Blogging for Books: A Modern Way to Cook, by Anna Jones

This is a very useful cookbook for everyday eating, especially for vegetarians and those who wish to lessen their reliance on meat-centric meals.  It is chock full of ideas for simple healthful meals, featuring ingredient and flavor combinations that, without being weird, take the recipes out of the ordinary.  Think winter root vegetable soba noodles with pickled greens or sesame, pistachio, and preserved lemon crispy rice.  There’s lots of creative ideas for putting together ultra simple meal go tos like omelets and rice bowls.  One of my favorite ideas is a do-it-yourself ramen bowl that you can take to work or school, layering thin rice vermicelli, chopped vegetables, and seasonings in a mason jar, then adding hot water when it’s time to eat.  There are excellent chapters on breakfast foods and relatively healthful desserts.

I have two problems with this otherwise superb cookbook.  One is that the cooking times are not realistic.  I made a saffron polenta that epitomizes the bright healthy flavors Jones specializes in, but took considerably more than the 20 minutes Jones claimed it took to prepare.  To be sure, the polenta did cook in less than that time, but several vegetables needed chopping, lemon needed zesting, cheese grated, etc.  Other recipes in the same 15-20 minute category were similarly over-optimistic.  The other problem is that most of these recipes are presented as full meals, which they are not, unless you are 100 pounds and on a diet.  For instance, Jones suggests pairing a green bean and chile paneer ( 7 oz paneer, a pound of green beans, half a pound of tomatoes for four people) with rice “if you are really hungry”.  Suggestions on combining 2-3 of these dishes into a satisfying meal would be welcome.

As usual with most of the cookbooks I review, A Modern Way to Cook is a visual feast, making everything look enticing.

Tags: Anna Jones, simple vegetarian cooking, vegetarian cooking