Publisher's Weekly Review
This second vegan cookbook by Horn and Mayer (after VBQ: The Ultimate Vegan Barbecue Cookbook) gives readers an array of innovative options for a flavorful first meal. The recipes are both sweet (poppy seed pancakes and berry chai jam) and savory (a traditional English breakfast spread with homemade bread and sausages, made with chickpea flower and wheat gluten). On-the-go recipes include Swedish bagels with cream cheese, dill, and tender beets, and potato-stuffed parathas with peas and nigella seeds. For brunch entertaining, there are suggestions for hash brown BLTs, poached pears, and an aromatic pesto bread for the center of the table. For those who like to indulge in morning sweets, the authors suggest a raw chocolate tartlet and glazed baked donuts. Horn and Mayer also discuss the basics of coffee, tea, and the importance of a well-balanced morning routine. In order to get a positive start to the day and a good breakfast on the table, the authors encourage setting earlier alarm times, preparing food the night before, and starting the day with a tall glass of water. Horn and Mayer make vegan breakfast fun and satisfying to cook, eat, and share. (Oct.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.
Booklist Review
The authors of VBQ: The Ultimate Vegan Barbecue Cookbook (2018) are back with a book of recipes to help readers healthfully start the day, be it an on-the-go workday or a lazy weekend. Recipes aren't difficult, but they are fastidious, some requiring night-before preparation or long setting, resting, or draining times. Most, from hemp and date smoothies to overnight buckwheat porridge, require a pantry stocked with unusual seeds (hemp, chia); grains (millet, amaranth); and flours (spelt, rice). Eggs and dairy are not absent but replaced with vegan alternatives: cream cheese made from cashews; egg salad with a chickpea base; almond milk, oat milk, and soy yogurt instead of the cow or goat equivalent. The recipes, labeled light, balanced, or comfort food depending on their caloric load, are about a way of life, which includes earlier wake-up times and 15 minutes of stretching or yoga. They may not be for everybody, but those committed to a from-scratch vegan lifestyle will especially enjoy recipes for breads, sweet and savory spreads, and meatless sausage and bacon.--Maggie Taft Copyright 2018 Booklist
