Vegan Yum Yum: Decadent (But Doable) Animal-Free Recipes for Entertaining and Everyday

by Lauren Ulm

Lauren Ulm is a vegan cook whose star is on the rise. She hosts a popular blog that is read by more than 30,000 a day. She's a 2008 Veggie Awards winner from VegNews magazine who has been featured on The Martha Stewart Show, AOL, and the hippest sites on the web, including BoingBoing.net and Etsy.com. Now she delights her blog fans, as well as millions of vegetarian and vegan enthusiasts, with this sophisticated four-color cookbook filled with original and the most beloved meals from her blog.
From appetizers to desserts, breakfasts to dinners, as well as holiday- and company-worthy fare, Ulm proves that vegan food doesn't have to be bland food. It's her love (okay, her obsession!) of making vegan foods exciting that is evident in her creations—recipes that are as artistic as they are quirky. With 90 percent of her ingredients available at any grocery store, her recipes are doable for the average person, and range from comfort-food staples like whoopee pies, macaroni, and blueberry cobbler, to foods with a sophisticated flair like mojito cupcakes, daikon noodle salad, and flaky pizza purse tapas appetizers. Stunning photographs and step-by-step instructions make Vegan Yum Yum an essential resource for any vegan kitchen.

Genres: Cookbooks, Vegan, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction, Vegetarian, Reference

304 pages, Paperback

First published September 1, 2009

About the author

Lauren Ulm, "Lolo," is a vegan foodie and founder of veganyumyum.com who lives in Boston with her husband and two cats. She is not a chef, has never been to culinary school, and she's not a professional photographer (but she has fun pretending!) When she went vegan in 2002, the kitchen became her favorite room in the house, and still is today. She has appeared on The Martha Stewart Show and has been featured in VegNews magazine.

Reviews

[Lisa Vegan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yum!

This is just a paperback cookbook but it’s a beautiful book. There’s a photo of each completed recipe and some of the recipes even have photos that show the preparation process. The author made all of these recipes in her own kitchen and took the photos herself. The instructions for each recipe are given in steps and given very clearly, so that even the more complicated ones seem doable. The whole layout of the book is very attractive.

I really love Lauren Ulm. She seems like such a personable and lovely woman. She may not be a professional chef or photographer but she excelled at both of those skills in order to write this cookbook. Her aim, and I think she succeeds, is to make vegan cooking accessible to everyone, including new vegans who know what they want to do but not necessarily how to do it. These recipes all started out as a blog at veganyumyum.com; I’m so glad that they’ve been collected into a book. The author has been vegan for just a few years and the reader will learn a little bit about her in the book’s introduction and because she writes a little personal note at the top of each recipe.

I read this as a library book, hoping that would satisfy me to borrow it and not buy it. I’m thrilled that I’m finding more & more vegan cookbooks available for borrowing at the library. I really shouldn’t be buying any books right now, but I’m very tempted to get this one. I think I might use it, and I want to support the author too. Darn. I deliberately read this around Thanksgiving time, while gorging on delicious traditional and some not so traditional foods, so that I wasn’t hungry when reading the book, hoping I wouldn’t be tempted to buy it. Unfortunately, all the food in the book looked delicious, better than what I was eating. She does make everything, and I mean everything, from scratch. The author and her husband sure eat well.

Everyone is raving about the Hurry Up Alfredo sauce. I’d leave out the mustard because I don’t like mustard but the sauce does look good, especially in the Creamy Broccoli Mushroom Bake recipe. She does use a lot of mustard, and along with eliminating that, I’d change some of the spices and leave out the oil or decrease the oil in some dishes, but overall the recipes in here look wonderful. I love how she has a few eggplant recipes. Unfortunately, she doesn’t seem to be a chocolholic as chocolate doesn’t make its way into many of the recipes. However, I absolutely am dying to try her Cinnamon Raisin Swirl Bread, which is one of the recipes that has photos of the preparation process, which I find exceedingly helpful.

The chapters are: .One: Breakfast and Brunch, Two: Main Dishes, Three: Appetizers, Four: Salads, Five: Side Dishes and Light Meals, Six: Soups, Seven: Pasta, Eight: Desserts, Nine: Cheers to Delicious Drinks, and Ten: Sauces, Dips, and Spreads. There’s a short but useful Introduction and an Index that makes it easy to find recipes by main ingredient. I wish I could have been one of her taste testers!

[Joel · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have not actually seen or made a recipe out of this book, but Donna has been making stuff from the Vegan Yum Yum blog for about three weeks now. Let me tell you, it has gone very well.

Lots of vegetarians make up for the lack of meat in their diets by eating lots and lots of cheese. I know, because I developed quite a cheese habit over the last few years. But once you stop eating things that rely on cheese for flavor, you realize how many other, more subtle flavors are out there.

Recipes like these are good enough that I don't miss cheese and I certainly don't miss meat; anyone who thinks vegans are all about bland tofu and handfuls of nuts needs to eat chez nous.

I mean, look at what we had tonight; this is easily the best salad I have ever eaten. It's not exactly health food but it is way better for you than the average salad and you are missing nothing for the lack of cheese and dairy in the dressing (and real bacon):

Vegan BLT Salad



1 Head Lacinato Kale (aka Tuscan or Dinosaur Kale)
1 Package Lightelife Organic Smoky Tempeh Strips
2 Tbs Peanut Oil, divided
1 to 1 1/2 Cups Baby Spinach, Packed
1 to 1 1/2 Cups Sweet Cherry Tomatoes (about 25)

Dressing
1/4 Cup Vegenaise Mayo
1 tsp Dijon Mustard
1/4 tsp Salt
1 tsp Lemon Juice
2 tsp Agave Nectar
Freshly Ground Black Pepper

I didn't know you could eat uncooked kale but the secret is to dress it first and let the dressing soften it for you. It doesn't taste bitter at all!

-----

My other favorite so far is a little bit better for you:

Pan Fried Tofu, Kale, and Stir-Fried Noodles



1 Package Extra/Super Firm Tofu
1 Head Kale, deveined and torn
5 oz. Dried, Wide Rice Noodles (Mine come in 10 oz packages)
Sugar
Soy Sauce

Tofu Marinade
1/4 Cup Water
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce or Tamari
1 Tbs Thinly Sliced Ginger (or minced)
1 Tbs Maple Syrup
1 Tbs Oil
1 Tbs Seasoned Rice Vinegar
1 Garlic Clove, minced
1/2 tsp Mustard
1/4 tsp Sriracha or Hot Chili Sauce
Black Pepper, to taste

Dipping Sauce
1/4 Cup Soy Sauce or Tamari
1/4 Cup Water
1 Tbs Seasoned Rice Vinegar
1 tsp Mustard
1 tsp Sriracha

-----

Word of advice: the best tofu for marinating and making into filets is West Soy extra firm. And it was on sale this week at Whole Foods for $1.49 a package! We bought 11.

[Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

The recipes are delicious and simple. I have tried several and not been disappointed. The Hurry Up Alfredo Sauce on p. 195 is absolutely scrumptious! Thankfully there is a photo accompanying each recipe.

[debbicat *made of stardust* · Rating 5 out of 5]

whooooo! I just found this one by looking for a book that has the word "Yum" in it for my summer scrabble challenge in Retro Ch. Chicks. I see some of my friends rated it very highly. (Lisa) I am already in love right from the beginning when she used the words "Earth Balance" in her Blueberry Waffles with Lemon Icing recipe. Speaking of...we had a chat on our group and blueberries were voted very popular among our members. I love blueberries! A super food. A very important food. I try to have them everyday.

I can't wait to get further in this book! My kinda book.

Fantastic! Better review coming. So glad I found this gem.

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love the blog so I knew I'd love the cookbook, and I was not disappointed. In addition to compiling so many of the fantastic recipes I'd already tried -- including the Hurry Up Alfredo [http://veganyumyum.com/2009/09/hurry-...] -- this cookbook has lots of gorgeous, mouthwatering photos. Yum!

Now a few recipe reviews --

Homemade vegetable broth: I usually throw broth together using whatever I have on-hand, but when I was feeling sick and didn't want to think, I used this recipe. The end result was delicious.

Super quick tomato basil cream pasta: I love sauces that you can make while the spaghetti is boiling. This one was that fast, plus super tasty. Like many of the recipes in this book, this one relies on cashews to make the sauce creamy. The fresh basil and garlic (I used roasted) make this a sure-fire hit.

Smoky miso tofu: Super-easy (5 minutes of prep and 20 minutes in the oven) and delicious in a sandwich with tomatoes, basil, guacamole, and baby greens.

[Ginny Messina · Rating 5 out of 5]

It's true--these recipes really are decadent but doable. This is a beautiful book. Every recipe is photographed by the author, and if you have seen the photos on her website, you know that she is a skilled food photographer.

The recipes are far easier than I expected. I made Crispy Sesame Kale, Hurry Up Alfredo, and Coconut Lime Tofu, all in the first couple of days I had the book. All super easy and delicious. And the directions for each recipe are given step by step, making them very simple to follow. This is definitely among the foodie-ist of the new vegan books, and I highly recommend it.

[d4]

I only had time to make two recipes (corn fritters & rainbow rice) but both were delicious, simple, and affordable. I adore the book's layout. The ingredients are conveniently listed on the side panel and every recipe includes a gorgeous photo to let you know what your food should look like. Any steps that may pose a small challenge are also depicted in pictures. I liked this book very much. :)

[Joannw Joanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

greAT VEGAN OPTIONS

[Jayme · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought this cookbook because I follow Lauren's blog of the same name and I had heard the cookbook was just as fantastic. It hasn't disappointed at all.

The photography is beautiful, the best I've ever seen in a cookbook. Each recipe has at least one full colour photo and sometimes more for different stages of preparation. I would have bought this book for the food porn alone. Here's a less awesome picture that I took of one of my favourite recipes, the basil and eggplant stuffed tomatoes:



The recipes are equally awesome. I've tried many different vegan alfredo sauces and this one is by far the best. Super flavourful, rich and creamy. Better than its dairy counterpart, if you ask me. And there are a couple of new things in here for me, instead of just variations on things I had already tried. Ulm is also really creative with new ways to make dishes that are traditionally pretty fussy, into simple yet still decadent recipes. Like the Tomato-Barley Risotto, which manages to be just as delicious and toothsome as it's more usual arborio rice counterpart, yet takes half the effort to make.

However, this isn't going to be the cookbook for you if you're looking for super healthy meals though. Ulm isn't shy with the margarine or the fatty foods. Hence the decadent part of the title. But at least the recipes are vegan so you don't really have to feel that guilty!

Not all of the recipes have worked perfectly for me. The tofu eggs from the breakfast sandwich recipe took a lot of playing around with to get just right, but even the mistakes from this cookbook are totally interesting. This book is definitely worth playing around with. There are also a ton of recipes that I still can't wait to try out. Like the Chinese Broccoli Wontons in Ginger-Soy Broth and well, pretty much everything else too!

[Becca · Rating 5 out of 5]

Meatless Mondays is a growing movement. This cookbook is the bridge to help cooks who like flavor explore cooking meatless.

This beautifully photographed book remains my favorite vegan cookbook, particularly because seasoning and spices makes everything so delicious. Kale for breakfast? Absolutely fantastic with the luxurious, toasty and cheese-like saltiness of cheezy sauce.

Highly recommended to anyone who cooks vegan or might want to try cooking vegan. I can't think of a better way to try Meatless Mondays than to pick up this cookbook.

[Trish]

Didn't get to review this thoroughly yet. Too busy. Looks good, though. Thought it had a lot of fattening stuff in there that would be good when guests were trying vegan, but wouldn't be good for every day, but then I noticed lots of interesting stuff. Will get a chance, evenutally.

[Melanie · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am probably considered a flexitarian or leaning more in that direction. I am a carnivore but a looking to eat more of a vegetarian diet. I'm not sure if I will ever be a pescatarian and probably not a vegan. However, I'm always in search of good food. I marked many recipes that I am ready to try. There are several recipes that have meat substitutes, and for those I will probably use the real thing. I also like the fact she goes a bit further with something like making gnocchi if you have never made that before she has a gnocchi school.

How did this book find me? I was at an estate sale and found this gem.

[SheReaders Book Club · Rating 3 out of 5]

I generally don’t love meat substitutes like tofu and tempeh because I don’t ever have those things on hand and reluctant to make a special trip to the store, I usually skip over the recipes with these ingredients. I did a lot of skipping through this book until I got to the soups and dressings. There is a black bean soup that I will definitely make and one very special creamy maple sesame dressing that deserves a go. I’ll take any reason to open up that crunchy bottle of Canadian pure maple syrup 🍁

[Vschonwald · Rating 5 out of 5]

A friend recommended this vegan cookbook and even though I am not fully vegan, it is my most used cookbook. I keep recommending it to others interested in eating more vegan meals.
Most of the recipes are delicious, easy to make and (most importantly) use normal ingredients that I usually have on hand.
There are a few different recipes for cheese-like sauces. I have never made anything from this cookbook that I didn't enjoy.

[Dana Williams · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a wonderful vegan cookbook for breakfast items. The recipes aren't over the moon difficult. I had less success in the pasta/main course areas, though.

[Xiorve · Rating 5 out of 5]

The book is totally fantastic.

[Bunnyhugger · Rating 5 out of 5]

First off, this book is gorgeous! There are mouth-watering color photographs throughout (for every recipe) and the layout is just beautiful. It's also very practical, with the steps clearly and simply laid out. Props to whoever designed this! Now on to the recipes. I confess that I am giving this 5 stars without having yet made a single recipe but I could not wait any longer to share the news of how much I am loving this book. Tonight, I am making the Red and White Cauliflower Bake. I am digging out my abandoned food processor for it. Anyone who knows me knows that I reject recipes outright for requiring the use of a food processor (it's not a rational thing). I also toss aside recipes with too many steps (which is why the Creamy Mushroom and Broccoli Bake is for another day - but you can be sure I will be making it.) So I am surprising myself with my reactions. Vegan Yum Yum is very inspiring that way. (Incidentally, there are plenty of recipes other than bakes. It's just that they're appealing to me right now ...)

UPDATE: The bake turned out delicious but I remembered why I am food processor phobic now that I'm sporting a 2 inch long cut from one of the blades :(

[Rachel McCready-Flora · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like Vegan Yum Yum more, but everything has been so-so, or the recipe just doesn't work out like it was intended. For example, I tried to make the breakfast sandwiches this morning. The 'egg replacement' was awful, inedible really, and I don't know what I could've possibly done to make it work. The maple-soy tofu was okay, but not anything special (sausage seitan would be much better, if we're going for substitutes), and while the texture of the biscuits was good, the cooking times were five minutes off and they ended up being really salty.

I've been cooking and backing since I was a child and feel like I can follow instructions really well and have a good head on my shoulders for making something better when it's lackluster, but they few recipes I've tried out of this cookbook just aren't worth it.

My other gripes (besides poorly-written recipes) are that the recipes are poorly organized (it's so hard to find anything in here!), and it seems like almost all of the recipes are dependent upon soy products/tofu, or expensive spice combinations.

[Michelle · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having so much fun with this book! The layout is fabulous - I love that the ingredients are on the sidebar, there's a beautiful photograph for each recipe, and the cooking directions are laid out simply and to-the-point. And, as a novice cook, I really appreciate the author's laid-back tone in her recipe intros. It's a lot less intimidating to feel as though the recipes are coming from a good friend, as opposed to some omniscient, faceless super-chef somewhere.

I'm happy to add that the recipes in this book are so fool-proof that everything I've made from it has been a success. It's apparent that a lot of testing, tasting, and love went into each one. As expected, some of the ingredients require trips to Asian supermarkets or Whole Foods, but once your pantry is stocked with the necessities (i.e. nutritional yeast, miso, tofu, tahini, etc) you're set to make almost anything in this book at any given time.

[Samantha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I would give this book a rating of 5 stars if I walked up to the book with a fresh mind and never having seen her website or app. It's got great recipes and amazing photography to make you want to just dive in. Most dishes are simple and easy to prepare. As for me though, I have have been to the website. I've seen all her recipes. I was excited to see she was coming out with a book and I was let down. As I was scrolling through the book I came to find that there were no new recipes. They are an accumulation of all the recipes on her website just in book form. I couldn't justify myself to buy the book. Don't get me wrong, I love everything in the book and what she makes. I totally recommend this book to anyone looking for delicious vegan cooking. Just wouldn't recommend it to anyone who follows her blog because you'll just be getting more of the exact same thing.

[Andreea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think I ever rated a cookbook on my Goodreads... I don't think I ever marked a cookbook as read on Goodreads. But seeing how I read this book in two days and marked tons of recipes - and even cooked from it already -, I had to rate it and talk about it.

I am by no means vegan... nor do I intend to become one and in the Blueberry Waffles that I transformed into Strawberry Pancakes I used Greek yogurt because I didn't have soy yogurt (fortunately I had soy milk, but that's because I am not in a good relationship with cow milk).

But this book is so lovely and the recipes (most of them) aren't complicated or too healthy (not that there's anything wrong with that, but most of the "healthiest" ingredients are not in my budget!). Can't wait to cook more!

[Grace · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm so glad this finally came out, because Vegan Yum Yum has delicious recipes and some of the best food blog photography that I've seen! All recipes have pictures, which is lovely, and the step-by-step pictures of a few recipes with more complicated methods are especially helpful. I like how most of the recipes have fairly basic/readily available ingredients, but are still innovative and delicious. I haven't made that many recipes from it, but everything I've made I've loved so much I've remade, including the Red and White Cauliflower Bake, the Chard Florentine on Toast Points, and the Super Quick Tomato Basil Cream Pasta.

[Casey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found out about this book because I was a regular reader of the author's blog. I have to admit that I usually read the blog because the pictures were so neat to look at, and not because I actually tried the recipes. I'm not vegan, and most of them are too complicated for me. I found the same problem with this cookbook. I prefer simple recipes, and so I marked a couple of recipes to try, but for the most part this was a bit too gourmet for me. However, if you're vegan and love to cook ... you should check it out!

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love this book. The three spice potatoes are wonderful, and now that I've learned the technique I have successfully adapted it to different combinations of spices. This is now my staple roasted potato recipe. I also enjoy many of the Asian recipes in this book: smoky miso tofu, pea tendril and daikon salad, sweet chili lime tofu, seven spice udon. Most of these recipes are also fairly simple to prepare and don't require too many ingredients. Beautiful photos as well - taken by the author! The binding is shoddy, though, and I ended up gluing my pages back in with school glue.

[Amani · Rating 4 out of 5]

Learning about some allergies and food sensitivities, I'm basically living a vegan lifestyle now, unless I'm eating meat or fish. I don't cook those things at home much, so I'd better learn to cook vegan!
I fell in like with the author's blog (of the same name) and bought the book. I've already made a few recipes from it, and they've all been pretty good. I've adapted a few things, added what I know of baking or my own flavor preferences, and I'm creating new delicious food.

[Cherise · Rating 4 out of 5]

In short, I love this cookbook. The only reason it doesn't get five stars is that frequently I felt the author specified far more sugar and salt in the recipes than is actually called for, but that's easy enough to correct for. That said, I find myself craving the Caesar salad, Chili-lime tofu, crispy kale, spicy chickpea tomato soup...well, you get the idea. I'm also a fan of the Vegan Yum Yum blog, but overall found the cookbook much easier to follow.

[Deb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some creative and delicious-sounding recipes in this book. I have only made the Super Quick Tomato Basil Cream Pasta so far (featuring cashew cream in lieu of dairy), but I have at least a dozen more tagged to make. The creamy tomato-basil sauce was wonderful--especially on bucatini. Mmmm...

Here's a link to the recipe and photos: http://kahakaikitchen.blogspot.com/20...

[Tamara Catlin · Rating 5 out of 5]

The first Vegan cookbook I bought and I found it a little intimidating at the start because I wasn't used to some of the ingredients.... but everything I have made from it has been kick arse amazing.... and I have given sooooo many copies of recipes to others! I hope she brings out another book soon... or starts writing in her blog again.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

These recipes are good, not that complicated, and allow you to mold them to your own tastes. I also eat gluten-free, and have never had any major problem converting her recipes. Good food, good blog.

[Plum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I've cooked the Italian rice and beans from the blog where this book originated, and they were excellent. I love how thorough this book is. I've made the Baked Mac and Cheeze and the pasta Gremolata since I bought the book and they were both hits!