Savoring
Meaningful Vegan Recipes from Across Oceans
- Publisher
- Random House Canada
- Initial publish date
- Mar 2024
- Category
- Vegan, Natural Foods, Vegetarian & Vegan
-
Hardback
- ISBN
- 9780525611790
- Publish Date
- Mar 2024
- List Price
- $37.50
Classroom Resources
Where to buy it
Description
A collection of beautiful and inspiring plant-based recipes filled with the flavors of far-reaching influences. Savoring invites you to slow down and immerse yourself in vegan cooking—meal by meal, moment by moment.
There is something so satisfying about choosing to consciously slow down and create a dish without distractions: cherishing the time in the kitchen, celebrating the ingredients that give us life, and slowly transforming them into something magical. Murielle Banackissa—recipe developer, food stylist, and photographer—has spent hours, nights, whole weekends in her kitchen cooking for herself and for others. In Savoring, she shares a collection of her unique plant-based recipes that is both a celebration of those special moments found in cooking (grilling flavor into peaches to top weekend waffles, sitting with mushrooms while they caramelize) and an interweaving of her different cultural influences—from her upbringing in the Republic of Congo, to her mother’s Russian and Ukrainian heritage recipes, and her family’s immigration to Montreal.
With recipes that range from stuffed savory crepes to lentil-filled dumplings to cassava leaf and spinach stew, inside, you’ll find:
- Bountiful Breakfasts: Crispy Chickpea Pancakes with Avocado and Salsa; Rum-Coconut French Toast with Caramelized Bananas; Stewed Blackberries and Lemon Ricotta Toasts
- Small Plates and Salads: Pan-Fried Plantains; Pearl Barley Salad with Roasted Bell Peppers and Vegan Feta; Garlicky Miso-Glazed Bok Choy; Fufu
- Marvelous Main Dishes: Coconut-Crusted Tofu with Spicy Mango Salsa; Peanut Butter and Sweet Potato Stew; Sesame Ginger Glazed Shiitakes with Sticky Rice; Quebec Meatless Pie
- Delectable Desserts: Olive Oil and Rose Polenta Bundt Cake; Spiced Poached Pear Puff Pastry Tart; Date-Sweetened Chocolate Cream Tarts; Fried Banana Beignets
With Murielle's stunning, atmospheric photography accompanying every recipe, Savoring is the debut cookbook from a very exciting new food talent. Filled with recipes inspired by her far-reaching family, it is a thoughtful and delicious exploration of all kinds of plant-based dishes sure to introduce new flavors to your table.
About the author
Contributor Notes
Murielle Banackissa is a food photographer, recipe developer, and food stylist based in Montreal. Outside of spending hours developing new recipes and shooting them in her home studio, Murielle loves paying attention to the details surrounding her as a way to feel more grounded and present. From water droplets resting on leaves after rainfall, to the golden glow of summer nights, to the way yeasted dough rises under the ideal conditions, she is always seeking the magic in seemingly mundane moments.
Excerpt: Savoring: Meaningful Vegan Recipes from Across Oceans (by (author) Murielle Banackissa)
EXCERPT FROM THE INTRODUCTION
My earliest food memories are of my early childhood in the Republic of Congo. I was born in a coastal town called Pointe-Noire, where I lived for the first eight years of my life, often heading to the beach on school lunch breaks with my mom to catch the low tide. I remember the warm, clear, light blue water, the white sand, and how far I could walk into the ocean before even half of my body was submerged in the saltwater. I was blessed to have an early childhood characterized by slow, intentional living, and a close connection to nature. I loved climbing our backyard trees to get a better view of our house, crushing tropical flowers together to create “perfume” for my mom, observing the snails and slugs that would appear on our doorstep after a torrential rainfall, and playing with colors on canvas in painting lessons.
In August 2002, my family came to arrive in Montreal, Canada. There were multiple shock factors: the sounds (I never thought cities could be so loud!), the language (although Congo’s main language is also French, Quebec vocabulary and accent are unique), and, of course, the food. My mom became the primary cook in our household, which allowed her to reconnect with some of her own Russian culinary heritage as she dedicated her precious time to experimenting in the kitchen to create tasty dishes.
Some of my most cherished memories are of the weekends after church: my family and our friends—many hailing from different continents—would gather at each other’s houses with dishes of food, often from our native countries (stuffed cabbage rolls from Ukraine, sauerkraut from Estonia). Through these meals, I realized the power that food has to forge a community. All those colors, textures, and flavors were a true feast for my senses, each dish helping me develop my palate and appreciate the love and care that went into cooking it. It was the beginning of my food journey.
Food—preparing it, sharing it—is something I want to take my time with. Through food-filled gatherings with my family’s church friends in Pointe-Noire; to weekend mornings in Montreal, my mom preparing her crepes or French toasts; to my solo college weekends when I would pore over a new recipe; to meeting my husband, Sam, and discovering a whole new world of flavors through our travels together and his own family history, I’ve come to realize that food is an anchor, it’s love. And it’s my way of showing love to all those who matter to me—and now, to the world—through the recipes I share with you in this cookbook.
Dedicating an entire evening to preparing dinner, or investing a few extra moments in grilling additional flavor into the peaches to top waffles for a decadent Sunday brunch, allows me to delve deeper into my food journey, uncovering flavors, textures, and stories behind the dishes. There is something so satisfying about choosing to consciously slow down and create a dish of my own—or to execute someone else’s recipe—without distractions. I get in a zone where I am fully present and connected to the food, attentive to how it changes as it cooks slowly on the stove or bakes in the oven. And I feel a sense of excitement when a recipe calls for refrigeration to allow for the recipe to come together! Spending time in the kitchen preparing food is about love—for food, for yourself, and for others. It’s about celebrating the ingredients that give us life, and dressing them up in a way that will make them stand out. Whether I am cooking for myself as an act of self-love or for others as a way to show them my love, every step of the process is permeated with this emotion.
So, this book is for the other adventurous cooks out there. The ones looking for reinvented classics and new flavors to explore. If you’re looking for a book full of quick-and-easy weeknight dinners, this is not it (although a handful of the recipes might fall in that category, allowing you to still get all the flavor while on the go!). But rather, these recipes are geared toward the home cook who loves to set aside a special time on weekends or Friday night to explore new recipes, new flavors, and new cooking techniques—the cook who does not want to rush the cooking process but enjoys every step, from the browning of onions to caramelizing them to the slow stirring of the risotto and all the way to the final garnishing touch.
Editorial Reviews
“Savoring has everything you want in a cookbook: a stunning collection of flavor-forward, inventive recipes that beg to be cooked, a beautiful tribute to shared cultures, and a thoughtful and compelling invitation to slow down and savor life and all its flavors. Murielle’s accessible, unique plant-based dishes will inspire you to be a better cook and more joyous eater.”
—HANNAH CHE, author of The Vegan Chinese Kitchen
“I’m inspired by the vegan interpretations of Murielle’s well-loved family recipes in this remarkable collection. Nods to tradition, new vegan classics, sophisticated options for entertaining, and quick comfort food all have a place here.”
—LAURA WRIGHT, author of The First Mess Cookbook
“While the promise of 15-minute dinners has never been louder, most of us still find ourselves stressed and overworked. Murielle has given us a beautiful and much-needed reminder that when we’re intentional in the kitchen, we not only appreciate our food more, but we’re also practicing the radical act of love for ourselves and others. Between the stunning photography and the wide variety of unique plant-based meals that speak to Murielle’s cross-cultural upbringing, Savoring will earn a spot both on your coffee table and in your kitchen.”
—NISHA VORA, author of The Vegan Instant Pot Cookbook and creator of Rainbow Plant Life
“Whether you eat entirely plant-based or not, this book is for you. This collection of recipes is beautifully vibrant and full of flavor, the kind of dishes that are food for the soul: nourishing, comforting, and utterly delicious. Murielle has created a gem of a cookbook that deserves to be in every kitchen.”
—DIALA CANELO, author of Diala’s Kitchen
“This cookbook is a feast for the senses, with beautiful food photography that will inspire you to get into the kitchen and start cooking! The entirely plant-based recipes burst with flavor and celebrate Murielle’s diverse culinary journey, from her childhood memories in the Congo to her passion for veganism. With a focus on slow and intentional cooking, and with everything from savory dishes to decadent desserts, this book is perfect for home cooks who want to create delicious, wholesome dishes that will delight their taste buds and impress their loved ones.”
—SADIA BADIEI, founder of Pick Up Limes
“With intentional, slow recipes that bring out the best of nutritious ingredients, these are vegan dishes bursting with flavor. There’s a wonderful mix of recipes in Savoring from Murielle’s cultural background and I would happily make every one. With beautifully dramatic photography and an equally stunning design, this is a cookbook you’ll turn to again and again.”
—ALEXANDRA DAUM, author of Occasionally Eggs