Deborah Madison is a legend in the world of vegetarian cooking. She got her start at the San Francisco Zen Center and Chez Panisse in the late ‘70s, and was the founding chef at Greens Restaurant, a landmark vegetarian restaurant in San Francisco. In addition to cooking all over the world over the course of her career, Deborah also teaches and writes about vegetarian cooking.

Jeremy Fox is a young California chef known for his inventive plant-based recipes. He is currently the executive chef at a great restaurant called Rustic Canyon in Santa Monica and was previously at Ubuntu in Napa, where he earned the restaurant a Michelin star. Jeremy is also married to Rachael Sheridan, one of the owners of the gourmet almond butter company Solstice Canyon. Needless to say, I’ve been very excited for his first cookbook, “On Vegetables”, to finally come out.

This potato side dish is everything a busy home cook wants in a recipe: it’s simple to make, looks great on the plate, and is a total crowd-pleaser (even with the little ones). I found it in farmer-turned-foodie Andrea Bemis’s new seasonal cookbook “Dishing Up the Dirt” and knew it would be one of those recipes I’d turn to often. Simply boil, smash, and roast a few pounds of small Yukon gold potatoes. While they’re cooking you can prepare Andrea’s sauce to pour over top.

Sarah Britton, the holistic chef behind the popular food blog and cookbook “My New Roots”, released her second title in February, called “Naturally Nourished”. Not unlike her first book, this new tome is filled with beautiful, uncomplicated recipes that rely on whole, plant-based ingredients found in any grocery store. In other words, it’s every health-minded home cook’s dream.