Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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48 of 51 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Genuine "there's more than brown rice and broccoli" cookbook, February 24, 1999
By A Customer
Anyone who searched in the 80's for vegetarian recipes found a consistent diet of macrobiotics, imitation meatloaves and pasta recipes. Even the original (wonderful) Molly Katzen books were lacking in the divine. "New Recipes from Moosewood" seemed a true breakthrough to me. Try their salad dressings, try their tofu burgers and tofu falafel. Above all, try the bulgar wheat casserole with feta, zucchini and tomato, the Japanese eggplant and tempeh and YOU MUST NOT MISS THE EGGPLANT STUFFED WITH CURRIED POTATOES AND VEGETABLES. In most, if not all, recipes, double the spices. Even visitors to the restaurant have described the food as somewhat bland. For instance, for tofu burgers (baked, freezable, and miles above any other "veggy" burger I've run into, use all the spices and half the tofu. And MAKE THEIR PITA BREAD!!They would have done well to omit the dessert section. Common recipes, tending toward the heavy and sweet(Honey Cake, pound cake, fruit cobblers, and so on.). Leans heavily on cheeses (which a creative chef can substitute out, especially with the low fat cheeses available now, 12 years after the book was written) and is light on vegan. But you can't go truly meatless and maintain the sensuality of food without this book.
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16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
worth it for one recipe alone, July 13, 2001
By A Customer
i've had this book for something like thirteen years now, it's a classic of course and my copy is falling apart it's so well-used. all the recipes i've tried have been well-conceived, well-explained and really good, though i should mention that a few of the dishes sound so dull i haven't even tried them. but only a few, and that's true of any cookbook. but all that is beside the point, since this book is worth FAR more than $16.95 for one recipe alone: the spinach lasagna bechamel. it's just ridiculously good, and you will make it over and over, whether you're veggie or not (i am not). if only for that recipe, you can not miss with this cookbook and i highly recommend it.
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Creative meatless cooking --some of my favorite recipes, June 6, 2002
The Moosewood cookbooks have some very creative, elegant and not too difficult recipes that are worthwhile even if you aren't vegetarian. Some of my favorite recipes are in this book, and it's really useful for dinner parties, especially if some of the guests don't eat meat.
The Moosewood Collective is a hold-over from the late 60's and early 70's. It's a restaurant near the Cornell University campus, run by a "collective" or communal group of owners who share the restaurant proceeds equally while doing any of the jobs, such as cooking or washing dishes.
The Moosewood New Recipes are international in flavor, ranging from Middle Eastern dishes like Baba Ganoush and Hummus (eggplant and chickpea dips) to French soups, Asian noodle dishes and Hispanic, Greek, and Italian dishes as well. There are some "gourmet" creations like Chilled Cantaloupe-Amarretto Soup and also some earthy ones like Creole Beans and Rice.
My particular favorite is the Tempeh Reuben Sandwich. Tempeh is a fermented soybean cake that scares off all but the most dedicated vegetarians. But here, tempeh becomes a delicious substitute for corned beef. In fact, I prefer Tempeh Reubens to the classic ones--more flavor, less fat. Frankly, the book is worth the price for this recipe alone.
Now, this book isn't 100% vegetarian (because fish is included, and they were part of the animal kingdom last time I checked.) And cheese is used, so vegans will find the recipes limiting. But if you want to jazz up your cooking and use more vegetables, this book is a real find. In particular, the appendix section on cooking dried beans is particularly helpful if you want to make inexpensive but delicious dishes like rice and beans (black beans or Creole red are both included here, as well as a navy bean soup.)
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