Vegetarian Today: Here are some of the best recent cookbooks.(South Florida Sun-Sentinel)

Byline: Steve Petusevsky

There was a time when a few great books came out each year, usually around the winter holidays, and you could keep abreast of the new releases. But now it seems there are dozens of new cookbooks released each week. So I thought I'd share some of my favorites, the books that captured my attention.

There are many vegetarian and ethnic cookbooks coming out that will work for those on vegetarian diets. You'll note that one of these was published last year. I'm catching up on my reading and cooking.

_"The Angelica Home Kitchen," by Leslie McEachern; Ten Speed Press (2003, $27.95)

When I worked in New York City, I would stop by Angelica's Home Kitchen. This little restaurant turned out to be the epicenter of the vegan universe for years to come. There are more than 100 vegan recipes and lots of philosophy on everything from how to run a socially conscious business to supporting local growers. It is filled with information about the food we eat and choices we make, but most of all it has good vegan recipes, something many readers ask for. There's a wonderful recipe for Posole.

_"Real Stew," by Clifford Wright; Harvard Common Press (2002, $18.95)

I'm a sucker for comfort foods such as stews, casseroles and other braised dishes. This book has 300 recipes from 50 countries. There is a wonderful chapter on vegetarian stews with incredibly simple recipes. The bonus here is that once prepared, most of these recipes keep for days to enjoy all week. Many of the recipes freeze well, too. I made the Tourlu, which is a Greek stew of zucchini, yellow squash, fennel and garlic. People are still talking about it. The Spicy Indian Eggplant Stew ...