Oh She Glows Cookbook: review, recipe, and giveaway

As I read reviews of Angela Lidden's new cookbook, I was mentally trying to figure out how I could possibly fit another cookbook into my collection, because it was obvious I would have to buy it. Described as a book lush with gorgeous photos of fabulous recipes, it sounded like just the sort of cookbook I would spend hours perusing. I love a good cookbook with lots of beautiful images. I had resigned myself to buying a copy when the publisher unexpectedly offered me a review copy. That was an offer I couldn't refuse. And, yes, it's filled with glorious photos, and yes, the recipes look and sound deliciously tempting.

The Oh She Glows Cookbook provides a great deal of basic ingredient, how-to and kitchen equipment knowledge, as well as insight into the author's personal health journey. The chapters include: my natural foods pantry; my favorite kitchen tools & equipment; breakfast, smoothies, juice & tea; appetizers; salads; soup; entrées; sides; power snacks; desserts; homemade staples; and basic cooking chart. There are more than 100 recipes included in the collection, and each one is introduced with an engaging paragraph by the author, Angela Liddon.

Terrible night/no light photo of wonderful brownies. Bah humbug.

I was delighted to find a familiar recipe in the collection. Although I am acquainted with Angela's beautiful blog, Oh She Glows, (really, who isn't — it's one of the most popular vegan blogs on the Internet), I had only made one of her recipes before — gluten-free chocolate almond brownies. They were terrific, and may be the only brownies I'll ever make again. I served them at a dinner party, and they were a huge hit — no one would ever guess they were gluten-free. The recipe in the cookbook, is essentially identical to the version on Angela's blog, so you can give it a try if you'd like to sample one of her sweet treats.

In 2009, Angela created an energy bar so popular, her enthusiastic fans practically demanded that she sell them, so she started a one-woman bakery where she cranked out 500 glo bars a week. By herself. Since I had all the ingredients on hand, it seemed like a good idea to whip up a dozen of the celebrated bars — they looked and sounded so good. They were easy to make, and I have to say I like them better than just about any other bar I've tasted. They are filled with wholesome  ingredients, and not too sweet. I'm going to share some with Miss E and her family, tonight, and keep some in my freezer for me. Angela has included two of her many glo bar recipes in her cookbook, and the one I made is the classic glo bar. And guess what? I searched and found the recipe online for you. You can see it here. (I made mine with puffed rice and sunflower seed butter.)

The publisher sent me a list of recipes I could publish, and my decision on which one to choose was based on two factors — the ingredients I had on hand, and the one my son wanted. There were two recipes on the list I could make without going shopping, and they both sounded good, but my son had been hit by a potent bug that laid him low, and put him into the hospital overnight, and I wanted to bring him food, so he got to choose. When I offered the two options, he and his girlfriend chose eat your greens detox soup. The soup uses ordinary pantry ingredients, with extraordinary results. I made the recipe pretty much as written except I didn't have enough fresh mushrooms, so I subbed half the mushrooms with reconstituted dried shiitakes, and added the mushroom soaking water to the broth. I also used half kale and half chard since I couldn't quite harvest enough of either from my little container garden. I didn't use nori, and I did add freshly squeezed lemon juice (and some fresh chives). I thought the soup was wonderfully rich and intense, and I highly recommend it. (Look below the recipe to see how I used the leftovers.)

Eat your greens detox soup
Serves 3

• 1 1/2 tsp coconut oil or olive oil
• 1 sweet onion, diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups sliced cremini or white button mushrooms (about 8 ounces)
• 1 cup chopped carrots
• 2 cups chopped broccoli florets
• fine grain sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• 1 1/2 to 3 tsp grated peeled fresh ginger
• 1/2 tsp ground turmeric
• 2 tsp ground cumin
• 1/8 tsp ground cinnamon
• 5 cups vegetable broth
• 2 large nori seaweed sheets, cut into 1 inch strips (optional)
• 2 cups torn kale leaves
• fresh lemon juice, for serving (optional)

1. In a large saucepan, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and saute for about 5 minutes, until the onion is soft and translucent.
2. Add the mushrooms, carrots, and broccoli, and stir to combine. Season generously with salt and pepper and saute for 5 minutes more.
3. Stir in the ginger, turmeric, cumin, and cinnamon, and saute for 1 to 2 minutes, until fragrant.
4. Add the broth and stir to combine. Bring the mixture to a boil and then reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the vegetables are tender, 10-20 minutes.
5. Just before serving, stir in the nori (if using) and kale, and cook until wilted. Season with salt and pepper, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice, if desired.

Reprinted by arrangement with AVERY, a member of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, A Penguin Random House Company. Copyright © GLO BAKERY CORPORATION, 2014.

The soup was so flavorful that I used some the next day to top a noodle bowl. I added some leftover lima beans to the soup, for protein, and separately cooked bean thread noodles. The leftover soup made a perfect noodle bowl, as the intense flavor held its own when combined with the noodles. (To cook the dried noodles, I placed them, nearly covered with water, in a small glass container, and microwaved them for one minute. I turned the noodles over and microwaved one additional minute. They were perfectly cooked and ready to use. You could also pre-soak them in warm water until softened, then add them to the soup pot to cook for a few minutes, or cook them separately in a small pot if you don't want them to soak up all the soup stock.)

FYI, most of the recipes in the Oh She Glows Cookbook are gluten-free, or can easily be made gluten-free, if that is a concern of yours. If it's not a concern, don't worry about it — it probably won't even enter your mind as you make the recipes. Though the techniques are easy, and the ingredients accessible, the results are wonderfully complex and satisfying. There are so many tempting dishes in The Oh She Glows Cookbook that I can hardly wait to get back into the kitchen; enlightened miso power bowl and creamy vegetable curry beckon. This is a book you might want to own!

The giveaway is now ended and the winner has been notified.

Avery, the publisher of The Oh She Glows Cookbook, has generously agreed to send a copy of Angela's book to one lucky reader of my blog in the U.S. or Canada in celebration of U.S. Veg Week, April 21 to 27. There are no hoops to jump through on this blog — just leave a comment (with a link to your blog or email address), by midnight, April 15, and you'll be entered to win. I'll randomly select a winner using the random number generator. ( It's important that I can reach you to tell you if you are the winner, so be sure your entry links to a contact email.)

Full disclosure: The book was sent to me free of charge with the expectation of a review. All opinions are my own.