Delia's Vegetarian Collection

Calling all Vegetarians! Delia as a Cookery Teacher -- not just how to do it, but what to expect and why.As much as there are thousands of recipes available on the internet, there is nothing like owning at least one great cookery book or bible, and this is mine. I simply would not be without this book. I love it so much, I got rid of my soft cover version and bought the hard cover one. Enough said. Sometimes I try a recipe from another cook, chef, or magazine; it falls short, and I end up referring back to Delia. Her recipes are fail-safe. It is a highly inspiring book bursting with ideas from all types of cuisine, divided into logical sections of the main staples of the vegetarian diet -- eggs; pasta, gnocchi, and noodles; grains and pulses; cheese; simply vegetables. It also includes sections for soups; salads and starters; food for friends; baking; and puddings. Delia's range including Asian, Thai, Indian, Japanese, Chinese, Greek, Italian, Spanish, Caribbean, French, and of course UK; so there's something for everyone. One of my all-time favourite recipes from this book is her Thai green vegetable curry. I do love the way Delia teaches cookery, and it's the way she adds personal expression to the fore of her recipe instructions, which give a homely feel to the book. When you are trying a new technique or recipe for the first time, you often reach a stage where you think "is this how it's supposed to be? is this going to turn out right?" but Delia explains with each stage what kind of consistency, feel, colour, and texture you are looking to expect along the way. The types of recipes are not really every day quick or easy, and the skill range is not suitable for beginners, but more a hobbyist or someone looking to throw a buffet or lavish dinner party. Anybody who has the slightest inkling that the vegetarian diet is either complicated, lacking in protein, or plain boring should just take a glance at the Contents page alone to see how very exciting it really is. I was knocked out with the grains and pulses recipes; not realizing what exciting things can be done with inexpensive ingredients such as chickpeas, black eye beans, aduki beans, butter beans, puy lentils, yellow split peas, and at least four different types of rice. Delia gives you seasonal guidance with her recipes too -- alternative suggestions to suit the season e.g. I made her classic sponge with raspberry and mascarpone cream, where there is an alternative of a passion fruit version for winter (I made this too!). The first section of the glossary lists all the recipes that are suitable for vegans. There is a conversion table of temperatures, dimensions, weights, and volumes, followed by a side-splitting foreword by Victoria Wood -- a self-confessed sad throwback 70's vegetarian; her last sentence hits the nail on the head and sums up the wealth of ideas in this book: "...my chances of being invited out and NOT given a plate of tired veg with a space where they've just hastily removed the chicken, have just shot up 100 per cent. Thanks, Delia." As a vegetarian, many flustered hosts have served me meals like this, so I know where she is coming from. A little word of advice on the cheese: Be careful to make sure if you are foraging for one of the many varieties of cheese used in this book; look for vegetarian versions; many varieties of cheese from mozzarella to gruyère to camembert are used, and most Italian cheeses are not vegetarian e.g. parmesan, gorgonzola, pecorino, fontina; so just be careful, and don't assume they are vegetarian just because they are in a vegetarian cookbook. But there again, Delia helps out with a list of stockists at the back of the book including Twineham Grange and Neal's Yard Dairy for Italian creamery products made without animal rennet.

We use Delia's Vegetarian recipe book a surprising amount. The recipes are an interesting alternative to the many other cook books - including more of Delia's. The layout of the book is attractive and the instructions simple and easy to follow. The book is now one of our "go to" recipe books when planning the weeks meals.

An excellent recipe book with very good illustrations. Comprehensive and well laid out collection of varied recipes using a wide range of ingredients.My only grudge is that ts was listed as having free delivery, which influenced my choice. I bought it using 'one-click' and was then charged for delivery. When I enquired about it I was told that as I bought with 'one-click' I was charged delivery. This is ridiculous and I remain unhappy about that.

I have just bought this book as a present for a friend. I have owned this book for many years and I use it all the time. I love it! Delia is precise with her methods, but once you have made a recipe once or twice, everything makes complete sense and that is why they always work. My family consist of vegetarians and carnivores! Interestingly, whenever I make something from this book, it is invariably eaten (with relish) by the meat eating members of the family (along with their meat)! Please try the parsnip,parmesan and sage bread - incredibly easy (no yeast) and delicious. Also, the non meat loaf which is simple, healthy and not expensive to make. There are so many recipes that are fantastic. Anyone fat conscious, I have substituted or reduced ingredients in many recipes with no ill effect on the finished results - the chocolate marbled energy bars, for example. Reduce the amount of chocolate(by a third) and the pecans(by half) and they still taste good. I have to say that this is one of my most used books.

I have several of Delia's cookery books but I didn't have one focusing on vegetarian dishes; such a great range and choice in this book; I'm so glad I bought it.

My initial reaction to this anthology of recipes from earlier Delia Smith books was much the same as that of earlier reviewers. The recipes are generally inventive, and the book itself is well laid out, and visually attractive. But the more I use it, the more irritated I get. First, the colour photographs are a 50 per cent waste of space. There are typically four pictures on each illustration page, two of them of one of the dishes, which is fine, and two of pretty arrangements of a few ingredients. This is OK if you're a fan of photographic still lifes, but not much use if you want to see how a given recipe is meant to look. Second, Delia's style is execrable. Every step in a recipe is prefaced by wholly unnecessary phrases like "after that you do X.." or "the next thing to do is...". Given the price of the book, it would have been nice if someone could have converted Delia's telly-speak into good plain English instructions. Third, and most important if you are trusting her to take you through a recipe for the first time, she is sometimes ambiguous or downright wrong. Take, for example, her basically admirable recipe for mushrooms in Madeira in puff pastry cases. She specifies "900g of both oyster mushrooms and chestnut mushrooms". 450g of each, or 1800 g in total?. She then goes on to tell you how to roll out 500g of ready made pastry into 6 13 cm squares 2 cm thick. Try it - she obviously hasn't. You'll be lucky to get three squares out of this quantity of pastry. So do you roll it out more thinly or double up the quantities? You can probably work it out what she means by going to something like the magnificent Mastering the Art of French Cooking; but should you have to?In short, a nice book to look at, with some creative ideas, but marred by sloppy writing, arty production values, and some glaring mistakes.

C’est excellent

I ordered this when I saw it cheap and second hand on Amazon as my old Delia cook book had disappeared in the course of various house moves. I was hoping to find her old recipe for mushroom lasagne, which was fantastic. It's not here, alas, but there are lots of good things. Nothing too exciting, but worthwhile as an additional book and glorious photographs.Harks back to her Norwich days.An addenda: have been using this book more lately and the recipes work brilliantly... the veggie goulash and the chickpea burgers are a great hit!

I first came across this book at a dinner where the hostess served the twice baked goats cheese fetta souffle as an entree. Once I tracked it down on the Web I ordered 'Delia's Vegetarian Collection'. While I eat and cook vegetables nearly everyday for the family I always saw it as a duty rather than a pleasure, but this collection is so beautifully presented. The photography alone makes one want to eat the page! Since the book arrived everyone has had a turn to pick the vegetables for the next meal and so far we've had perfect results. If you are looking for a recipe book to make eating vegetables a sensual experience,try Delia's Vegetarian Collection and give your taste buds something to salivate over!

Ich bin schon seit vielen Jahren (hab mal in England gelebt) ein großer Fan von Delia Smith. Wer denkte, englische Küche sei generell schlecht, sollte mal in ihre Kochbücher reinsehen.....Sehr anspruchsvoll aufgemachtes Buch, super gut erklärte Rezepte (allerdings auf englisch), neue Ideen für die vegetarische Küche - einfach top.Das beste Buch von ihr ist allerdings "Delia's Summer Kollektion"

Bloody marvelous! Delia has been a goddess for us Brits for years. Now she has American worshippers too. Go Delia!