A recent library find, checked out as an ebook, is Yotam Ottolenghi's Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London's Ottolenghi. As the title suggests, Ottolenghi is a restaurant owner, and he is also one of the UK's leading chefs. He writes a weekly food column for The Guardian newspaper, where he focuses on vegetables, although he is not a vegetarian. He says he was asked to write the column, based on the vegetable dishes he serves in his restaurant.
After reading through the recipes, today I tried Sweet Potato Wedges with Lemongrass and Crème Fraîche. The roasted sweet potatoes are enhanced by the bright, fresh flavors of lemongrass, lime, and ginger in a creamy dipping sauce. I made the crème fraîche by combining equal parts of cream and sour cream, but otherwise the steps followed were exactly as shown by another blogger at Eating for England. Please click through for ingredients and beautiful photos of this dish. I served it as a side dish with fish, but it would also make an appealing finger food snack.
The recipe taught me something new about cooking. I had never thought of using my spice grinder, a small coffee grinder reserved for the purpose, to grind lemongrass. It worked efficiently and well, and left a bit of a mess in the grinder, but it was easily wiped clean. Just about everything in this cookbook looks appealing. I think my next recipe to try will be his Spicy Moroccan Carrot Salad.
Ottolenghi also writes a blog, where he posts many other recipes, and he has written two other books: Jerusalem, a Cookbook (published this fall in the US) and Ottolenghi: The Cookbook (due for US publication in September 2013). This creative chef has me more fired up about cooking since I discovered Anne Willan.
Weekend Cooking is a feature of the Beth Fish Reads blog. Click for links to food posts by other bloggers. Usually you will find some great recipes, photography, cookbook reviews and other food-related posts.
Plenty: Vibrant Vegetable Recipes from London's Ottolenghi by Yotam Ottolenghi.
Orignally published in 2010 by Ebury Press, UK.
Chronicle Books issued a reprint edition in the US, 2011.
288 pages.
I read the Kindle version.
I love the cover -- that's taking eggplant to the next level!
Posted by: Joy Weese Moll | 01/27/2013 at 09:57 PM
I have this book too and really like it. I wonder if I've reviewed it... now I'm inspired to revisit it.
Posted by: BethFishReads | 01/28/2013 at 05:28 AM
I find that vegetable are often an afterthought at restaurants if they are even included with the meal. such a shame when they can be so tasty and of course so healthy. Thanks for sharing this chef and his books. I enjoyed a good visit to his blog.
Posted by: Heather | 01/28/2013 at 07:09 AM
Joy, the Kindle does not show off the food photos to best advantage. After this ebook goes back to the library, I will probably break down and buy the hard copy.
BethFishReads, it sounds like you have quite an extensive cookbook collection, and I always enjoy your reviews.
Heather, his blog was well worth a visit, I thought. His newspaper column will probably become a regular part of my weekend reading now.
Posted by: Fay | 01/28/2013 at 09:14 AM
The sweet potato dish sound wonderful! I've never combined them with lemongrass... very creative.
Posted by: JoAnn | 01/28/2013 at 08:17 PM
I have this cookbook and quite like it. There are some interesting dishes.
Posted by: Esme | 01/28/2013 at 09:50 PM
I love Ottolenghi and have this on my shelf, we don't dip into it often but have loved everything we've tried. :)
Posted by: Alex in Leeds | 01/29/2013 at 05:35 AM
JoAnn, creative is the word. Ottolenghi is so imaginative, and he draws on a different culinary tradition than my usual.
Esme and Alex, I am late to the party. He has a long-established reputation, but this is the first of his cookbooks I've sampled.
Posted by: Fay | 01/29/2013 at 08:20 AM
I've seen plenty of interesting cookbooks available from my library's e-book collection but have never downloaded any. While I know they aren't as good as a physical cookbook, I'm now curious!
Posted by: Olduvaireads.wordpress.com | 02/25/2013 at 07:58 AM
The biggest drawback to the Kindle version of a cookbook is that when you're in the middle of a lengthy procedure, the device will turn itself off, and then your hands might have food on them, and you have to turn it on again.
Posted by: Fay | 02/25/2013 at 09:15 AM