New cookbooks make vegetables center of - but not all of - meals

It's happened again. The best of the latest crop of vegetable-focused cookbooks aren't by vegetarians.

Time and again, the best books about eating vegetables, and many times even vegetarianism itself, are by authors who've either abandoned the vegetarian ship or never got on board to begin with.

Vegetarian cookbooks by vegetarian writers generally seem to suffer a number of maladies, including being dull, preachy and often unattractive. Thankfully, we can enjoy the inspiration of the writers who don't mind mingling a little meat with their produce.

As former chef at New York's vegan Angelica Kitchen restaurant and author of the excellent "The Modern Vegetarian Kitchen," Peter Berley has serious veg street cred. And now he gives us "The Flexitarian Table."

The title is a reference to the term coined several years ago to refer to people who eat mostly vegetarian diets with a smattering of animal products. In this book, Berley demonstrates you really can have it both ways.

The book is aimed at the many families who struggle to put dinner on the table after a child announces they are vegetarian, or when the vegan friend or relative comes for dinner. The solution -- cook two versions of the same dish, one with meat, one without.

It's easier than it sounds, and Berley's recipes walk readers through it so in most cases they really are cooking just one meal.

Many of the entrees call for both vegetarian and animal ingredients. The recipe explains how to prepare one dish, such as the spanakopita-style turnovers, two ways using the different ingredients. In this case, both lamb and seitan, a vegetarian "meat."

Other menus (the book is divided into seasonal menus) include both meat and vegetarian entrees, as in the spiced lamb croquettes and falafel in one of the summer menus. Each menu also includes a plan with do-ahead tips.

It really is a good concept. The recipes are appealing and the book is attractive, filled with photographs showing what many of the recipes look like prepared both ways.

Of the latest vegetarian books, this is the one to buy. It is the one that most reflects the way we eat.

Also wonderful is Patricia Wells' "Vegetable Harvest," in which the author continues her culinary adventure through Paris and Provence, this time via the vegetable bin at the market and her backyard garden.

Wells takes a refreshing approach -- making the vegetables the center of the meal and treating the protein or meat as the side. It may seem backward to many Americans, but Wells' recipes are so evocative it's easy to give them centerpiece treatment.

The recipes are delightfully simple and straightforward, such as the spring onion, tomato, avocado and basil salad with basil-lemon dressing. All that in about 10 ingredients, including the dressing.

And true to her pitch, many of these recipes can easily serve as a meal by themselves. Such as the asparagus with gruyere and smoked ham, or the potato-chive waffles with smoked salmon, capers and creme fraiche.

Don't look to Wells for strict rules regarding vegetables. Tomatoes and avocados (both fruits) get plenty of play here. There's even a chapter on breads, with a tempting pumpkin bread with toasted pumpkin seeds.

For a more tutorial approach, check out the latest in The Culinary Institute of America's cookbook series, "Vegetables."

Like the other books noted here, this one is not vegetarian, but is focused on vegetable-based recipes. It's hard to imagine not wanting to make a meal of many of the book's recipes, such as baked tomatoes with goat cheese (just add bread and wine).

The book opens with an introduction to the vegetable world (grouping them by kind and offering selection tips and best cooking methods), a basic glossary, a helpful storage chart, special techniques for specific produce, and general cooking tips.

The easy-to-follow recipes are a blend of traditional and innovative takes, such as corn chowder with chilies and Monterey Jack cheese, the tomato sampler with pan-fried calamari and the Cheddar corn fritters.

And finally, one vegetarian book to put on your radar. This fall will see the release of consummate minimalist Mark Bittman's latest book, "How to Cook Everything Vegetarian."

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Peter Berley's "The Flexitarian Table" (Houghton Mifflin, $30, 2007)

Patricia Well's "Vegetable Harvest" (William Morrow, $34.95, 2007)

The Culinary Institute of America's "Vegetables" (Lebhar-Friedman, $40, 2007)