Must Have Vegan Cookbooks

New vegetarians and vegans are often at a loss for what to cook. My biggest recommendation is to get a hold of a good vegan cookbook and just start experimenting! There is a WORLD of amazing recipes out there! I use my cookbooks all the time and am constantly trying new recipes, and it will be a long time before I have managed to try them all! Here is a list of my favorites:

Vegan Planet by Robin Robertson.  This was my very first vegan cookbook and many of my standby recipes are in here. For the most part, each recipe is uncomplicated and ingredients are easy to find. She also has a nice introduction to veganism and a lot of vegan cooking tips throughout the book. My favorite recipes are: Fusilli with Roasted Asparagus, Sun-Dried Tomatoes, and Pine Nuts; Fettuccine with Red Lentil Sauce, Curried Lentils with Carrots and Peas, Jerk-Spiced Portobello Mushroom Steaks, and Coconut-Cardamom Rice Pudding. Highly Recommended!

The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen by Donna Klein.  I received this as a gift for Christmas this year and I have already used it quite a bit! I can honestly say that I have not tried a recipe yet that I didn’t like! Klein uses authentic recipes from the Mediterranean region that just happen to be vegan, so you won’t find any substitutions like soy cheese or margarine in this book! If she includes a recipe like pesto, which traditionally contains Parmesan cheese, she will find a recipe that is used during Lent or in times of scarcity when people usually forgo the cheese. The ingredients are easy to find for the most part, and she takes advantage of a wide variety of fruits and vegetables. My favorite recipes are: Risotto ala Milanese; Capellini with Fondue de Tomatoes; Beans in a Bottle, Tuscan Style; Quick Tuscan-Style Pizza with White Beans, Tomatoes, and Basil; and Cannellini Beans with Sauteed Kale. Very Highly Recommended!

Vive Le Vegan by Dreena Burton.  If you want to have fabulous vegan cookies, this is the book for you! Dreena has the best cookie recipes, hands down! I will never make chocolate chip cookies any other way! The recipes are very easy to follow and utilize a wide variety of whole grains and beans, as well as more natural ingredients, like maple syrup and canola oil rather than sugar and margarine in her cookie recipes. She also includes a helpful and informative section about raising vegan children. She also has another cookbook, The Everyday Vegan, but I only recently purchased it so I’ll review it at a later date. My favorite recipes are: Chickpea Ratatouille, Canellini Bean Yam Hummus, Homestyle Chocolate Chip Cookies, Fudgy Brownies, and Hazelnut Cardamom Cookies. Highly Recommended, especially for the dessert section!

The Garden of Vegan by Tanya Barnard and Sarah Kramer.  I have to admit, I haven’t made many of the recipes in this book yet! It is a recent purchase, but I decided to include it in my list simply because it is so much fun to read and to look at! The authors include a lengthy introduction and Q&A section, and the design of the book is fun and attractive! I do have a favorite recipe already, and it’s the only one I will mention as of yet: Nana Marg’s Bran Muffin Mix in a Jar and the accompanying Quick Bran Muffins recipe! That is a hit in my house and we make those muffins at least once a week! Recommended (so far)!

Vegan With a Vengeance by Isa Chandra Moskowitz. This is also a recent addition to my vegan cooking library, but so far every recipe has been a hit! It is also a fun cookbook to read with a lot of interesting anecdotes and tid bits along the way. My favorite recipes: Scrambled Tofu, Black-eyed Pea and Quinoa Croquettes with Mushroom Sauce, Lemon Gem Cupcakes, and Blueberry Coffee Cake. Recommended!