Cookbook Club: Appetite for Reduction Review

I reviewed this book as part of Cook Vegan Lover's Cookbook Club. In a nutshell, this is probably my all-time favorite cookbook. I felt like it was written just for me. I give it 10 out of 5 stars; it's really that fantastic. The breakdown...

I Loved...

• The recipes. Usually there will be many recipes in a cookbook that appeal to me, but many others that don't. Of the 125 recipes in this book, there are maybe 5 that I don't want to try.
• The taste. Almost all of the 25 recipes I tried were delicious; others were just good. There were only two I didn't like.
• The low fat. All of the recipes were between 200 and 400 calories a serving. Because I'm maintaining a large weight loss, this was really important to me. (My biggest criticism of Veganomicon was that the recipes were definitely not low fat!)
  
• The nutrition combinations. Perhaps what I liked most was that this cookbook taught me how to easily combine veggies, protein, and whole grains to make a complete, filling, satisfying meal, which is a key to weight loss and maintenance, as I explain here. I loved both the recipes that did this and the ideas for building bowls, sandwiches, and salads.
• The nutrition information. I'm maintaining my weight on WeightWatchers so continue to use their PointsPlus value system. It was really easy to calculate the Points of foods with the provided nutrition information.
• Ideas for other combinations. I really loved the sections on bowls and sandwiches, because although the cookbook contained 125 recipes, the options for new meals based on Isa's ideas are endless.
• The breakdown of sections. I loved how this book was broken down into salads, sides, veggies, beans, tofu & tempeh, pasta, soups, and curries, chili & stews. That's pretty much exactly how I think of meals, so the breakdown was intuitive.
• The lack of desserts. If there's one thing I've learned in my life, it's that full-fat desserts are worth it. Low-fat desserts just don't taste as good and, on WeightWatchers, are only 1 or 2 points less than their full-fat cousins. I'd rather use the extra points to have a better dessert. I love that Isa didn't even go there in AFR.
• The time. I really, really loved how little time most of the recipes took. That was my other criticism of Veganomicon--that I'd spend all day one one dish. Most of these recipes were really easy to prepare on weeknights after work.
  
• The helpful intros, notes, and tips. The book is filled with helpful nuggets of wisdom. I loved that Isa would advise not to cook a dish to bring to a potluck but to make if you wanted to throw something quickly together. And notes like "the dressing may seem thin at first but thickens as it chills" were good guidelines to let me know my recipes were turning out right.
• The tone. As with Veganomicon, I loved the humor and wit and often laughed aloud.

I Didn't Love...
There's not much I didn't love. If I had to pick one thing, it would be that some of the nutrition information was missing, but I found it on Isa's website.

Who I Think Would Love This Book Too...
Everyone with an interest in eating healthy, good, filling meals. You don't have to be watching your weight to love this book. I think omnivores, vegetarians, and vegans alike would like the creative combinations of ingredients, the range of types of cuisines, the cooking techniques, and the ideas for building healthy meals. My omnivore husband doesn't like anything that tastes like diet food, and he liked nearly everything he tried from this book.

Review of Recipes I tried

• Chickpea Quinoa Salad with Balsamic Vinaigrette
• Quinoa Salad with Black Beans and Toasted Cumin Seeds
• Caesar Salad with Eggplant Bacon and Caesar Chavez Dressing (I made this dressing every week for four weeks since trying it the first time)
• Green Onion-Miso Vinaigrette
• Sundried Tomato Walnut Dressing
• Garlicky Mushrooms & Kale
• Jerk Asparagus
• Sweet & Salty Maple Baby Carrots
• Ye'abesha Gomen
• Mushroom Tibs
• Scallion Potato Pancakes and Hoison-Mustard Tofu
• Unfried Fried Rice
• Forty-Clove Broccoli & Chickpeas
• Hottie Black-Eyed Peas & Greens
• Basic Baked Tofu
• Spinach-Potato Curry and Masala Baked Tofu
• Curried Chickpeas & Greens
• Hummus
• Arabian Lentil & Rice Soup
• Mediterranean Bowl
• Creamy Mushroom Fettuccine
• Pasta con Broccoli (the only recipe I didn't like)
• Herb-Roasted Cauliflower (the 2nd recipe I didn't like)
• I also made the OMG Oven-Baked Onion Rings before I got the book.
  

Other Reviews

• The layout. I said how I liked the breakdown of sections and the notes and tips. I also like the breakdown telling how much active versus total time each recipe took.
• Aesthetics. I would have liked to see more food pictures, but the ones that were included were helpful. And I loved the font for the recipe titles and the cover art.
  
• Ingredients. All of the recipes I tried called for basic ingredients I could easily find.

The Final Word
I will use Appetite for Reduction for life. Even though the official review is over, I'm still planning on trying so many more recipes and making most of my meals from this cookbook. I love that the recipes are easy, quick, delicious, filling, and helping me maintain my weight while being completely satisfied. LOVE this cookbook. Thanks, Isa! If you're playing an AFR sequel, I'll be the first person to buy it!

Appetite for Reduction: Creamy Mushroom Fettucine

If you love mushrooms, you'll love this dish. It's all creamy, mushroomy goodness. And so quick and easy to make!

The recipe starts with sauteeing five minced cloves of garlic in a little olive oil, then adding sliced mushrooms with salt, pepper, and thyme. After the shrooms cook down a little, you add some white wine and let everything cook together.The secret to this recipe (don't tell Isa I told you!) is storebought vegan creamy portobello mushroom soup mixed with some cornstarch.When you add it to the mushrooms and let it cook, it forms a luxuriously rich and creamy sauce.
At this point I tasted it and fell in love. But the recipe wasn't done. The last addition was two teaspoons of balsamic vinegar. I doubted this and, in the minute or so before the timer rang, ran through my head why Isa would possibly want to add the vinegar. To give the earthy flavor a bright note? To give the sauce more complexity? When the timer rang, I told myself, "Don't doubt Isa! How often is she wrong?"

So I added the balsamic vinegar...and guess what? I think I was right! I didn't like the final sauce as much as the pre-vinegared sauce. The final sauce tasted really good, but I could taste the vinegar as a separate flavor, and I think the sauce would have been better without it. Next time, I'll omit.
I topped it with sliced green onions, and a hearty, yummy dinner was ready in under 30 minutes. And I marked my calendar that I think my way would have been better than Isa's!

Baked Tofu, Spinach & Brown Rice Bowl with Miso-Green Onion Dressing

I've been wanting to try the Appetite for Reduction Miso-Green Onion Salad Dressing, but I don't like sushi and didn't want to make the suggested sushi-like salad featured with the dressing. So I made the dressing by itself, which was as simple as pureeing these ingredients in a blender.I had it over simple salads of spinach, romaine, and spring mix greens, and it was great. The miso flavor really stands out but I couldn't taste the green onions too much; I think I'll use more next time. The dressing was so flavorful; it was wonderful paired with plain greens.

I wanted to use it in another dish, so last night I quickly put together the marinade for the Appetite for Reduction Basic Baked Tofu and let it marinate until I got home from work today.I said before how much I love this, but here it is again: I love this baked tofu! I preheated the oven as soon as I walked in the house and in a half-hour had perfectly baked, wonderful tasting, chewy tofu that, again, was hard for me to not devour right off the baking sheet.

I cut up the tofu, heated some brown rice I cooked last night, steamed some spinach, and combined it all in a bowl with the Miso-Green Onion Dressing.The dressing and baked tofu flavors didn't go together as nicely as I thought they would--each has such a distinctive flavor that they clashed a little. Lesson learned: pair this dressing with very simple flavors, liked simple salads or steamed veggies.

Still, I enjoyed it. For lunch tomorrow I might put the dressing over the rice and spinach and eat the tofu separately.

Appetite for Reduction: Sweet & Salty Maple Baby Carrots

With reluctance I tried the Sweet & Salty Maple Baby Carrots from Appetite for Reduction. I'm not a big carrot fan to begin with, and with only three ingredients (carrots, maple syrup, and sea salt), how good could this be? But I had carrots left over from the Arabian Lentil & Rice Soup, so I tried it. Imagine my dismay when this came out of the oven:Um, looks like plain carrots.

My first bite was a wonderful surprise. Sweet? Yep. Salty? Yes. Good? Yes!

I've had variations of maple syrup glazed carrots before, but in this recipe everything's roasted, so the sweet and salty flavors are baked into the carrots. Appetite for Reduction is proving time and again how simple, healthy meals can taste so good.

Appetite for Reduction: Arabian Lentil & Rice Soup

Don't be fooled by the boring looks of this soup--it's bursting with flavor! The smoky cumin is wonderfully enhanced by lemon zest and juice. Red lentils and brown basmati rice combine to make it almost creamy (so substituting another type of lentil probably won't get the same great results).

The prep work for this dish is minimal--about 10 or 15 minutes--followed by a fairly long cooking time, so it's done in about an hour. I made it last night and ate it for lunch today, which I think is the way to go so the flavors really have time to mesh. Omnivore husband tried it and liked it too. Try it for yourself--someone posted the recipe here.

Appetite for Reduction: Unfried Fried Rice & Hoison Mustard Tofu

My cooked brown basmati rice was begging to be used before it went bad. Appetite for Reduction to the rescue! Because the rice was already cooked, the Unfried Fried Rice took five whole minutes to make. It's simple--the rice is sauteed in a little sesame oil with minced shallot, garlic, fresh ginger, and soy sauce--but really delicious. I added steamed broccoli to it, tossed it with sliced green onions, and served it with the Appetite for Reduction Hoison Mustard Tofu, which is probably my all-time favorite tofu dish. Wonderful!

My husband omnivore-ized this dish by mixing in some grilled shrimp in a separate pan. He really liked it too.

Appetite for Reduction: Ye'abesha Gomen (Ethiopian Collards)

For all you nutrition-loving folks, here's an interesting note from Appetite for Reduction: 1 cup of collards has the same amount of calcium as 1 cup of 2% cow's milk but has way more fiber (7 grams versus 0 in milk) and less saturated fat (0 grams versus 3 in milk). Clearly, collards are better! ;-)

Veganonicon started my love affair with collards, but this recipe for Ethiopian-style stewed and sauteed collards, Ye'abesha Gomen, made me fall in love all over again. How can something that tastes so good be so good for you? That's the magic of Appetite for Reduction!

This recipe starts out by stewing chopped collards in vegetable broth for a half-hour until they're nice and tender. Then you saute onion, garlic, fresh ginger, and red pepper flakes in a little bit of olive oil, then add the collards and cook everything for a few minutes. I loved it. My omnivore husband grudgingly tried it and even more grudgingly admitted it was "not bad," which, translated to my love of food, really means "very good!"

Appetite for Reduction: 40-Clove Broccoli & Chickpeas

This is one of my favorite kinds of recipes: simple, few ingredients, and just works. Garlic cloves (despite the title, it calls for 10 but I used 15), chickpeas, and broccoli spears are roasted with a little olive oil and a smattering of simple spices (salt, freshly ground pepper, lemon zest, and oregano). It's good, hearty vegan comfort food that I think omnivores would enjoy too. And it took all of five minutes to put together. I had a salad and toast and cleaned up the kitchen while it was cooking. What a bonus to have the kitchen cleaned before I'm done with dinner!

Next time I'll skip adding the chopped up broccoli stalks (too tough and not very flavorful) and add even more garlic.

Another love story from Appetite for Reduction!

Appetite for Reduction: Sundried Tomato Walnut Dressing

Maybe it's the warmer weather or maybe it's the amazingly delicious Caesar Salad with Eggplant Bacon, but something started my salad craving. I've been eating simple salads of spinach, romaine, and baby lettuces topped with some nuts and Appetite for Reduction dressing every day.

Tonight I decided to give the Caesar Chavez dressing a break. I've made it every week for about a month now. Instead I made the Sundried Tomato Walnut Dressing.
This dressing is made by processing sundried tomatoes, walnuts, fennel seeds, shallots, balsamic vinegar, Dijon mustard, salt, pepper, and marjoram. I substituted the water it called for with the tomato soaking liquid (why waste it?). I didn't measure out my tomatoes; I just used what I had left. I think I used more than the 1/4 cup called for because it's so thick it doesn't really pour.

Still: This dressing is perfect! The mix of flavors is just right--very sundried-tomato-y, with just enough tang from the vinegar and mustard. I had it tonight on a big salad with some chickpeas and walnuts. Great!

I'll make it again using the right amount of tomatoes so it has the right consistency, but I might also make it this same, thick way again to serve on toasted baguettes with cashew cheese (or even just as a bread dipping sauce).

Appetite for Reduction: Spinach-Potato Curry & Masala Baked Tofu

This weekend I made another fabulous dish from Appetite for Reduction: Spinach-Potato Curry and Masala Baked Tofu. For the curry, I used four ounces more spinach than the recipe called for (but what was I supposed to do with the leftover frozen spinach?). Consequently, near the end of the cooking time, I worried that my extra spinach would diffuse the spices and reduce the flavor, so I frantically started adding more curry powder and cumin.

It turned out not quite as spicy and flavorful as I wanted, so next time I'd probably double all the spices, including the red pepper flakes. But the spinach was velvety as promised. What made this dish fantastic was the Masala Baked Tofu I had with it.

I'm not sure why I didn't like the baked curried tofu from Veganomicon (I'm thinking I didn't press the tofu long enough so it didn't absorb the marinade well) because I LOVED both the Basic Baked Tofu and this Masala Baked Tofu. I could have eaten all the tofu right off the baking sheet.
Paired with the curry and brown basmati rice, it was really great. I had leftovers for lunch today, and it may have been even better.I've been loving Appetite for Reduction so much that I'm not going to do the next cookbook in Cook Vegan Lover's Cookbook Club so that I can spend more time with Appetite.

Appetite for Reduction: Basic Baked Tofu & Mushroom Tibs Bowl

WeightWatchers' program in a nutshell is pretty simple: fill up on whole, healthy foods, especially those with fiber and protein, and you'll stay satisfied. The majority of these power foods, as WeightWatchers calls them, are vegan: fruits, vegetables, beans, lentils, tofu, and other whole soy. Not only does this strategy make you less likely to reach the point where you're so starved you chow down with abandon (so you eat less and lose weight), but whole, healthy foods are exactly what our bodies need for optimal health. (Don't take my word for it. The largest group of nutrition experts in the world says that vegetarian and vegan diets prevent and treat many diseases.)

I lost more than 30 pounds on WeightWatchers and have maintained it since September. I continue to use their strategy, and it continues to work. So I'm always looking for meals that combine a vegetable, a protein, and a whole grain--power foods that will fill me up.

I love Appetite for Reduction because it gives so many of these filling meal recipes and ideas. I'd made Mushroom Tibs before and thought it would be great combined with tofu and rice in a bowl. Tonight I tried it.

First, I whipped up the marinade for the Basic Baked Tofu, pressed the tofu, and put it in the marinade before leaving for work. When I got home, all I had to do was heat the oven and bake the tofu. I didn't have high hopes for this tofu because I'd made the Curried Tofu from Veganomicon, which had even more spices, and it wasn't too flavorful (maybe I didn't press my tofu enough, though). I was pleasantly surprised! The Basic Baked Tofu was so full of flavor, I ate a bunch right off the baking sheet. Loved it--a definite keeper. While the tofu was baking I chopped up my mushrooms.Then I made the sauce for the Mushroom Tibs. It's loaded with herbs and spices!
When you mix it together, it forms a thick paste that you coat the mushrooms with. I doubled the sauce so I could have more for my bowl.
By this time the tofu was done (and I was nibbling on slices of it), so I put the coated mushrooms in the oven to bake. While they were baking, I steamed some kale to add to the bowl (adding greens to any meal is always a good idea).My kitty Rasputin insists on trying everything I make. He didn't like the baked tofu (and moved away right as I took this.)I cut up some of the tofu slices, and when the mushrooms and kale were done, I mixed them together with some brown basmati rice. The bowl was really delicious with everything covered in the spicy, intensely flavored Ethiopian Mushroom Tibs sauce. Plus, I got two veggies, a protein, and whole grain, and the whole thing was so low in WeightWatchers Points, I was able to eat the last of the Chocolate Cupcakes with Peanut Buttercream Frosting I made last weekend. Perfect!

Appetite for Reduction: Hottie Black-Eyed Peas and Greens

A Southern-inspired dish, this quick recipe pairs black-eyed peas, greens, and hot sauce together nicely. I used collards and substituted the cooking liquid I saved from cooking the black-eyed peas for the water. But my big modification was to use about twice as much hot sauce, liquid smoke, and salt as the recipe called for because the first iteration wasn't too flavorful. I also drizzled on more hot sauce while I was eating it.

The result: Yum! It was really good. I had it for dinner with some of my homemade whole-wheat bread and a salad with Appetite for Reduction Caesar Chavez Dressing. Perfect!

Appetite for Reduction: Scallion Potato Pancakes and Hoison Mustard Tofu

"Good! It's like breaded mashed potatoes" is how my husband described the Scallion Potato Pancakes from Appetite for Reduction. The pancakes are made from mashed yukon gold potatoes, scallions, toasted sesame oil, and panko breadcrumbs, then coated in more panko breadcrumbs and baked until crispy. The light taste of sesame is just perfect. I couldn't stop eating the mashed potato mixture out of the bowl and would make it again as an interesting take on mashed potatoes, but the finished, crispy pancakes were great. I'd serve them as an appetizer with some type of soy sauce dip too. They were hard to handle, though, and didn't stay together well while I was shaping and coating them, so mine were a little thicker than the recipe called for so I could keep them from falling apart. They were still really good.I had them last night for dinner with the Hoison Mustard Tofu. I know I often say "This is the best X I've ever had!" because I love nearly everything I try. But, seriously, this may be THE BEST TOFU I'VE EVER HAD! The tofu itself has the texture of fried tofu without all the fat of frying. The cubed tofu is dry-fried in a skillet with just a little cooking spray and then a few splashes of soy sauce midway through. I was skeptical of this technique and unsure how it would come out, but I'd swear it was fried tofu if I didn't know. Then there's the sauce. Ohhhh....the sauce. I didn't use red pepper because I can't eat it, so my sauce started with some diced onion, garlic, ginger, and red pepper flakes. Once the veggie mix was soft and brown, I added mirin, then hoison sauce and yellow mustard. I like a little mustard but not a lot, so I used half the mustard the recipe called for.

This sauce was divine. The tofu in the sauce was heavenly. And the tofu, sauce, and scallion potato pancakes together were out of this world. This is the best meal I've had since...uh, Wednesday when I had the Mediterranean Bowl :-)

The only bad thing was the time to make it. From when I started peeling potatoes to when I sat down to eat, it was just under two and a half hours, and that was mainly for the pancakes, which had a time estimate of 50 minutes. Maybe if you have your potatoes peeled and boiled in advance it would take 50 minutes, but not if you need to do all the prep.

Another huge two thumbs up. This meal was fabulous, and I'll definitely make it again (and probably again and again and again.)

Appetite for Reduction: Mediterranean Bowl

One of the things I love about Appetite for Reduction is that it not only includes recipes but also templates and general meal ideas. The book gives a template for "The Bowl:" toss a grain, a bean, and a veggie together then add a dressing.

Tonight I tried the suggestion for a Mediterranean Bowl with brown basmati rice, freshly made chickpeas I slow cooked today, roasted cauliflower, and the Appetite for Reduction Caesar Chavez Dressing. It was really, really delicious. I'm already looking forward to lunch tomorrow so I can have it again. Two huge thumbs up.

I love the versatility of this template and can't wait to try out the other bowl suggestions.

Smoky Black Bean, Eggplant Bacon & Caramelized Onion Quesadilla

Last night I made Caesar Salad with Eggplant Bacon and Caesar Chavez Dressing in Appetite for Reduction again. I think it's my favorite recipe from the book so far. Yet again, I ate an entire eggplant. So I wouldn't just devour the eggplant bacon right off the baking sheet like I did last time, I decided to eat half of it in the salad and half in a quesadilla.

I sprinkled black beans with smoky paprika and chili powder and caramelized some red onions to go with the eggplant bacon. I used some Daiya mozzarella cheese to hold it all together. I bought this cheese when I didn't have enough time to make cashew cheese for a vegan pizza. I didn't like it then, and I didn't like it last night in the quesadilla. The quesadilla would have been good if it weren't for the Daiya cheese. Lesson learned. Next time I'll just make a wrap or wrap it in a tortilla and bake the whole thing.

Appetite for Reduction: Pasta con Broccoli

This recipe is very basic: broccoli and noodles in a spicy, garlicky broth. It's good for what it is, but there wasn't a whole lot to be excited about in this recipe. It was very quick and easy to make, though. If I made it again, I'd stir-fry some cubed tofu in a little oil and mix it in.

The recipes calls for 1/4 cup sliced garlic plus three minced garlic cloves. That's a lot!You saute all the garlic with thyme and red pepper flakes before adding veggie broth and white wine. The recipe said to saute the garlic for only one minute. I sauteed for longer but actually wish I would have cooked it even longer. I don't think the garlic flavor really came out as much as it would have if the garlic was sauteed longer.The final dish was in between "OK" and "good." While it didn't make me or my husband rave over it, it was decent for a quick dinner.

Appetite for Reduction: Hummus

A reduced-fat version of hummus? Sold. Hummus is so easy to eat too much of, so I was excited to try the version in Appetite for Reduction. It uses no tahini but does use 1 tablespoon of oil. I made the plain version (there are several variations.) It was just OK. I'll eat it and be happy with it, but this isn't my favorite hummus recipe. I liked the reduced-fat cauliflower hummus from Veganomicon better. I think it was the oil that I didn't like in this version. Next time I'm going to omit the oil completely (I'll substitute it with the reserved chickpea cooking liquid) and try a variation.

Appetite for Reduction: Mushroom Tibs

I don't think words can describe the taste of this Ethiopian dish, but then I guess Ethiopian food flavors are hard to describe in general. In one word: Wow. (Hey, and my word's a palindrome...so you know this recipe is pretty special.)

The sauce starts out from humble beginnings: vegetable broth, olive oil, and tomato paste mixed together. Then you add spice after spice after spice--some curry, cayenne, thyme, and cumin, some unexpected Hungarian paprika (I used smoked paprika) and cloves, and others I'm forgetting. This is the first time in maybe ever that I didn't have one of the spices the recipe called for--cardamom. I just omitted it and didn't try a substitute.

You coat halved mushrooms in this thick sauce and bake for 20 minutes. I used slightly less mushrooms than the recipe called for so I could save some for a tofu scramble later in the week. So it came out very saucy, and the recipe said the mushrooms were supposed to be thickly coated. I like the sauciness better. It tasted amazing, so good that I sopped up all the sauce with some whole-wheat toast. I plan to make it again and serve it over brown basmati rice with some baked curried tofu as an entree. Two thumbs up!

Appetite for Reduction: Curried Chickpeas & Greens

Fantastic! This recipe starts off in a way no other recipe I've made has: by popping mustard seeds in a pot with a little olive oil. Next you add and saute diced onion, minced garlic and ginger, and red pepper flakes. Next comes crushed tomatoes then spices (curry, cumin, coriander, garam masala, and salt). Then you add finely chopped kale and cook it down, then let it simmer until it gets very tender and velvety. Finally, you add chickpeas and let it all cook together so the flavors mesh.

I served it over brown basmati rice--the first time I've ever tried this rice. (Tonight's a night of exciting firsts for me!) It took a while to chop up all the kale and other veggies and make the rice, but once all the prep was over, it was easy to put together and done in about a half-hour.

It's mmmmmm....really, really good. This is my absolute favorite kind of recipe: when something made with really nutritious whole foods tastes so wonderful. I give this two huge thumbs up. My omnivore husband really liked it too.

Appetite for Reduction: Herbed Roasted Cauliflower with Breadcrumbs

This was just okay. Maybe the mix of herbs (basil, oregano, thyme, salt, black pepper) didn't sit right with me, but I like plain roasted caulflower, brushed with oil and sprinkled with sea salt, better. But it's a good low-fat version of breaded cauliflower.