Venturesome Vegetarian Cooking: Bold Flavors for Meat- and Dairy-Free Meals [Paperback]

J. M. Hirsch (Author), Michelle Hirsch (Author), John Mackey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 5, 2004

Venturesome Vegetarian Cooking busts the veggie mold, focusing on flavor and innovative recipes, rather than on philosophy and persuading tofu to taste like tenderloin. These are great recipes that just happen to be vegetarian.

This mother-son team offers more than 150 recipes (and more than 100 color photographs) that are simple enough to pull together during the week, yet daring and delicious enough for dinner parties. This is vegetarian cooking for people who love to eat. Packed with advice for keeping cooking easy, efficient and always an adventure, the book includes a world of meat- and dairy-free meals drawn from the authors' culinary explorations—Spanakopita from Greece, Crostini and pasta from Italy, Pad Thai and aromatic soups from Thailand, Sushi and earthy noodle dishes from Japan, and plenty of comforting favorites from home like Creamy Mashed Potatoes, Fluffy Biscuits, Rich Gravy and Thick Corn Chowder.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

J.M. Hirsch (author) is a food writer for The Associated Press. His weekly vegetarian cooking column can be read in hundreds of newspapers across North America. Educated in Scotland and South Africa, he lives with his wife and cat in New Hampshire. Michelle Hirsch (author) has been a training and development specialist in the food industry for more than 20 years, most recently with Whole Foods Market. A vegetarian for 30 years, she studied and taught at The Kushi Institute and is a macrobiotic chef. She also is a food writer for "Spirit of Change" magazine. She lives with her husband in New Hampshire.

John Mackey (foreword) is founder and CEO of Whole Foods Market.

Product Details

• Paperback: 220 pages
• Publisher: Surrey Books (August 5, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1572840641
• ISBN-13: 978-1572840645
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 0.5 x 9.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (13 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #824,832 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

If you are one of those parents who somehow finds the time to craft your kid's lunch into cutesy animals and characters from their favorite movies, good for you. And good luck with your therapy.

I'm a working dad who can't dedicate quite that much energy to my 8-year-old's lunch box. I'm pretty sure that doesn't make me a bad dad. I still want him to eat healthy and to be excited for lunchtime. I just can't get all OCD about it.

And for the record, at the start of a crazy day being the national food editor for The Associated Press and a cookbook author doesn't buy me any extra time or inspiration for packing a lunch. And it certainly doesn't earn me any bonus points when it comes to planning dinner.

By necessity, I've become an expert at fast and easy dinners, as well as equally speedy and delicious packed lunches.

My last book, "High Flavor, Low Labor," was all about getting great dinners on the table fast. My approach is simple -- use high flavor ingredients to do the work for you. Because if foods taste great before they go in the pot, you don't have to work as hard for them to taste great when they come out.

My new cookbook, "Beating the Lunch Box Blues," was inspired by my blog -- LunchBoxBlues.com. The blog is a simple chronicle of the crazy, creative things I pack in my son's lunch box. It's about my daily struggle to feed my son lunches he'll be excited about and I'll feel good about.

"Beating the Lunch Box Blues" pulls together the lessons I've learned serving five years (and counting) in the lunch box trenches. Whether you're packing lunch for your kid or yourself, this book has you covered with delicious, easy-to-pack, easy-to-make lunch ideas that will move you way beyond the same old day-after-day PB&J.

And all of my cooking comes down to one thing -- real food for real people grappling with real life.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

26 of 30 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars A welcome new vegetarian cook book August 13, 2004

By Jonathan Landry

Format:Paperback

I was fortunate enough to be able to take a gander at an advanced copy of the book, and I have to say the book is one of the best vegetarian books out there today.

The foods are exciting, bold, and unlike many vegetarian cook books out there, it doesn't try to be different for the sake of being different. Many veg cook books seem as if they are simply trying to make dishes that include as many odd combinations as humanly possible to cover up the fact they don't have meat. One example is a pesto and carrot pasta bake that I saw in one cook book. This book has many old favorites that are updated and modified to not include meat or dairy, and in ways that you won't miss them at all.

Hopefully this book is the first of many that we'll see from these authors.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Glad I Ventured June 23, 2006

By CeecerPhila

Format:Paperback

This book is great for those who want to get some variety and experiment with new flavors. The Asian-inspired dishes, the breaded eggplant with sweet tomato sauce, all really wowed me and made me want to try more. There are photos, which is nice, too, so you can check out what some of the recipes will look like in their finished form.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Delicious! June 2, 2005

By Neil Theberge

Format:Paperback

I have tried many recipes and loved them all! My favorites are Italian Spinach, Baked Sweet Potato Wedges and Frozen Fudge Pops. I am not a vegetarian or lactose-intolerant. I was looking for some interesting meals and side dishes to feed my family of four and this hit the spot. My two-year-old daughter shovels veggies in her mouth like they are candy!!!

The book is very attractive with colorful highlights of the time necessary for each recipe and other helpful hints!!! I'll be cooking from this book forever!

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An easy to use vegan cookbook October 8, 2007

By A. Nichols

Format:Paperback

Most recipes that I've tried from this cookbook have been excellent, my favorites being the Thai Leek and Sweet Potato Soup (it is fantastic) and the Fruit Coffee Cake. The directions are clear and many recipes use unusual flavor combinations that work well. Also, they don't rely on any meat substitutes of excessive use of tofu/tempeh, which I like. I'd recommend this as a good addition to a vegetarian cookbook collection.

9 of 9 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Vegan Cook Book February 25, 2006

By vegan gal

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I have many vegan cook books, but this is one of the top 5 books I always cook with, doesn't take alot of ingredients, the pictures are beautiful. However to make it an even better book it would have been nice to have had some better desserts.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Deeelicious May 16, 2007

By anastasia

Format:Paperback

This book rocks! Some of the most delicious, healthy and fun vege recipes I have tried in a while. Mostly pretty easy, but a few challenges make it fun as well. Check it out, I bought an extra to give to some lucky friend.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Useful cookbook August 17, 2009

By Easter Cat

Format:Paperback

I hate cooking. This is a problem, since I'm a vegan and not a millionaire. Since I have to cook, I tend to gravitate toward recipes that are tasty. In addition, these recipes also have to be simple to make (i.e., not require two hours and two pages of instructions).
When I first saw this book in the store, I figured it was just another ovo-lacto book filled with recipes that had a lot of cheese, milk and eggs. However, as I looked through it, I realized that 99.9% of the recipes are suitable for vegans. The only recipes that weren't vegan involved the usage of honey. Because of the way honey is used in the recipes, it looked as though it'd be easy to substitute agave nectar.
The recipes that I've tried are fairly easy to make. However, there are recipes that do require some effort. But if you want to skip them or save them for a rainy day, they're there. For example, there is a vegan chocolate cake that was created by the chefs at Cook's Illustrated. They were challenged to create a tasty, vegan, chocolate cake. Even though it involves baking, I might actually try it one day.
In addition, the book minimizes the use of fake meats. Instead, it stays focused on more natural ingredients. While I personally enjoy the usage of seitan and other fakes, there are other vegans/ovo-lacto vegetarians who appreciate a choice in the matter.
The book is divided into appetizers, breads, salads, soups/stews, vegetables, pasta, grains/legumes, sauces/dressings/marinades, desserts and breakfasts. Even if you cook only a fraction of the recipes offered, you'll have plenty of great dishes to eat.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars An oldie, but a goodie! December 29, 2009

By jbp

Format:Paperback

This is a great cookbook. The recipes are not difficult and truly are healthy AND delicious. I am vegan and it is one of my favorite veg cookbooks (and I have many!). It really utilizes whole healthful foods and does not rely on dairy and soy products to make great vegetarian meals. This is a great cookbook for vegans, vegetarians, and omnivores looking for better recipies. Some favorite recipes of mine are the chocolate pudding and the eggplant parmesan.