden Sweet Breakfast Bread, Chinese Dumplings with Chives and Ginger, and Mango Tomatillo Salsa. This book stresses fresh vegetables and salads, and the recipes tend to be fairly light fare in general. You probably won't get a lot of use out of this cookbook if your grocery store doesn't carry good produce; plan these recipes for just after your grocery shopping so that produce is in the best possible condition.

There are some ingredients that might be a little difficult to find depending on where you live. I have trouble finding tomatillos, for example. Most ingredients are fairly common, however. The book's layout is fantastic. Commentary is very easy to tell apart from ingredients are very easy to tell apart from instructions, and instructions are nicely numbered.

While many of the tastes are a touch exotic, to my taste buds they don't take things far enough sometimes and end up tasting a bit bland. Of course I love strong flavors, so to some people this may be a plus; you can always adjust seasoning to taste if you want more flavor. These recipes are vegetarian but not vegan--you will find dairy and eggs in here.

Certainly if you're on a diet this is a fantastic way to serve elegant, impressive dishes that won't pile on the pounds.

Rancho La Puerta's food is really good! If you're vegetarian like I am you'll especially appreciate the great recipes! The only thing I didn't like about this cookbook was the lack of photos. It would have been helpful to see photos of the recipes prepared & also nice to have more color photos of beautiful Rancho La Puerta. My family spent our first Thanksgiving at the ranch last year and it was really wonderful!

Bill Wavrin is a GREAT chef. I have been fortunate to have tasted his food at Rancho La Puerta, and it is wonderful. In his book, he recreates many of the flavors I remember and cherish from my visits to the Ranch. Even more important, he credits his staff substantially (and correctly}. Bill never acted like a "star" chef although he truly is a star. The recipies are great, and have wonderful asides with important information. My only complaint is that there are no great color pictures of the food or the ranch itself.

As a veteran of Chef Bill's cooking at the Ranch, I can attest, it is the tastiest spa food imaginable (I've also been to other spas). And many things are really easy...even timesavers over the higher-fat ways. Many of us have been waiting for this for too long...hurry and send it!

My first visit to The Ranch was in '85, pre-Bill days. This isn't meant to sound like a brag only that I've tasted Bill's food & recipes many times. I recently ordered the "New" Rancho Cookbook. His book is jammed with recipes; Deborah's has many nice photos and is printed on heavy stock. I love her and she talks about the old days. But her ingredients are somewhat hard to source. Bill's can be found at an local market, not at a "specialty store or mail order." One of my favorite lunches of Bill's was the mushroom soup with frittata (both in the cookbook). I could go on, but you need to give them a try. The dressings, even the very simple Balsamic w/Herb Salad Dressing, all so good. He is a very special chef. I pull his cookbook out very frequently. Thanks.

I have used this cookbook numerous times. I would buy it again just for the bran muffin recipe. These are the only bran muffins I have ever made that are soft and chewy! I love some of the sauce recipes, as well. I highly recommend this cookbook if you are looking for super-flavorful healthy recipes.