New Vegetarian Cookbook and another CONSIDERATION for choosing more vegetarian options

Author of a dozen bestselling cookbooks and beloved columnist for The New York Times ("The Minimalist"), Chef Mark Bittman bookends his award-winning modern classic, How to Cook Everything, with How to Cook Everything: Vegetarian the ultimate one-stop resource for meatless meals. Refreshingly straightforward and filled with illustrated recipes, this is a book that puts vegetarian cuisine within the reach of every home cook. You'll want to spend countless days in the kitchen with Bittman's latest culinary treasure.

"First off, we eat too much of that stuff for our health; every single responsible, independent, and impartial study shows as much. But they also show that replacing the beef in your diet with potato chips and soda won’t do you any good. You can be a “vegetarian” and still eat plenty of food that’s bad for you".

"Secondly, the production of animal products as food is a major contributor to global warming. See the UN Report entitled Livestock’s Long Shadow (http://www.fao.org/docrep/010/a0701e/a0701e00.htm), which says, ultimately, that 18 percent of greenhouse gasses are a direct result of the production of animals for human consumption. " - Mark Bittman

Order the book here: Amazon.com: How to Cook Everything Vegetarian: Simple Meatless Recipes for Great Food (How to Cook Everything): Books: Mark B. it just came out a few weeks ago and already has received mostly 5 stars. I just made the black bean burgers with cashews and carrots below which is his recipe and they are fantastic!

And I would add the Hindu concept of AHIMSA - doing non-violence to self or other sentient beings (which includes animals!)..Ahimsa (Devanagari: अहिंसा; IAST ahiṃsā) is a Sanskrit term meaning non-violence (literally: the avoidance of violence - himsa) It is an important tenet of the religions that originated in ancient India (Hinduism Buddhism and especially Jainism). Ahimsa is a rule of conduct that bars the killing or injuring of living beings It is closely connected with the notion that all kinds of violence entail negative karmic consequences The extent to which the principle of non-violence can or should be applied to different life forms is controversial between various authorities movements and currents within the three religions and has been a matter of debate for thousands of years... More info at http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ahimsa

Black Bean Burgers with Cashews and Carrots

From Chef Mark Bittman
Makes 6 burgers

The marvelous Mark Bittman gave us the idea for combining black beans and oats for a burger that has great texture and looks just like the real thing. These are fine plain, with a squeeze of lemon, or with a big spoonful of Avocado and Black Bean Salsa.

Note: If you cook the beans yourself, take them off the heat and drain them while they still retain a little texture.

1 large celery rib, coarsely cut up
1 medium-large carrot, peeled and shredded
12 large roasted cashews
2 cups cooked or canned organic black beans, rinsed and drained well
1/3 cup steel-cut oats
1 1/2 teaspoons organic vegetable bouillon powder
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon rice vinegar
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, plus more for the pan
Yellow cornmeal

Put the celery, carrot, and cashews in a food processor. Pulse to chop coarsely. Add the beans, oats, bouillon powder, cumin, vinegar, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Pulse until just mixed evenly. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.

Form the bean mixture into 6 patties. Dust lightly with cornmeal to coat both sides. Heat the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the patties and sauté for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until lightly browned. Or bake in a 375 degree F oven for about 15 minutes. Let sand for 2 to 3 minutes to firm up before serving.