"Crossroads: Extraordinary Recipes from the Restaurant That Is Reinventing Vegan Cuisine"--Reinventing plant-based eating is what Chef Tal Ronnen is all about--turning seasonal vegetables, beans, nuts, and grains into sophisticated Mediterranean fare

Crossroads: Extraordinary Recipes from the Restaurant That Is Reinventing Vegan Cuisine
byTal Ronnen

“A new kind of flavor-first vegan cooking. . . . Stunning.”
—Food & Wine

“Best Food Books of 2015”
—USA Today

Reinventing plant-based eating is what Tal Ronnen is all about. At his Los Angeles restaurant, Crossroads, the menu is vegan, but there are no soybeans or bland seitan to be found. He and his executive chef, Scot Jones, turn seasonal vegetables, beans, nuts, and grains into sophisticated Mediterranean fare—think warm bowls of tomato-sauced pappardelle, plates of spicy carrot salad, and crunchy flatbreads piled high with roasted vegetables. In Crossroads, an IACP Cookbook Award finalist, Ronnen teaches readers to make his recipes and proves that the flavors we crave are easily replicated in dishes made without animal products. With accessible, unfussy recipes, Crossroads takes plant-based eating firmly out of the realm of hippie health food and into a cuisine that fits perfectly with today’s modern palate. The recipes are photographed in sumptuous detail, and with more than 100 of them for weeknight dinners, snacks and appetizers, special occasion meals, desserts, and more, this book is an indispensable resource for healthy, mindful eaters everywhere.

MY REVIEW:   Noted chef, restaurateur, and cookbook author Tal Ronnen states: "As a lover of food, I realized it wasn't the animal products I actually longed for, but the texture, the flavor, the heartiness, and the satisfaction I feel when I indulge in a favorite food." His focus is to not take vegan foods and recreate them into copycats of non-vegan fare, but to let them have their own moment in the spotlight by making the most of their inherent goodness. I very much agree with his food philosophy. I am not vegan, or even vegetarian, but I am blessed with beloved friends who are vegetarians and vegans, and I am also a curious cook. Great food is great food, no matter how it is categorized. Making the most of what's readily available, seasonal, locally grown, and supports local markets is a sensible, sustainable, and satisfying way to shop and eat. "Crossroads: Extraordinary Recipes from the Restaurant That Is Reinventing Vegan Cuisine" by Tal Ronnen and Scot Jones features vegan cooking with a Mediterranean flare. The Crossroads restaurant, located in Los Angeles, serves the same fare. Here's just a sampler of the imaginative, inviting plant-based dishes you will find: "Harissa Potato Chips with Smoked White Bean Hummus"; "Pickled Vegetables"; "Spicy Tomato-Pepper Jam"; "Spring Chopped Salad with Whole-Grain Mustard Vinaigrette"; "Flatbread Dough" with a number of topping combinations; "Summer Minestrone with Basil Pesto"; "Sweet Potato Latkes with Spiked Applesauce"; "Cauliflower with Olives and Sun-Dried Tomatoes"; "Sweet Corn Risotto with Buttered Leeks, Cherry Tomatoes, and Tomato-Sherry Cream Sauce"; "Pasta Dough" with numerous sauces; "Dark Chocolate Rice Pudding with Sugared Pine Nuts and Raspberries"; "Pumpkin Parfaits"; and "Decadent Dark Chocolate with Figs and Hazelnuts". There is also a lively set of liquid libations: "Respectable"; "Hard Times"; "Parisian Standard"; "Happy Harlequin"; and "Sophia". The wonderfully tempting recipe featured on the cover of the book is "Acorn Squash Ravioli with Kale and Black Garlic Butter Sauce". Tal Ronnen, founder and chef of Crossroads Kitchen in Los Angeles and author of the New York Times bestseller The Conscious Cook, became known nationwide as the chef who prepared the meals for Oprah Winfrey’s 21-day vegan cleanse. He has made his culinary mark at a number of high-profile events, having catered Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s wedding, Arianna Huffington’s party at the Democratic National Convention, and U.S. Senate dinners. A graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute, Ronnen is the co-creator of Kite Hill Cheese, the first nondairy cheese sold at the high-end cheese counter at Whole Foods, and is a collaborating chef at the Wynn and Encore hotels in Las Vegas.

Book Copy Gratis Artisan Books/Workman Publishing via Shelf Awareness


Tal Ronnen

 

Tal Ronnen, founder and chef of Crossroads Kitchen in Los Angeles and author of the New York Times bestseller The Conscious Cook, became known nationwide as the chef who prepared the meals for Oprah Winfrey’s 21-day vegan cleanse. He has made his culinary mark at a number of high-profile events, having catered Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi’s wedding, Arianna Huffington’s party at the Democratic National Convention, and U.S. Senate dinners. A graduate of the Natural Gourmet Institute, Ronnen is the co-creator of Kite Hill Cheese, the first nondairy cheese sold at the high-end cheese counter at Whole Foods, and is a collaborating chef at the Wynn and Encore hotels in Las Vegas. 

 http://www.crossroadskitchen.com/team-page