Eating your way through New York City never tasted so good. The NYC Vegan cookbook is full of all the flavors and culinary eats and treats iconic to New York City aka the five boroughs – Manhattan, Queens, the Bronx, Brooklyn and Staten Island. And yes, you will get a history lesson along with the recipes in this cookbook. ๐
Perusing through the pages of NYC Vegan: Iconic Recipes for a Taste of the Big Apple, the nostalgic references and city photos bring so much heart to this cookbook. I loved reading about the stories behind the foods.
Needless to say, the vegan New Yorker in me is very excited to bring you this delicious cookbook review, giveaway and look-to-the-cookie vegan Black and White Cookie Recipe!
About the Authors:
Michael Suchman is a Main Street Vegan Academy certified Vegan Lifestyle Coach and Educator as well as a Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine certified Food for Life instructor.
Ethan Ciment is a podiatric surgeon in New York City. He also serves on the board of directors at Woodstock Farm Sanctuary.
Together they are award-winning bloggers at VeganMos.com
Self-taught home cooks, they have learned how to whip up delicious eats that are quick, easy, satisfying and, of course, vegan! That said, this cookbook is for vegans, vegetarians and omnivores alike. Vegan food isnโt just great for being vegan, itโs just great food period and the recipes in NYC Vegan are proof of that.
Vegan from the Block
Getting down to earth, the book starts off with recipes of the basics that other recipes build on. For example, you have recipes for pizza dough, plant-based nut milks, cashew parmesan, tofu ricotta, seitan, and others as well.
In chapter three, Breakfast at Tiffanyโs, youโll find recipes for classic dishes like these.
Diner-Style pancakes
Cheese blintzes
Banana Bread French Toast
Matzoh Brei
New York-Style Bagels
Cinnamon Rolls
Chapter four, Power Lunch, includes classic soups like Manhattan Glam Chowder — yes Glam not Clam, Waladorf Salad, Tempeh Reuben Sandwich, Falafel, Knishes, Street Meat Platter, and even Street Cart Pretzels. Do you know those big pretzels around the city are not vegan?
Some other standouts for me include the following.
Sun-Dried Tomato Spread. This was always a must-have at every Central Park picnic!
Classic NYC Pizza
General Tsoโs Chickโn
Pierogis
Street Fair Corn
Churros
Nuts for Nuts – These are those crunchy sweet yummy street nuts usually sold at the carts with the roasted chestnuts.
New York Cheesecake
Mind you, the above list of recipes only captures a small selection. There are so many, many more in the book, plus a chapter on being vegan in New York City.
Virtual NYC Tour
NYC Vegan: Iconic Recipes for a Taste of the Big Apple really leaves no neighborhood, ethnic cuisine, deli, diner, street corner food, street fair or festival behind.
NYC Vegan invites you to take a virtual NYC eating tour with Michael and Ethan. Trust me, these guys are the tour guides you want in this special NYC culinary adventure.
Look to the Cookie!
The popular NYC-based 90s sitcom, Seinfeld, took the black and white cookie from Broadway to the national stage. In case you now feel the need to re-watch the “look to the cookie” scene from Seinfeld, as I did, I have included it all the way at the bottom below the giveaway.
Vegan Black & White Cookie Recipe
Thanks to a famous episode of Seinfeld, the black and white cookie, once only known to New Yorkers, garnered national attention. In that episode, Jerry used the black and white as a metaphor for racial harmony.
Although called a cookie, these treats are actually made from a stiff cake batter and baked free-form on a cookie sheet. Once found only in bakeries, today the black and white can be found in almost every grocery store and bodega in New York.
Reprinted with permission from NYC Vegan, copyright ยฉ 2017 by Michael Suchman and Ethan Ciment. Photo by Jackie Sobon.
Makes 18 cookies
Cookies:
2 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
1 1/4 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup sugar
1 cup nondairy butter
1/4 cup nondairy milk, at room temperature
2 teaspoons vanilla extract
Icing:
3 1/2 cups confectionersโ sugar
1/4 cup boiling water, plus more if needed
1/4 teaspoon vanilla extract
2/3 cup nondairy semisweet chocolate chips
Preheat the oven to 350ยฐF. Line 2 (18 x 12-inch) baking sheets with parchment paper. In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In another large bowl, combine the sugar and butter and beat until creamy, about 5 minutes. Add the milk and vanilla and beat until incorporated. Add the flour mixture to the butter mixture in batches, beating after each addition, until combined.
Scoop the dough, 1/4 cup at a time, onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing the scoops 3 inches apart. Flatten them slightly with your hands (keep your hands wet to prevent the dough from sticking). Allow room between the scoops as the cookies will spread as they bake.
Bake the cookies for 15 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean. Allow the cookies to cool 2 minutes on the baking sheets and then carefully flip the cookies over and transfer them, upside down, to a wire rack to cool completely.
While the cookies are cooling, make the icing. In a large mixing bowl, combine the confectionersโ sugar, boiling water, and vanilla. Mix well to get a spreadable icing. Add a little more water, if needed. Using an offset spatula, spread a thin layer of icing onto the flat side, the former bottom, of each cookie. Return the cookies to the wire rack to dry. You should have about 1/2 cup of icing left.
While the white icing is drying, melt the chocolate chips in a microwave or double boiler. When the chips are all melted and smooth, whisk the melted chocolate into the remaining icing. The chocolate icing should be thicker than the white, but still be spreadable. If it is too thick, add a little hot water to thin it out. Use the offset spatula to frost one half of each cookie over the white icing. Return the cookies to the wire racks to dry. Store leftovers in a covered container for up for 5 days.
NYC Vegan Cookbook Giveaway Time!
This giveaway starts 8/7/17 at 12AM and ends 8/15/17 at 12AM. The giveaway is open to anyone in the U.S. The winner will have 48 hours to respond to the notification email to claim their prize or a new winner will be drawn. The information you enter is collected by Rafflecopter and viewed by me in order to facilitate this giveaway.
Enter to win here!
A special thanks goes out to Vegan Heritage Press. The good folks there were kind enough to send me a copy of NYC Vegan for review and one for giveaway.
Book Design: Dianne Wenz
Photography: Jackie Sobon
Keep calm and vegan on,
๐ Sharon
P.s. Here’s that Seinfeld “Look to the Cookie” clip. Enjoy!
