I’m a vegetarian, not a vegan, but I have found that when I want to buy cookbooks, I frequently purchase vegan cookbooks because they tend to have healthier versions of comfort foods that I grew up eating or dishes with unusual combinations that I wouldn’t normally think to cook with.

The recipes in Easy. Whole. Vegan. by Melissa King are vegan and gluten-free. They are also slanted toward being healthier versions of familiar recipes so for the ubiquitous vegan lentil shepherd’s pie with mashed potatoes, you have a cauliflower mash instead. In other places, sweet potatoes replace white potatoes. (Ever since the low carb craze, the poor white potato has taken a beating; cut it out folks! White potatoes are nutritious! and yummy!–oh, did I type that out loud? Sorry.)

Some of the recipes call for specialized gadgets like an ice cream maker or a vitamix-style blender (for smoothies and juicing) or a spiralizer. Personally, I’m considering the spiralizer as this cookbook has jumped on the current bandwagon of spiralizing veggies like zucchini to use in the place of pasta.

There are some yummy-sounding snack recipes, both sweet and savory, like Maple Vanilla Baked Oatmeal Squares, Chocolate Raspberry Brownies, and Cucumber Dill Humus.

A section on slow cooker recipes includes a variety of soups (Veggie Enchilada, Caramelized Onion to name a couple) as well as curry, chili, and risotto.

One thing I particularly liked is that King offers variations and/or helpful notes for almost every recipe, providing suggestions for alternative ingredients or storage, for instance.

The version I looked at has some photos in place and those looked enticing. I can’t wait to see the pictures for some of the other recipes.

Obviously if you’re a vegan or vegetarian looking to cut-back on processed-foods or healthier alternatives, this cookbook is for you. Also, I think it would be a great addition for those folks participating in Meatless Mondays as King has suggestions for the picky eaters in your family, whether they’re adult or child.

Easy. Whole. Vegan. will be published on September 6, 2016.

I received an arc from NetGalley for an honest review.

From Amazon: Easy. Whole. Vegan.: 100 Flavor-Packed, No-Stress Recipes for Busy Families

rating:  (4 out of 5 butterflies)