The Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without

I had heard about this book on NPR and I browsed it at my local bookstore. I couldn't put it down. I bought it, not sure if I would keep it or give it to my intended recipient. In the 10 days that I had it before wrapping it on Christmas Day, I made 6 different dishes with it, each wonderful, easy, and delicious. The recipes are straightforward and yet come out very fancy, much more interesting than just a side of vegetables. Definitely worth the shelf space in my kitchen. *As an update, a year later I still use this cookbook regularly, and several of the dishes have become weeknight regulars. It is the first book I recommend now to people who ask about getting more vegetables into their diet.

I have been collecting and using Mollie Katzen's cookbooks since the first came out. I couldn't wait to get this one and have been delightfully surprised. What a gift for the vegetable lover/eater. I have already made several of the recipes and she certainly taught this old dog (me) some new tricks. I highly recommend this book.

Quite simply, the best vegetable cookbook I have ever read. I am a practicing chef in the U.K., certainly not on a level with the author, but I hold my own. And the reciples and dishes presented here are, in a word, exquisite. In another word, delicious. Since removing meat from my diet 10 years ago friends tell me I look much younger. I think books like this do a good job of reminding people that adopting a vegetable based diet is the simplest way to rpeserve our youth. I recently read another excellent book related to preserving youth, the hilarious Race You To THe Fountain of Youth. Race You to the Fountain of Youth: I'm Not Dead Yet (But parts of me are going fast) As far as vegetable based recipes and diets go, "Vegetable Dishes I Can't Live Without" is the best. I've read perhaps 9 books on the subject, and this is the only one I don't hesitate to recommend.

I've loved and used Mollie Katzen's books since I first received THE MOOSEWOOD COOKBOOK for a wedding gift 23 years ago. This newest one is another wonder. The writing is clear, thoughtful and fun, and the recipes are at once accessible and "out of this world", generally easy to make and yielding heavenly results. Just reading them makes me want to run out and shop and start cooking! Katzen's ART is also a miraculous combination of earthy and airy. From the lyrical, floral line drawing on the title page, to the spirited, happy designs by each recipe, to the gorgeous, exquisitely detailed studies throughout of the vegetables themselves, this book is a visual feast -- as soulful, alive and full of love as her edible works. Ms. Katzen is creative in the truest sense of the word, and this book will nourish and add beauty to all of our lives.