Leeka's Reviews
232 recipes reviewed. Showing 51 to 100Sort by: Book Title 
| Date | Rating | Recipe Title
Vegan with a Vengeance : Over 150 Delicious, Cheap, Animal-Free Recipes That Rock
By Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Da Capo Press - 2005
I don't like my pancakes too fluffy and these with a tiny bit more liquid make the perfect consistency. I also enjoy the hint of cinnamon. We enjoyed them covered in peaches and maple syrup.
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Yum! I added sesame seeds and salt to this recipe which complemented the cumin, coriander and peeper nicely. A thumbs up from my 4 year old.
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I baked these adorable cookies for a vegan potluck event and they were really fun to make. I actually didn't get to taste one, they were gone before I made it to the dessert table so my four star rating is based solely on looks.
While rolling these into small balls, be sure to take the advice of the authors and keep your hands damp or you will have very sticky cookie dough all over your fingers.
I used the stick of a spatula that was fat and round to make the "thumbprint" half way through baking because I didn't want to burn my thumbs. It worked fine but I put a little too much jam in the centres and it bubbled over a bit. No worries though, the cookies still came out looking delicious and they were snatched up at the dinner!
I will definitely make them again and update my review with notes on the flavour.
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The Vegan Table: 200 Unforgettable Recipes for Entertaining Every Guest at Every Occasion
By Colleen Patrick-Goudreau
Fair Winds Press - 2009
I loved this recipe even though it didn't taste much like traditional Pad Thai. The sauce was a more of a sweet and slightly spicy peanut sauce. Instead of adding chili flakes, I used Thai spice blend because my family can't take the heat.
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Very flavourful dish. I allowed the potatoes and cauliflower to cook longer than the recipe recommended so the flavours would have more time to meld. The cauliflower flowerets broke down and were very soft but we didn't mind. I added a little more than the teaspoon of brown sugar called for as well as more salt.
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Hearty Stew is aptly named. Simple ingredients - potatoes, carrots, onions and tempeh seasoned with thyme, marjoram and tarragon in a savoury broth. Good stuff. Preparation was uncomplicated and cooking time relatively short at 25-30 minutes. It would be almost impossible to mess this recipe up.
The only thing that had the potential to turn me off was the disctinctive smell of the tarragon while cooking but that's just one of those personal things. Tarragon and I don't always get along. Thankfully, when I tasted the stew, the flavour was not at all overpowering.
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Vegan Soul Kitchen: Fresh, Healthy, and Creative African-American Cuisine
By Bryant Terry
Da Capo Press - 2009
Really tasty cabbage with a touch of spice and easy to prepare.
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Vegan Planet: 400 Irresistible Recipes with Fantastic Flavors from Home and Around the World
By Robin Robertson
Harvard Common Press - 2003
This is a delicious and slightly sweet chili that even my daughter enjoyed. I substituted peach juice for the called for apple juice because we didn't have any and it added an interesting flavour. I think next time I will use the apple juice and a slightly smaller squash or just more beans.
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Simple and tasty but could use a little more zing.
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The sesames and cumin sprinkled on top added a wonderful flavour to this flatbread. Instead of using all purpose flour as the recipe called for I substituted Indian Durham Atta flour. As a result, the flatbread was a little sturdier and chewier. I will definitely make these again and perhaps mix the flour half and half.
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I've always wanted to make Hot and Sour Soup at home and this was my first attempt. I was very pleased with the result. I used an Indonesian Chili paste and with only one teaspoon added it was plenty hot enough for me. I also upped the sugar from 1/2 teaspoon to about 1 1/2 teaspoons. The soup is chock full of tofu strips, bamboo shoots, shiitake mushrooms and finished nicely with a bit of sesame oil, cilantro and scallions. Yum!
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Delicious smooth coconut flavour combines with chili, lime and ginger. I love this flavour combination and there are tofu and mushrooms to sink your teeth into as well.
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Nice sesame flavour and simple to make. I added tofu and mixed in rice noodles at the end to make a complete meal out of it.
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I like a little sweetness in my savoury dishes and this hearty tempeh and rice dish fits the bill. I use an entire package of tempeh instead of just one cup. Next time I will add more napa cabbage to up the veggie content and make this a one pot meal.
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Creamy and rich with a hint of sweetness from the butternut squash.
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This was good, but for me there was something a little off about the spice mix. My husband rates it a five and I have a feeling this will taste better the next day once the flavours have more time to meld.
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The perfect soup to warm up chilled bodies in the middle of winter. This pureed medley of root vegetables featuring parsnips as the star, was warmly received even by my five year old who is notoriously selective with her veggies. I found the parsnip flavour to be quite strong but will gladly make this again if my child will actually eat it.
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Easy pancakes, nice texture. The flax seed mixuture is a pain to get out of the blender though.
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This pudding was far too rich for my taste. It took me three days to eat one portion and I have a sweet tooth. I think cutting the one cup of semi-sweet chocolate chips by a third or even one half would still make for a nice pudding. On the plus side, it's very simple to make with only four ingredients.
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Website: Vegan Planet
With not many veggies in the fridge apart from some fresh corn, I was looking for a recipe to fill our bellies and happened across this one. The ingredients are onion, celery, potatoes, corn, stock, a bit of soy milk, salt and pepper. It can be dressed up with different garnishes at the end. I added some chopped fresh chives.
Overall an easy soup with simple flavours. You can leave it chunky or puree it in the pot. It won't rock your world but it's comfortable and satisfying.
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Vegan on the Cheap: Great Recipes and Simple Strategies that Save You Time and Money
By Robin Robertson
Wiley - 2010
I love apple pie but hate making pastry so I love discovering desserts with an apple pie type filling. This was a simple and homey dessert almost like eating upside down apple cake. I did not have applesauce on hand to use in the batter so had to use a cup of extra soy milk instead. It turned out just fine but I am curious to see how different it will be next time with the applesauce.
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These burgers were perfect for a fast supper. I loved the short ingredient list with nothing exotic required and black beans are my favourite. Very tasty!
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Vegan Fusion World Cuisine: Healing Recipes and Timeless Wisdom from our Hearts to Yours
By Mark Reinfeld, Bo Rinaldi, Tae Hamamura, Jane Goodall
Beaufort Books - 2007
These muffins have a lovely, mildly sweet and fruity flavour. My only reservation is with the texture which was on the chewy side. I don't know if this had to do with the absence of oil or if it was overmixing on my part although I was careful not to overdo it. I will definitely make these again. I'm happy to find a recipe for muffins sweetened entirely with fruit, juice and maple syrup.
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These no bake cookies were fast and easy to prepare. Chock full of goodies like pecans, raisins, coconut and melted chocolate chips, they almost taste like a firm, textured fudge. The entire family enjoyed these rich treats. I recommend making them small.
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I love the earthy flavour of hummus and the roasted red pepper adds a wonderful undertone to this dip. I made this recipe for a party and served it with fresh veggies and tortilla chips and it was a big hit - two or three people asked me for the recipe.
Once the red pepper is roasted and the skin removed, all the ingredients are just whizzed up in a food processor, very simple and delicious!
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Moist, delicious and mildly sweet. Sweetened with just the mashed banana, apple sauce and 1/2 cup of maple syrup. I omitted the dates and nuts at my daughter's request but next time will include them because I'm sure it would have been even more yummy. Even plain this banana bread was a big hit with the whole family.
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This is a simple strawberry sauce with a hint of cinnamon. I left out the pinch of cardamom because I am not a fan. The recipe makes a small amount, I will double it next time. I served it on pancakes and it was very good.
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Very easy to prepare, just mix wet and dry, no beating inolved. The dough was not too sweet (only 2/3 cup maple syrup), the chocolate chips provided plenty of sweetness and the mint was a nice change and not too overpowering. I substituted all purpose flour because I didn't have any spelt flour and left out the walnuts.
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I liked the fresh flavours in this salad but am not a fan of couscous. I think any other small grain would provide a better base for this dish. The cucumbers add a nice crunch and the fresh herbs and simple dressing taste like summer!
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Awesome, fast and easy.
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I've made this salad several times this summer and absolutely love it! I serve this on toast, in a tortilla or lettuce wrap, or scooped on top of tomatoes and salad greens. I generally whip up a batch to have in the fridge and can eat for breakfast, lunch or dinner. The dill makes me happy and it only takes a minute to whip up the home-made veganaise dressing (in the blender) that accompanies the recipe.
I've adapted this recipe to suit my taste by adding chopped sweet or dill pickles, and one day when I didn't have any celery, I tried grated carrots instead which were delicious.
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Vegan Eats World: 300 International Recipes for Savoring the Planet
By Terry Hope Romero
Da Capo Lifelong Books - 2012
A very easy, baked tofu. The whole family enjoyed this Asian style marinaded dish accompanied by sesame greens and rice. I can easily see this becoming part of our regular rotation. I reduced the marinating time from one hour to about 10 minutes and the tofu was still quite tasty.
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The smell of this curry simmering on the stove was amazing! The sauce was very creamy with a combination of coconut milk, peanut butter and veggie stock. The curry consisted of garam masala, cayenne, ginger, garlic, shallots, chinese five spice, turmeric and salt blended together to make a paste. I loved the combination of potatoes, tofu, broccoli and onions cooked together in this slightly spicy, one pot meal. I was slightly disappointed in the lack of depth but I'm pretty sure this curry will taste even better as leftovers once the flavours have had more time to meld. And perhaps I didn't add enough lime juice at the end. Definitely a make again.
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Vegan Diner: Classic Comfort Food for the Body and Soul
By Julie Hasson
Running Press - 2011
The smell of the almond extract while these were baking was amazing! I didn't have dried cherries and had to substitute maraschino cherries which added a nice sweetness. They were quite dense, not light and fluffy and I think they need more fruit or something to jazz them up a bit. Good but not out of this world.
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A creamy, cashew based sauce with smoked paprika that adds an interesting bit of kick. I used slightly less than 1 1/4 teaspoons, probably around 1 teaspoon because I wasn't sure if the smoked paprika would be too overpowering in the sauce.
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Vegan Cupcakes Take Over the World: 75 Dairy-Free Recipes for Cupcakes that Rule
By Isa Chandra Moskowitz, Terry Hope Romero, Sara Quin
Da Capo Press - 2006
These cupcakes were delicious, moist, light and had the perfect balance of chocolate and minty flavour. They were also very easy to prepare and mix by hand. I used the mint icing but didn't have the ingredients for the second topping of a simple chocolate ganache so I crumbled up some chocolate cookies and sprinkled them on top. Fantastic!
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The recipe gave two choices, either to make them canola oil or with margarine. I made them with canola oil and was pleased with the result even though they did have a slightly oily texture. A good base for a variety of frostings or flavour additions. I topped them with the orange buttercream icing.
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These are an excellent, perfectly textured chocolate cupcake. They are not too dense. I was easily able to eat two of them without feeling like I over did it. This is the same base recipe used in the chocolate mint cupcake recipe.
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Excellent cupcakes! These were extremely moist and quite fluffy. Pouring the two batters into the tins simultaneously was a little bit tricky, messy and slightly more time consuming than a single batter but it was fun. We ate these without icing at my daugher's request but I think they would have been a 5 out of 5 with some chocolate frosting. Definitely something I would make again.
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These are a variation on the golden vanilla cupcakes (page 33) with some added lemon zest and lemon extract. I chose to make these with the canola oil option instead of Earth Balance out of pure laziness and the texture was somewhat spongy. Next time I'll try the other way. The recipe name describes the flavour perfectly, a balance between vanilla and lemon.
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Light, fluffy cupcakes with a hint of chocolate. The recipe called for chocolate extract which I don't have so I substituted a bit more vanilla and almond extract instead. The almond extract gave it quite a nice flavour. I topped the cupcakes with vanilla buttercream icing and they were delicious.
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Vegan Cooking for Carnivores: Over 125 Recipes So Tasty You Won't Miss the Meat
By Roberto Martin, Quentin Bacon, Ellen DeGeneres, Portia de Rossi
Grand Central Life & Style - 2012
Our whole family enjoyed this vegan version of the classic Mac 'N Cheese. The sauce uses a base of cashew cream with veggie stock and vegan cheddar cheese added. It was very creamy and simple. A definite make again, this dish is especially kid friendly.
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Website: Vegan Cooking
This quiche was very rich. My husband and I both enjoyed the flavour and texture. While eating it I thought mushrooms would be a great addition along with the asparagus and perhaps a few herbs. My local grocery store doesn't carry Daiya vegan cheese so I used a rice based product which has good flavour but doesn't melt as well. As usual, I want to tinker with this recipe to cater to my own personal taste but if you make it as written, I think you'll find it very satisfying.
Also, I used fresh steamed asparagus in place of canned asparagus (yuck!).
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Vegan Brunch: Homestyle Recipes Worth Waking Up For--From Asparagus Omelets to Pumpkin Pancakes
By Isa Chandra Moskowitz
Da Capo Lifelong Books - 2009
Fluffy and tasty. I prefer a thinner, crepey type pancake but these were good. I sometimes thin out the batter to achieve the consistency I like and serve them with fruit and maple syrup.
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A delicious and simple combination of beets, potatoes and onions pan fried and then roasted. Perfect as an accompaniment for a hot breakfast. Yum!
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I enjoyed these pancakes much more than the perfect pancake recipe from the same book. They have quite a strong flavour from the spices (cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg) and reminded me of her pumpkin muffins which are delicious. Next time I will slightly reduce the spice mix.
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Delicious and fluffy pancakes with great banana flavour and a hint of cinnamon.
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An interesting way to use left-over mashed potatoes with Indian spices. Good flavour, a little difficult to handle.
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The cake had a light, tender crumb and was not too sweet. The topping was a disappointment and I found it far too floury tasting. I added the jam option swirled through the cake which definitely improved the recipe.
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