Love Is Served by Cafe Gratitude with Seizan Dreux Ellis
This is probably one of the most used cookbooks in our house. If you follow me on Instagram then you know that Cafe Gratitude is probably one of my favorite spots in LA so it’s no surprise that their cookbook is one of my favorite cookbooks as well! All of the recipes are vegan and gluten-free, and most are refined-sugar free. Some of my favorite are the Cast-Iron Chickpea Quiche, Gluten-Free Buckwheat Flax Pancakes, Kale Caesar Salad, Macrobiotic Bowl, and and the Pad Thai Kelp Noodles. If you are new to plant-based food or cooking for various types of eaters, this is a great resource!
Sweet Laurel Bakery by Laurel Gallucci
This has been my go-to for gluten-free and dairy-free desserts as of late {it’s the cookbook that I use every year for my birthday cake!}. Their cakes are so good. If you are grain-free as well, then this cookbook is definitely for you. Most of their recipes call for eggs, but they also have vegan options and robust directions on how to sub flax, chia, and psyllium husk for the eggs.
My New Roots by Sarah Britton
What I love about Sarah Britton’s recipes is how approachable and versatile they are. I was originally drawn to her blog and recipes because I really resonated with her food philosophy which ultimately led me to her cookbooks. This one is both a course on plant-based cooking as well as just a beautiful cookbook. All of the recipes are vegetarian, but most can be modified to be vegan. If you’re new to plant-based cooking, this book will give you techniques and processes that will help you in the long-run as well and starter pack of recipes that picky eaters will enjoy. I also really love how it is organized by season so that I can cook with and eat what is fresh and most flavorful.
Naturally Nourished by Sarah Britton
Another Sarah Britton favorite. Similar to her first book, this one is filled with wonderfully seasonal recipes that are packed with flavor. She applies the same principals as her first book, but with a simpler, more budget-friendly approach. Just like her first book, everything is vegetarian with lots of vegan and gluten-free options.
Eat Clean Play Dirty by Danielle Duboise and Whitney Tingle
This is another cookbook that we pull from a lot. As you know I love Sakara so it was a no brainer when they came out with a cookbook. In some respects it’s more of a wellness cookbook, every recipe is backed by Sakara’s roots in nutritional science {as well as gluten-free and vegan} and designed to balance the body, eliminate sugar cravings, nourish the microbiome and flood the body with vitamins and nutrients. While some of the recipes are more involved, they are all very approachable. Outside of the delicious, and really satisfying recipes, {I love their granola and pasta recipes} this cookbook has more information on superfoods, phytonutrients, the microbiome and lifestyle tips to promote optimal health and longevity.
Ottolenghi Simple by Yotam Ottolenghi
This isn’t technically all plant-based, but it is very vegetable forward and the recipes are so simple {pun intended hehe} and flavorful that I couldn’t not include it. Each recipe is coded as: “short on time, 10 ingredients or fewer, make ahead, pantry-led, lazy-day dishes, and/or easier than you think” so it is great for the low-maintenance cooker. I often reach for this when I’m cooking for various eaters {highly recommend the Chicken Marbella recipe – if you’re plant-based you can use the juices, dates, olives and capers in the dish over a stuffed squash for a more vegan option} and/or looking for hearty side dishes.
Living Raw Food: Get The Glow by Sarma Melngailis
An oldie but a goodie, this was one of the first raw food books I bought before I went to culinary school for it. When I lived in New York, one of my favorite restaurants was a raw vegan fine dining restaurant called Pure Food and Wine and it’s takeout spot One Lucky Duck. It has since closed, but not without release two cookbooks: Raw Food/Real World and Living Raw Food. Both have delicious {albeit semi-complex} raw food recipes, but Living Raw Food takes the cake for me because it has some of my favorite favorite raw food dessert recipes. It also has the most delicious Falafel Salad recipe that I still make today!
Eating Purely by Elizabeth Stein
Another one that isn’t completely plant-based, but filled with tons of recipes that are nutrient dense, plant-forward, and naturally free of gluten and refined sugars. If you’re a fan of Purely Elizabeth’s products, then you’ll love this cookbook. What I love about this cookbook is that it is centered around eating whole foods and mostly plants and avoiding inflammatory foods without subscribing to one stereotypical diet. Like many others on this list, this is another good cookbook that can service all types of eaters in a healthy, nutritious way.
Plenty More by Yotam Ottolenghi
I feel like this cookbook is a love letter to vegetables and highlights all the various, and creative, ways that vegetables can be prepared. The photography is simply stunning and so seductive. All of the recipes are vegetarian {some includes eggs and/or cheese}, and most of them can be modified to be vegan. One of the things I love about this cookbook is that the recipes are organized by preparation type – blanched, simmered, grilled, roasted etc. – instead of entree type. I could see this cookbook being a great resource for someone that is looking to incorporate more vegetables into their diet, but doesn’t necessarily want to eat salads 7 days a week.
I know there are tons of other good ones out there. If you have a favorite that you love, drop a comment below so that I can check it out!
xo
-S
