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Summary: Some recipes lack important ingredients
Review: Before making any one of these dishes, one should read through the recipe to make sure it makes sense. For example, the recipe for "Chicken Stewed with Fennel, Tomatoes, and Saffron" calls for major amounts of vegetables, plus 4 chicken legs with thighs. One is supposed to put all the ingredients in a glass bowl to marinade overnight. Please note, only one cup of liquid is used. How can one marinate all these ingredients in one cup of liquid? That's what I asked myself when I ended up with a huge bowl of ingredients and miniscule amount of liquid. Another questionable recipe is found on page 197, "Couscous with Vegetables." Here again, the recipe calls for sauteing a large amount of vegetables and seasonings with just one tbl. of oil and 2 tbls. of liquid. I would not recommend this book nor would I buy another book by this author.
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Summary: A GUIDE FOR LEGUME LOVERS
Review: Here's a guide for the increasing numbers who are opting to be vegetarians - most of the time. Many of the recipes that call for fish or poultry can be prepared with legumes instead. And, these dishes are not bland but tasty as well as nourishing. Included is a Fresh Vegetable Directory, containing descriptions of vegetables and how to select them in the market. You'll never confuse scallions and shallots again!
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Summary: A GUIDE FOR LEGUME LOVERS
Review: Here's a guide for the increasing numbers who are opting to be vegetarians - most of the time. Many of the recipes that call for fish or poultry can be prepared with legumes instead. And, these dishes are not bland but tasty as well as nourishing. Included is a Fresh Vegetable Directory, containing descriptions of vegetables and how to select them in the market. You'll never confuse scallions and shallots again!
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Summary: Lots of info, some great recipes
Review: I got this book because I wanted to be vegetarian for ethical reasons, not necessarily for health reasons. I have found that the recipes in this book skimp on fat in every ingredient which is great for those of you trying to lower your cholesterol, eat healthier, etc. But I found that these recipes take a good amount of preparation and end up tasting rather bland. I want my whole-milk cheese and butter back!
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Summary: There's some good eatin' in this book!
Review: I have tried several of the recipes in this book and found all of them to be delicious. Most selections are relatively low fat with lots of flavor. It's perfect for individuals who eat meat occasionally. All recipes that call for poultry or fish also have suggestions for keeping it vegetarian. Sorry, this doesn't have many vegan recipes, although the vegans I know are pretty clever enough to make substitutions
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Summary: The first cookbook I've actually wanted to use
Review: I never really bothered to learn how to cook. My extended family does it -- and does it well -- almost as second nature, but for some reason, the love (and the know-how) of preparing wonderful food never made its way down to me. Then I started broadening my tastes, and then I got engaged. Suddenly, I wanted to learn how to cook. I made peace with the kitchen over the course of a summer, and then I decided we'd need to be friends. I borrowed my mom's cookbooks and flipped enthusiastically through the pages, but everything was meat, and everything contained words like broil, blanch, and braise, and I didn't even know what those words meant, let alone how to do them. I found Diana Shaw's ALMOST VEGETARIAN in a used book store for [just a little money]. I loved the format, the nutrition information, the glossary of terms, the how-to boxes (ex: how to clean a leek), the appendecies on how to select fruits and vegetables for best taste, etc. I flipped through it, and right away I saw ten recipes I wanted to try. With my fiance, I got to work immediately, and we have both loved the results so far. Many of the recipes take a long time to make, and some call for specialized ingredients, but there are time saving do-ahead tips for each selection, and exact instructions on how (and how long) each can be preserved (before or after completion) and where to find some of the more obscure ingredients. If you're vegetarian, mostly vegetarian (like me), or you just want to cook more with fruits and veggies, try this book. Some recipes may take longer than expected, especially the first time you make them, but the vast majority are worth the wait. Kudos to Diana Shaw!
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Summary: VEGGIES AREN'T SO BAD!
Review: Remember when growing up as a child you abhored vegetables? Moms across the nation have spent vast hours in cajoling their little darlings into eating those "things" that were good for them. Now as an adult we're told that we need to eat more vegetable if we care about our health. Sigh. We reluctantly acquiese but still we hate those green (or not so green) things. Hate no more as I have done in coming across this delightful cookbook. If you still love meat but need more veggies in your diet please explore this text. Inside you will come across mouth watering recipes that are easy to make. And the vegetable dishes taste fantastic. You don't have to commit to vegetarianism in order to enjoy the varied meals presented which also include chicken and fish. Almost Vegetarians isn't preachy like Mom in trying to convince you to eat vegetables. It is a sensible guide which offers a variety of ways in which those things can be made delicious for our palets. It also contains advice on purchasing the proper cookware, buying mail order and a great bibliography. If you weren't sold on vegetables before, you will be with this book. Have a great meal!
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Summary: Slimming with Italian flair
Review: Shaw's cookbook has a sumptuous Italian flair, given that it was tested and written while the author was living in Milan. She balances the Old World savor of herbed asparagus torta, risotto with mussels, potato frittata, rice stuffing with pine nuts and dried cherries, and braised chicken breasts tapenade, with American innovations like sweet potato pancakes (cut with plain potatoes and ricotta cheese) and chilled corn chowder, and international touches such as chickpea curry, couscous with vegetables and fish, and tea steamed chicken or bean curd. Each recipe is accompanied by preparation and cooking times and nutritional information. Many also include serving suggestions and variations. The book opens with a cooking primer describing basic techniques and a buying and storing guide for vegetables. In addition cooking tips, such as how to clean various shellfish, or press tofu, or microwave vegetables, or even clean lettuce, are scattered throughout the book. Shaw's emphasis is on fresh, naturally low-fat foods. Most recipes are simple to prepare if not always quick and will appeal to cooks of any level. Especially useful for those trying to sneak a few meatless meals into the dinner routine.
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Summary: Too much time!
Review: The recipes in this book take entirely too much time tend to be bland. Other cookbooks that I own have similar recipes that take half the time. The results were very dissapointing.
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Summary: Veggies Good!
Review: This book has excellent, and very creative recipies for the "Almost Vegetarian". It is a celebration of food as well as living healthy. If your goal is to be a vegetarian, you should have this book. It is very difficult to jump right into being meatless... especially in the fast food burger joint world we live in. This book can help you make the transfer, without going "cold turkey". It will retain usefulness even after you have stopped eating meat because most of the recipies are completely vegetarian, and all are very tasty.
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