Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

So, I have cooked exclusively from this cookbook for 2 weeks, and am ABSOLUTELY AMAZED by how good these recipes are! Here are the pros and cons for this book: Disclaimer: I am not entirely vegan (only 80-90% of the time when I can), but am very passionate about eating plant-based. I also went to culinary school in Paris, so I am experienced in making both vegan and omni recipes. PROS: 1. Although all of Dreena's cookbooks are amazingly healthy, this book is the HEALTHIEST yet! There is absolutely NO white flour, white sugar, proceed anything in this book. On top of that, this book is completely OIL-FREE. Although the recipes are higher in fat than, say, what is recommended in the McDougall, or Dr. Esselstyn's diets-- the fat percentage is around 20-30% in most recipes, they are fats from whole foods. Dreena has used beans, nut/seed butters, or coconut butter to add protein and additional nutrients, and not to mention creamy texture to her dishes. I especially enjoyed the dessert recipes, which taste even better than any other vegan or non-vegan recipes I have tried, and would definitely be perfect treats even for those doing low-fat vegan. 2. Gluten free, soy free, nut free options: one of the main things I observed with Dreena's last book, "Let Them Eat Vegan", was the abundant use of nuts, which is not a problem at all for me (I love nuts!), but may be a factor of concern for those who have nut allergies. In this book, many of the recipes that require nuts, soy, or gluten are either revised to be allergen free, or include thoughtful and creative options for those who are allergic. What's more, in place of nuts, Dreena has used vegetables to create the same creaminess-- which makes for even more nutritious recipes. For example, the cashew-based Vegveeta dip from LTEV, which I LOVE, is now made with potatoes and oats and is even yummier :) 3. DESSERTS and BAKED GOODS: oh wow-- I cannot say enough great things about Dreena's baked goods. I literally baked my way through every dessert recipe in LTEV, and am already halfway through the dessert chapter in this book, and so far every recipe I have made have been A-M-A-Z-I-N-G. I recommend the Dreamy Baked Bananas (topped with Banana Butter Ice Cream), Crazy brownies -- which are made from potatoes, chickpeas, and tahini, but taste better than most of the non-vegan brownies I have had, and vanilla bean chocolate chip cookies (I recommend hunting down vanilla bean powder for this! yum!). 4. Pictures: what a treat! Almost every recipe in this book has a picture, which are beautifully photographed, and look absolutely scrumptious. This is a huge change from Dreena's previous cookbooks, and a great change indeed! 5. Balanced, fresh and bright flavors: I found the flavors of the dishes in the book to be very balanced. And although the flavors are quite mild, Dreena has skillfully brightened the flavors of her dishes with a restrained yet balanced use of acid and sweetness. Incidentally, on top of being kid-friendly, I found that the mild and fresh-flavored dishes to be very easy to digest as well. CONS (Which are non-issues for me personally): 1. Repeated recipes: as a few reviewers have pointed out, this book contains a few repeated recipes. These include 1) recipes that were already published elsewhere (these are mostly oil-free recipes from her Plant-powered 15 cookbook, and the China Study All-Star cookbook), and 2) popular recipes from her previous books, but improved and made allergen-free. I personally don't mind category 1), and LOVE the category 2) recipes. I was SO excited to finally see the greatist past "hits" made EVEN healthier and simpler! But again, if repeated recipes is an issue, or if you already are tweaking Dreena's old recipes, this a point to take note of. 2. Fewer recipes as compared to her other cookbooks: this, I suspect, is due to the need to include photos for the cookbook, which would take up twice the amount of space compared to, say, if there were no pictures. Again, this is a non-issue for me because i LOVE photos in cookbooks. RECIPES I LIKED. Just to name a few, these include: Breakfasts: Pumpkin pie smoothie, Chunky Monkey smoothie, Best Banana Bread Lunch Fixes:Potato-Meets-Egg Salad, Chickpea nibbles Dips and spreads: Mild Cheesy Dip (this is the variation of the Vegveeta Dip), Red Lentil Hummus, Pumpkincredible Hummus Soups and Stews: Smoky Bean Chilli, Cream of Cauliflower Soup Pizza and Pasta: Mac-nificient (this was even better than the Mac-oh-geez in LTEV! yum) Burgers n' Fries n' Such: Umami Sun-Dried Tomato and Almond Burgers (this was SO good and flavorful-- a must-try), "SweetBalls" Desserts Puddings, Creams and Sauces: Peanut Butter Pudding with Berrylicious Swirl, Milk Chocolate Fudge Sauce Cookies, Bars, and Energy Bites: Crazy Brownies, Vanilla Bean Chocolate Chip Cookies, "Nicer" Krispie Squares, Sticky Almond Blondies, Nut-Free- "Frosted Brawnies", Vanilla Bean Almond Butter Fudge (yeeeah I pretty much adore this entire chapter ;p) Frozen treats: Banana Butter ice cream Cakes and Frostings: Chocolate Sweet Potato Cake, Chocolate ganache Extras!: Dreamy Baked Bananas, (and I am also very excited about making The Great Pumpkin Pie!, which has an oat crust.)