Cooking by the Seasons: Simple Vegetarian Feasts

Rating:
Summary: First Rate!!!
Review: ...Karri Ann Allrich has updated this book, and has changed the name to "Cooking By The Seasons". I decided, after owning this original cookbook for 2 years, and after seeing the revised version, that I would write a revised update of my book review, to remind people of what a great cookbook that exists out there!

This cookbook is divided into seasons. When I first became interested in eating with the seasons, I found this book to be an excellent advantage to actually offer menus for each season. Within each season, is a section for appetizers, main dishes, beverages and desserts. There are also sample menus for gatherings.

Despite the fact, I am not a vegetarian, I have enjoyed the recipes from this book as part of a more healthy approach to eating. Also, some of the main dishes can be utilized as a side dish for a meat-eater, or you can add meat to most of those dishes. All the dishes are easy to prepare, and the ingredients are easily found in any grocery store.

This cookbook does contain a goddess twist. There are Celtic festivals to celebrate and ways to honor a certain goddess with that dish. Even if you are not a Pagan, this book is exciting because the Pagans are known for living at one with the Earth. So, who better to find out what's in seasons and what meals to eat during that season, than a Pagan!

Examples of some of the delicious dishes you too can enjoy from this book are: Curried Stuffed Eggs, Golden Potato Soup, Roasted Vegetable Lasagna, Summer Garden Couscous, Southwestern Polenta and Garden Gazpacho.

This cookbook was so good, that I also recommend another one of her cookbooks "Cooking by Moonlight, 13 Menus for 13 Moons".

Check out this book today!

Rating:
Summary: great recipes for vegetarians and omnivores alike
Review: Cooking By the Seasons (formerly Recipes from a Vegetarian Goddess) is a great cookbook for vegetarians and omnivores alike. Organized by (you guessed it) the four seasons, chapters highlight appropriate foods evocative for each seasonal holiday.

For those new to the culinary arts, Ms. Allrich's recipes are simple to put together with clear, consise instruction. Notes on the turning wheel of the year accent creative menus; from beverages and appetizers, to soups, salads, main dishes and desserts, you'll find a satisfying recipe to help you celebrate the seasons with toss-together pasta recipes, tasty side dishes, quick soups, focaccia and pizzas, and plenty of hearty baked dishes - lasagnas, roasted vegetables, enchiladas, stuffed peppers. Unlike many vegetarian books, the desserts are tempting & wonderful. I highly recommend the Key Lime Pie.

A few personal favorites include: Roasted Acorn Squash Risotto, Southwestern Polenta, Paradise Pizza and Penne Rustica. Note: the focaccias are surprisingly easy (especially if you have a bread machine to mix the dough).

Allrich's recipes are easily adaptable. For those sensitive to dairy, recipes that feature milk, cheese or cream are offered with both non-dairy or dairy ingredients; one has a choice, and most recipes are easily adapted to a vegan approach. If chicken or fish is included in your diet, you can easily add these.

All in all, a very creative, user-friendly cookbook with everyday recipes your family will enjoy.

Rating:
Summary: Simple Vegetarian Feasts!
Review: Cooking by the Seasons is the reissue of the cookbook, Recipes from a Vegetarian Goddess. I noticed a few minor changes in some of the recipes and a new updated introduction. Also added to this edition are cooking conversion (charts and glossary) for US to UK translation, and a new resources section.

I am a fan of Karri Allrich's cookbooks. Her recipes are not overly complicated and adjust easily to adding your own dash of creativity. This book focuses on the four seasons and features seasonal menus and recipes that reflect the pleasures of spring, summer, fall and winter.

There is Pasta Primavera and Heuvos Rancheros for spring. Lavender Cookies, Corn Mother's Relish, and Baked Eggplant with Goat Cheese for summer. Autumn offerings include Cranberry Apple Crisp, Stuffed Acorn Squash and Corn Pancakes with Black Bean Salsa. Winter is the time for comfort foods and this cookbook features many, such as Winter Risotto with Mushrooms and Pine Nuts, Solstice Pumpkin Soup or Hearty Chili Bean Soup.

There are sections featuring appetizers (my favorite is the Brushcetta), beverages (I've tried the May Wine and Mulled Cider - very tasty), soups, salads, side dishes and main dishes. There are also desserts...the Key Lime Pie is my dessert of choice whenever I'm asked to bring something to a gathering... everyone loves it (and it makes me look good ;).

For those interested in goddess lore there is a nice (but not overpowering) touch of goddess and Celtic viewpoints in this cookbook. The focus is on the Earth, celebrating the seasons, and taking time for simple pleasures. The text surrounding the recipes is poetic and gently humorous. All in all, an inspiring cookbook with plenty of recipes you'll actually use.

Check out her other cookbook - Cooking By Moonlight - for even more seasonal recipes and extensive information on the folklore of herbs and foods (though the focus in that cookbook is not completely vegetarian). I recommend both cookbooks as they are very complimentary.

Rating:
Summary: Magical Seasonal Cooking
Review: I have this book, and 'Cooking By Moonlight', as well. They are both great books. The recipes in this book are SO GOOD, and the ones I haven't tried yet look good, too. They are not necessarily quick recipes, but everyone I have made has been worth the time it took. I am slow when I cook, so to a more experienced cook, they probably won't seem that long. Karri Ann's recipes are flavorful, and some are even "exotic" or "gourmet", but not so much that I have to go out of my way to find the ingredients, which I appreciate, living in the middle of nowhere.

Some of my favorites are: sundried tomato focaccia, lemon risotto with baby peas, rosemary focaccia, and dense lemon cake in chocolate-cognac sauce. The focaccia is to die for, in my opinion. It was one of the first breads I ever made, besides bread-machine recipes, and it's not too hard to make. The focaccia recipes all have variations in which you can mix it with the bread machine, should you wish. I personally love to add a little extra "energy" by mixing it by hand.

Probably because I live in a region that doesn't really have "seasons", I have enjoyed this cook book. I feel much more in touch with Autumn, when having a winter squash or pumpkin dish, even if it is 80 degrees outside! Very nice work. I hope she keeps writing cook books.

Rating:
Summary: Proof food can be much more than stuff you eat to stay alive
Review: I was thrilled to receive Cooking by the Seasons as I'd enjoyed her previous cookbook Cooking By Moonlight. This aimed more specifically at vegetarians and vegans, a large and growing market. Delicious food non-vegetarians will enjoy as well. As with Allrich's previous work, she writes from a Goddess-centric point of view, while briefly incorporating hints of the God and masculine energies, this work is mostly aimed at women in general.

Divided into four main sections by season, spring, summer, autumn, and winter, each contains a short description of associated colours, elements, brief bits of Goddess lore and so on, as well as menu suggestions for the festivals or sabbats.

Allrich sensibly recommends eating in tune with the seasons to align oneself closer to nature and the Goddess, eating fruits and vegetables as they're harvested. Many recipes for light fresh greens in the summer, warm simmering soups for the winter. Too often you hear about neo-pagan festivals and such with no actual connection to the changing of the seasons and alignment with Nature; for example, harvest festivals sans the harvesting, etc. This becomes symbolic at best, and at worst supremely naive. Allrich reminds us to "eat in season" to maintain that connection to the Earth and Her bounty.

She includes recipes for flavoured wines, appetizers, soups, main course, salads and desserts for each season with appropriate produce, with a section for notes and additions. Also contains three appendices: resources list to search out ingredients and natural products, as well as a detailed list of cooking terms from US to UK, additionally there is also a measurements conversion chart. Category index, and alphabetical recipe index.

As mentioned in a previous review, I'm no gourmet chef, however, when reviewing a cookbook, it makes sense to give the recipes a go. So I had a go at making the Baked Eggplant with Goat Cheese (page 74), as I love eggplant though rarely know what to do with it. It turned out fantastic, absolutely divine. I even managed to find something my notoriously picky husband (a non-vegetarian) loved, the Bread Crumb Pasta For Two (page 121). The recipes were easy to follow, making me almost feel like a chef on surveying and enjoying the finished product.

I'm gradually learning that food can be much more than stuff you eat to stay alive - it can also be a delicious life affirming experience to be sensually induced and indulge in. Kerri Ann Allrich's cookbooks have contributed to a large part of that. If you're looking for something deliciously flavourful to add to your cooking repertoire, pick this up.