Jennifer’s post here makes me think that this sort of thing might actually be interesting or useful to some folks. One of the most common questions I get as a vegetarian is “What do you eat?” I chalk this up to a couple of things. One is that, for many people, the standard American meal, which I like to define as meat+potato+some sorry looking looking veggies, is…well, the standard most people use for what a proper meal should be. So, when they imagine a vegetarian meal, they imagine the standard meal, but without the meat. And, understandably, a plate of mashed potatoes and overcooked carrots doesn’t sound all that appealing. Either that, or they think vegetarians just eat salad all the time. (I’ve been to more than one restaurant or function where a salad was the sole “vegetarian option.”) Another popular misconception is that eating vegetarian essentially means eating the standard American diet but replacing all the meats with meat substitutes (veggie burgers, soy bacon, veggie dogs, etc.). And I imagine these are common reasons why people either don’t try vegetarian eating or don’t stick with it.

Consequently, I think successful long-term vegetarian eating requires a kind of paradigm shift in the way you think about meals. As long as you have the standard American meal as your template, vegetarian food is going to have a hard time measuring up. It’s going to be a stumbling block in exploring the different kinds of vegetarian cuisine and discovering the ones you really like, which are usually (though not always) not going to be imitations of meat-based dishes. Which is why, if you do decide to go veggie, or just decide to cut back on meat, getting some good vegetarian cook books is an important first step. Good cook books will introduce you to meal possibilities that go way beyond replacing your hamburger with a tofu burger (not that there’s anything wrong with that!). And they’ll help you discover the possiblities of ingredients that form the basis of a lot of vegetarian dishes and can help you maintain good nutrition (hello, lentils!).

So, as a public service to my dear readers, I thought I’d suggest some vegetarian cook books that get a lot of use around our place:

Donna Klein, The Mediterranean Vegan Kitchen

This is one of my favorites and ideal for people new to vegetarian eating. Don’t let the “vegan” label put you off; the beauty of this book is that it’s fool of delicious traditional recipes for foods that will be familiar to most people without using any soy-based meat or dairy substitutes. Great stuff.

The Moosewood Collective, Moosewood Restaurant Cooks at Home

This one focuses on quick, easy-to-prepare meals. Mostly vegan, but also has a section on fish.

Mollie Katzen, The Moosewood Cookbook

A classic. Mollie Katzen is credited with bringing heatlthy vegetarian cooking into the mainstream.

Catherine Hackett, Meatless Main Dishes

This is a slim volume, but has great single-skillet dishes. Some of our favorite soups and stews come out of here.

Robin Robertson, Vegetarian Meat and Potatoes

As the title indicates, this book is full of hearty, stick-to-your-ribs food. Who says vegetarian eating has to be about tofu and bean sprouts?

Isa Chandra Moskowitz and Terry Hope Romero, Veganomicon

I just got this over Christmas and we haven’t had a chance to use it much, but it got good reviews. It’s billed as the ultimate vegan cook book. I did make a chili verde recipe that used tomatillos and Granny Smith apples which was tasty, if a bit labor-intensive.

What most of these books have in common is that the recipes are relatively easy, they contain interesting dishes that go beyond imitating meat-based foods, and they don’t rely on a lot of processed ingredients or soy-based meat and dairy substitutes. And learning the basics by using these recipes will eventually help you improvise with your own creations. And I haven’t even touched on the many ethnic cuisines (Indian, Thai, etc.) that offer bountiful and delicious veggie options.

Also, anyone who decides to go veggie, or change their diet in a significant way, ought to consult a trustworthy source on nutrition. Vesanto Melina and Brenda Davis’s Becoming Vegetarian is a handy and comprehensive reference. (They also have a companion volume, Becoming Vegan.) It’s actually pretty easy to eat a balanced, nutritious diet as a lacto-ovo vegetarian (trust me, getting enough protein is not really a problem for most Americans); vegans have a few more specific dietary holes they need to fill, but I’m not the guy to ask about that.

Finally, here’s a good piece from the Audubon Society magazine making a passionate case for reducing our meat consumption.