3 BOWLS--VEGETARIAN RECIPES FROM AN AMERICAN ZEN BUDDHIST MONASTERY.

3 BOWLS--VEGETARIAN RECIPES FROM AN AMERICAN ZEN BUDDHIST MONASTERY

By Seppo Ed Farrey with Myochi Nancy O'Hara

This vegetarian cookbook features food served at Dai Bosatsu Zendo, a traditional Zen monastery in New York's Catskill Mountains. Breakfast and lunch are formal meals that follow rituals established in traditional Zen monasteries, and are served and eaten in silence. Each diner gets three bowls of food--a large bowl containing the base of the meal, usually a grain or noodle dish; a medium bowl usually filled with a stew; and a small bowl consisting of vegetables or occasionally a salad. Meals are eaten with chopsticks.

Many of the recipes in this book are vegan. Eggs are primarily found only in the baked goods section, and vegan cheese can be substituted for dairy-based cheese. Most of the dishes are easy to prepare and clear instructions are given.

Among the creative recipes you'll find Orange-Ginger Spaghetti Squash, Herbed Sesame Polenta with Roasted Vegetables, Quinoa-Sunflower Stuffing, Savory Whipped Sweet Potatoes with Ribbons of Collard Greens, Smoky Pinto Pate, and Double-Berry Poached Pears.

3 Bowls--Vegetarian Recipes from an American Zen Buddhist Monastery (ISBN 0-395-97707-X) is published by Houghton Mifflin Company. The book is 254 pages and it retails for $17. You can find it in bookstores. Reviewed by Debra Wasserman.