Moskowitz - I Can Cook Vegan

After a few decades of writing cookbooks, I think Im beginning to get it. People want streamlined recipes with easy-to-follow instructions and accessible ingredients.

Is that about right?

Great, then lets proceed!

When I first started cooking, I thought the vegan world needed something a little more adventurous than lentil stew. Id use ingredients youve never heard of from specialty stores youve never been to. But how things have changed! Tofu is now the other white meat, and even your uncle puts nutritional yeast on his popcorn. That might not be totally statistically accurate, but lets say households are cooking vegan a few times a week, more people than ever are going completely vegan, and everyone is warming up to the idea of cashew cream.

Even I have changed. I want my meals to be fast and easy but still the best food ever. If I want to be adventurous, Ive got two restaurants where I can experiment. But this cookbook is for my true love: the home cook. I learned to cook from cookbooks, recipe by recipe, and thats what inspired this book. What if each chapter was a building block to becoming a better, more competent cook? Like learning a new instrument: You master a couple of chords then start putting them together to form songs. Or learning a new language and your vocabulary keeps improving. Or finding your way around a new city. Or... well, you get the idea!

Each chapter starts with a fresh mission. So cook your way through, meal after delicious meal, building knowledge and skills as you go. And, of course, you can skip around, too. You do you!

Who Is This Book For?

This book is for cooks of all stripes, but I had a few specifics in mind.

The just-born, brand-new cook

If youre learning to cook, then cooking vegan is the way to go because its more pleasant to work with chickpeas than chickens. Whether youre 13 or 301 (and a vampire), you might just be starting out. Maybe youre leaning into it with nothing but eagerness and excitement, in which case, cool, go ahead and get started, read no further. But if youre a little hesitant, please remember that this book was written for you by someone who once was you. Sleep with the pages under your pillow and take it one day at a time.

The tried-and-true seasoned cook who is tofu-curious

Maybe you learned to cook from your parents, or maybe you can make a souffl and boeuf bourguignon, but maybe you only know how to do it with eggs, meat, and heavy cream. Well, if this sounds like you, welcome to vegan cuisine! Here you will learn how to milk a cashew and turn tofu into fish. Have fun with it and keep an open mind. At least some of the tricks you already know will come in handy, and youll pick up some new knowledge along the way.

The busy weeknight pantry cook

Perhaps this describes everyone? But if youre making spaghetti and meatballs with sauce from a jar and frozen meatless meatballs, you might want to get fresher without too much fuss. Rejoice! These recipes are made with pantry-friendly ingredients that you can always have around. Yes, it will be more work than opening a few packages, but as you get used to it, the effort wont be much harder, and the rewards will be worth it!

The farmers market junkie who looks at all the pretty colors

Youre into food. You Instagram bunches of beets (and your manicure). Yet most of your pretty pics are of avocado toast or grain bowls from that macrobiotic restaurant. You might know a few vegan basics, and you already have a love of vegetables, but get ready to turn your influencer level to 100!

The reluctant parent to the vegan child

Did your kid just sit you down and deliver the news? No more meat and dairy, Dad. Oy vey. What about Mawmaws lasagna? Or that French toast that took you one hundred Sundays to perfect? Listen, its going to be okay. Food is food! You arent going to have to cook separate meals; you are going to start loving lentils and cooking them alongside your family. When I first went vegetarian as a teenager, my mom got me a bunch of cookbooks, and thats what really brought us together. I hope this can be that book for your family!

Last, for all you lazy vegans doing it for the animals, all you Grubhub addicts, and everyone who saw something about eating plant-based for your health on a talk show, I see you! And you can cook vegan.

How to Succeed at Cooking Without Really Trying

Read the recipe from beginning to end, have a good understanding of the steps involved, and make sure you have the ingredients and equipment ready to use before starting the recipe. That includes everything from ingredients to blenders to measuring spoons. The French call this mise en place. I call it pile of stuff.

Control your heat. Food doesnt burn itself! Most recipes require low to medium heat, but if you are turning it up to boil, always keep a watchful eye and remember to stir. If the pot is too hot, you can turn the heat all the way off and give it a minute. Sometimes its the most obvious stuff that we Homo sapiens forget ever since Peking man discovered fire.

Improve your knife skills. The more you prep food, the more you will get the hang of how to handle a knife. Youre not aiming to be a sushi chef here (or are you?)the goal is to get the job done quickly and with some finesse. Watch YouTube videos of people chopping onions and garlic or any veggie that you need to dice. Watch cooking shows. Find the knife that is comfortable for you, and make sure it is always sharp. Most kitchen stores have a sharpening service you can use a few times a year.

Clean as you go. I hate hearing that because I love making messes, but its so true. Keep a little bowl nearby for scraps. Have a clean wet towel to wipe surfaces. Dont let all that tomato sauce you just spilled get tracked all over the house. Be aware of your surroundings. An organized environment is conducive to cooking, especially for new cooks. You dont want to be overwhelmed with a mess when youre done, or you might never cook again!

Ingredients & Philosophy

A phrase youll hear me say a lot is pantry-friendly. And that doesnt just mean cans of chickpeas and packages of rice (although those things certainly count). I use about twenty ingredients over and over in this cookbook to make sure you have lots of options with short recipe lists. So, this book is based on staples that might be lurking in your cupboard or fridge. Most of the veggies are easy to find in any supermarketI use a lot of broccoli in all kinds of ways.

However, there might be a few ingredients you arent familiar with, or some that you are familiar with but we are using in a brand-new way. I call those weirdo ingredients. Here they are.