The Complete Italian Vegetarian Cookbook: 350 Essential Recipes for Inspired Everyday Eating

It is clear after using this cookbook that the author is not only an accomplished chef and dedicated vegetarian, but also that he spent time living in Italy (Florence), thoroughly understands the mixture of flavorings in Italian cooking and the importance of fresh ingredients AND is a busy family man who doesn't have hours every night to spend in the kitchen! Whether you are a vegetarian (as I am) or a meat-eater who loves Italian food, this is a must have for your cookbook library. The recipes in this book are incredible and numerous - there are sections for all kinds of Italian specialties, including pizza, risottos, pasta, salads, antipasto, frittatas, legumes, panini, dolci (desserts), vegetable sides and main dishes, etc., etc. For the most part, the recipes are simple to make and not too time consuming and use easily available, fresh and healthy ingredients. Included in the Introduction to the book are suggested menus for varying occasions and seasons. All-in-all one of my favorite cookbooks in my large collection, and one I go to time and time again for delicious, healthful, Italian meals.

If it weren't for Jack Bishop's amazingly awe inspiring cookbooks, I'd probably give up on cooking and eat McDonald's every night until I succumbed to misery and an early death. For realsies people, this guy is just superb at putting together cookbooks. He sticks mainly to whole foods and is a supporter of fresh herbs and farmers markets and produce, produce, produce(!), but he never pushes his dietary choices in the much too common fashion of many vegetarian/vegan/raw food chefs. Nor does he plaster photos of himself throughout his book. The guy just wins points left and right for being capable of creating a tome of tasty treasures that I'd be willing to buy for friends and family members alike. It's true, some of the dishes can be time consuming, but many of them are fairly quick. Face it folks, if you want home-made ravioli you're going to have to work for it! Oh Mr. Bishop, never again shall I buy marinara sauce in a jar... I hang my head low and try to forget the times when I was a child and believed that all pizza must be slathered with marinara and roughly nine pounds of mozzarella.

It does have about a dozen legume dishes, which is a plus, but wish it had more as many of the meals lack for significant protein. Nonetheless, the recipes are tasty, straightforward, and don't require any crazy ingredients.

Great book. Gifted it. Person loved it.

This book is amazing. As a book lover, I love the entire presentation. It is not filled with photos. I usually prefer cook books that have lots of photos because I like to know how it is supposed to look. I am an avid reader, but a visual learner. However, the instruction is detailed and specific. VERY easy to understand! Sometimes I read a recipe and all I can think is, "wait--what!?" but this is NOT the case for this book at all!Also, this book is huge. There are so many recipes (350 to be exact)! The recipes aren't overly complex or filled with lots of random ingredients that are impossible to find or keep on hand (as many vegetarian cookbooks are). Excellent job by Jack Bishop! I can't wait to familiarize myself with as many recipes in this book as I possibly can. This book is a new favorite. A++

This is, by far, the best cookbook I've ever owned. I received it only a few days ago and have already made at least four recipies and read the book cover to cover. The ingredients Jack Bishop's recipies use are fresh, yet easily accessible (even in rural Montana), and his instructions are simple and easy to follow. Last night, we made Garlicky Greens over Polenta (from the book's front cover) and my entire family (including two young daughters/fincky eaters) ate every bit and asked for more.It's so refreshing, as a non-meat eater, to find a fabulous authentic Italian cookbook that I don't have to skip page after page of meat-filled recipies. I plan to make every recipe in this book!

For medical reasons, my husband and I had to stop eating meat and we were completely lost as to what we could eat besides veggies. I stumbled across this cookbook and purchased it for a friend who's an established vegetarian. After I gave it to her, I found myself reading through it. I love it so much, I decided to purchase a copy for myself. The recipes are easy to make (and I'm a horrible cook), the selections are quite broad (especially when you're clueless as to what to fix) and the manner in which the book is organized makes it easy to follow (all the pizzas are together). I highly recommend this book regardless of your status as a vegetarian: novice or experienced.

This book includes many recipes for classic Italian vegetarian dishes. And there are lots of them! Everything looks and sounds delicious and authentic. The recipes are clearly written and don't require many exotic ingredients. I'm not a vegetarian, but I'm always interested in finding tasty non-meat dishes to vary the daily menu and this cookbook delivers on that! The recipes in this book are ovo-lacto, but many of them can easily be adapted to vegan cooking. I definitely recommend this book! With recipes like these, meat really becomes irrelevant -- these dishes are all intrinsically good in and of themselves!