review and cookbook giveaway :: betty goes vegan

Betty Goes Vegan – with a tomato as big as a bean bag.

I grew up in a Polish home. When we wanted kitchen wisdom, we were more likely to turn to Betty Krakow for her babushka chic and babka recipes than to WASP-y Betty Crocker. Excuse my frankness, but even as a kid, I thought Betty looked like a tad uptight  – definitely not someone I considered a role model or cared to emulate. [It was her hair and conformism. Oh, that, and the fact that she wasn't even REAL.]

A lot has happened since growing up in the 70s. If you haven't heard the news, Betty has gone vegan, thanks to first-time authors, husband-and-wife team, Annie and Dan Shannon of Meet The Shannons. They veganized most of Betty Crocker's classic recipes in their freshman cookbook, Betty Goes Vegan: 500 Classic Recipes for the Modern Family

Banana, Peanut Butter and Chocolate Chip Cookies: Delicious., subtle banana and PB essences

There's a lot to love about this book. First, there's the comic relief. Yes, technically it's a cookbook– pretty heavy concept – veganizing the un-veganizable. The satire is hysterically welcoming, from the demonic looking, slightly blurry cover with its frighteningly XXL tomato [GMO, no doubt] to its LOL-inducing headnotes. The Shannons describe the Maple-Crusted Vegan Chicken as sweet and nutty, "like wrapping your dinner in a romantic comedy." And for the Marie Antoinette doughnuts: "Marie Antoinette was known for her blond hair and powdered wig. These yellow cake doughnuts made with powdered sugar are so delicious that they'll be doomed to meet a similarly early demise." The fact that Betty was a product of the General Mills conglomerate only makes the sarcasm factor even sweeter.

Betty Goes Vegan is also amazing in its ambition. Do you miss Ceviche? Veganized! Miss Shrimp Scampi? Plant-a-licious. How about New England Clam Chowder? Bingo. You got it – animal-free. No more 'scuses.

I'm taking these to work tomorrow lest I should eat them all solo.

Finally, there's the motivation of utter sincerity. Ann and Dan are devoted animal lovers and advocates. The simple book dedication – "For the Lobsters" – brought a little tear to my eye. This dynamic duo is super involved in the animal welfare community and clearly, their impetus for writing the book is to help animals. I love how unpreachy they are, too. In the acknowledgements, they thank anyone who "has ever decided going vegan – even for one day a week – is a good idea." Holy moly. Thank you, sane vegan represent!

An all-American plate starring the Shannon's easy, tasty Maple-Pecan Crusted Vegan Chicken.

The only thing I didn't like about this book – and I'm sorry for saying it, guys! – is the structure of most of the recipes. They lean super hard on store-bought mock meats, vegan cheeses, and other processed foods. Yes, the recipes are plant-based. And yes, for a new or busy vegan, they are a good solution. But if we are going to take the emancipation of Betty Crocker to its ultimate pinnacle, doing it with mainly whole foods would have been an awesome coup. Eating processed foods, even vegan ones, is not something I think we should glorify.

Greek Lemon Soup: Made it because I had all the ingredients. Easy chick-peasy.

I also found a few of the recipe constructions and the common ingredients a bit odd. They called for Pink Himalayan Sea Salt in every other recipe, for example.  I wish the Shannons had explained in the Pantry Notes what made it so special and why they specified it in all the recipes. I didn't have any on hand so I just used kosher, culinary Philistine that I am. Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning also played prominently in many recipes. I never heard of it, didn't feel compelled to buy it, and just skipped over any recipe requiring this ingredient. And I'm not a trained chef but calling for 1/4 tsp brown sugar in the Maple Pecan-Crusted Vegan Chicken seemed so timid I thought it was a typo. Sweeten in pre-diabetes Paula-Deen style or don't bother. Many recipes call for 1/4 tsp of olive oil, sugar, etc which IMHO is really too little to really influence the flavor.

Minor complaints, I know. Bottom line is, this book is perfect for new, busy, and/or lazy vegans.

The nice folks at Grand Central Publishing have offered to give away two, count 'em! – two copies of Betty Goes Vegan to two lucky readers. Just leave a comment with the classic American recipe you'd like to see veganized. Brownie points for liking any [or all!] of us on Facebook or following us on Twitter. I'll announce winners soon. Please make sure there's a way I can contact you [eg, blog, email]. Us residents only, please. Good luck. And good job, Shannons!