Grilling Vegan Style by John Schlimm is a book with a lot of good ideas and recipes whether you eating as a Vegan or not. I’ve done a lot of grilling in my career as a chef, and I easily recognized that the author knows what he’s talking about. Early on in the opening pages he has a section that tells you just what you will need to be successful with his recipes. For those who are still learning about eating Vegan there are also some basics he talks about. The main point of the book is grilling with a lot of good information put forth.

I chose two recipes to try although I wanted to try more, especially the grilled romaine salad. The picture he provides of it on page 53 looks so nice! I must admit that I have had grilled romaine before, a la Caesar, as in Caesar Salad and it was terrific. I’m sure that John’s version is too! I was looking for a recipe that was a bit of a challenge so I chose to make the Italian Herb Burgers on Focaccia. A food processor is key to the success of this recipe so be prepared. In the food processor goes: kidney beans, rolled oats, flour, egg substitute, mushrooms, red onions, carrots, red bell peppers, basil, parsley, sun dried tomatoes, tomato paste, garlic and soy. After several on and off pulses of the machine and some time chilling, then forming into patties and more chilling, it’s time to broil first and then grill. Broiling first gives the burgers a firm outer coating and makes them easier to flip on the grill. I found that the use of some canola oil being rubbed on the burgers aided in the ease of preventing sticking to the grill. They were done and I served them as suggested on nice fresh and fluffy focaccia topped with fresh diced tomatoes and some homemade pesto---yum!

It was nice to see desserts included in the “grilling” process. The Grilled Peaches with Raspberry Sauce is so perfect for this time of year. Whether you use locally grown, or peaches from California or Georgia---this is the best time of the year for them, and raspberries too! A key to the success is to buy cling-free peaches, the ones where the pit is easily removed so you can cut then perfectly in half. Marinate the halves and raspberries in molasses, sugar and lime and them grill them on a clean grill, and then place in a bowl with the raspberries that were marinated in the same molasses mixture and voila---a delicious and easy dessert!

There are so many more recipes in the book and some good sounding drinks too! The paper quality and the photographs are top quality and make this soft cover book worth buying---hey the BBQ season is just starting and will go thorough Columbus day or longer. Don’t delay, start “Grilling Vegan Style”!