Book Reviews

Café Chimes Cookbook

By Kathleen J. Etter
Illustrated by Shana Myers

I first met Kathy Etter when she attended a lecture I presented at a vegetarian conference. After this initial meeting, Kathleen began offering handouts from The Vegetarian Resource Group (VRG) to her customers at Café Chimes in New Hampshire. She even placed a donation jar on the front counter, and over a period of two years sent VRG more than $500. After reading this new book, I now realize that Kathy supported numerous worthwhile organizations and programs. I also learned that she died suddenly of lung cancer before completing this cookbook and that her friends and co-workers banded together to make sure that the cookbook went to press in her honor. This certainly says a lot about this remarkable woman!

Café Chimes Cookbook is vegan-friendly (there are vegetarian recipes, some of which can be made vegan by substituting vegan cheese.) The chapters include breakfast ideas; breads and muffins; salads, dressings, and sauces; soups; sandwiches; grains; tofu and tempeh dishes; vegetable mainstays; and desserts. These recipes were used at Café Chimes and reformulated to serve a family. This is not necessarily a quick and easy cookbook, and unfortunately, nutritional analyses are not provided. Nevertheless, this book offers readers the opportunity to prepare delicious meals. Who could ask for more?

Munchie Madness

By Dorothy R. Bates, Bobbie Hinman, and Robert Moser

Munchie Madness is an informative book with fresh takes on what it is like to be a teenage vegetarian. From dating to etiquette on dealing with non-vegetarian friends and parties, this book handles social issues that aren't usually seen in veggie teen books. Besides providing nutrition information, reasons for becoming a vegetarian, and many, many recipes for vegetarians and vegans, this book deals with the pressures of being the lone vegetarian in a social setting and ways of explaining your decision to others without alienating them or creating uncomfortable situations.

The foreword by Laura Holzapfel is very well written and utilizes a teen voice to stress the reasons for vegetarianism. VRG's Nutrition Advisor Suzanne Havala provides the nutritional information in this book.

While it doesn't specifically push veganism, all the recipes are vegan-friendly. Some of them require a lot of ingredients, which could mean a trip to the grocery store, but they are all worth the extra effort. This is an excellent book for those teens starting to be vegetarian and those who have always wanted to know more.

The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen

By Donna Klein

I've often wondered when a cookbook with this title would be published. After all, so many vegan-friendly dishes have a Mediterranean origin.

Recipes in this vegan cookbook are broken down into the following sections: appetizers, soups, salads, pasta, rice and other grains, vegetables and legumes, breads, desserts, and meals in minutes. Appetizer ideas include bruschetta and crostini. Soups include tomato-fennel soup and a Moroccan carrot soup. Some of the salads are: spinach and orange salad with pine nuts and raisins, Tunisian roasted vegetable salad, and a wheat berry salad. You'll also find some risotto recipes and incredible desserts including a plum tart in phyllo dough, spiced apple and almond cake, and a Greek currant cake.

Throughout this book you'll find Cook's Tips, which are extremely helpful. Each recipe includes a nutrition analysis.