V Cuisine: The Art of New Vegan Cooking

TARA FITZPATRICK

by Angela Linardis
Whitecap Books, November 2007, $29.95

Check your bell-bottoms at the door. Angela Linardis means to pound several more nails into the coffin of the “health food hippie vegan” stereotype with her stylish new cookbook, V Cuisine: The Art of New Vegan Cooking.

The recipes here have a surprising “cool” factor — creativity and decadence where one might expect to only find tofu. The book does address tofu, aiming to take the scare factor away with some original ideas in the chapter entitled “Terrifying Tofu.”

The cookbook has recipes that would appeal to both dedicated vegans and omnivores looking to try something different. The writing is sassy and the photography appealing. Many of the recipes, such as Drunken Mushrooms, Guac Boats and Baby Spinach Burgers, fit into the entertaining-for-guests category, extending the fun vibe of V Cuisine.

There is a whole chapter devoted to curries, with suggestions on the different ways busy cooks can “pull out a few ingredients and throw together a curry.” Side dishes abound in the book; the curry chapter has a few, and there is another section with ideas for wild rice and tabbouleh. You'll also find trendy “small plate” options, making this cookbook very up-to-date indeed. No hippies here!