Title: Power Plates: 100 Nutritionally Balanced, One-Dish Vegan Meals
Author: Gena Hamshaw
Publisher: Abrams

[Synopsis]

Focused on the art of crafting complete, balanced meals that deliver sustained energy and nourishment, this book features 100 compelling and delicious recipes that just happen to be vegan.
These 100 recipes for wholesome and nourishing vegan food from blogger, nutritionist, and Food52 author Gena Hamshaw help you make delicious vegan meals that deliver balanced and sustained energy. Every recipe contains the key macronutrients of healthy fats, complex carbohydrates, and proteins, which together make for a complete meal–things like Smoky Red Lentil Stew with Chard, and Falafel Bowls with Freekah and Cauliflower. Photographs accompany each recipe, showing how Gena’s simple techniques and fresh ingredients yield delicious meals. Additional tips and tricks for taking food on the go, and for cooking ahead on the weekend for quick weekday lunches and dinners, round out the collection.

[My Review]

Though I’m not a full time vegan, I try to eat vegan meals as much as possible and am always on the lookout for great new vegan recipe books. My requirements are that there aren’t too many ridiculous ingredients, not too lengthy to cook, and – of course – delicious recipes! This book ticks those boxes.
The recipes themselves vary in difficulty – some are a little too simple for my liking. A lot of the salads fall into this category, unfortunately, as they felt a little too ‘basic. However there’s still a lot of interesting, varied meals which are a little different and look very tasty. These also seem pretty easy to follow. This is definitely more of an entry level book, as there aren’t any hugely elaborate recipes, but that probably suits most people because, apart from sometimes at the weekend perhaps, who wants to spend hours in the kitchen using every utensil imaginable?
Categories include breakfast, soups, salads, bowls, stovetop, skillets and bakes, and feature a wide range of recipes. I’ve tried a few – the West African Peanut Stew, Thai Peanut Noodle Bowls, and Yellow Split Pea Chowder – and really liked them. There’s plenty more recipes which look amazing, and which I’ve got lined up to cook, including the Curried Jamaican Stew, Chickpea Deli Bowls with smashed chickpea salad, and Lentil Marinara. Lots of sweet treats to try too!
This is a really nicely designed, aesthetically pleasing book so would be great for a gift for someone else (or for yourself). There are lovely photos which are really inspiring, and there’s a handy introduction section with really useful nutritional information.
I’d recommend this for anyone looking to start eating vegan, or who fancies some inspiration for vegan dishes.

[Rating: 4/5]

Many thanks to Abrams and Netgalley for providing a copy of this book on which I chose to write an honest and unbiased review.
Power Plates is out in the UK on 23 January!

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