general

I have used this cookbook for a few years now and have found many of the recipes to be wonderful and a few not so great. But overall I am pleased to have it. My favorites have been the Asian Noodle soup, Sothwestern corn and potato soup, Black bean chilaquile, Penne with puttanesca sauce, Eggplant parmesan, Baked beets and shallots, Japanese sesame spinach, and my favorite recipe for banana bread-Banana bundt cake. These are all very flavorful and satisfying dishes. I plan to keep trying many more of the recipes in the future. I recommend this book highly but you may not like all the recipes. Some that other reviewers have mentioned they liked I did not care for (Jerk Tofu, macaroni and cheese) and some I thought were pretty bad (almost fat-free cornbread) but it is just a matter of taste. The recipes I do like I make again and again so I am glad I own this book.

I got this cookbook because:
1) I am vegetarian
2) I follow a low fat diet
3) I love to cook

I have made many, many of the recipes in this book, and they've been a hit almost every time (well, no cookbook is perfect). There are no glossy pictures -- this is a cook's book. There are several indexes of recipes (10% or less in fat, vegan, children's favorites, etc) as well as "menus" in the back -- new year's, thanksgiving, east asian, tex mex, etc.

Some of the recipes are very time consuming to make (there are quite a few 30 minute or less recipes listed in the back, however), and some of the ingredients are not always easy to find. However, this is *not* meant to be a book of "quick and easy recipes." I have broadend my palate by searching out some of the more unusual ingredients.

The recipes DO call for oil (usually 1-2 teaspoons), low fat cheeses, and (in the dessert section) chocolate. Don't think is a no-fat-no-flavor cookbook. They've kept the feeling of self-denial at bay. There is also a section of fish and seafood recipes, for those so inclined. <><

There's a lot that's good about this book - the nutritional information, the homey and personal feel of the prose, the inspiration to try new things - but I do end up disappointed fairly often. A couple of recipes are favourites - the breakfast section generally, for example - but a lot of the dinner recipes are really pretty complicated for mid-week meals, and then turn out not to be too different from what I could have achieved in far less time with fewer ingredients. A book to try for a few new ideas, but not one to base your new diet on.