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Dirt Candy: A Cookbook: Flavor-Forward Food from the Upstart New York City Vegetarian Restaurant
Amanda Cohen does not play by the rules. Her vegetable recipes are sophisticated and daring, beloved by omnivore, vegetarian, and vegan diners alike. Dirt Candy: A Cookbook shares the secrets to making her flavorful dishes—from indulgent Stone-Ground Grits with Pickled Shiitakes and Tempura Poached Egg, to hearty Smoked Cauliflower and Waffles with Horseradish Cream Sauce, to playfully addictive Popcorn Pudding with Caramel Popcorn. It also details Amanda’s crazy story of building a restaurant from the ground up to its currently being one of the hardest-to-get reservations in New York City—all illustrated as a brilliant graphic novel. Both a great read and a source of kitchen inspiration, Dirt Candy: A Cookbook is a must-have for any home cook looking to push the boundaries of vegetable cooking.
224 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 144 reviews
January 21, 2013
Read it more as a regular book (specifically a graphic novel memoir about the restaurant industry in Manhattan) than as a cookbook, since the recipes are too time-consuming even by my standards. Despite a kind of irrelevant kung fu theme, the book is an amusing read that I'd suggest to graphic memoir fans and anyone who is fascinated by the fine-dining world. The characters, both good and evil, are really brought to life, as are the struggles of trying to run a business, cook to please other people, and at the same time do something innovative with food.
The one recipe I did try required making a broth, using that broth to make another broth, cooking paella, separately grilling three kinds of vegetables, and making a sweet-savory rice krispie thing. The Wüsthof and I probably chopped a full cup of garlic that day. The resulting dish looked beautiful on the plate and parts of it were super-tasty (saffron-tomato broth and lemon-garlic grilled vegetables), but the main thing, the paella, was just so-so. Also she had the Lacey Sher problem where the instructions didn't quite work (1.25 cups liquid to 2 cups rice, really?) so I ended up combining them with the instructions on the bag of paella rice. Finally, it's the 21st century and we're all groovy to eating locally and seasonally, yes? Where I'm from, asparagus season generally ends before tomato season begins, so I'm not sure what time of year you get to eat asparagus and tomato paella.
I'm also not sure who would be the intended audience for the cookbook part. If you don't already know how to caramelize onions, you should probably not try the recipes here, yet Cohen gives detailed instructions for caramelizing and other basic techniques. Maybe this is for people who who feel about cooking the way I feel about cycling: they aren't practitioners themselves but they love to read about it and see how the professionals do it.
The one recipe I did try required making a broth, using that broth to make another broth, cooking paella, separately grilling three kinds of vegetables, and making a sweet-savory rice krispie thing. The Wüsthof and I probably chopped a full cup of garlic that day. The resulting dish looked beautiful on the plate and parts of it were super-tasty (saffron-tomato broth and lemon-garlic grilled vegetables), but the main thing, the paella, was just so-so. Also she had the Lacey Sher problem where the instructions didn't quite work (1.25 cups liquid to 2 cups rice, really?) so I ended up combining them with the instructions on the bag of paella rice. Finally, it's the 21st century and we're all groovy to eating locally and seasonally, yes? Where I'm from, asparagus season generally ends before tomato season begins, so I'm not sure what time of year you get to eat asparagus and tomato paella.
I'm also not sure who would be the intended audience for the cookbook part. If you don't already know how to caramelize onions, you should probably not try the recipes here, yet Cohen gives detailed instructions for caramelizing and other basic techniques. Maybe this is for people who who feel about cooking the way I feel about cycling: they aren't practitioners themselves but they love to read about it and see how the professionals do it.
June 29, 2021
This comic cookbook of Chef/Owner Amanda Cohen of Dirt Candy, a vegetarian restaurant in New York City, is chock full of recipes. She explains the ups and downs of being in the restaurant business from being ripped off by her contractor, the build out, the delays, the costs, bad reviews, special requests, difficult diners, and Iron Chef. Cartoon characters, her adult and childhood selves, Danielle the Prep Chef, and Jesus the Sous Chef populate the pages of her trials and tribulations in opening and running a restaurant as she pokes fun at herself. Her recipes are explained step by step visually and in writing with cooking techniques, tips, and vegan alternatives. I would love to try out the recipes but many are complex and/or time consuming requiring the right kitchen equipment. I cook at times and I have lots of cooking paraphernalia but my kitchen appears to lack some of her basic requirements. The cookbook was so informative that I got a ton of ideas as I oohed and aahed. The flavors appear to be intense and delicious. I cannot wait to eat at her restaurant if I ever get to New York City and get a reservation. I am tempted to buy the cookbook to add to my collection. Now where in the world could I put it as I look at my overflowing bookcases? This is after I got rid of so many books last year pre-Covid. 5 yummy and innovative stars.
October 18, 2014
I don't normally review cookbooks unless I really read them. This book is half cookbook half graphic novel, something I think stands alone, and stands tall, all by itself.
Will I ever make the recipes? Not likely. They are long, involved, complicated, and some have really obscure ingredients. (This from a girl with a pantry full of obscure ingredients.). But will I use the favors, the floor combos, the recipe ideas as bases to come up with my own easy recipes? Absolutely.
They all sound delicious, they are mostly vegetarian, and most even have vegan options. But most also have about five different components. Apparently dirt candy is a fancy restaurant with fancy plating and fancy stuff. My kitchen isn't fancy, but I can appreciate the effort that goes into them m
The graphics and the stories in the other half of the book are great. They are mostly memoirs about how the author became a chef and insider secrets about what happens in the kitchen. Turns out owning a restaurant isn't glamorous at all. I'll let the pros handle it. I'll read about it, and drool over the recipes while my boxed pasta and canned sauce heat on the stove. Okay, in the microwave.
Will I ever make the recipes? Not likely. They are long, involved, complicated, and some have really obscure ingredients. (This from a girl with a pantry full of obscure ingredients.). But will I use the favors, the floor combos, the recipe ideas as bases to come up with my own easy recipes? Absolutely.
They all sound delicious, they are mostly vegetarian, and most even have vegan options. But most also have about five different components. Apparently dirt candy is a fancy restaurant with fancy plating and fancy stuff. My kitchen isn't fancy, but I can appreciate the effort that goes into them m
The graphics and the stories in the other half of the book are great. They are mostly memoirs about how the author became a chef and insider secrets about what happens in the kitchen. Turns out owning a restaurant isn't glamorous at all. I'll let the pros handle it. I'll read about it, and drool over the recipes while my boxed pasta and canned sauce heat on the stove. Okay, in the microwave.
November 20, 2014
This adorable book is the Scott Pilgrim of cookbooks. While I probably will not be making portobello mousse or rosemary cotton candy any time soon, there are some really interesting recipes in here that sound delightful.
September 6, 2012
LOVE this cookbook/graphic novel. While I will probably never make a thing in this book as it's filled with fine dining recipes that take A LOT of time (except the pickles chapter, I will make EVERYTHING in that chapter), I still adore this book. Here's what it's got going for it:
-There's a chapter on pickled veggies. Need I say more?
-The style of this book is awesome. I found myself actually reading this like a graphic novel instead of just as a cookbook. There are actual plots and stories. So cool.
-It truly is a celebration of vegetables. Her description of her "philosophy" of vegetable cooking is so accessible and refreshing. I feel like she's the kind of vegetarian that wouldn't cause non-veggies to roll their eyes while she talks.
-It's funny.
-You know that introduction in every cookbook that's all "here's what boiling is" and "here's how you braise something" that you completely ignore? This one has it rolled into the story of her and her team training for Iron Chef America that makes it actually fun to read. I'm an avid home cook and some of her tips were clever and new to me.
Check out this book. Especially if you're a veg head.
-There's a chapter on pickled veggies. Need I say more?
-The style of this book is awesome. I found myself actually reading this like a graphic novel instead of just as a cookbook. There are actual plots and stories. So cool.
-It truly is a celebration of vegetables. Her description of her "philosophy" of vegetable cooking is so accessible and refreshing. I feel like she's the kind of vegetarian that wouldn't cause non-veggies to roll their eyes while she talks.
-It's funny.
-You know that introduction in every cookbook that's all "here's what boiling is" and "here's how you braise something" that you completely ignore? This one has it rolled into the story of her and her team training for Iron Chef America that makes it actually fun to read. I'm an avid home cook and some of her tips were clever and new to me.
Check out this book. Especially if you're a veg head.
February 4, 2017
Maybe the publisher was afraid this would get shoehorned as a graphic novel and people would miss the parts that are a legit cookbook? I feel like the average GoodReads surfer would probably miss that this is largely written in comics-form, with speech bubbles and panels and things.
This book is written very much through the voice of Cohen, the chef, but there are three authors listed on the cover. Ryan Dunlavey has copyright on the artwork, according to the verso. Grady Hendrix is Cohen's husband. I imagine the three of them sitting around a tiny NYC apartment, spitballing ideas of how to present the three different angles of information Cohen wanted to put into a book. The final product combines 1. advice on/principles of/opinions about cooking, with 2. comics-style memoir about portions of her cooking life (the nightmareish process of setting up her first restaurant, going on a reality TV show, etc.), and 3. fairly straightup recipes.
Personally, the recipes hold little interest. Although I don't eat meat except for the occasional restaurant visit, my flavor sensibilities and preferences differ quite a bit from Cohen's. Just in case your tastes mirror mine, and you're considering this for the recipes... I don't like peppers, raw onions, or eggplant, and although I'll eat a pickle every once in a while, I don't get excited about a menu dominated by pickled things. If you're horrified by my list of dislikes, you'll prolly like these recipes a lot.
The food history/techniques/advice stuff was pretty fascinating, for the most part. I read how to make a home smoker, some interesting tips about cleaning gunky pots and pans, and lots of opinions about how to cook Vegetables, which is her soap box. Her tone is that of an advocate, a freedom fighter for vegetables, someone who's had to defend the "vegetarianness" of her restaurant a lot. She sounds defensive. And as someone who's eaten a primarily vegetarian diet for most of my life, living in the PacificNW, the "good news" tone feels a little over-the-top, particularly when it gets angsty. But maybe her perspective is more revolutionary in NYC. I haven't watched Top Chef in quite a few years, but I know from that exposure to the cooking scene that not eating meat is REALLY WEIRD to a lot of people.
Which is really weird to me.
I dug the memoir stuff a lot, since I'm someone who likes hearing about the backstages of life and industry. I didn't come away from the book liking Cohen very much, but I appreciated her sharing her experiences, missteps and otherwise.
This book is written very much through the voice of Cohen, the chef, but there are three authors listed on the cover. Ryan Dunlavey has copyright on the artwork, according to the verso. Grady Hendrix is Cohen's husband. I imagine the three of them sitting around a tiny NYC apartment, spitballing ideas of how to present the three different angles of information Cohen wanted to put into a book. The final product combines 1. advice on/principles of/opinions about cooking, with 2. comics-style memoir about portions of her cooking life (the nightmareish process of setting up her first restaurant, going on a reality TV show, etc.), and 3. fairly straightup recipes.
Personally, the recipes hold little interest. Although I don't eat meat except for the occasional restaurant visit, my flavor sensibilities and preferences differ quite a bit from Cohen's. Just in case your tastes mirror mine, and you're considering this for the recipes... I don't like peppers, raw onions, or eggplant, and although I'll eat a pickle every once in a while, I don't get excited about a menu dominated by pickled things. If you're horrified by my list of dislikes, you'll prolly like these recipes a lot.
The food history/techniques/advice stuff was pretty fascinating, for the most part. I read how to make a home smoker, some interesting tips about cleaning gunky pots and pans, and lots of opinions about how to cook Vegetables, which is her soap box. Her tone is that of an advocate, a freedom fighter for vegetables, someone who's had to defend the "vegetarianness" of her restaurant a lot. She sounds defensive. And as someone who's eaten a primarily vegetarian diet for most of my life, living in the PacificNW, the "good news" tone feels a little over-the-top, particularly when it gets angsty. But maybe her perspective is more revolutionary in NYC. I haven't watched Top Chef in quite a few years, but I know from that exposure to the cooking scene that not eating meat is REALLY WEIRD to a lot of people.
Which is really weird to me.
I dug the memoir stuff a lot, since I'm someone who likes hearing about the backstages of life and industry. I didn't come away from the book liking Cohen very much, but I appreciated her sharing her experiences, missteps and otherwise.
February 5, 2017
Part memoir, part cookbook, this is one ambitious package that doesn't quite succeed.
There's a panel on p.28, detailing the Iron Chef judges' reaction Amanda Cohen's dishes, that perfectly sums up this book. Pondering Cohen's pickle and broccoli combination, Kelly Hu finds it "confusing," while the competitor's is deemed "illuminating."
And that's exactly it. Given the abject mistreatment that vegetables often receive in the US, you'd think that a recipe book that claims to do to flavor what Justin Timberlake claimed he did to sexy would make the recipes generally accessible. But no. What Cohen offers, beyond some pickles with dubious claims,* a few solid tips for vegetable cooking, and a good salad philosophy,** just isn't feasibleat home if you have a life at all (8 hr dehydration, followed by rehydration, and 2 more hrs prep? lol no keep your one trick recipe thanks).
*No, hot vinegar is not a substitute for fermented pickled goodness. Never in the history of ever will this occur.
**Her dressings, however, are TERRIBLE. 3T acid to 3/4C oil??? 2.5T acid to 1/2C oil??? Those are oil spills on your plate, not dressings. If using lemon juice, a much more palate friendly ratio is closer to 1:1 for acid:oil, and 1:1.5-2 for vinegar:oil.
Anyway, the book is useful if you:
1) want to catch a glimpse of running a trendy restaurant in NYC (and don't mind tone deaf attempts at social commentary);
2) know exactly nothing about vegetarian cooking and feel up to kitchen challenges;
3) need ideas for time consuming things to do to carrots and zucchini.
Beyond that? Not sure. There are better vegetarian cookbooks out there, but no one probably picked this up because of the recipes. I know I didn't.
There's a panel on p.28, detailing the Iron Chef judges' reaction Amanda Cohen's dishes, that perfectly sums up this book. Pondering Cohen's pickle and broccoli combination, Kelly Hu finds it "confusing," while the competitor's is deemed "illuminating."
And that's exactly it. Given the abject mistreatment that vegetables often receive in the US, you'd think that a recipe book that claims to do to flavor what Justin Timberlake claimed he did to sexy would make the recipes generally accessible. But no. What Cohen offers, beyond some pickles with dubious claims,* a few solid tips for vegetable cooking, and a good salad philosophy,** just isn't feasible
*No, hot vinegar is not a substitute for fermented pickled goodness. Never in the history of ever will this occur.
**Her dressings, however, are TERRIBLE. 3T acid to 3/4C oil??? 2.5T acid to 1/2C oil??? Those are oil spills on your plate, not dressings. If using lemon juice, a much more palate friendly ratio is closer to 1:1 for acid:oil, and 1:1.5-2 for vinegar:oil.
Anyway, the book is useful if you:
1) want to catch a glimpse of running a trendy restaurant in NYC (and don't mind tone deaf attempts at social commentary);
2) know exactly nothing about vegetarian cooking and feel up to kitchen challenges;
3) need ideas for time consuming things to do to carrots and zucchini.
Beyond that? Not sure. There are better vegetarian cookbooks out there, but no one probably picked this up because of the recipes. I know I didn't.
November 3, 2015
The graphic novel portion of this novel kept me reading. Amanda Cohen compellingly describes what it's like to run up a restaurant and the logistical and personnel struggles involved. With limited words and pictures, she seems grounded and appealingly honest. She is not a perfect person, and she's not afraid to let us know. A telling section of the book involves a pastry chef she basically admits to mistreating in her fervor for perfection.
At the same time, the recipes didn't inspire me nearly as much as the narrative. I'd love to eat at her restaurant. I don't want to fuss nearly as much over food, and I'm usually willing to fuss quite a bit if something seems delicious enough. And, usually, I can pick up virtually any cookbook and find something I want to make. It didn't happen with this one. I am going to make sugar-coated grapefruit sections for my kids, if I can let myself get past the warnings about the risk of third-degree burns from the sugar syrup.
At the same time, the recipes didn't inspire me nearly as much as the narrative. I'd love to eat at her restaurant. I don't want to fuss nearly as much over food, and I'm usually willing to fuss quite a bit if something seems delicious enough. And, usually, I can pick up virtually any cookbook and find something I want to make. It didn't happen with this one. I am going to make sugar-coated grapefruit sections for my kids, if I can let myself get past the warnings about the risk of third-degree burns from the sugar syrup.
Read
January 14, 2013I loved it! The illustrations are lively and witty, and the writing is dense and interesting. The recipes look fantastic, too — I'm looking forward to eating at Dirt Candy as soon as I can get a reservation.
March 7, 2020
I’ve been to this restaurant once, and it was the best vegetarian meal I have ever had in my life. If they all tasted this way, I could easily convert to a meat-free diet. When I learned of this book's existence, I checked it out immediately from my library. Now I’m going to buy a copy for my personal library.
I appreciate the graphic novel format to tell the human interest portion of this (and to depict Alton Brown with one of those arrow-thru-the-head visual gags) plus it’s an easy way to include visual instructions in a compact fashion. I also really liked the lesson about the history and evolution of the vegetarian movement in the United States, and what other movements subsumed and damaged it.
While most of these recipes are way too involved for me, it makes me appreciate the time and effort the restaurant spends on every dish. I will see what I can do to adopt some of the individual techniques and salad dressings. I’m totally going to make that beet green pesto.
I appreciate the graphic novel format to tell the human interest portion of this (and to depict Alton Brown with one of those arrow-thru-the-head visual gags) plus it’s an easy way to include visual instructions in a compact fashion. I also really liked the lesson about the history and evolution of the vegetarian movement in the United States, and what other movements subsumed and damaged it.
While most of these recipes are way too involved for me, it makes me appreciate the time and effort the restaurant spends on every dish. I will see what I can do to adopt some of the individual techniques and salad dressings. I’m totally going to make that beet green pesto.
January 11, 2019
Plenty of recipes, yes, but written like a graphic novel. Entertaining read, and the recipes are quite interesting if you've eaten at or intend to eat at the restaurant and are curious about exactly how the heck they do those amazing things.
April 7, 2019
Cute graphic novel about a chef and her restaurant.
March 20, 2023
Ένα εκπληκτικό βιβλίο μαγειρικής με πολύ ωραίες τεχνικές, εμπνευσμένες συνταγές και εξαιρετική εικονογράφηση.
November 10, 2020
Great fun to read- a graphic novel with a terrific imaginative flair. As others have said, I doubt I’ll get around to cooking from it. I am considering the 2-3 day onion soup (I love onion soup!), but really—Caramelized, dried, powdered and then reconstituted onions for a soup? I get the feeling I’d love to eat her food, but am not sure if I even want to know that this next level Kung fu vegetable treatments are worth it- I enjoy my simple vegetables and even the simple prep can be a challenge on a weeknight...
May 17, 2016
Oh, vegetables. What did you ever do to us to deserve such hatred?
It's not your fault that you are microwaved into oblivion and tossed onto so many dinner tables as more of a nutritional obligation than an actual dish to be enjoyed. If you're lucky, maybe you get a quick shake of salt and pepper, or even a little dab of margarine, but all in all, vegetables are seen by a HUGE majority as the villain of the dinner table (My personal childhood arch-nemesis was frozen peas!)
Dirt Candy is a hilarious read: half comic book describing her culinary journey and the story of her restaurant and half cookbook filled with the most imaginative uses for vegetables that I have ever seen. Granted, a lot of her recipes call for specialty ingredients and equipment that I have never seen and will never use in my kitchen, but Amanda Cohen makes a riveting case in the defense of nature's candy. Most inspiring was the panel in which she describes a dream where Julia Child herself paid her a visit and took her to task. Why DO we expect vegetables to be boring? Bring flavor! Add butter! Salt! Spices! Be bold and daring!
I'll probably never make even a quarter of these recipes, but this was a VERY inspiring read for someone who loves to cook.
It's not your fault that you are microwaved into oblivion and tossed onto so many dinner tables as more of a nutritional obligation than an actual dish to be enjoyed. If you're lucky, maybe you get a quick shake of salt and pepper, or even a little dab of margarine, but all in all, vegetables are seen by a HUGE majority as the villain of the dinner table (My personal childhood arch-nemesis was frozen peas!)
Dirt Candy is a hilarious read: half comic book describing her culinary journey and the story of her restaurant and half cookbook filled with the most imaginative uses for vegetables that I have ever seen. Granted, a lot of her recipes call for specialty ingredients and equipment that I have never seen and will never use in my kitchen, but Amanda Cohen makes a riveting case in the defense of nature's candy. Most inspiring was the panel in which she describes a dream where Julia Child herself paid her a visit and took her to task. Why DO we expect vegetables to be boring? Bring flavor! Add butter! Salt! Spices! Be bold and daring!
I'll probably never make even a quarter of these recipes, but this was a VERY inspiring read for someone who loves to cook.
February 8, 2018
It's a weird mix of cookbook, graphic novel and business memoir. Dirt Candy is a small New York City vegan restaurant. There's a few basic recipes that are helpful (how to improve grits by cooking them in stock instead of water), but most of the recipes are for restaurant level training and preparation. It is pretty defensive about vegan food and vegetables. There are some nice parts like "I Fell in Love with the Wrong Dish" and how American cooking's fascination with French cuisine obscures Asian and Southern Indian cuisine that is vegetarian.
The comics illustrate the chef's theory to working in a restaurant, being a chef, and starting up her restaurant. The recipes have the barest illustrations to show what basics to combine for a plating or meal. It's strange because most graphic novel cookbooks illustrate the food or how it's prepared (see Lucy Knisley's Relish or Robin Ha's Cook Korean). It's also weird how the food is anthropomorphized to be female. The illustrations are cramped for the space and the quality of the scan seems kind of poor. They are all in black and white.
There's not much to recommend. It's okay if you want to make a fancy vegan dinner, but otherwise there's not much memorable about this book.
The comics illustrate the chef's theory to working in a restaurant, being a chef, and starting up her restaurant. The recipes have the barest illustrations to show what basics to combine for a plating or meal. It's strange because most graphic novel cookbooks illustrate the food or how it's prepared (see Lucy Knisley's Relish or Robin Ha's Cook Korean). It's also weird how the food is anthropomorphized to be female. The illustrations are cramped for the space and the quality of the scan seems kind of poor. They are all in black and white.
There's not much to recommend. It's okay if you want to make a fancy vegan dinner, but otherwise there's not much memorable about this book.
July 23, 2012
I was lucky enough to get a proof copy, and I loved reading (yes, reading) this cookbook. I haven't tried the recipes yet, but they look interesting and delicious. What sets this cookbook apart is the story. This isn't just a collection of recipes; it's a tale of opening a restaurant, opening a "vegetable" restaurant, being a chef, and it's all done through funny and witty comic sections.
I'm giving this 3.5 stars for readability, but I'll need to make some recipes before knowing for sure how to rate this cookbook.
For my vegan friends, she offers vegan variations for some of the recipes.
I'm giving this 3.5 stars for readability, but I'll need to make some recipes before knowing for sure how to rate this cookbook.
For my vegan friends, she offers vegan variations for some of the recipes.
January 6, 2017
More than a cookbook, a very funny expose/reflection on opening and running a restaurant.
May 23, 2018
do not recommend this as an ebook-- really hard to get through because of the unique format.
September 14, 2021
Part memoir part cookbook, I was looking for something like Let's Make Ramen!: A Comic Book Cookbook but this book isn't quite as good.
I downloaded the eBook from my local library, and file issues made this very difficult to read, which did not lend positively to my experience. The images couldn't be resized, so I could barely read the text and may have lost details from the illustrations.
The memoir sections felt ok, but a little unfocused-- too short to get into enough detail for people not already familiar with the author to get invested.
The cook book section is far too fussy-- lots of specialized equipment, especially, and recipes with too many steps. Some of these could be fun for a once-every-year-or-two vegetable-focused dinner party, but I found nothing I could add to my weekly school-night cooking routine.
I downloaded the eBook from my local library, and file issues made this very difficult to read, which did not lend positively to my experience. The images couldn't be resized, so I could barely read the text and may have lost details from the illustrations.
The memoir sections felt ok, but a little unfocused-- too short to get into enough detail for people not already familiar with the author to get invested.
The cook book section is far too fussy-- lots of specialized equipment, especially, and recipes with too many steps. Some of these could be fun for a once-every-year-or-two vegetable-focused dinner party, but I found nothing I could add to my weekly school-night cooking routine.
December 11, 2025
This book suffers from two major issues: it doesn’t know what it is and it has no idea who its audience is. It’s billed as a cookbook but it’s also a graphic memoir but it also has how-to graphic sections. Holy identity crisis, Batman! One also wonders who the author is writing the recipe/instruction parts of this book for. The recipes sound delicious and I would love to try them — in her restaurant. They are way too chefy and time consuming for even the most ambitious home cooks. So who is she trying to get to try these recipes, other chefs? But then a lot of the graphic memoir part is the author explaining what running a restaurant and being a chef entails, which would be redundant if the cookbook portion is for other chefs, so idk.
Don’t get me wrong, I liked the artwork and learning more about the restaurant industry. But I wouldn’t get it if what you want is a vegetarian cookbook.
Don’t get me wrong, I liked the artwork and learning more about the restaurant industry. But I wouldn’t get it if what you want is a vegetarian cookbook.
January 10, 2019
After finishing this book I had to add another tag. I added 'memoir' because the author details how she started the restaurant in the book's title. It's really fascinating. The recipes are cool but so far I haven't made any of them (this is also due to the fact that I have 5 cookbooks checked out right now!)
This book also appealed to me and received an extra star for its unique format: a graphic novel cookbook! How awesome is that? Great use of Japanese-style manga in spots but don't worry, anyone can read it and enjoy. Heard about this one on The Taste Podcast https://art19.com/shows/the-taste-podcast/episodes/f10cf891-3427-4cd6-a982-78ed804143c1
This book also appealed to me and received an extra star for its unique format: a graphic novel cookbook! How awesome is that? Great use of Japanese-style manga in spots but don't worry, anyone can read it and enjoy. Heard about this one on The Taste Podcast https://art19.com/shows/the-taste-podcast/episodes/f10cf891-3427-4cd6-a982-78ed804143c1
January 15, 2022
I'm not sure who this book is for. I appreciated the autobiography in comic format parts of the book, but the actual cookbook parts are all over the place. If you're such a novice cook that you need to be taught how to sweat an onion, you're not going to be skipping straight from there to molecular gastronomy. If you're already a chef, you don't need the intro parts, nor will you be copying her signature dishes. If you're a home cook at any level, you're probably not going to make the recipes in here that take multiple days to prepare the garnishes that she recommends. I didn't dislike the book at all, I just don't know who the target audience is.
May 2, 2024
This is a great resource. Cohen assumes the reader knows nothing. She explains the most basic techniques, including practical tips, using graphics like a comic book or graphic story. She also intersperses her professional journey toward her NYC restaurant, Dirt Candy, in the same graphic style, with chefs tending toward looking like ninjas. Commonly, a recipe will use as an ingredient, the result of a previous recipe, with the page for that recipe noted. With this cookbook, I might learn how to cook vegetarian.
January 9, 2018
I enjoyed the comic story-telling about what it was like for her to open and run her restaurant, although there were some uncomfortable representations at times. The recipes were fascinating and inspiring if a bit complex for small portions; they seem more conducive to batching than home cooking, which makes sense. Some of the recipe instructions were less than clear. However, in the end, I do find myself wanting to visit the restaurant next time I’m in NYC!
November 30, 2023
I love the attitude towards veggies and food in general put forth here, and I'm inspired to try some of the recipes! I don't have the equipment to make everything (no ice cream maker, no pasta machine, etc) but a lot of it is doable in a standard kitchen with just a stove. everything is explained well and sounds yummy!
December 22, 2017
This was such a fun book. It's a vegetarian cookbook in the form of a graphic novel. The illustrations are phenomenal, the writing is hilarious and I cannot wait to try some of the recipes. My favorite part is when Amanda challenges Iron Chef Morimoto in Kitchen Stadium. What a blast. :)
April 27, 2018
I appreciate the unique idea for a graphic-novel cookbook, but it was just too hard to read. Plus, a black and white cookbook, especially when your recipes feature colorful recipes, is never a good idea.
May 13, 2018
The restaurant lit me up recently, so why not try the cookbook? The comic book gimmick didn’t appeal to me, but the cut-the-bullshit attidude did. Will probably try a few of the more manageable-seeming recipes in the next week or so.
January 18, 2019
There’s a lot of weird racism in this book! Add that to the poorly aged early-00’s webcomic art and the frankly weird recipes (complete with ludicrous plating diagrams) and it adds up to an underwhelming whole.
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