Can’t cook? Try these super-simple vegan recipe books
Learning to cook is one of the most empowering things you can do. Especially if based around plant foods, you can save money, get healthy, find tasty plastic-free food and not be a slave to supermarket junk food. Here are some super-simple recipe books to help you get started!
- Before cooking, read up on food safety for people and pets.
- Before recycling cans, rinse then remove lids (pop ring-pulls over holes). Then step on upper cans to ‘pinch’ inner rims together, to avoid wildlife getting trapped.
- Unless you have a food waste bin, bin pepper and allium scraps (onion, leeks, garlic, shallots, chives) and citrus/tomato/rhubarb scraps, as acids could harm compost creatures.
Make It Vegan (simple delicious recipes)
Make It Vegan is absolutely terrific! This has gorgeously innovative recipes, all beautifully photographed, and affordable for anyone to make. From ‘Wake Up’ and quick eats, to nibbles, sides and main dishes, there are also plenty of sweets and treats.
Maddie starts off telling her life story (a history of eating disorders and drinking at university), before she ‘fell into’ a healthy lifestyle after moving to Cornwall. She strongly believes that unless you run a restaurant (or are appearing on Masterchef), there’s no need to get stressed about cooking.
She suggests trying a few of her recipes each week, putting on some music (she likes Norah Jones) and chilling, while you learn to cook!
Recipes include:
- Pesto Potato Salad
- Cauliflower & Mushroom Burgers
- Maple Pancakes
- Spinach & Butter Bean Soup
- Sundried Tomato & Tahini Rigatoni
- Sticky Seitan Ribs
- One Pan Baked Scramble
- Butter No-Chicken Curry
- 10-Minute Mac & Cheese
- Vegan Paella
- Un-Sausage Rolls
- Beetroot Mushroom Wellington
Desserts include:
- Fluffy Lemon Elderflower Sponge Cake
- Chocolate Spread Cheesecake
- Pain au Chocolat
- Choc-a-choc Chocolate Cake!
Madeleine Olivia is a popular chef and influencer, who lives in the Cornish countryside with her husband. She makes the mac and cheese recipe from this book at least once a week, served with roasted garlic broccoli. She also enjoys making dals and stir-fries.
Simply Plants (100 nourishing recipes)
Simply Plants is a lovely book of over 100 recipes to make cooking joyful, nourishing and effortless, from a popular food blogger. Designed to make plant-based eating accessible to everyone, these wholesome recipes are nutritious and simple to make.
Backed by evidence-based nutrition, they are quick to prepare and super-tasty. You’ll find appealing recipes for every meal of the day.
Recipes include:
- Banana chunk pancakes
- High protein peanut butter & jelly smoothie
- Butter bean shakshuka
- Blended tiramisu oats
- Spicy pulled mushroom tacos
- Sticky loaded tempeh flatbread
- Green summer rolls with peanut sauce
- Sesame Udon noodles with five-spice tofu crumble
- Creamy green macaroni
- Lemony tahini tagliatelle with burst cherry tomatoes
- Vegan butter ‘chicken’
- One-pot creamy tomato chickpea curry
- Eggplant (aubergine) lentil stew with hummus and pitta
- Upside down plum cake
Sadia Badiei is a creator at Pick Up Limes, one of the world’s most popular recipe blogs for vegans. With a background in clinical dietetics, her recipes also very nutritious. Originally from Canada, she now lives in The Netherlands.
The Vegan 8 (these recipes really work!)
The Vegan 8 is a super book with all recipes containing 8 ingredients or less (bar salt, pepper and water – the book is also free from oil and gluten).
These recipes are super-tasty and very easy to make. Recipes include:
- Bakery-style blueberry muffins
- ‘Cream cheese’ spinach artichoke dip
- Cajun veggie and potato chowder
- Skillet baked mac n cheese
- No-bake espresso fudge cake
Brandi Doning is a US home chef who helped to heal her husband’s gout through diet, when doctors couldn’t.
