Science taught us long ago that diet is a critical factor in human health. Vegetarian Awareness Month (October) gives us a grand excuse to familiarize ourselves with the philosophies, cooking, and health benefits of a vegetarian diet. A vegetarian diet
Science taught us long ago that diet is a critical factor in human health. Vegetarian Awareness Month (October) gives us a grand excuse to familiarize ourselves with the philosophies, cooking, and health benefits of a vegetarian diet. A vegetarian diet avoids meat. A vegan diet avoids all animal products including eggs, milk and honey. A pescatarina diet avoids land-based animals. But it’s not so much about the empty half of the glass as the full half: a celebration of the earth’s bounty and a respect for life. This week’s Book Buzz offers very vegetarian books and related food titles that may be of interest.
Happy reading.
Ani’s Raw Food Kitchen: Easy Delectable Living Food Recipes
By Ani Phyo
641.563 Ph
A raw vegan diet involves more than simply chomping into produce. This book shows how to create more complex flavor harmonies. Nutmeats of all sorts serve as a basis of many recipes such as cheese substitutions or pie crusts. Dates stand in for the sweetness less healthfully derived from refined sugar. Raw zucchini strips mimic fettuccini. A close reading of the nutritional analysis for each recipe reveals the high levels of dietary fiber this diet introduces. See also The Raw 50: 10 Amazing Breakfasts, Lunches, Dinners, Snacks and Drinks for your Raw Food Lifestyle by Carol Alt and Everyday Raw by Matthew Kenney.
The Complete Vegan Cookbook: Over 200 Tantalizing Recipes Plus Plenty of Kitchen Wisdom for Beginners and Experienced Cooks
By Susann Geiskopf-Hadler and Mindy Toomay
641.5636 Ge
This book emphasizes good health and great flavor, whether you’re a full-time vegan or simply looking for an occasional “ideal meal”-one low in saturated fat and cholesterol and high in health-enhancing nutrients and great taste. A step-by-step guide to creating vegan dishes for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and dessert. Also try the popular classic Veganomicon, The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra Moskowitz or The Everyday Vegan: Recipes and Lessons for Living the Vegan Life by Dreena Burton.
Gaia’s Kitchen: Vegetarian Recipes for Family and Community
By Julia Ponsonby
641.5636 Po
This new edition of the best vegetarian cookbook of 2001calls upon the best of Mediterranean, Californian, Indian, and Mexican cooking. Besides soups, main courses, and salads, there’s a mouthwatering selection of desserts, breads, cakes, and biscuits. Gaia’s Kitchen also explores the issues of nutrition, special diets, and the ecological dimension of food production.
Green Tea: 50 Hot Drinks, Cook Quenchers, and Sweet and Savory Treats
By Mary Lou Heiss
641.6372 He
Green tea has been enjoyed around the world for more than 2,000 years. It has now evolved into a versatile ingredient for everyday cooking, and for hip and health-conscious tea drinkers. Includes helpful hints on selection, brewing, storing and a description of health benefits.
The Inner World of Farm Animals: Their Amazing Social, Emotional and Intellectual Capacities
By Amy Hatkoff
636 Ha
Chickens can count, pigs are smarter than poodles, cows form close friendships and turkeys know one another by their voice. Far from lacking thoughts and feelings, barnyard creatures demonstrate sophisticated problem-solving abilities and possess rich social lives. The author combines the latest research, stories and photographs to call for treating these feeling beings with greater compassion and respect. In this beautifully designed book Jane Goodall weighs in with a forward for this book. Goodall also writes the forward for Vegan World Fusion Cuisine: Healing Recipes and Timeless Wisdom from our Hearts to Yours from Kauai’s Blossoming Lotus Restaurant. Also look for Goodall’s Harvest for Hope: A Guide to Mindful Eating.
Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks’ Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets
By Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
641.5636 Pa
Vegan baking comes of age with this collection of baked delights without eggs and dairy. The author has put together a comprehensive tome sure to be useful for novices and pros. A nice mix of stories, photos, explanations and incredible recipes. Easy convenient, delectable.
A Moveable Feast: Ten Millennia of Food Globalization
By Kenneth F. Kiple
641.3 Ki
This history of food is also a reference book with a collection of fascinating facts. From the first domesticated pigs to the prime pork chop it is a cornucopia of information about food. Provides a look at the globalization of food from the days of the hunter-gatherers to present-day genetically modifies plants and animals. Much attention is given to the “Columbia Exchange” of plants and animals that brought revolutionary demographic change to every corner of the planet.
The New Glucose Revolution Low GI Vegetarian Cookbook: 80 Delicious Vegetarian and Vegan Recipes Made Easy with the Glycemic Index
By Dr. Jennie Brand-Miller
641.5636 Ne
The glycemic index nutrition approach ranks foods based on how quickly they raise your blood-sugar levels. Explains what we know about the glycemic index and its importance in designing a diet for optimum health. Explains the scientific rationale for why all carbohydrates are not created equal. With a nice layout and color photographs it is a healthier, better balanced, and more flexible alternative to other diet regimens.
Play With Your Food
By Joost Elffers
641.81 El
Get your creative juices flowing with this vegetarian book that is just plain silly. The author/artist carves and slices everyday fruits and vegetables into delightful imaginative creatures. He shows you how you can do it too. It’s in the eye of the beholder.
Simply Organic: A Cookbook for Sustainable, Seasonal and Local Ingredients
By Jesse Ziff Cool
641.563 Co
In the interest of complete disclosure, this is not a vegetarian-only cookbook. It is, however, heavy on fruits and vegetables and focuses on mindful eating. This beautifully designed book introduces the world of healthy organic living with 150 simple delicious recipes that celebrate fresh ingredients at the peak of ripeness. For another heavy-on-the-fruits-and-vegetables resource check out The Hawaii Farmers Market Cookbook: Fresh Island Products from A to Z edited by Joan Namkoong from the Hawaii Farm Bureau. Also look for The Organic Food Shopper’s Guide: What You Need to Know to Select and Cook the Best Food on the Market by Jeff Cox.
Tofu Cookery
By Louise Hagler
641.65655 Ha
Tofu is an economical source of high-quality easily digestible, cholesterol-free protein. This revised classic shows how to make tofu delicious. For new recipe ideas try Tofu 1-2-3: 125 Easy-to-Prepare Cholesterol-Free Recipes by Maribeth Abrams.
The Tropical Vegan Kitchen:Meat-free, Egg-free Dairy-Free Dishes from the Tropics
By Donna Klein
641.5636 Kl
Check out the mouthwatering dishes from paradise in this culinary tour through the Caribbean, Central and South America, Thailand, Indonesia, Hawaii Australia, Africa, India and other exotic places. Learn to prepare tropical combinations.
What the World Eats
By Peter Menzel and Faith D’Aluisio
641.30022 Me
Give your eating habits a context with this illustrated tour and fascinating glimpse into the cultural similarities and differences served on dinner plates around the globe. The authors joined families from 21 countries around the world as they shopped, cooked and ate. While some people still have barely enough to eat, others overeat to the point of illness. The authors discuss the tremendous impact expansion of global food corporations like Kraft and Nestle, McDonalds and Kentucky Fried Chicken have on eating habits.
Vegetarian Sushi
Made Easy
By Hiroko Fukuhara
641.5952 Fu
This handy book describes and illustrates exactly how to create traditional sushi rolls, cone rolls, tossed, pocket, and pressed sushi. It illustrates preparation of materials, and beautiful, eye-catching, and clever design techniques and introduces you to a whole range of possible ingredients.
• Carolyn Larson, head librarian at Lihu‘e Public Library, brings you the buzz on new, popular and good books available at your neighborhood library. Book annotations are culled from online publishers’ descriptions and published reviews.
