Customer Reviews

Vegetarian Fast Food: Over 200 Delicious Dishes in Minutes

5 star:		(4)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

A longtime vegetarian cook with two small children (11 mo's & 4 1/2 yrs) I always have less than enough time to prepare meals. With the varying tastes and nutritional requirements of my family, I need all the help I can get to keep from falling into a "cooking rut". Enter this fabulous book, and I am scarcely able to contain myself. Quick is a reality. Delightful fresh ideas and meals, from hearty to light, are now avaliable at my dining room table, and my husband and children think I am a real kitchen genius. Thanks to Rose, I AM! I send this treasure to friends and family and never fail to receive ongoing thanks for the gift of time saved and delight in the creative cooking the book inspires.

I never thought a cookbook would change my life. For the first time I've turned down my husband's invitations to eat out. I work full time and am an artist part time and very busy, but now I make time to cook--and to shop with enthusiasm. These recipes are truly easy, tasty, and tremendously varied. I have learned to use coconut water, cardamom pods, chilis, curries,etc. painlessly and joyously. I also don't know when everything has tasted so fresh. Cooking really is fun after all. I may even start an herb garden. And all my menus are planned for the next two weeks--unheard of in my house!! I suggest this for anyone who doesn't have time to cook or dislikes it. A whole new perspective on meals just opens right up. Thank-you Rose Elliot!

I have not been this excited about a vegetarian book since "While the Pasta Cooks" (well, it's MOSTLY vegetarian) and "Vegetarian Sandwiches". Just reading it made me want to order a bunch of groceries and try a handful of these recipes! I'm always looking for fast and tasty new recipes and this is perfect. I don't think this book has very many "exotic" ingredients, but you could usually come up with a suitable substitute. Personally, I dislike lima or butter beans, so I always substitute soybeans for them - and there are a few recipes in there I would change. Or just skip those few "exotic" recipes. There are 200 to choose from!

I've tried several of the recipes in this book (so far Mixed Vegetable Curry is my favorite), and they are wonderful. This is a good book to have if you're just learning to cook. Exotic ingredients aside, the instructions are fairly simple, and the most complicated part of many recipes is chopping vegetables. Also, most of the recipes in here will satisfy a meat-eaters palate.

The recipes are only 20 minutes worth of prep if you happen to have all of her odd and exotic ingredients on hand, particularly spices. I would have to wait for the mail order spices to arrive or visit a gourmet store a few hours away.
The recipes also include a lot of pizza and omelettes, things that are probably in every other vegetarian cookbook, or even Betty Crocker. I bought this along with the Italian Vegetarian cookbook two months ago. I use the Italian one regularly and haven't used Rose Elliot's book once.