The Joy of Vegan Baking
Posted by faunablues on Oct 20, 2007 · Member since Aug 2003 · 9655 posts
Anyone try this cookbook? Or planning on buying it?
After VCTOTW and this site, I don't know if I really *need* a new cookbook on desserts... but... well, anyone?
it looks kind of fancy schmancy. it might be nice to have around though. for the odd craving and such.
I got my copy at the Boston Veg Food Fest. This book is 280 pages of baking. From bread to cookies to pies to tarts to cheesecake to cobbler to pudding to brittle. I have a feeling this will become my go to book for baking either sweet or savory.
I love VCTOTW, I really do. But if you want to make a Dessert Crepe or Banana's Foster, that is not the cookbook you want. If you want to have a handy guide to wheat or quick breads this is nice. In fact I think there are only like 3 cupcake recipes in the Joy of Vegan Baking!
I got my copy at the Boston Veg Food Fest. This book is 280 pages of baking. From bread to cookies to pies to tarts to cheesecake to cobbler to pudding to brittle. I have a feeling this will become my go to book for baking either sweet or savory.
I love VCTOTW, I really do. But if you want to make a Dessert Crepe or Banana's Foster, that is not the cookbook you want. If you want to have a handy guide to wheat or quick breads this is nice. In fact I think there are only like 3 cupcake recipes in the Joy of Vegan Baking!
Have you made anything out of it yet? I'm interested in it.
it looks kind of fancy schmancy. it might be nice to have around though. for the odd craving and such.
bookpapa bought this for us and this thread just prompted me to take a good look at it. I didn't find it fancy schmancy at all, actually. Most of the recipes seem very doable and straightforward.
I have been using VegWeb almost exclusively for all my cooking needs and probably will continue for most of them, but for people who like cookbooks, I'd recommend this. It even has some appealing color photos which is one of the reasons I love VegWeb (the reviews are another reason). There are also good general baking tips and recommendations. Basically, I like it; I just don't know how often I will use it.
I got my copy at the Boston Veg Food Fest. This book is 280 pages of baking. From bread to cookies to pies to tarts to cheesecake to cobbler to pudding to brittle. I have a feeling this will become my go to book for baking either sweet or savory.
I love VCTOTW, I really do. But if you want to make a Dessert Crepe or Banana's Foster, that is not the cookbook you want. If you want to have a handy guide to wheat or quick breads this is nice. In fact I think there are only like 3 cupcake recipes in the Joy of Vegan Baking!
Have you made anything out of it yet? I'm interested in it.
Yes, do tell! I'm curious if it has all the insights of VCTOTW for other baked items (I'm referring to "when good cupcakes go bad". it was so cute). And, of course, if the stuff is yummy.
Oh Tkitty! If I hadn't gone out after returning home last night I would have been making crepes this morning. As it was I staggered out of bed at 11 am and ate leftovers. My plan though is to get off my tush and head to the store with a menu and a plan from all three of my new books! When I make something I will let everyone know how it turns out for sure!
Oh Tkitty! If I hadn't gone out after returning home last night I would have been making crepes this morning. As it was I staggered out of bed at 11 am and ate leftovers. My plan though is to get off my tush and head to the store with a menu and a plan from all three of my new books! When I make something I will let everyone know how it turns out for sure!
Cool! A review would be great, when you get the chance. Thanks!
i've been looking for a pecan pie recipe that doesn't involve a bunch of agar and other wierd stuff, and realized maybe it would be nice to have a book like this around. i look forward to reviews of recipes
speaking of baking, I made vegan shortbread cookies (Ashley Kimball's recipe) and vegan pb cookies today! yum!
It might just be that I LOVE vegweb, but I think this site usually has better recipes than those I find in cookbooks. (And even if the recipe isn't spectacular, the reviews supply enough modifications to make it amazing). Veg web recipes were labored over and perfected just as meticulously as the cookbook chef's! Additionally, vegweb recipes (generally) tend to have simplier ingredients lists.
it looks kind of fancy schmancy. it might be nice to have around though. for the odd craving and such.
bookpapa bought this for us and this thread just prompted me to take a good look at it. I didn't find it fancy schmancy at all, actually. Most of the recipes seem very doable and straightforward.
I have been using VegWeb almost exclusively for all my cooking needs and probably will continue for most of them, but for people who like cookbooks, I'd recommend this. It even has some appealing color photos which is one of the reasons I love VegWeb (the reviews are another reason). There are also good general baking tips and recommendations. Basically, I like it; I just don't know how often I will use it.
I don't think it's fancy schmancy, either. I actually bought this book last week when I saw it at the store! I can't review any recipes yet (as I have not made anything from it), but I am addicted to looking at it & flipping through the pages! :D I love the layout of it, the color pictures, the big pages, and the straightforward directions.
I also really like that it's not just about sweets (or even baking). In addition to cakes, pies, cookies, etc., there are recipes for fudge sauce, biscuits, Mexican hot chocolate, and smoothies (among lots of other things)! There is also a glossary of spices, cooking terms, troubleshooting tips if things go wrong (trying to figure out why it happened & how you can change things for next time), and a section called "The How-Tos & Whatnots of Vegan Baking," which explains the best ingredients for certain kinds of recipes (Ener-G egg replacer for non-chocolatey dishes; flax for heartier options, etc.) & why.
One last thing--the author also talks about why she went vegan, which I really love in cookbooks. I remember that in Vegan with a Vengeance, Isa wrote something like , "Everyone has their own reasons for going vegan, so I'll spare you mine." I totally get what she means, but I was really disappointed in this--especially since I bought the book before becoming vegan myself. At that point I was just curious, and wanted to learn about other vegans as much as I could... And I still do! :D
The book also has really good reviews on Amazon. I feel like I'll be using this a lot, especially since there are TONS of options!
There's my two cents... ;) (Even though it was a pretty long two cents...) 8)
It might just be that I LOVE vegweb, but I think this site usually has better recipes than those I find in cookbooks. (And even if the recipe isn't spectacular, the reviews supply enough modifications to make it amazing). Veg web recipes were labored over and perfected just as meticulously as the cookbook chef's! Additionally, vegweb recipes (generally) tend to have simplier ingredients lists.
I generally feel the same, and usually only buy cookbooks that seem to offer what vegweb doesn't have (yet)(a vegan japanese cookbook, vctotw, uncheese). I'm not sure if this one is unique enough, helpful enough, or just simply delicious enough to surpass vegweb standards... but i suppose i could suffer 10 dollars to find that out. still waiting for you guys' reviews though!
Also, I just wanted to add that The Joy of Vegan Baking was just named Cookbook of the Year by VegNews magazine! :D Now I'm even more excited to try these recipes!
I flipped through this book at the bookstore yesterday ...very user-friendly, great photographs, baking tips, excellent range of recipes with easy-to-find ingredients. Great reviews on amazon.com (link below)
Any more success stories trying the recipes in this cookbook?
http://www.amazon.com/review/product/1592332803/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt/105-2481774-5193260?%5Fencoding=UTF8&showViewpoints=1
I have made:
Cheesecake
Peanut Butter Cookies
Lemon Bars
Brownies
All turned out fantastic. I don't think it's a fancy book. I think it's a great dessert book with vegan versions of just about everything you can think of.
I made the Russian Tea Cakes (substituting a little applesauce for some of the "butter"; it called for a lot), and they were delicious!!!
The Hot Cocoa is awesome (here, I subbed some water for some of the soymilk, because I don't like my cocoa super-thick)... What else? The Chocolate Chip Cookies (with walnuts) were amazing, and my boyfriend & his VERY omni roommate thought so, too. ;) :D
My one tiny gripe about this book is that it calls for Ener-G egg replacer a lot, and I suppose I'd rather use flax seeds or something more nutritious & wholesome (I may try this), but I'm not complaining--I love that her recipes really do taste like my traditional favorites, and everyone else loves them, too!
I just made the Butterscotch Pudding and it is seriously amazing. Wow! Very easy, too. I was kind of nervous that it wouldn't be very butterscotch-like (and I've never made any pudding from absolute scratch--just the Cook & Serve Jell-O junk), but it tastes exactly like the stuff I remember! :D I am eating it warm right now with a couple semisweet chocolate chips mixed in, and the only thing I changed was to add a tiny splash of rum extract during the cooking process.
My heart and tummy thank you profusely for sharing the recipes you tried out from this baking bible. :)
I have a feeling I will be back at the bookstore to buy my own copy of The Joy of Vegan Baking now.
at Barnes and noble the other day i had to make a call between buying this with my gift card or buying Donna Klein's Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen. I went with the MVK because I needed some more food cookbooks (with my cake project getting into full swing I feel like all I DO is bake) but this is definitely going on my Christmas list.
Are the appendices helpful? Someone mentioned something about tips and spice index, are they the kind of tips you can get from anywhere or are some of them insightful and worth it?
I would say they are definitely worth it. For instance, one page devoted entirely to trouble shooting yeast breads. I haven't made anything from it it yet, but I don't keep alot of baking supplies on hand all the time because I will eat whatever I bake. But over the xmas holiday I will be using this book for sure.
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