Cooking and eating should be fun and food taste great to you, most importantly. (6)
I continue to be very curious about other vegetarians and how they approach their daily meals. When looking at cookbooks, I want to know how they stock their kitchens: which ingredients are the stars that get the most use? As I read the introduction to Joe Woodhouse’s latest cookbook, More Daily Veg, I love when he mentions cooking with his young son and how, when they cook together, it serves as inspiration (also, that since fennel is one of his son’s favourite vegetables, it features prominently in the book). I know that when I’m looking through cookbooks to choose recipes to make for my family, I’m considering the tastes and preferences of my daughter and husband too. And it is with books like More Daily Veg that I appreciate how Woodhouse encourages home cooks to make the recipes their own. Make the recipes as written or, tailor them to fit what makes the most sense for you.
More Daily Veg continues with what Woodhouse started in Your Daily Veg (review here) by focusing on fresh, seasonal produce. As with his first book, the recipes within More Daily Veg are organized into specific ingredients: 1) Potatoes, 2) Celeriac, Beetroot & Squash, 3) Mushrooms & Onion Family, 4) Aubergines, Peppers & Chillies, 5) Tomato & Fennel, 6) Greens, 7) Cucumbers, Carrots & Salads, and 8) Beans, Pulses & Seeds. As he tells us: “The feel and basis still revolve around great produce and giving it a platform to shine.” (6) Again, I found that sourcing ingredients was as easy as a visit to my local supermarket or farmer’s market and, I was able to make excellent use of the pantry staples I already have.
It’s winter here in my part of the world, so the recipes that have caught my eye are the ones that feel lush and comforting – like the recipe for Lentil Bolognese. By using such an assortment of vegetables – onions, fennel, celery, carrots, garlic, leeks – the Bolognese is extremely flavourful and the veg adds so much to the sauce. Lentils are such a hero ingredient because there is no need to soak them beforehand and, they give such a great texture to “meaty” sauces like the Bolognese. It was quick to make and made enough to have leftovers the next day too. I even took his suggestion in the recipe head notes to add the rind from hard cheese to the sauce for extra flavour (I have a bag of rinds in my freezer that have been waiting for such a use!).
Next to lentils, split peas are quite the star themselves because they also need no extra prep – such as soaking – to be ready to use. As with the Bolognese, when I made the recipe for Yellow Split Peas w/ Curried Ghee, Beetroot Salsa & Yogurt, the base was flavoured with a lot of veg: onions, carrots, fennel, and garlic. After the vegetables have softened and the split peas have cooked to the right texture, the mixture is finished off with coconut milk. The split pea mixture is served topped with the beetroot salsa, green onions, curried ghee, and fresh herbs. Another bright, comforting meal that perked us up during the grey, snowy days.
Lazy weekend breakfasts have always been something my family looks forward to and, as soon as I saw Woodhouse’s recipe for Folded Cheese & Tomato Omelette Sandwich, I knew it would be an instant hit. A toasted brioche bun is topped with sliced tomato, a condiment of choice (for my daughter: mayo and ketchup; for me: Kewpie mayo and Gochujang), and a folded, cheesy egg omelette dotted with green onion. My daughter enjoyed it so much, the sandwich made both a Saturday AND Sunday appearance at the breakfast table. My enjoyment goes a bit deeper — Woodhouse calls it “proper childhood nostalgia” and, I think it’s why I love this recipe so much! It reminds me of the egg sandwiches my mum would make for us. Doesn’t food always taste better when there’s a connection behind it?
One recipe that I took inspiration from was his recipe for Quick Crunchy Working Lunch Salad. When I looked at the components he used to assemble his salad, I knew that I didn’t have all of them, so I used what I had – the result was a satisfyingly crisp and crunchy dish. I had saved some particularly fresh fennel tops/fronds which I also chopped up and added to the dish – why waste anything? Since then, I’ve come back to this recipe many times because it’s so bright and fresh – it’s one that my daughter and husband love too.
What draws me to Joe Woodhouse’s work is his earnest desire to share an appreciation for vegetables by presenting them in delicious, approachable recipes. More Daily Veg continues from his earlier book Your Daily Veg by showing home cooks what vegetarian cooking looks like in his kitchen and how it continues to evolve as he cooks for his family. In the end, he tells us: “Time spent in the kitchen should be one of the more relaxing and enjoyable parts of the day. Have fun.” (6)
I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Canadian Manda Group and Kyle Books for providing me with a free, review copy of this book. I did not receive monetary compensation for my post, and all thoughts and opinions expressed are my own.
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