Can anyone recommend a good vegetable cookbook?

ceridwen

Having scoured the bookshops fruitlessly for what I want - can I pick OS'ers collective brains please?:D

I am looking for a good cookbook with only vegetable recipes in (well - possibly fruit ones too......). One that is sub-divided into chapters/similar for each vegetable I might ever be wondering how to cook.

So, for instance, I could think "Right - I've got loads of butternut squash and tatsoi" (as I have now..) for instance and just look up the butternut squash section and it would give me several basic how-to methods of how to cook it, followed by a dozen or so recipes (suitable for vegetarians). Then I could look up the tatsoi type vegetable section and find the basic how-to instructions, followed by choice of recipes.

it may be something that would be classified as an "allotment cookbook"?????

Has anyone got a good one they can recommend for me please?

hitatotatus

Hi.
I have a recipe book - The Hamlyn Vegetable Book by Clare Connery. It is not quite what you are looking for in that you have to go to the back index for individual vegetable, and the main chapters are split into Soups, Starters, Stews, Stir Frys, Roasts, Dips and Salsa, Sauces and Dressings and Accompaniments.
What is nice tho is at the front of the book each vegetable is given a whole page or two and advises on the history and uses of the veg, nutrients and suggestions for cooking.
These are split into:

Leafy Greens and Brassicas, - swiss chard, chinese mustard greens, kale, cauliflower, cabbage, sprouts, broccoli, pak choi, mizuna greens, chinese cabbage, chicory, spinach.

Stalks and Stems - celery, celeriac, asparagus, kohlrabi, cardoon, globe artichoke, fennel.

The Onion Family - onion, shallot, leek, garlic.

Roots and Tubers - beetroot, turnip, swede, taro, carrot, yam, Jerusalem artichoke, sweet potato, parsnip, radish, potato.

Podded Veg - okra, runner, French, pea (mangetout, sugarsnap), broadbean, sweetcorn.

Fruiting Veg - pepper, chili, cucumber, pumpkin, courgette, marrow, squash, tomato, chinese bitter melon, avocado, chayote, aubergine.

Mushrooms - cultivated, wild, truffle.

This is a large hardback book with great pictures and nice to just sit and read - if you are into that sort of thing (which I am, tooooooo many recipe books, too much cooking, tooooooo much weight on). Price on book is £25, but I picked it up at T K Maxx years ago for about a fiver.

There is also a similar book by Hamlyn - The Spice Book by Arabella Boxer which is the same format and a great source of info.

hitatotatus

BTW where did you get your tatsoi??

rachbc

Tender by Nigel Slater

ceridwen

hitatotatus wrote: »

BTW where did you get your tatsoi??

Errrm/...not my own I'm afraid...I bought it. So - if you are looking for seeds for this - 'fraid I dont know the answer to that....:o

stiltwalker

Hi there,

I'll agree with rachbc, the Nigel one is fab. I also have Silver Spoon which is the Italian cookery bible and often the only cookbook a traditional Italian kitchen would have, it was translated a few years ago and is now available over here. It has a huge section of veg recipes organised by veg type so you look up what you've got to cook and see what you fancy. It also has everything else in, all the different antipasti and pizza, pasta dishes and all different types of meat dishes arranged in the same way. So not totally veggie just has a good range.

hotcookie101

I love Tender, but there are quite a lot of meat recipes in there. I use it all the time, but we are omnivore
It is however wonderful if you want to grow you veg and know what to grow, when to harvest and what to make with it-also great for the little Nigel Slater hints as to what goes with what.

Can't think of a totally veggie one thats set up like that though.

thriftmonster

I still swear by Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book which has the basics for each veggie and then recipes. She also has a bit of a spiel for each recipe which I like. It is rather 1970s but she included such a wide range for them it's still great. Sophie Grigson's Eat Your Greens is late 80s, early 90s but is a good version as well (but not as comprehensive as her mum)

Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian is also good and at least half is vegetable recipes. It's often on offer at places

ceridwen

thriftmonster wrote: »

I still swear by Jane Grigson's Vegetable Book which has the basics for each veggie and then recipes. She also has a bit of a spiel for each recipe which I like. It is rather 1970s but she included such a wide range for them it's still great. Sophie Grigson's Eat Your Greens is late 80s, early 90s but is a good version as well (but not as comprehensive as her mum)

Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian is also good and at least half is vegetable recipes. It's often on offer at places

Thank you. I...err...hedged my bets...I ordered both the Jane Grigson one and the Sophie Grigson one....:rotfl:

mambury

Sophie Grigson one is very good.... not read the Jane Grigson one..... I have a Veg Box Cookbook (I think its called) that give recipes by month .... I think I got it free with my subscription to Soil Assoc. http://www.amazon.co.uk/Boxing-Clever-Cookbook-Twelve-Recipe/dp/0954389107/ref=sr_1_6?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1288344254&sr=1-6

found it!!

HTH

Mambury

seraphina

I highly reccommend the Sophie Grigson Vegetables book as well as Leith's Vegetarian Bible. But my favourite vegetable book is Madhur Jaffrey's World Vegetarian, which although covers lots outside of just vegetables, has a huge number of lovely vegetable recipes.

I have the Silver Spoon but don't rate it at all - suspect it will be ebayed/Amazoned soon! I think in this case it's worth a poke in a proper bookshop to make sure the contenders cover the appropriate vegetables - some books don't cover e.g. squashes at all well.