Book Review: The Tropical Vegan Kitchen

Donna Klein’s cookbook The Tropical Vegan Kitchen covers healthy and tasty plant-based meals inspired by tropical locations in the Caribbean, Latin America, Africa and Southeast Asia. For those looking to try new international foods minus the meat, or just wanting know what to cook in the hostel kitchen while on the road, this book offers a variety of suggestions and unique recipe ideas.

I think what impressed me the most about The Tropical Vegan Kitchen was the diversity of flavor pairings the author presented within the standard categories of appetizers, main dishes, desserts, etc. Island bean burgers with Caribbean style creole sauce, black bean and avocado enchiladas with chipotle, pineapple vinaigrette and Thai corn chowder with lime and basil are just a few of the recipe ideas of note in this treasure trove of healthy food fare. A few others of note?

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  Baked sweet potatoes topped with a spicy black bean chili.


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  Papaya ketchup


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  Cambodian tomato soup


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  Baked wonton crisps


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  Caribbean eggplant spread


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  Warm new potatoes with Indonesian peanut sauce

Featured Recipe:

One simple recipe that caught my eye as exotic yet simple was this easy black bean and tropical fruit salsa. As for affordability, I can find all of these ingredients at my local Save-A-Lot.

Here’s what you need:

¾ cup chopped fresh papaya
¾ cup chopped fresh mango

¾ cup chopped fresh pineapple
1 fifteen-ounce can of rinsed and drained black beans (or the equivalent amount of prepared dry beans)
1-2 jalapeño chilies (seeded and finely chopped)
½ cup finely chopped red onion
¼ cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
2 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp fresh lime juice
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
freshly ground black pepper to taste

Toss all ingredients until thoroughly combined and let sit for ten minutes for flavors to combine. Serve with tortilla chips as a snack.

Personal Verdict:

The Tropical Vegan Kitchen is definitely a worthy purchase for those exploring veganism, or just trying to reduce meat and dairy intake for planetary reasons. It’s also an excellent resource in its own right for exploring flavor pairings from the various tropical regions of the world. Available on Amazon.Com.

For more tropical mealtime flair, check out this pineapple recipes article over on Wise Bread.

Book Photo Credit: The Penguin Group
Black Bean Salad Photo Credit: Gydluf

This collection of family travel essays gives you a broad perspective of the reality of life on the road with the little ones. Edited by Laura Manske, the work includes various highlights:

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  Blessed, by Mary Morris. Details a wonderfully creative trip to China which ultimately resulted in the birth of her daughter.

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  Road Scholars, by James O’Reilly. A family of five tackles an eight thousand mile road trip throughout France with three young children, a VW van and absolutely no hotel reservations. Includes some hilarious anecdotes of bilingual development.

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  Through the Eyes of a Little Girl, by Frank Lidz. A pair of incredibly secure parents sets their travel agenda according to the educational whims of their two daughters.

Those interested in having a peek at family travel from parents of all types should find this title reasonably interesting.

Photo Credit: Travelers’ Tales

As you know, I love to find recipes that are tasty as well as frugal. Those of you who caught my lentil recipe round up over on Wise Bread know that beans and legumes are on my list of healthy frugal fare. This recipe comes from a cookbook I bought years ago called Beans & Grains, by James McNair.  It is best served over couscous, bulgur or wheat berries.

What you need: 2 cups dried Egyptian fava (ful medames) or garbanzo beans, 3 tbsp olive oil, 3 cups chopped yellow onion, 1 cup chopped carrot, 1 tsp minced garlic, 1 cinnamon stick (3 inches long), 3 whole cloves, ½ tsp saffron threads, 6 fresh cilantro sprigs, 6 fresh sprigs of flat leaf parsley, 2 quarts of unsalted chicken or vegetable stock (optional), 1 cup peeled and chopped tomato, salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

What you do: Clean and soak beans overnight. In a large pot, heat the oil to medium high and add onions and carrots. Saute until soft, about five minutes. Add garlic, cinnamon, cloves and saffron. Saute about one minute more. Drain the beans and stir them into the pot, adding cilantro, parsley and stock (or water) to cover the mixture by about ½ an inch. Bring to a boil and keep it rolling for about 10 minutes. Reduce to a simmer and cook until tender, checking frequently. When nearly done, add the tomato, salt and pepper. Depending on the size of your beans and depth of your pot, this can take up to two hours. (Which is why you may want to do this in a crock pot, reducing the heat part way through the process.)

What I like about this recipe is that aside from the saffron threads, the ingredients are all super affordable. Add some flat bread and chai to the mix and you’ve got a sit-around-the-campfire type of meal. It’s also completely vegan, if that’s your thing. So light a fire, pop in some North African music and get psyched for your next trip.

Photo Credit: Dlisbona