Vegan Vittles: Down-Home Cooking for Everyone

"Vegan Vittles" is not just about what's for dinner. It's my go-to reference cookbook. Need a cheesy sauce, sour cream, whipped topping, sandwich spread? It's all here. With only a few ingredients in most recipes, I have everything I need without stirring a step out of my kitchen. That's real convenience.Disclaimer: I eat no meat and strive to follow a plant-based diet, but do not consider myself a vegan. For several years I was an ovo-lacto vegetarian, even after marrying a carnivore. Eventually, though, I "relapsed," cooking and eating the typical meat-based American diet for many years. More recently, I'd been trending back to the thinking that caused me to adopt the vegetarian diet in the first place: "Why do we call some animals pets and others dinner?" I tried to incorporate more meatless meals into our diet. But I was still married to that carnivore.Then, a gift. My spouse and I became aware of the research of Dr. Neal Barnard, MD, (Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine)as well as the work of Drs. Colin Campbell and Caldwell Esselstyn(Forks over Knives). It seems animal products are so much worse for our health than we had previously thought. The decision to eliminate meat was suddenly an easy one. But what about milk, cheese, and eggs? We didn't think we could give those up, but wanted to try.If you've stopped eating meat and would like to eliminate dairy as well: Buy this book. Do NOT waste your time and effort with "vegetarian" cookbooks. They will not help you make the transition to a plant-based diet; more than likely they will convince you it is an exercise in futility. I have more vegetarian cookbooks than I can count. When I scanned those for vegan recipes, I was in for quite the shock. Most of the meatless recipes I had been cooking were loaded with cheese. Not just a little cheese, either--a lot. I went through one such cookbook and could not find a single main dish recipe that did not make use of either eggs or cheese. Many of the vegetarian cookbooks I own were written by people who believed animal products are necessary to good health. Their inclusion of dairy products was purposeful, in order to ensure "adequate nutrition." Now we know that with a B12 supplement, the plant-based diet provides all the nutrition we need.So why "Vegan Vittles"? I want food that reliably tastes good and is nutritionally balanced, recipes that are low in fat and make use of complex carbohydrates. I want a nutritional analysis for each recipe. I want staple recipes that I can personalize. "Vegan Vittles" gives me all of these, but here the sum is so much more than a total of the parts. This book has been an adventure for me. Who knew I could make meat substitutes, vegan condiments, and cheesy sauces here in my own home, and with only a few basic ingredients? And who knew my reluctant spouse would actually eat and enjoy them?Try the tofu bacon! It's the best vegan bacon we have tried. I have to plan a day ahead for this. Press the tofu with (exactly) 3 14-oz cans of beans. (A tip: Lay the strips on a cookie sheet lined with parchment paper.) Other favorites: Basic Flavored Seitan and Ground Seitan. We use meat substitutes sparingly, but now have no need to run out and buy pricey crumbles or store-bought seitan products when we want them. I have them in the freezer. The ground seitan mixes up in about 5 minutes(+30 minutes baking time). I use this for my biscuits and gravy. Grind it quite fine. (I don't recommend Jo's biscuit recipes, but use my own).Other good recipes: Muffins That Taste Like Donuts....kind of like a cinnamon/sugar cake donut, excellent. I like "Gooey Grilled Cheese"--great on rye bread. My husband prefers the Missing Egg Salad recipe. This is a basic recipe that we seasoned to our own taste.Having cooked for many years, I have my own seasoning combinations and ways of doing things. This book helps me cook the way I want to, yet without using any animal products. The stories about the Farm Sanctuary animals warm my heart and remind me why I became a vegetarian in the first place. As I cook from this book, I sense Jo's compassion, and share in the joy of cruelty-free eating. Thanks, Jo!

This book is great for beginners. It starts out by explaining what veganism is, then discusses husbandry in America, and opportunities for animal activism. It goes on to give dairy, meat, and egg alternatives, which I really need until I become more skilled with the veggies. There is a glossary of commonly used ingredients. Most of the ingredients I knew, but the descriptions were detailed enough to give me depths on what I was familiar with. The book includes a list of fruits/vegetables which are highest in Pesticides, Lowest in Pesticides, and Genetically Engineered. I found all this wonderful for a beginner like me. What I didn't like as a beginner is that there were no pictures, not even one!As far as the recipes, I found them to be easy to follow (very well written and great organization). Only a few recipes in this book turned out drastically different from what I expected. Here's a rundown on my experience with the individual recipes. (BTW, I like foods with a lot of flavor with an affinity for Italian, Indian & American, just so you can have an idea of how I'm judging.)Ground Seitan: GREAT. I use these recipes for my veggie crumbles (mainly for Italian dishes).Eggless Omelets: NOT SO GREAT. But I pretty much knew this by looking at the ingredients. When I want an omelet alternative, a flat pancake type of concoction just won't do."Buttermilk" Biscuits: AWFUL. But I will take into consideration that I MAY HAVE done something wrong. I was in a hurry when I made these. They turned out hard & flavorless. Now I just alter my old tried & true biscuit recipe to make it vegan.Muffins That Taste Like Donuts: DISAPPOINTING. It's not that these did not taste good, it's that the title is deceiving. These taste nothing like donuts! They taste like health food muffins. Which is okay. I just don't like being fooled.Scrambled Tofu: GREAT.Pecan Sticky Buns: PRETTY GOOD. They were heavy because of the whole wheat flour, and not as sweet as traditional sticky buns.Sloppy Lennys: GREAT. I really liked the taste. It's like placing baked beans on sandwich buns, strange at first, but enjoyable.Tuna-Free Melt: WONDERFUL! This is my favorite. Very similar in taste to tuna.Creamy Potato Kale Soup: WONDERFUL! I could eat this a couple times a week.Hearty Cabbage Casserole: GREAT. I will do again.Barbecue-Style Braised Short "Ribs": GOOD. Similar to BBQ chicken.Gardeners Pie: JUST OKAY. I found this a little bland, but my hubby liked.The Ultimate Chocolate Chip Cookies: LOVE! I send these to family. They always want more.**********11/14/14 update**********This book was great to get me started, but I've found that I want recipes with more fresh ingredients. Many of these recipes contain tofu and seitan, and I'm now looking for recipes that have little to no processed ingredients.

I am so in love with this cookbook. The recipes are very yummy and simple to prepare. There are no mile long ingredient lists-- she does a great job at keeping things simple. ((simple = affordable))All of the recipes I have made so far have been hits. Within two weeks of checking this book out from the library, I found several new "staples" for my family. One of our favorites is the Barbeque Tempeh. It is so easy to make and oh so tasty, that we have it at least two times per week! I did find that I like it better with prepared mustard instead of mustard powder.So far we have tried the Sweet & Sour Tempeh, the Farmhouse Stew (soooo delish), the Hearty Cabbage Casserole (OMG its so good!) and the Butternutty Chowder (you have to let it cook for a while after adding the peanut butter, it is soooo good once the peanut butter homogenizes with the squash!!). All were very very tasty, and they were very very simple.This book has helped our family make the transition from vegetarian to vegan. I highly recommend this book if you are looking for vegan recipes that you can make on a regular basis, without spending hours in the kitchen.

I used to be able to fill a tall bookcase with cookbooks, but gave most of them away when I decided to downsize my life. Jo Stepaniak's cookbooks were among the few that I kept, and this particular cookbook is one of my favourites.What I really appreciate about her cookbooks is that you don't need to find weird, expensive ingredients. You probably already have everything you need in your pantry or can find it at the local grocery store. I've cooked almost every recipe by now and there's only been one or two that I didn't really like, with the rest being very tasty. Plus most dishes are easy to prepare.To give you an idea of how much use I have gotten out of this cookbook, my original copy got so tattered that I bought a new copy!Highly, highly recommended.

Have had this book for several years. This order was for a family member we liked all recipes so much.

This is entirely in american cup sizes. Straight away that puts me off attempting anything in it.Having flicked through, nothing really grabbed me as wanting to make it, and no pictures of course to tempt me either.On the plus side, it's got lots of recipes, it's a very large book. Also good for people who don't like to buy any ready made items, with countless recipes for things like mayonnaise etc.