Some of you may or may not know that I’m a vegetarian. Well I recently was sent some books from a publishers that are a little more extreme than my current dietary habits; however, I’ve flipped through them and flagged some recipes I’d like to try or adapt. I just wanted to let you all know that I’ll be talking about my cooking a little if I can.

I love 30-minute type meals, and am endlessly searching for a “quick meals vegetarian” book. And I would love to hear some recipe recommendations if you have any.

Great Chefs Cook Vegan by Linda Long. My first impression of this book was that it was very gourmet. I’m going to wait until I try cooking a recipe or two before I pass any judgement though. I marked some recipes that I could adapt, as I may not have the ingredients, or use dairy items instead of non-dairy products. The book appears to be a collection of recipes from over 20 different chefs; everything from entrees and salads to soups and desserts. There are some recipes that call for fresh berries that made my mouth water.

Everyday Raw by Matthew Kenney. The photos in this book look so delicious and fresh. The design of the book is very modern, and I think it makes a statement on the Raw Movement. The intro in the book talks about the key to eating raw is to use what’s fresh, local, in season, and available. I noticed that a number of the recipes call for a “dehydrator” and “dehydration sheets” which appear to be a substitute to an oven… I’m not really sure but there are certainly some appealing recipes that I’d love to adapt and work into my regular day-to-day life. There are a lot of great suggestions for salsas, sauces, dressings, and smoothies. I’m interested in trying acai berry, mango guacamole, and pineapple salsa! I’ll let you know how it all goes.

Project Details [ravpage]:
Yarn: Michell & CIA. Luxury Collection Alpaca Peru. 100% baby alpaca.
Pattern: Fetching-Inspired Hat [ravlink] by Grace KnitsALOT.
Needles: 6mm circulars (instead of DPNs)

The pattern was very vague, but fortunately, hats with a 5 stitch repeat are fairly easy to manipulate. I held the yarn doubled (the pattern called for bulky) and CO 130 sts (pattern calls for 80). Other than that, I followed the pattern pretty much exactly. I did take to putting it on my head to figure out length, but that all went well!