Guest Blogger: Chef Roberto Martin, Author of "Vegan Cooking For Carnivores"

Meet Chef Roberto Martin!

I was beyond thrilled to find this new cookbook titled "Vegan Cooking For Carnivores: Over 125 Recipes So Tasty You Won't Miss the Meat"(Grand Central Publishing) by Roberto Martin.  I think he wrote this book with my family in mind being that my kids and I are vegans while my husband is a total carnivore (who I'm verrryyyy slowly converting).

Chef Roberto Martin is not your average chef.  And he had no intention of ever being called a vegan chef either.  Chef Roberto is changing the way the mainstream views vegan food.  As Ellen Degeneres' and Portia de Rossi's personal chef, Chef Roberto was forced to go beyond his comfort zone to develop some tasty vegan dishes to satisfy his clients.  He certainly did not disappoint!

I could not wait to get my hands on this book and test some meals out on my meat-loving hubby!  Chef Roberto's recipes have such flavor depth and thoughtful textures that leave carnivores forgetting about the fact that they're meatless.  From classic dishes like Banana & Oatmeal Pancakes, Grilled Veggie Sandwich, Mac'N Cheese and Southern Fried Chick'n to more daring dishes like Roasted Corn Dodgers, Hearts of Palm Ceviche Tostadas, Grilled Polenta Cakes and Homemade Ravioli, Roberto doesn't miss a flavor beat!  I'm excited to try more of his recipes, especially on unsuspecting house guests we're having over soon...shhh.

Here's more with Chef Roberto Martin:

Veggie Kids: What led you to become a vegan chef and are you yourself vegan?

Chef Roberto Martin: Well, for 10 years, I was a successful, non-vegan personal chef.  When the opportunity to cook for Ellen and Portia arose, I accepted the job as a challenge to myself and my cooking ability. What I discovered in the process is that not only was this food good, but I enjoyed cooking it. My approach was simple; I made the same type of food I had made in the past, but simply substituted the animal proteins for plant based proteins. I would consider myself 95% vegan.  

VK: I love that one of the goals of your book, "Vegan Cooking For Carnivores", is to make vegan cooking easy for everyone.  Were there people in your life you were trying to convert when you had this in mind?

Chef: It's not so much that I was aiming to convert anyone, but I always kept my wife's family in mind when creating recipes. A lot of her family lives in Missouri, and I wanted to be sure that the whole country could replicate my recipes regardless of where they lived and their cooking background. As a personal chef and a father, I feel that I am somewhat in tune to the time restraints and pressures of the average American household. I felt that anyone willing to take on the challenge of eating vegan was going to need quick and easy recipes to follow.

VK: Did you ever expect "Vegan Cooking For Carnivores" to make it to #3 on NY Times Best Sellers List (seeing as how veganism isn't exactly mainstream)? 

Chef: No. I had of course hoped for the best but never dreamed this book would be so openly embraced. It's a wonderful feeling to know that people I have never met have enjoyed my cooking through these recipes and are seeing how tasty and easy vegan food can be.

VK: What is your favorite go-to vegan treat?

Chef: I know it's not creative or chef-like, but I love smoky almonds. I also enjoy cucumbers with lime, salt and chili powder.

Thanks Chef Roberto Martin!

The most difficult part about recreating Chef Roberto's recipes was trying to decide which ones to cook first.  I decided on the Shitake Lettuce Cups & Vegan La Bete Noire (The Black Beast).

My husband came home during lunch time while I was making these and being that he's a die-hard carnivore, I couldn't wait to get his opinion.  He LOVED this dish!  He raved about how flavorful it was and said he'd eat it again and again.  I served it to him in a flour tortilla shell instead of the lettuce or swiss chard leaf.  My kids also tried these (in the leaf) and loved them, saying they were super fun to eat!

Look how pretty and colorful this dish is! 

This cake is incredibly rich and chocolatey with a creamy texture, similar to a cheesecake.  There is no way you'd guess it's made with tofu!  I brought this to a friend's house and she loved it!  (I substituted the almond based crust with a graham cracker crust.)

"Vegan Cooking For Carnivores" is available at most book retailers, including Amazon.com & Barnes & Noble.com.

Check him out on The Today Show cooking up Southern Fried Chik'n.

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