Vegan with a Vengeance

October 31, 2005
To appreciate this quirky vegan cookbook, readers must welcome the author's offhand, rambling style. A chatty Brooklynite who hosts her own public access cooking show, she scatters stories about her mother, her friends and her politics among recipes for goodies like Fresh Corn Fritters and Curried Split Pea Soup. In one anecdote, she writes that her mother liked the scones from "one of those overpriced French cafes in Union Square," prompting the author to create Glazed Orange scones in her mother's honor, and the sweet, rich result rivals the average "overpriced cafe" model. BBQ Pomegranate Tofu is actually baked, not barbecued, but still the tofu is rich and smoky, terrific over rice or packed into heroes. Even better, the vegan iterations of Spanakopita and Seitan-Portobello Stroganoff so closely approximate the traditional versions that even the pickiest eaters would happily trade one for the other. And although there's no chicken broth in Matzoh Ball Soup, the vegetable stock is hearty enough to cure the fiercest cold. Best of all, and rare in a vegan cookbook, the author provides several appealing dairy-free desserts that are tasty enough to fool most omnivores, yet unique enough to thrill any vegan who just can't face another tofu ice cream bar.

Starred review from December 1, 2005
It's hip. It's punk. It's high energy. And it's darn fun to read! Cohost of a community-access vegan cooking show called "The Post Punk Kitchen", Moskowitz here espouses a philosophy of being kind to both animals and one's budget and of adopting a do-it-yourself attitude for a fun time in the kitchen. "Vegan" has a solid repertoire of recipes that will carry readers through the day, the seasons, and the holidays. Even though everything is made from scratch, most of the recipes are neither complicated nor time-consuming. The ingredients are common enough to be found in most large grocery stores or health food stores, and Moskowitz encourages substitution and experimentation. She provides good, basic information about handling tofu and making seitan and includes sidebars, a.k.a. -Punk Points, - with tips ranging from how to puré e soup in a blender to how to cook with lemongrass. And who can resist a vegan cookbook with recipes for Hazelnut Scones or Brooklyn Pad Thai that yield excellent results? This book will be a hit with teens and young adults as well as with adults wanting to add more spice to their own kitchen experiments. Highly recommended for all public libraries." -Marija Sanderling, Lane Memorial Lib., Hampton, NH"

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