The Borscht recipe she liked was from Giant Book Of Tofu Cooking: 350 Delicious & Healthful Recipes by K. Lee Evans and Chris Rawkin. The soup was wonderful with beets, carrots, potatoes, red onions and tofu (you don’t need to add the tofu, but the TD’s and TG all like it so we left it in). Flavored with dill and caraway seeds, then topped with green onions and vegan sour cream. She decided to leave it like a vegetable soup and not puree it. The soup is simple to make, the hardest part is peeling and cubing the vegetables. Then everything is put in the pot covered with water and simmered until the veggies are tender. I think that sweet potato and butternut squash would really be tasty in this as well. All-in-all a wonderful soup made by a very special girl.

The biscuits were drop biscuits from The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks’ Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau. My TD made these and found them to be very easy to make. The recipe uses canola or melted vegan butter substitute. The biscuits were light and tender. Her first time making biscuits and they were a huge success! TG loved them and requested that she get up Sunday mornings and make them for breakfast. I don’t see that happening, after all she is a teenager and she loves to sleep in.

Now back to the cookbooks. There is no better time than now to learn about vegan cooking and vegan food. There are so many wonderful blogs to read that are teeming with advice, recipes, product reviews, how-to’s and much, much more. Also, there are so many vegan cookbooks about any topic you can imagine from vegan cooking to baking, entertaining, vegan living and so on. You can find vegan cookbooks for all kinds of international cooking (Indian, Chinese, Thia, Mexican, Latino, Italian etc.) and if you have allergies, books for gluten-free vegan cooking/baking, no sugar or alternative sweeteners. There is a least one if not two new vegan cookbooks released every month.

Here is a brief list of just a few of the amazing vegan cookbooks recently released and some tried and true books I frequently use*:

Veganomicon: The Ultimate Vegan Cookbook by Isa Chandra*
Vegan Yum Yum: Decadent (But Doable) Animal-Free Recipes for Entertaining and Everyday by Lauren Ulm
The Kind Diet: A Simple Guide to Feeling Great, Losing Weight, and Saving the Planet by Alicia Silverstone
Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule by Isa Chandra*
The Vegan Table: 200 Unforgettable Recipes for Entertaining Every Guest at Every Occasion by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau*
The Joy of Vegan Baking: The Compassionate Cooks’ Traditional Treats and Sinful Sweets by Colleen Patrick-Goudreau*
Vegan Brunch: Homestyle Recipes Worth Waking Up For–From Asparagus Omelets to Pumpkin Pancakes by Isa Chandra*
Thrive: The Vegan Nutrition Guide to Optimal Performance in Sports and Life by Brendan Brazier
The 30-Minute Vegan: Over 175 Quick, Delicious, and Healthy Recipes for Everyday Cooking by Mark Reinfeld*
The Gluten-Free Vegan: 150 Delicious Gluten-Free, Animal-Free Recipes by Susan O’brien*
Quick and Easy Vegan Comfort Food: 65 Everyday Meal Ideas for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner with Over 150 Great-tasting, Down-home Recipes by Alicia C. Simpson*
Vegan Soups and Hearty Stews for All Seasons by Nava Atlas*
The 100 Best Vegan Baking Recipes: Amazing Cookies, Cakes, Muffins, Pies, Brownies and Breads by Kris Holechek
The Vegan Scoop: 150 Recipes for Dairy-Free Ice Cream that Tastes Better Than the “Real” Thing by Wheeler del Torro
Eat, Drink & Be Vegan: Everyday Vegan Recipes Worth Celebrating by Dreena Burton*
The Ultimate Uncheese Cookbook: Delicious Dairy-Free Cheeses and Classic “Uncheese” Dishes by Jo Stepaniak*
Vegan Lunch Box: 130 Amazing, Animal-Free Lunches Kids and Grown-Ups Will Love! by Jennifer McCann
The Indian Vegan Kitchen: More Than 150 Quick and Healthy Homestyle Recipes by Madhu Gadia
Lick It! Creamy Dreamy Vegan Ice Creams Your Mouth Will Love by Cathe Olsen
1,000 Vegan Recipes by Robin Robertson
Vegan Express by Nava Atlas*
La Dolce Vegan!: Vegan Livin’ Made Easy by Sarah Kramer*
How It All Vegan!: Irresistible Recipes for an Animal-Free Diet by Sarah Kramer*
The Fiber for Life Cookbook by Bryanna Clark Grogan
More Great Good Dairy-Free Desserts Naturally by Fran Costigan*
The Almost No-Fat Cookbook: Everyday Vegetarian Recipes by Bryanna Clark Grogan*
The Accidental Vegan by Devra Gartenstein*
The Almost No-Fat Holiday Cookbook: Festive Vegetarian Recipes by Bryanna Clark Grogan*
Vive le Vegan!: Simple, Delectable Recipes for the Everyday Vegan Family by Dreena Burton*
Get It Ripe: A Fresh Take on Vegan Cooking and Living by Jae Steele*
Sweet Freedom: Desserts You’ll Love without Wheat, Eggs, Dairy or Refined Sugar by Ricki Heller
BabyCakes: Vegan, (Mostly) Gluten-Free, and (Mostly) Sugar-Free Recipes from New York’s Most Talked-About Bakery by Erin McKenna

This is just the short list. There are so many great books now, and all the recipes work. I have yet to have one not turn out. The meals are delicious and the baked goods are so good no one will know that they are vegan. You can make gourmet meals to entertain or find books that have quick 30 min or less meals. All great tasting and good for you.

This year has been one the best years for vegan and vegan raw enthusiasts. In my next post, I will give a short list of some of the new vegan raw books and some staple raw books I like. Raw is becoming more main stream, I even find raw recipes or raw alternatives to recipes in vegan cookbooks now. Life is truly good!

Emma in hanging out with the family.

Emma one of my canine pals and running mates, in her favorite spot.

Enjoy cooking and the food you create!

Have some fun with your animal friends!