The 8 Best Vegetarian Cookbooks of 2020

Plain and simple: Ottolenghi is a legend. The Israeli chef is best known for his London restaurants that serve up exquisite Mediterranean-inspired fare that’s ultra-fresh and full of flavor. To recreate some of the Ottolenghi’s unique plant-forward meals at home, pick up Plenty, the chef’s 100 percent vegetarian cookbook.

Packed with 120 mouth-watering meals, this stunning cookbook contains recipes for everything from a quinoa and grilled sourdough salad to crispy fava bean burgers and soba noodles studded with eggplant and mango. Each recipe is made from whole food ingredients that naturally burst with flavor, so you won’t miss the meat one bit. Trust us, there’s Plenty to love here.

It’s safe to say Moosewood, the renowned natural foods restaurant founded in Ithaca, New York in 1973, knows a thing or two about vegetarian cooking. Why? For one, the restaurant was a pioneer in healthy eating and cooking. Its founders (a collective of 19 individuals) have also published 14 cookbooks over the past five decades.

Their latest, The Moosewood Restaurant Table, showcases what they do best: create good-for-you food that tastes amazing and satisfies, too. Best of all, this cookbook serves up an impressive 250+ new recipes, including savory meals like cashew-crusted chickpea burgers and butternut squash latkes, as well as sweet treats such as orange pistachio cornmeal cake and Turkish coffee-infused brownies.

Kathryne Taylor has a large Instagram following for a reason: her recipes are just that good. The creator of the blog Cookie & Kate and author of Love Real Food has a knack for developing seriously delicious recipes that are free from meat, full of flavor, and surprisingly straightforward.

Cook up her colorful weeknight burrito bowls for a hearty meatless Monday. Also included: recipes for sweet and simple carrot cake, healthified Greek-style nachos, and a chickpea tikka masala you’ll want to add to your weekly rotation.

The name pretty much sums it up for this veggie-friendly cookbook, which offers readers a staggering 700 plant-based recipes. There’s something for every eater in this completely plant-based cookbook that includes more than 300 recipes that can be made in 45 minutes or less; 500 recipes that are completely gluten-free, and 250 recipes that are vegan. 

Home cooks looking for something hearty will find tasty classics like veggie enchiladas and pasta bolognese (the sauce gets its meaty flavor from mushrooms, not meat), while those wanting a bite on the lighter side can opt for a vibrant super green soup with lemon and tarragon or an asparagus and spinach salad complete with creamy goat cheese and a tangy sherry vinegar dressing.

Leave it to the chefs at Martha Stewart Living to craft a stunning vegetarian cookbook full of restaurant-worthy meals. With a focus on “easy, meat-free mains,” Meatless offers a wide variety of smart small plates, substantial salads, and healthy soups and stews.

Invite friends over for a healthy homemade brunch complete with meat-free recipes like asparagus and goat cheese frittata and a refreshing avocado, beet, and orange salad, both included in the book. Getting cozy for a date night in? Meatless also provides recipes for healthy, warming entrees like ricotta and spinach-stuffed shells and black bean tortilla casseroles.

Nutrient-rich whole foods are the name of the game in this cookbook that’s filled with family-friendly vegetarian eats. Simple Green Meals takes a refreshing approach to plant-based eating, prioritizing nourishing foods and serious flavor. The result? More than 100 recipes for tasty eats, from maple apple walnut muffins and savory quinoa pizza to cauliflower BBQ tacos and coconut Thai soup.

This book is also great for new vegetarians thanks to its inclusion of helpful tips for grocery shopping and meal prepping as a vegetarian. Unique recipes and easy-to-follow recipes? Count us in.

The New York Times food columnist and 30-time author Mark Bittman takes a veg-heavy spin on his classic cookbook How to Cook Everything with this vegetarian version. This 10th-anniversary edition of the plant-based cookbook comes complete with meatless meals everyone will love. It contains a whole chapter on smoothies and teas, plus elevated entrees like paella with tomatoes and baked eggs.

This one goes out to your friend who thinks vegetables are boring. Vegetables Illustrated offers more than 700 recipes that highlight the versatility of nutrient-rich veggies. Think you know a great method for preparing broccoli? This cookbook gives you 30 different ways to make it taste phenomenal.

Though the book also includes recipes that incorporate animal products (think nori-crusted salmon), the emphasis is undoubtedly on plants. Learn how to perfect classics, like a simple baked potato, or head out of your comfort zone and try making fried fiddleheads with a lemon-chive dipping sauce. Consider this your complete guide to cooking (and eating and learning to love) every veggie under the sun.