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catmeme 's review for:
Dirt Candy: A Cookbook: Flavor-Forward Food from the Upstart New York City Vegetarian Restaurant
by Grady Hendrix, Ryan Dunlavey, Amanda Cohen
Part memoir, part cookbook, this is one ambitious package that doesn't quite succeed.
There's a panel on p.28, detailing the Iron Chef judges' reaction Amanda Cohen's dishes, that perfectly sums up this book. Pondering Cohen's pickle and broccoli combination, Kelly Hu finds it "confusing," while the competitor's is deemed "illuminating."
And that's exactly it. Given the abject mistreatment that vegetables often receive in the US, you'd think that a recipe book that claims to do to flavor what Justin Timberlake claimed he did to sexy would make the recipes generally accessible. But no. What Cohen offers, beyond some pickles with dubious claims,* a few solid tips for vegetable cooking, and a good salad philosophy,** just isn't feasibleat home if you have a life at all (8 hr dehydration, followed by rehydration, and 2 more hrs prep? lol no keep your one trick recipe thanks).
*No, hot vinegar is not a substitute for fermented pickled goodness. Never in the history of ever will this occur.
**Her dressings, however, are TERRIBLE. 3T acid to 3/4C oil??? 2.5T acid to 1/2C oil??? Those are oil spills on your plate, not dressings. If using lemon juice, a much more palate friendly ratio is closer to 1:1 for acid:oil, and 1:1.5-2 for vinegar:oil.
Anyway, the book is useful if you:
1) want to catch a glimpse of running a trendy restaurant in NYC (and don't mind tone deaf attempts at social commentary);
2) know exactly nothing about vegetarian cooking and feel up to kitchen challenges;
3) need ideas for time consuming things to do to carrots and zucchini.
Beyond that? Not sure. There are better vegetarian cookbooks out there, but no one probably picked this up because of the recipes. I know I didn't.
There's a panel on p.28, detailing the Iron Chef judges' reaction Amanda Cohen's dishes, that perfectly sums up this book. Pondering Cohen's pickle and broccoli combination, Kelly Hu finds it "confusing," while the competitor's is deemed "illuminating."
And that's exactly it. Given the abject mistreatment that vegetables often receive in the US, you'd think that a recipe book that claims to do to flavor what Justin Timberlake claimed he did to sexy would make the recipes generally accessible. But no. What Cohen offers, beyond some pickles with dubious claims,* a few solid tips for vegetable cooking, and a good salad philosophy,** just isn't feasible
*No, hot vinegar is not a substitute for fermented pickled goodness. Never in the history of ever will this occur.
**Her dressings, however, are TERRIBLE. 3T acid to 3/4C oil??? 2.5T acid to 1/2C oil??? Those are oil spills on your plate, not dressings. If using lemon juice, a much more palate friendly ratio is closer to 1:1 for acid:oil, and 1:1.5-2 for vinegar:oil.
Anyway, the book is useful if you:
1) want to catch a glimpse of running a trendy restaurant in NYC (and don't mind tone deaf attempts at social commentary);
2) know exactly nothing about vegetarian cooking and feel up to kitchen challenges;
3) need ideas for time consuming things to do to carrots and zucchini.
Beyond that? Not sure. There are better vegetarian cookbooks out there, but no one probably picked this up because of the recipes. I know I didn't.