Vegetables

I have to admit, one of the things that drew me to Inspiralized (new cookbook by Ali Maffucci) in the first place was my great love of my Spiral Vegetable Slicer. I was curious how anyone could come up with enough different recipes to fill a cookbook.

I further have to admit that I was a little skeptical! My skepticism thought, “Meh. She’ll probably fill the book with 75% pictures, 25% recipes.”

Wrong on all accounts!

Inspiralized is a beautiful, fresh, and downright inspiring cookbook that is, in fact, filled with exciting recipes.

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From the inside cover:
On her wildly popular blog, Inspiralized, Ali Maffucci is revolutionizing healthy eating. Whether you’re low-carb, gluten-free, Paleo, or raw, you don’t have to give up the foods you love. Inspiralized shows you how to transform more than 20 vegetables and fruits into delicious meals that look and taste just like your favorite indulgent originals. Zucchini turns into pesto spaghetti; jicama becomes shoestring fries; sweet potatoes lay the foundation for fried rice; plantains transform into “tortillas” for huevos rancheros.

Ali’s recipes for breakfast, snacks, appetizers, sandwiches, soups, salads, casseroles, rices, pastas, and even desserts are easy to follow, hard to mess up, healthful, and completely fresh and flavorful. Best of all, she tells you how to customize them for whatever vegetables you have on hand and whatever your personal goal may be—losing weight, following a healthier lifestyle, or simply making easy meals at home.

Here, too, are tons of technical tips and tricks; nutritional information for each dish and every vegetable you can possibly spiralize; and advice for spiralizing whether you’re feeding just yourself, your family, or even a crowd. So bring on a hearty appetite and a sense of adventure—you’re ready to make the most of this secret weapon for healthy cooking.

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If you love vegetables – and I mean love them to the point of getting as excited about veggies as the average person does chocolate or bacon – you will definitely want this cookbook.  Inspiralized: Turn Vegetables into Healthy, Creative, Satisfying Meals is a celebration of vegetables.  Tomatoes, zucchini, corn,  bell peppers, carrots, parsnips, kale, and their colorful friends are the star of the show. There are, however, lots of herbs, cheeses, fruit, seasonings, and even meat as well.

If you enjoy “mixing things up” and creating meals that are as visually impressive as they are delicious, you’ll want this cookbook.

The recipes create colorful, fresh, delicious, and beautiful dishes that will make you a legend in your own kitchen.

Some of the recipes include:

• Daikon Ramen with Skirt Steak
• Pickled Onion and Watermelon Salad with Ricotta Salata
• Jalapeno Turkey Burgers with Cilantro-Lime Kohlrabi
• Short Ribs with Sweet Potato Grits
• Zucchini Linguine with Garlic Clam Sauce
• Spicy Jicama Strings
• Cucumber, Avocado, and Strawberry Salsa
• “Everything Bagel” Breakfast Buns

The recipes are extremely creative and most unusual.  Suffice to say the average guest would never be able to guess what you were about to serve them.

Earlier in the review, I noted that this cookbook was “downright inspiring.” It honestly is, from front to cover – and that’s what, ultimately, you want from a cookbook – more than anything else. You want to be inspired to come up with your own creative recipes and ways of expressing yourself with your cooking.

Ali Maffucci reminds us that vegetables are incredibly versatile that can be.. and should be… used as beautiful and tasteful center attractions to build our meals around.

Find out more about Inspiralized: Turn Vegetables into Healthy, Creative, Satisfying Meals and order your own copy today – just in time to use on all the fresh produce this summer!

Note: I received this book from the Blogging for Books program in exchange for this review. The opinions are entirely my own.