apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

My mom (an excellent cook who has taught me pretty much everything I know) uses Greene on Greens and Grains by Bert Greene, which I think she bought used.

I would also recommend any one of the Moosewood Restaurant Cookbooks - I think they even have one tailored to the home garden.

I gave my sister Perfect Vegetables (part of the Cook's Illustrated Best Recipes series) and she loves it.

http://www.amazon.com/Perfect-Vegetables-Part-Best-Recipe/dp/0936184698/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/104-9152964-3604735?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182350435&sr=8-1

I can't say enough good things about Heidi Swanson's Super Natural Cooking. It's one of the best cookbooks I've bought in recent years.

I love Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone.

an enthusiastic second on madison's vegetarian cooking for everyone- it has a huge section on vegetables- how to select them, store them, and cook them simply.

I've also just gotten the organic cook's bible (by jeff cox) which looks very good, although I haven't tried much from it yet (but it has lots of great information)

an enthusiastic third for vegetarian cooking for everyone! i also really enjoy madhur jaffrey's world vegetarian.

I was given the Best Recipe vegetables as a gift when I signed up for my CSA, and it really is very helpful for just basically figuring out how to cook unusual vegetables (http://www.amazon.com/Best-Vegetable-Recipes-Recipe-Classics/dp/1933615168/ref=pd_bbs_11/104-8320601-0838311?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1182356837&sr=8-11)

I think it's different from the "Perfect Vegetables" that CMcB mentioned, but I'm not sure how exactly.

I was also given "Vegetable Harvest" by Patricia Wells, which was the feature of a recent Minimalist article in the NYTimes. I haven't made anything from the book yet, but it looks good.

I'm also a fan of Alice Waters and Deborah Madison. Madison's Local Flavors is one of my favorite cookbooks ever. I'd also recommend Najmieh Batmanglij's Silk Road Cooking and Tanya Petrovna's Native Foods Restaurant Cookbook.

I use my copy of Victory Garden cookbook all the time -- not sure if it's available still -- let's see --yep, tons on Amazon. Great for growing (if you have a garden . . .) but also great tips on buying, storing, quantities of items vs weight -- great recipes and not necessarily vegetarian. Delish -- wish I had seen the show!

I constantly recommend "Vegetables Every Day" by Jack Bishop, especially to CSA members. It was the book I got when I first joined one, and was invaluable.

It's still my most used cookbook: everything in it is delicious, and many of the recipes are very simple (some to the point where you even wonder if they need an actual recipe). It's organized alphabetically by vegetable with descriptions on how to choose/store/prepare, along with the seasons they're associated with. Unlike Veg Cooking for Everyone and World Veg (I have and use these as well), many of the dishes are meant to be sides to accompany chicken/fish etc, so it's a good choice for omnivores.

Oh man, thanks everyone. Maybe I'll have to start pulling them out of the library for test drives, since I probably can't justify getting 8 or 10 at once. I do really like the couple of Moosewood cookbooks that I have, so I'll be sure to check that out, and the librarian in me is already drooling over the vegetable encyclopedia. Sweet!

mark bittman's "how to cook everything" has a great veggie section, plus all your standard meat and starch recipes.

I agree with:

* Vegetarian Cooking For Everyone by Deborah Madison
* Local Flavors by Deborah Madison
* Chez Panisse Vegetables

A new one to add is:

* "How To Pick a Peach" by Russ Parsons - the recipes are Alice Waters-esque and it is also great reading

Another vote for Madison's Veg Cooking for Everyone - I reference this one at least once a week!

I love many of the cookbooks on this list, but I've also found Vegetables by James Peterson to be very useful. The beginning is ordered alphabetically by vegetable with links to recipes in the second section, which is ordered by cooking method.

big love for Heidi's 101Cookbooks site, and so for
her Super Natural Cooking book, which I *just* got

Chez Panisse Vegetables is my go-to vegetable confusion solver

I loved Deborah Madison's Greens book when it came out
(best mushroom soup ever. long lists of ingredients, which puts some people off.)
but haven't gotten too excited about Local Flavors - yet
But people sure do love her . . .

I wouldn't buy Moosewood as the only veg cookbook -- it's something of a timewarp now

I agree on Super Natural Cooking, and would also recommend the Sunday Suppers at Lucques Cookbook--there's obviously a lot of meat in there as well, but Goin has some amazing side dishes of veggies.

a favorite of mine is Roger Vergé's Vegetables in the French Style

I think I am the only one on the planet who adores The Unplugged Kitchen by Viana La Place, judging by what it goes for on Amazon these days ($1.99). It's extremely poetic, for when you need to get whooshy about your love of plants, and has lots of good lifestyle ideas, like how to enjoy broth. Sounds weird, but bright green broth can really perk up your mood - well, you know that already. Mmmm, her rice cake with ground almonds; mmm, her simple tomato sauce has become my standby. The problem with her book, like Alice Waters' books, is the California ingredient list can be depressing for those of us who live where there is actually a winter. (Look, it's great that you can make ten desserts from persimmons, but stop rubbing it in, okay?)

Also, Meg from food blog fame recommended The Vegetarian Bistro, another off the beaten path choice, so we bought it, and my Casablanca-born significant other says it's really quite French. He's cooked a few times from it with success.

I second Madhur Jaffrey's world vegetarian! Also most Elizabeth David has a separate section on vegetables - love her! Also Leith's Vegetarian Bible (try UK Amazon).

Hi Lucy - I used to love the Unplugged Kitchen too! Thank you for reminding me of it... it got lost in a move several years back, and I couldn't remember the name and sort of forgot about it. But a wonderful philosophy, and great recipes. I'm happy to hear that I can buy it on Amazon for $1.99. Thanks!

BetsBillabong

I also love my Greene on Greens, and the companion, Greene on Grains--but it may be out of print. Lots of great and interesting recipes, and stories to go with them.

(Plus another vote for Deborah Madison--love the sorrel tart from Greens

I agree with Mid-C Frank --- My absolute favorite veggie cookbook is "The Victory Cookbook". My second favorite is "Vegetables on the Side" by Sallie Y. Williams. With those two, you can't go wrong.

I agree- Deborah Madison's Vegetarian Cooking for Everyone is the best!