Customer Reviews

Vegetarian Suppers from Deborah Madison's Kitchen

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I love this book! It is great for exactly what I wanted to do...learn how to cook some fun, vegetarian dishes that even I wouldn't goof up!

Every dish that I've tried has been a success...that's saying a lot since my mother's only cooking lesson was 'how to heat a can of corn.'

One thing to mention is that this book is meant to build on Madison's other cookbooks. It is not meant to be a complete guide for basic family meal planning, just simple yet elegant main dish ideas suitable for casual entertaining.

With our only child in junior high now, and my husband doing volunteer work, we are up to having about 1/3 the time that a serious cook does for making dinner, and these meals fit right in.

Most of the recipes I've used take about 25-40 minutes to prepare, mostly because I'm really slow at cutting vegetables, finding where I set the teaspoon, etc.

I guess you can't see the contents or preface above, so here's the layout of the chapters:

1. Savory Pies and Gratins
2. Vegetable Stews and Braises
3. Pasta with Vegetables
4. Crepes and Fritters
5. Mostly Tofu and some Tempeh
6. Eggs for Supper
7. Hearty Cool Weather Suppers
8. Light Meals for Warm Weather
9. Supper Sandwiches
10. Basics (eg, guacamole, peanut sauce, tapenade, warm goat cheese sauce)

What I really like about this book is she explains things simply enough for a beginner, and uses mostly ingredients that I've heard of, but always takes things a step beyond what I'm familiar with, so I'm learning something.

So if you are a food snob, this book is probably not pretentious enough for you. If you have a large family and don't feel like getting creative with dinner at the end of the day, and just want something you can throw together fast that will feed several and probably be edible, this book is not for you. But for a family of 3-4, or a couple who likes to have something special a few nights a week, this is just perfect.

My favorite recipe is one for a couple of eggs cooked over mushrooms sauted in wine and bread crumbs...it's something I can throw together for myself in just a few minutes when I get home late, and I don't have to measure anything because you just put in as much of each ingredient as you like...and it tastes so good!

About the wine recommendations--Not only is it good for your heart, but new research shows drinking red wine on a regular basis may help prevent or delay the onset of alzheimer's. Since both health problems run in my husband's family, the suggested wines have been a fun way to incorperate a very healthy habit.

I adore Deborah Madison; she is my favorite cookbook author. She just makes the kind of food I love to eat. She is the master of rustic, tasty, healthy whole-food recipes, and is better at herbing and zesting the ingredients than any other cookbook author I have come across. Making her food is very satisfying. Somehow she makes everything taste sublime. I will undoubtedly buy any book she writes. That said, this is my favorite of her books so far. The food is just so delicious, and none of the recipes are difficult. If you live anywhere in the vicinity of a great farmers' market, this is just the book to help you make use of the wonderful produce you can find there. Favorite recipes I've tried include Spinach Quesadillas, Yellow Peppers Stuffed with Quinoa, Black Bean Tostadas, Artichoke Fritatta, Masa Crepes with Chard, Winter Squash Lasagne, Whole Wheat Penne with broccoli and green olives, Gnocchi with winter Squash and Radicchio. If I pared down my whole cookbook collection, this book would be one of the 5 books I'd keep. In my opinion, this is also her best looking book so far, since the photos and graphics are much better than in the past. With each recipe, she includes go-withs that are to be found in two of her previous cookbooks. If you are a Madison fan already, you'll have these books, but since most of these recipes are full meals in themselves, you can also go without. This book is a must-have.

I own several of D. Madison's books and have gotten to know her cooking as reliably good, tasty, and easy to make. In fact, I have liked many recipes so much, that I did not hesitate to expand my collection of vegetarian cookbooks by acquiring this volume.

I am sad to say that the recipes in this book do not live up to Madison's reputation.

Since I am an avid cook who tries up to four new recipes every day (usually lunch, dinner, a side dish, and a dessert or breakfast), I have made it a habit to grade recipes so that I can easily access whether making them again is worth it or not. Grades, of course, go from A to F with recipes in this book averaging a rather sorry C-

All recipes thus far have been easy to make while drawing on ingredients that are either staples in most households or easily found at a local food market, but the vast majority of dishes I have tried from this book have failed to come together into a delicious composition. Instead, I (and my family) find ourselves eating them simply because effort went into their creation and because we don't believe in wasting food. More often than not, we have failed to even slightly enjoy dishes from this book. Unfortunately, I have made at least one dish that went straight into the compost pile - it was simply inedible. The mere memory makes me wince.

To make matters worse, the binding of this book seems to be reflective of it's recipes - it is of rather poor quality. After my first use, the glue along the spine holding the pages in place simply failed. I now own a collection of loose pages. Admittedly, I live in a fairly humid climate but still, other books survive just fine.

Overall, this book is on the low end of the scale for Deborah Madison's efforts in vegetarian cooking. I'd advise you to skip it and either purchase one of her other books or go straight to Carol Gelles' 1000 Vegetarian Recipes - which is infinitely better.

I've tried a number of recipes in this book, and they were adequate in relation to the effort made. Still, I'm going to try more, as they sound interesting. The skillet-seared tofu was a big hit, and there was enough sauce to make it again later in the week. the whole wheat penne with "masses of broccoli, green olives, and pine nuts" was very good, pretty simple, but made way too much food, even for my hungry family, and it is supposed to serve 4 "generously." After several days of leftovers, I finally had to toss it. Black bean tostadas with slivered cabbage, avocado, and pickled onions sounded really interesting. Deborah promised that each of its components, and there are several, are very simple to make. Still, there were too many bits and pieces and pots and pans and utensils. It took over an hour to make, and the cabbage salad was very watery and made too much. The black bean sauce, on the other hand, made scarely enough to go around. the author suggests serving this dish with a fresh corn soup and a guava dessert (no recipes given), which would lkeep the cook in the kitchen for at least another hour to hour and a half. I also tried the Braised mixed greens and garlicky beans on toast. It was OK, but with only one garlic clove used with the bean and greens mixture (another one is used to rub on the toast), it was hardly garlicky, and really, had not much special flavor at all. It's the kind of dish you can make without a recipe.

Another quibble I have with the book is that if these are supposed to be casual suppers, it is odd that she recommends a different wine to go with each meal-one would need either quite a wine cellar, or a very well-stocked liquor store nearby. I would have liked more information, or even very simple recipes, for side dishes to complete each meal.

Like I said, I'm still going to give the book more of a chance. Wine-braised lentils sounds good, as does Huckleberry potato pie (never heard of Huckleberry potato, though she says one can use any sort of waxy potato-so why not recommend that to begin with?)

I'm not sure that those who own Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone would find much that is new or better in this book.

I've made recipes from this book that were good, but I've made more that felt like a lot of effort with little return.

On the other hand, I love that Madison suggests wine pairings for the dishes. I don't always have a glass, but I want to complement my meal when I do. I hope Madison includes this feature in all her future publications.

I am a fan of Deborah Madison but recommend Vegetarian Cooking, Local Flavors, or even Vegetable Soups over this title.

Also, the binding quality on my copy is terrible. I rarely use the book but chunks of pages have fallen out. Perhaps? this problem has since been addressed by the printer, but buyer beware.

Why do most of us crave fried chicken, mashed potatoes & gravy, corn, hot rolls, and apple pie? Perhaps it is because people tend to want to enjoy the comfort foods they grew up eating. Sometimes our families are extremely resistant to trying unfamiliar foods. Recently I created a new recipe . . . Beans, Greens and Pasta Buds. My 16-year-old son walked in while the soup was cooking, and asked me what I was making. He said it smelled great, but refused to try even a bite, once he knew what was in it.

I recently changed my diet to mostly vegetarian foods; but my son and husband are unwilling to give up the meat. So I often prepare separate dishes. Since vegetarianism is new to me, I find books like this to be invaluable. I have hundreds of cookbooks but find myself sorting through them to find the "meatless" recipes. This book offers a comprehensive collection of wonderful, easy-to-make, and delicious recipes . . . and is a must-have for the new vegetarian. Meat . . . who needs it? Do your health a favor . . . buy this book and cook on!

Lynette Fleming, Coauthor of Lunch Buddies: Buddy Up for a Better Diet

I recently became a vegetarian, and this book has proven invaluable in the kitchen. I thought my meat-free lifestyle would be nothing but dull stir-fried veg night after night, but this book has given me loads of easy, useful recipes that even my husband will eat!

i love this book.
i have been a vegetarian off an on throughout my life. while right now i'm not a complete veggie, i still try to incorporate more non meat dishes. So i look to vegetarian cookbooks. but so many of them rely heavily on tofu, which is not something i can always convince my meat eating husband to eat.

This cookbook is beautiful. the photos are just mouthwatering. the recipes are delicious. but what i love so far about this book is that the recipes are accessible, and the ingredients aren't alien. this book will make you want to eat more vegetables just because the food is that good.
there is a section on using tofu. but it is only one section.
i would feel comfortable giving this to vegetarians and non vegetarians alike. it's just great food!

i have had this book for less than a week and i've already made two meals out of it, and they have both turned out amazingly.

i look forward to colelcting her other cookbooks.

highly recommended!!

This book taught me to make delicious polenta. I recommend the porcini and tomato ragout, the spongy semolina crepes, the winter squash lasagne, Neelam's festive rice Pilaf, tomatillo salsa, and stock for stir-fries (only need a little at a time, so freeze in ice-cube trays, transfer to a freezer container, and it will last you months of stir-fries).

I received this book for Christmas and was very excited to dive in. The recipes look very tasty and there are beautiful pictures. Unfortunately, my daughter is lactose intollerant and I am trying to cut down on dairy. Way too many of the recipes are cheese/dairy heavy. Also there is no nutritional information. I like to know the protein content. Things under 10g/serving just don't seem worth bothering with for my family. If you are just in it for the taste. It looks like a good book. The couple of things I have made were very good.