Reviewed by annieb123 on
The Ultimate Vegan Breakfast Book: 80 Mouthwatering Plant-Based Recipes You'll Want to Wake Up For is a new specialty cookbook aimed at people who want plant based food which is cruelty free. It was originally published in German as Vegan Frühstücken Kann Jeder by NeunZehn Verlag in 2016. Authors/bloggers/foodies Nadine Horn and Jörn Mayer teamed up with The Experiment publishing to produce this, their second book, due out 30 October, 2018. Planned availability (which can change) is in ebook and paperbound formats.
The book is attractively photographed and progresses logically (so it's easy to find things). There's an introduction with some definitions and tips (for example; use vegan ingredients, persons with special needs (celiac disease sufferers) should buy the 'correct' gluten free version of some ingredients, margarine should be vegan margarine, etc etc). The book moves on to chapters showing the different classes of foodstuffs: Nuts, berries & seeds, Grains & cereals. In the intro chapters, the authors have also stashed a lot of good and sound physiological advice about getting enough sleep, destressing (give the news a miss; read a book instead), drink enough water.
For a book about vegan food and cooking, the authors use roughly 12% of the page content discussing coffee and tea. I do agree that tea and coffee are an important component of breakfast for many people, it just seemed odd to me to use so much of the book discussing the benefits/disadvantages of different types of coffee machines.
The book does include a wealth of recipes, many of which will find a welcome place in any vegan diet at other times of the day. Most of the recipes are not really to be followed slavishly, but serve more as inspiration and guidance. The recipe section of the book is set up in chapters by category: Smoothies, Breakfast to Go (bagels, wraps, burritos etc), One Bowl Wonders (porridges, fruit bowls, and more), Stovetop dishes (omelettes, pancakes), Sweeter Side (cupcakes, muffins), Weekend Brunch (more time consuming recipes to take your time preparing - quiche, pesto bread, etc). Then another chapter on coffee and tea based drinks (!). The recipe section wraps up with a nice chapter on breads, spreads, plant based sausages, granola and DIY nut milks.
There is a handy index and a short author bio.
It's an attractive book with a commendable message and the authors' writing style is engaging and positive. The translation from the original language (German) is seamless and unobtrusive.
Four stars (would likely tip over toward 5 for readers who are especially crazy about coffee/tea).
Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes
Reading updates
- Started reading
- Finished reading
- 1 July, 2018: Reviewed