2024 the best vegan recipe book review

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VEGAN COOKING, DECODED: Learn to how to make 200+ plant-based recipes full of flavor, variety, and freshness with this best-selling vegan cookbook for beginners.

America’s Test Kitchen shows you how to avoid the vegan diet pitfalls of bland food, lack of variety, and overprocessed ingredients!

Can vegan cooking be flavorful? Satisfying? Easy to make? Good? America's Test Kitchen addresses these questions head-on in this ultra-accessible vegan cookbook! They’ll show you how to:

• Prepare 200+ easy vegan recipes for any occasion, from breakfast to entertaining
• Find the best vegan protein, plant-based milks, and other vegan pantry essentials
• DIY your own vegan mayonnaise, coconut yogurt, nut butters, seitan, and more
• Master the art of dairy-free cooking and vegan baking (it’s not as hard as it seems!)
 
Reimagine mealtime with veggie-forward plates, salads, and gain bowls. Enjoy comfort foods like lasagna and burgers—vegan-style! And learn how to bake a perfectly chewy chocolate chip cookie. With expert advice and 200+ rigorously-test plant-based recipes, this easy vegan cookbook has something satisfying for everyone—the committed vegan or simply those looking to freshen up their cooking.

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Publisher ‏ : ‎ America's Test Kitchen; Illustrated edition (April 4, 2017)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 336 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 194035286X
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1940352862
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.25 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.88 x 0.59 x 9.63 inches
Reviewer: E.S.
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Wealth of information!
Review: I just received this book today so have not yet made any recipes. I did, however, go through it thoroughly and was delighted with the quality. First, the cover is quite sturdy for a paperback, the pages are heavyweight and glossy with lots of colored photos. The first 37 pages are an encyclopedia for new and experienced vegans, with explanations of terms, which foods may not be vegan and the substitutes you can try. There are baking tips with photos of results using various ingredients, sort of a before and after comparison. There is a 2-page layout detailing types of grains, and a chart for cooking grains. There are several pages explaining the various types of vegan protein, how to select and use it, and much more. The index at the back of the book is particularly well thought out. Recipes are cross-referenced so that if you can’t remember the specific name of a recipe, you can still find the recipe under a more general heading. There is a comprehensive listing of all nutritional info for every recipe at the back of the book, leaving the individual pages with a cleaner look. I can’t wait to try all the recipes in this book! It’s a keeper!

Reviewer: Sarah Sullivan | Best Vegan Cookbook
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Easily in my "top 5" of vegan cookbooks
Review: Not sure if this book is right for you? Maybe my review can help. A little background on me so you know where I’m coming from: I’m in my 30s and living in Minneapolis, MN I have lived my whole life on a pretty meat and cheese heavy diet. Growing up we had the usual suspects and nothing fancy: spaghetti, pork chops, tater tot hotdish, etc. As an adult I enjoyed cooking from cookbooks and trying some new things but when planning meals there was almost always a hunk of meat on the menu because that’s just what I was used to.Enter this America’s Test Kitchen cookbook and a new resolve to do better for the planet and my personal health. America’s Test Kitchen material is always top notch in my opinion so I’m a little biased. I decided I wanted to make a commitment to a meat and dairy free life a few weeks ago and this book has really been invaluable in helping make that transition.In terms of the complexity or “weirdness” of ingredients they call for I’d rate them a 3 on a scale of 1 to 10, meaning you’re going to be able to make most of the stuff in here with items you can find at your local grocery store. The weirdest it gets is miso paste (find it on Amazon) and nutritional yeast but that stuff is everywhere nowadays (Bob’s Red Mill sells it in bags or your local co-op will have it in the bulk section).So the book gets points for not using a bunch of weird stuff that’s hard to track down and you’ll use once and then pitch the rest of. Note that if you have a nut allergy you won’t be able to fully take advantage of the recipes here as many of them call for cashew-based sauces and nut milk.Second thing is the quality of the recipes. They’re good, and again, not WEIRD. A lot of vegan cooking approaches of old seemed to focus a lot on creating faux meat substitutes like “facon” or a non-beef ground beef. That is not the focus of this book at all. They have created meat and dairy free recipes that are incredibly tasty and satisfying where you don’t miss the meat and you’re not trying to work around a weird meat substitute on your plate either.They emphasize getting comfortable with and liberally using a variety of beans, grains and vegetables instead of trying to find ways to replicate meat. The book gets major points from me for focusing on enhancing the flavors and textures of the products vegans DO eat rather than trying to imitate the products they DON’T eat. That’s the best way to feel fulfilled on this kind of diet rather than frustrated and they nailed it.The book itself is beautiful. I think there’s a picture for every recipe and in my opinion that’s a MUST for a cookbook, and especially a VEGAN cookbook. When someone like me is trying a new way of eating it really helps to be able to see what the finished product can/will look like for inspiration and motivation. They also have a helpful and brief section at the beginning in typical ATK fashion schooling you on the basics of beans, grains, and nut milks. For a beginner this is a very helpful reference - it is succinct and clear.Lastly, you DO need some equipment to get the best results with this cookbook and with any vegan cooking really. If you’ve been trying to eat vegan but it takes you hours to prepare a meal or the sauce just never turns out quite right you just need to invest in a Cuisinart and a Vitamix. Don’t skimp on that stuff as it will make a WORLD of difference in your ability to cook efficiently and get the right flavors and textures. To fully take advantage of the recipes in this book it also helps to have an ice cream maker.I haven’t been disappointed yet with the results. We’ve made:- Black bean burgers with cumin and pub sauce (actually, we’ve made this twice and the second time we doubled the batch to freeze half of the patties for later)- Red lentil soup- Fettuccine Alfredo (pictured) - it gets its rich and creamy sauce from miso, cauliflower, cashews and almond milk! You won’t mistake it for a parm-based dish but you also won’t miss the parmesan cheese at all. This is flavorful and light but filling, the complete opposite of the heavy cream and cheese based alfredo I used to eat. All 25 feet of my intestines thanked me for hours after eating this meal.- Macaroni and Cheese - similar to the fettuccine, this recipe uses a nut and cauliflower base for its cheese sauce plus some "nooch" (nutritional yeast). It was light and satisfying. It came together in about 20 minutes from ingredients we had on-hand, making it an obvious choice for rotation on the week night meal schedule.- Baja coconut cauliflower tacos (pictured) - this was surprisingly good...the cauliflower florets are dipped in coconut milk then dredged with coconut flakes and panko and roasted. They get incredibly creamy and actually are reminiscent of coconut shrimp but BETTER.- Crispy Orange Seitan (pictured) - The crisp cornmeal/cornstarch crust and sweet orange sauce are the stars here and as such we did not miss the chicken. Bonus: 1 ounce of seitan has 21 grams of protein while 1 ounce of chicken only has 8 grams protein!- Pesto Pizza with Fennel and Cauliflower (pictured) - A proliferation of basil in my garden had me thumbing through the book looking for something to use it in. Enter this pizza. If your hangup about eating vegan is giving up cheese-smothered pizza (hey, we all have our foods we're scared to live without!) then you really must try this recipe and you will be a believer. As with every other vegan meal I've assembled the absence of meat and cheese means other ingredients have room to shine. I did slightly modify this to add a cashew cream "mozzarella" drizzle on top for some additional creaminess. You could also use their cashew ricotta (recipe on p. 27) to add a little extra cheesy flavor to this.- Coconut ice cream - we did this one as instructed first, then did a second batch and added a quarter cup of unsweetened baking cocoa and it was AMAZING (pictured). As a bonafide ice cream junkie (an evening wasn’t complete without a big bowl of rich, creamy dairy ice cream!) I can confidently say I’d eat this the rest of my life and never feel compelled to touch another bowl of “real” ice cream. I had tried a couple of other vegan ice cream recipes from other sources prior to this and I can confidently tell you nothing else I tried came close to the lightness of the texture here. Other ice creams come out flatter in flavor and much denser. While the coconut flavor comes through, I’d say this has a texture comparable to Breyers and that’s difficult to achieve with a non-dairy base.All in all I would highly recommend this book for a prominent place in your collection if you’re a seasoned vegan looking for some quality recipes that you don’t need to “tinker” with and especially if you’re a newbie vegan looking to get a solid and positive start to help you make the transition.

Reviewer: OMER FARUK
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Delicious Recipes and Fast Delivery!
Review: This recipe book is a fantastic addition to any kitchen. The instructions are clear, and every dish I’ve tried has turned out delicious! The diverse selection of recipes is truly impressive. Plus, the book arrived quickly and in perfect condition. Highly recommend!*

Reviewer: LG
Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Nice cookbook
Review: Great recipes. Easy to use and great pictures. The only thing I didn’t like about it is it doesn’t give you a breakdown on nutrients like calories etc. that is why the four stars.

Reviewer: cjmr
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Nicely produced
Review: Simplisticly produced . Clear recipes. Lovely pictures

Reviewer: Susan D.
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title: Great as always from America’s Test Kitchen
Review: So far I have only made 1 recipe from this cookbook, the pecan pie, but it was so amazing it has officially replaced my old favorite (non-vegan) pecan pie recipe! I’m so glad I chose this recipe to make for Thanksgiving, because I searched for a vegan pecan pie recipe online before I remembered to check this book, and this recipe was quite different - it called for a roux instead of egg substitutes! And it turned out so yummy! Everyone loved the pie, and my sister was so surprised it didn’t have eggs. Unfortunately I looked at the calorie count in the back of the book. I would advise you not to do that.I also used the banana bread recipe from this cookbook to modify another quick bread recipe I had been perfecting (buckwheat “morning glory” bread), and that one turned out better than the original as well!I have been reading through the recipes because I love the way they discuss the various possible ingredients and why their ingredients make the end result better. The pages on baking substitutions alone is worth the price of the book! For example, oat milk is best for baking because things brown better with oat milk than soy. Who knew?I’m looking forward to trying more recipes, and feel confident to look at this book first when I want to make something for company, because I know will turn out right. I’ll try to remember to update this review when I’ve tried more recipes.

Reviewer: Wen Kauffman
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I think this vegan offering of recipes will appeal to most people. I like how ATK sets out the vegan pantry and their preference of certain ingredients for particular recipe's and why. I have been plant based for 20 years and vegan for about 5 years and I have a lot of books. This book is in heavy rotation in our home. recipes that standout for our whole family ( 20, 17, and two 50 year olds) are: The banana bread!! Brown Rice burrito bowl, Barley bowl, Heart veg lasagna, vegan shepherd's pie, crispy orange seitan, Thai tofu basil lettuce cups, stir friend tofu, shiitake & green beans. Soups and some great desserts. Ignore the comments about this book not being healthy, for most people transitioning to vegan or plant based this is a great way to get healthy tasty veggies in your diet and most of all, reduces our contribution to animal and the planet suffering at our hands.

Reviewer: Haydee Lopez
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Me encanto el libro, son recetas fáciles de hacer y con ingredientes fáciles de encontrar en México. Lo que me encanto más fue que pase por el al OXXO y muy amables.

Reviewer: Lady Aga
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I have to say this is an excellent vegan recipe book (I probably own 200+ vegan recipes books at present). All that I have made has been outstanding, and also caused my husband to comment on how very good the food is. There is a lot in this fully comprehensive book. A great introduction for those not so much in the know about food, a very good intro to each recipe telling you why the flavours will work and how the recipe developers came to include certain flavours/processes. The flavours are very well thought through.We have been plant-based for over a year, vegetarian since the early 1980s. My profession for 44+ years was food; I ran a cook-school from home for Aga owners and used to also demonstrate Aga cooking to the public at The Scottish Aga shops. Last year I took two vegan cookery courses, via the Rouxbe online platform, The Professional Plant-Based Certification Course by Chad Sarno & Fran Costigan’s Vegan Desserts & Baking Course, so I know my stuff & do highly recommend this book. The pesto pizza with fennel and cauliflower, Baja Style Cauliflower Tacos, Spicy Peanut Rice Noodle bowl & Sizzling Saigon Crepes, to name but a few, are up there with the greats flavour wise, I still have many more recipes to cook from this book, but so far it is a very clear winner.Based on the excellence of this book I have just ordered the vegetarian one, which I can adapt to vegan where required and I am eyeing up the Mediterranean one, also by the Test Kitchen, too. I highly recommend for home use, and if you entertain, you will wow your guests with the food from this book.

Reviewer: MR J R TOOTH
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: Good informative read.

Reviewer: R Ross
Rating: 5.0 out of 5 stars
Title:
Review: I absolutely love this book. I've made about a dozen of the recipes now and every single one has been delicious and turned out exactly as we expected. The recipes are well-written and easy to follow. The ingredients are easy to find. (I hate when cookbooks use ingredients I can't get at my local grocery store.) And I'll say it again: The food is delicious. I highly recommend this book to anyone who is vegan, interested in being vegan, or just wants to add more plant-based ingredients into their diet.