A Plant-Based Chef’s 5 Favorite Cookbooks for Healthy Inspiration

Morgan Shupe

I always turn to cookbooks primarily for inspiration. It’s not just about getting information and precise plant-based recipes because I like changing them up too much! I love the photos too, and just getting a glimpse into how other chefs and food experts combine flavors. Here’s my five all time favorite cookbooks for inspiration:

1. Flavor Bible

This is my number one recommendation to anyone who likes to cook. I got it in my senior year of high school as a present and it is easily my top used cookbook. It is great if you are comfortable with the techniques of cooking but are still learning how to put flavors together. Every single time I look in this book I learn something new. Even better, they just came out with a vegetarian version!

2. The Fannie Farmer Cookbook

This was a staple in my house growing up and is still in my own home today. This is a great reference when you are not sure what temperature to roast something at or for how long something should cook. Although not a plant-based book it is still a great guide on basic techniques for recipes and is easy to adapt from traditional recipes to plant-based ones.

3. The Art of Fermentation or Wild Fermentation

Sandor Katz is a fermentation god. I was lucky enough to see him speak in Vancouver a few years ago and was blown away. He went from living in New York City to moving to Tennessee where he grew too much cabbage and decided to make his first batch of sauerkraut. That was over 20 years ago and he was had a batch of sauerkraut going ever since. I AM OBESSED WITH HIM AND ALL THINGS FERMENTATION RELATED! The Art of Fermentation is more of a fermentation textbook, very in depth, with clear guides and instructions on how to ferment various things but no actual recipes. Wild Fermentation is Sandor’s first book and although a great source of information, it is less in depth than Wild Fermentation.

4. Rene Redzepi: A Work in Progress

Rene Redzepi is changing the culinary world with his annual MAD Symposium—think TED Talks for food, he believes that the role of people in the foods industry is developing into a position of influence and that means we need to be more connected to our food, the people who grow it and every step of the process. On top of the MAD Symposium he also has one of the world’s best restaurants in Copenhagen, Noma. This book bundle is a combination of an amazing inspiring cookbook with gorgeous photography, a snapshot book of pictures from working at Noma and also a journal of Rene’s.

5. Mastering The Art of French Cooking

A classic – no explanation needed. It is really fun going through this and trying to adapt these classic recipes into plant-based versions. When I was developing the Mushroom Bourguinon recipe, this book was my first stop! EXTRA: Lucky Peach – Ok not a cookbook, but this is a great food magazine especially if you have ever been in the industry. Every single issue blows me away!

Check out how Chef Morgan puts her fermentation obsession to use in this Vegan Kimchi

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Morgan Shupe

Head Chef at Vega

Morgan Shupe is head chef at Vega. She transforms Vega HQ’s kitchen into a soup and salad bar of epic proportions to nourish Vegatopians every weekday. Morgan has wanted to be a chef since the age of 5 and is currently studying to become a registered holistic nutritionist. You can find more of her recipes on her blog—Shupe’s Soups + Mo & Lo

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