Vegetarian Classics: 300 Essential Recipes for Every Course and Every Meal (Hardcover)

~ (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

Although it's true that vegetarianism passed through an unfortunate period when it was best known for dishes like soybean, brown rice, and sunflower seed casseroles, Jeanne Lemlin's Vegetarian Classics offers fresh, flavorful, healthy, meatless wonders like Roasted Red Pepper Hummus; Romaine with Apples, Walnuts, and Blue Cheese; and Classic Vegetable Pot Pie. Lemlin's vegetarian dishes will appeal to everyone. Even if you're a meat eater, Lemlin reminds us, you still need side dishes and starters, and sometimes even a vegetarian meal.

Lemlin's recipes are simple and easy to follow, and very few require any advance preparation. A glossary covers the more unusual ingredients she uses, but there's nothing more outrageous here than tomatillos, couscous, and wasabi. A family-friendly collection, Lemlin includes favorites such as Classic Currant Scones, Portobello Mushroom Sandwiches with Lemon Garlic Mayonnaise, and Baked Macaroni and Smoked Cheese, but she'll also spice up your repertoire with dishes such as Crunchy Thai Noodle Salad, Curried Butternut Squash Soup with Coconut Milk, and Upside-Down Pear Gingerbread.

In a culinary world full of complicated food that takes forever to prepare, Lemlin's Vegetarian Classics is a breath of fresh air--whether you're looking for purely vegetarian menus or just quick and easy recipes for delectable meals. --Leora Y. Bloom

From Publishers Weekly

In this ideal starter book, Lemlin (Vegetarian Pleasures; Simple Vegetarian Pleasures) presents the comfort foods that have sustained the vegetarian movement for the past 40 years. She introduces the new vegetarian to staples like bulgur, wheat berries and rice in a helpful guide to ingredients, along with a few standard recipes such as Classic Tabbouli, Classic Cold Noodles with Peanut Sauce and Classic Lentil Soup. Yet Lemlin isn't puritanical; eschewing the heavy lentil and sunflower-seed loafs of yesteryear, she encourages cooking that is "more in keeping with our need for pleasure." Thus, she includes Tortellini with Spinach, Garlic and Smoked Cheese but not, say, Whole Wheat Spaghetti with Tofu and Tomato Sauce. Still, there's little here to satisfy the gourmand: some dishes are bland (Chickpea Soup with Garlic Crostini), all of the tart dishes call for frozen puff pastry and bread crumbs appear in otherwise respectable recipes (Crustless Yellow Squash, Red Pepper and Spinach Pie and Greens, Potato and Feta Cheese Pie). However, the dessert chapter, with Upside-Down Pear Gingerbread and Lemon Almond Cake, will satisfy even the most discerning sweet tooth. Too many vegetarian cookbook writers forget the joys of white flour, but not Lemlin: homey recipes like Ginger Cream Scones, Best-Ever Doughnuts and even a popover recipe make this a must-have for beginning bakers and vegetarians alike. Agent, Susan Lescher. (May) Forecast: With vegetarian cooking more popular than ever, this introduction to the easy basics should find readers. But given that similar cookbooks already exist, it's unlikely to become canonical.

Copyright 2001 Cahners Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: HarperCollins; 1st edition (May 8, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0060194820
• ISBN-13: 978-0060194826
• Product Dimensions: 9.4 x 7.5 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #933,668 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars I am the author, June 6, 2001

By	Jeanne Lemlin (Great Barrington, MA) - See all my reviews

I am the author of VEGETARIAN CLASSICS and want to share my thoughts with you. Innovative cooking with lots of fresh vegetables and chic ingredients can be exciting and satisfying. But do you also crave old-time classics that have withstood the test of time and continue to give great pleasure and comfort? I do. A steaming bowl of garlicky lentil soup, a vegetable-filled lasagne, a perfectly balanced vegetable curry, and baked macaroni and smoked cheese with a crispy bread crumb crust are just a few examples of dishes I always want as part of my repertoire, no matter what the current food trend. These tried and true classics, along with some delightful variations on these favorite dishes, make up this essential book. I provide "tips" after each recipe to ensure you'll have success with each dish, and there is a comprehensice Glossary of Ingredients to answer any of your shopping questions. VEGETARIAN CLASSICS is the ideal cookbook for the novice who is learning about the world of meatless cooking, as well as the sophisticated cook who expects full-flavored, fresh food made with the best ingredients. Whether you're a vegetarian, semi-vegetarian, or dedicated meat eater who likes to eat meatless meals a few times a week, this book will provide you with the best of vegetarian cooking, the beloved classics. In essence, this is a book about real food for real people.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Vegetarian Classics: 300 Essential Recipes, August 27, 2001

By	Gail A McMillan (Salisbury, CT United States) - See all my reviews

I am an avid fan of Jeanne Lemlin's and own all of her cookbooks. I learned to cook from her first book which is falling apart from so much use. Her latest book, Vegetarian Classics, is one you should own regardless of whether or not you are a vegetarian. It is just wicked good food. I made the Thai noodle salad and it was as good as any from my Oriental cookbooks, with no hard-to-find ingredients. Jeanne makes certain her clear and easy recipes work, letting her family and friends be her judges. Hurry and order this book so you won't eat another meal of bland, boring food.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Lemlin has outdone herself.....and that's saying a mouthful!, July 2, 2001

By	Keith R. Michel (New York, NY USA) - See all my reviews

If you don't own all five of Jeanne Lemlin's cookbooks like I do, this is a magnificent place to start. Here, Lemlin offers an incredible array of vegetarian dishes that will please everyone from the died-in-the-wool vegan to the meat lover. The secret behind this wonderful collection of recipes is, like it's predecessors, Lemlin's staunch commitment to GREAT TASTING vegetarian cooking. And "Vegetarian Classics" goes even a step beyond her previous offerings by giving us everything we need in one comprehensive book. From her mouth-watering renditions of the classics to out-of-this-world soups, salads, pastas and much more...this book is, simply put, an instant classic. It is the best and most versatile cookbook I have ever owned.