Minimalist Baker's Everyday Cooking: 101 Entirely Plant-Based, Mostly Gluten-Free, Easy and Delicious Recipes: A Cookbook

Dana Shultz has written an absolutely gorgeous cookbook and packed it full of recipes that are diverse and interesting. I'm always delighted to find a cookbook like this one, where I can plan an entire menu that includes and satisfies everyone around the table, even diners not on a specific diet. I really like the layout, with basic recipes and methods at the beginning (for things like a flax egg and the 1-bowl approach (which appears a lot)). The recipes then follow along a familiar and easy-to-follow progression from breakfast - apps & sides - mains - desserts - drinks. Following the recipes, there is a basic pantry list and even a nutritional index(!) that lists every dish and its calories | fat | saturated fat | carbs | sodium | fiber | sugar | protein content. I am going to ignore that info for the amazingly delicious double-chocolate gluten-free waffles, but since they are meant to be a special occasion dessert/"breakfast", it's totally fine. At the top of each recipe page is a convenient notice about the advantages of that recipe. Some are 30 minutes or less, some require only one pot, some are gluten-free, some are 10 ingredients or less, others are all of the above, etc. Combined with a brief description, info on prep and cook time for each recipe, and a photo - usually on the same page - Dana's recipes are thoughtfully presented and easy to follow. The spine does enable the book to stay open easily and most recipes plus their photo are all on the same page as the ingredients list (which I love). Dana writes that her Spiced Buckwheat Pancakes are her favorite vegan pancakes to date, so I easily made a batch tonight and froze them individually for my breakfast all week. They are very good (assuming you like spices & buckwheat, both of which I adore). I'm really excited to try her Chickpea Fesenjan for dinner tomorrow night (yum walnuts, pomegranate, chickpeas and cauliflower rice (my choice)). With a prep time of only 10 minutes and a total cook time of 45 minutes, it's a perfect example of most of her main dishes: full of flavor but short on time-commitment and actual prep time. These recipes also scale really well - down to a single serving or up for a larger crowd. I can tell I'll be cooking a lot from the Minimalist Baker's Everyday Cooking; it's perfect for any audience - those eating plant-based all the time, only on Mondays, expanding your gluten-free horizons, and everyone in between.

All of the recipes I've made so far have been excellent and as I paged through the book I found just about every recipe appealing. The one thing I have learned is that I prefer quite a bit more spice, so going forward will add at least 50% more to all recipes I make from the get go. I borrowed the book from my public library but have now purchased it - my only cookbook purchase of 2017 (so far)! This author (I love her website too) is now up there with Angela Liddon, Isa Chandra Moskowitz, and Dreena Burton for me. I try to eat a mostly plant based diet and I prefer recipes that use reasonable amounts of oil like this author (as opposed to none!). I personally love gluten (!) so although the author offers ways to make certain recipes gluten free (and marks the ones that are at the top of the recipe, along with whether it is 1 bowl or pot, 10 ingredients or less, or 30 minutes or less), I just used regular oats, etc. Although I've successfully made several dishes from her website, which brought me to this book, here's what I've made so far from this cookbook (it's been a bit too hot to cook so have been making a lot of smoothies and overnight oats lately): - Ginger Colada Green Smoothie (I can't believe I've never added a piece of peeled ginger to a smoothie before - awesome! I did add the optional flax seeds and hemp hearts but sweetener wasn't needed. Great tip on keeping prewashed bags of spinach/kale in the freezer!) - Mango Coconut Lassi (because I used frozen mango this was almost like soft serve - and a gorgeous yellow. I researched and found out you can freeze coconut milk in ice trays and then move the cubes to a freezer bag for a month because I really wanted to make this one but didn't have a plan on what to do with the rest of that can of coconut milk! The frozen cubes should be thawed and blended before using. (per America's Test Kitchen). - Spiced Buckwheat Pancakes (Used buckwheat, spelt, and rolled oats. Excellent but will add more spices next time. Made exactly 8 pancakes like the recipe said it would. Good tip to freeze any extra pancakes.) - Hearty Cocoa Black Bean Burgers (I used olive oil instead of the called for grape seed or avocado oil. The recipe makes 4 but those would have been too big so I made 8 and froze the extra per her instructions. I decided to follow her optional baking instructions after browning them "to dry/crisp them up a bit" - yum! Good easy sauce recommendation. Will add more spices next time - could hardly taste the chili powder.) - Peanut Butter Pad Thai (This is the best Pad Thai I have ever made - because of her sauce. I didn't have "chili garlic sauce" so used Sriracha hot chili sauce instead and didn't change any of the other spices and it was absolutely delicious. I happened to have tamarind concentrate - Swad brand I found at a Tony's Finer Foods for another recipe that didn't make it into my regular dinner rotation- so was especially happy to find a new recipe that uses it that WILL make it into my regular dinner rotation!) Absolutely gorgeous photographs accompany all of the recipes and the book is nicely bound with a hard cover. Truly a beautiful cookbook. Nutritional information is included in the back - a nice addition.

I love this cookbook for so many reasons.... 1. The recipes are delicious. I've never tried a recipe from minimalist baker that wasn't good and the recipes in this cookbook are no exception! 2. The meals are simple to make and the author Dana provides all the instruction you need to cook with confidence even if you are not very experienced in the kitchen. 3. Most of the recipes are very nutritious but at the same time do not sacrifice flavor. The few recipes that are not "healthy" is just because they are treats meant to be enjoyed every once in a while. The jumbo chocolate chip cookies come to mind :D (and you would never guess they were vegan) 4. Everything in this book is vegan and cruelty free! Every recipe is free of meat, dairy and eggs and most of the recipes are gluten free or can be extremely easily made gluten free. I think just about anyone could eat food out of this cookbook and be more than satisfied. 5. The photography of the food is beautiful! It's so fun to just flip through it. Even if i'm not going to choose a recipe to make, it's still fun to just go through the book and look at the pictures and think "wow that looks great" All around this is a great cookbook and I am looking forward to the next one minimalist baker puts out!

I've been making recipes off of the MB blog for a few months, but held off on ordering this book since the price seemed a bit high. I finally caved since I have loved so many of the MB recipes I've made and wanted to support the blog -- and am glad I did! So far, I've made the Butternut Squash, Kale, and Quinoa Bake; the Masala Chickpea Curry; the Banana Chocolate Pecan Muffins; and a few small other things. Everything has been amazing! I'm including a photo of the Banana muffins; they were so good that my husband (who is not a huge muffin fan) asked to have them sent along with him for breakfast each day. As a chronically time-crunched person, I also appreciate that most of the recipes are simple and quick to make. A few take longer, but even though aren't too bad. I also love that this book has a lot of entrees and that almost every recipe has a gorgeous, full-color photo. Photos always inspire me to cook and try out new things, and this book doesn't disappoint in that area. It's also a lovely hardback book. I've already made quite a bit from this, and know that I will continue to get good use out of it in the years to come. That being said, I'm already anxious for a second volume. :-) UPDATE ON 11-12-18: I've been using this cookbook a lot, and it has quickly become a favorite! I'm posting a photo o the Thai meatballs, which I've made a few times and which always come out amazing!

I'm very excited to have this cookbook. The green smoothie recipe blew my mind it was so good! I've made the zucchini muffins and the chocolate chip pumpkin oat bread and the Lasagna. The zucchini muffins were okay, but neither myself nor my 4 yr old son felt very good after eating them. I thought the same about the chocolate chip pumpkin oat bread. It was delicious, but I didn't feel that great after I ate it. I suspect there's far too much sugar in these recipes and possibly the food combination is off. The lasagna. Let me just say. Major disappointment. I followed the directions exactly and wound up throwing the entire batch out. Not only is there major salt overload in it, but the tofu ricotta was disgusting. It was like glue or paste in my mouth. Again, I followed the directions exactly. I did not over process the tofu, and I also did press it. What the lasagna really needed was vegetables. There were no vegetables in it at all. I could have added the summer squash as she mentioned, but I was concerned it would make the lasagna leaky, since I had originally intended to freeze portions of it for meals for my son. I highly doubt the squash could have saved this lasagna in any way. I also realize how important vegetables are in vegan lasagna recipes. They make or break it. Also, I kept wishing the tofu tasted cooked. It just didn't. And the pan size she recommended forced me to have to snap all the noodles to get them to fit. I'll take Chloe Coscarelli's lasagna or Terry Walter's Tofu Kale Lasagna. And if I make the marinara from Chloe's book and use that for her lasagna, it will be loaded with vegetables. Sure, a little more work involved. But I'll take the extra work entailed for a good pan of lasagna over a pan of wasted money and time that I have to dump in the trash. I realize I have conflicting views on this cookbook. I still like it, though. Did I mention the green smoothie recipe blew my mind? :) I'm still really excited to try a bunch of recipes in this book. It's still full of a whole bunch of recipes that look really appealing and tasty that I'm eager to try. The pictures in the book are beautiful. I will say as far as cookbooks go, and I have well over 100 vegan cookbooks, I think I would have enjoyed recipes utilizing more vegetables in them. I thought there were a lot of opportunities here to add and use more vegetables than she used, and that would be a more positive step in the right direction for anyone making these recipes. Otherwise, still a good cookbook and I'm glad I ordered it.

First of all, I am vegan and I have minimal cooking experience, so I typically gravitate towards simple cookbooks that don’t use a lot of one-off ingredients. I’ve been following Dana Schultz for about a year now on her blog where she posts intricately crafted recipes of her creations--and beautiful photos to match! I waited eagerly with high standards for her book to come out and was thoroughly impressed with the final product. Schultz starts out by sharing her story and her signature qualities that she implements in her work; all recipes she publishes either require 10 ingredients or less, one bowl or one pot, or take 30 minutes or less to prepare. She then introduces some of her favorite staples including flax eggs, gluten free flour blend, and vegan parmesan. These are perfect for anyone interested in plant-based cooking! As someone who is allergic to nuts, I’ve had to scour far and wide to find plant-based books with tasty alternatives to nuts--this book really does the trick. Compared to most plant-based cookbooks out there, Schultz’s book far surpassed my expectations for what it is, especially being her first book. Although this book isn’t the fancy blow-everyone-out-of-the-water-at-a-high-end-dinner-party type of book, Schultz still knocks it out of the park in her own unique way, being the one-pot, one-bowl, 10-ingredients-or-less, 30-minutes-or-less type of cook that she is. This book is perfect for folks with minimal or intermediate cooking experience who want some simple recipes that can be cooked in a short amount of time using versatile ingredients. Definitely college-student-and-single-parent-friendly; I highly recommend it!

I have turned to the Minimalist Baker online for many years. Any time I need an inspiration for preparing a meal, be it simply a weekday meal or weekend entertaining, I can always find something new and wonderful on minimalistbaker.com. I felt it was time to support Dana in a more tangible manner, so I bought this cookbook. I am so glad that I did. It is a stunningly beautiful book. It's much larger than I expected and every recipe is accompanied by beautiful photpgraphs. This is exactly how a perfect cookbook should be made. Directions are clear, they are not too difficult to prepare and the results are always extraordinary. Don't hesitate...BUY IT NOW!

5 stars means "I love it". I don't love it but it is very well done so deserves the 5 stars. The reason I don't love it (and may not keep it) is because it's heavy on the sugar and all-purpose flour. Almost every recipe I wanted to prepare called for both, even savory dishes called for sugar. I'm an experienced cook so can modify the recipes but I don't want a cookbook that I have to do that with. This is a vegan cookbook, not a vegan health cookbook. Absolutely recommend it for the not so health conscious and gluten tolerant chef. Update: I would down grade it to 4 stars at this point. One major negative is the size of the font. The fractions are extremely difficult to read. I believe this is a good cookbook to gift my non-vegan friends because I believe they would love the recipes and the book is very visually appealing which is important when attempting to influence people to trying another way of cooking and eating. BUT most of the people I would gift this to are over 60, require corrective lenses, and need excellent lighting to read smaller print. I think they would find reading the fractions very frustrating. Not sure how this feature made it past editing, it's that bad. Although I would prefer a book that didn't use refined sugars and so much fat(s) this book never claimed it didn't. While I wouldn't describe it necessarily as a health cookbook, it is certainly much, much healthier than the average cookbook. If you still have excellent vision, then I highly recommend trying this book. There are still plenty healthy recipes and for the ones that aren't, it usually is just a simple matter of substitution. Like water instead of oil for saute'. Otherwise, a lovely cookbook. I'm going to keep it. At least awhile longer! ;)

I am very disappointed from this book! You can find many more interesting recipes on their website, and for free... I have spent money for nothing!

I had originally bought this book as a wedding gift for a vegan couple, because I love the Minimalist Baker blog. Unfortunately, it arrived poorly packed. and the corner of the package (and the book cover) were damaged in shipment. The front cover of the book was also coated in a sticky glue-like residue. For this reason, I was unable to give it as a gift, and did not have time to order a replacement before the wedding. I was eventually able to rub off most of the glue. I was going to return it, but hated the idea of an otherwise nice book being destroyed, so I ended up keeping it for myself. I have not made any of the recipes from the book yet, but have made many online Minimalist Baker recipes, and they have always turned out fantastic. The book is well-organized, the recipes look appetizing, and the pictures are beautiful. I give 5 stars for the book itself, but deduct one star for the inconvenience of not being able to gift it, as planned.

No hace falta ser vegano para apreciar estas deliciosas recetas. Dana Schultz tiene un blog the cocina (Minimalist Baker) con numerosos recursos que consulto a menudo, pero a veces llevarse el libro a la cocina y llenarlo de post-its con las modificaciones que uno hace es la mejor opción. Hay un montón de recetas y básicos de cocina vegana que todo cocinitas sabrá apreciar. Las únicas críticas que haría son que quizás hay muchas recetas con garbanzos (que si bien son de las mejores fuentes de proteína vegetal que hay, pueden llegar a cansar), pero se pueden sustituir al gusto por otra legumbre; el uso de margarina (vegan butter) que no es de las grasas más saludables (mejor aceite de oliva virgen extra) y además en la mayoría de los casos lleva aceite de palma (que no es muy sostenible medioambientalmente); y finalmente, el uso de aceite de coco, que en España no sería recomendable por el mismo motivo medioambiental. En resumen, las recetas están buenísimas, son fáciles de hacer, la mayoría de ingredientes son básicos de despensa (y los que no, pueden ser sustituidos o eliminados) y por lo tanto animo a cualquiera, ya sea vegano o no, a probarlas. Comer más verdura nunca ha hecho daño a nadie ;)

This was recommended to me for a basic cook and it delivers. Very helpful instructions and delicious recipes.

I'm not a vegan, but I wanted to start making more recipes that are plant-based, and this was the perfect book for it. Not only does it look good, but the instructions are also clear and concise, and the food tastes amazing. It covers you for all different types of meals and also has information about general ingredients you can swap for plant-based, such as coconut cream or hemp milk. Love this book!