The Modern Vegetarian: Food Adventures for the Contemporary Palate: Over 120 Recipes to Wake Up Your Palate [Illustrated] [Hardcover]

A really excellent vegetarian cookbook that I fear will only appeal to a very limited minority - those who want to cook vegetarian food and have also got the talent, ability and desire to cook complex, sometimes difficult dishes using a large number of ingredients.

First off, it should be said that the recipes in this cookbook are really pretty remarkable.

Beautifully photographed, this book is a joy to read and I would happily leave it lying around on my coffee tables for everyone else to skim through with hungry appreciation.

Some of the recipes that particularly appealed to me were Watermelon Gazpacho in Thai Style; Lemongrass and Sweetcorn Soup with Creme Fraiche; Mushroom, Beetroot, Mozzarella with a Lentil Cartouche. I wasn't so keen on the idea of the Griddled Radicchio and Strawberry Risotto, but maybe it is amazing too. Hopefully this gives you a sense of the adventurous, exotic nature of the recipes in this cookbook!

With that said, personally I found the recipes so complex that I don't think I will be attempting to cook from this book often. They are the kind of food I would be absolutely delighted to be served in a restaurant, but which I probably wouldn't get around to preparing myself unless it's for a very special occasion where I want to wow my guests. For example, the opening dish of Carrot Pancakes with Houmous and a Feta Salad looks delicious but there are 36 separate components! Don't be put off - it's not that the recipes involve difficult techniques, and they are explained clearly and well. It's more the quantity of ingredients involved - just not things you would have hanging around in your kitchen cupboards. For me, getting all of the ingredients together would involve a lot of time and expense.

I am sure I will come back to this book a lot, but maybe more for inspiration and reading pleasure than for actual use. I'm not sure that I'm the type of cook it's intended for. I would actually recommend this to any vegetarian cook in any case, simply because it has such beautiful flavour ideas and makes for a great read. A brilliant cookbook - but make sure you are up to the challenge!

This is a very inventive and imaginative book, with some wonderfully original and mouth-watering ideas. The only criticism I would make is that many of the recipes are very complicated with lots of stages involved - it is definitely not in the "quick and easy / supper in 30 minutes" category !

Really I wish that somebody else would take the trouble to make these lovely recipes for me ! However I will certainly use this book when having a dinner-party or any time when I want to make an effort for a special occasion

I read more cookbooks, and magazines, than I cook from -- the unused Nigella's and Jamie's are numerous on my shelves -- but this one is truly a revelation.

The recipes are stunning. And unusual. I am eagerly awaiting the next book from Maria Elia.

I am not a vegetarian, but started making more of an effort for friends who are. I bought this book because it looked nice, and was new at the time. I have since bought uncountable copies for various friends -- some are vegetarians, some are accomplished cooks looking for new combinations, some are gardeners looking to use up their produce. It was the Butternut Squash Tagine that did it for me... it is one of the best things I have ever eaten. The couscous is stunning and not cooked in a way that I'm used to...

If you have ever bought a book from Skye Gyngell, Peter Gordon or even Gordon Ramsay or Gary Rhodes, you will identify with this book.

Contrary to other reviews here, and also in contrast to the chefs above, I do not find anything in the book complicated to cook. That said, it is not mindless cooking. You don't need to have particularly good skills, but you do need to plan ahead. The recipes are occassionally lengthy, or the ingredients are out of the normal comfort zone. It has made me pay better attention: watermelon juice is readily available in my neighborhood Tesco! I haven't yet bought fenugreek leaves, but don't think their absence is noted in the absolutely gorgeous Tomato and Coconut Curry (and it is a simple 30 minute supper...).

I have now cooked at length from the book and have found no faulty recipes. I have only found my friends to be somewhat stunned, coming out with comments like 'michelin star cooking'. I'm nowhere near that, and think Masterchef has a lot to answer for, but this book is great. I can't wait to try the Watermelon Gazpacho...

Sweetcorn soup, as simple as can be, and the Fennel and Coconut soup too... and the Puy Lentils... just stunning....