Author Mark Bittman has a new book out, How To Cook Everything Vegetarian, sort of a sequel ot his hit How To Cook Everything (or, more accurately, the next book in the series), and in this interview with Publisher's Weekly, he says that even though he eats meat, he finds himself eating less these days, and thinks more and more people will eat this way.

Meatpaper is the self-proclaimed "journal of meat culture," and judging from what's up at their site, they're correct.

The site is filled with several articles on the "arts and ideas about meat," including pieces about the dry-aging room at New York's Master Purveyors, pig slaughter in Italy, why Filipinos eat Spam, and getting over the guilt of eating meat. There are also links to various food blogs.

The site itself says that they "like metaphors more than marinating tips," which I take as an indication that they're going to be talking about the world of food and not recipes and kitchen advice. They're taking subscriptions now, so you might want to check it out.

It's a shame that I didn't see this vegan turkey recipe before I tried making the rather... interesting... Tofurkey shortly before this past Thanksgiving. The Tofurkey was a tofu-based "roast" with a wild rice stuffing and a faux-giblet gravy on the side. The vegan turkey from Two Vegan sisters almost reverses the order of ingredients, ending up with something that sounds much more appetizing. At the center of their "turkey," they used seitan, a wheat-based meat substitute, and covered it in a layer of stuffing that was shaped into a turkey-like mass and had turkey/stuffing legs added. The whole construction was covered with a layer of homemade (vegan) puff pastry and baked until golden. A turkey and stuffing savory pastry? It seems hard to go wrong with that!

And if you're not a vegan, this idea could still work for you. I can picture sausages or even real turkey in the center of this faux bird. It would certainly be an interesting take on the traditional bird at your next family dinner!

[via the ppk blog]

Thanksgiving can be a tough holiday for vegans, as the meal is centered around turkey, with stuffing that is either cooked inside the bird or has turkey stock added, and lots of dishes with egg and dairy added to them. If on side dish is vegan, that is hardly the same feast that others are enjoying. For vegans in LA, there is an alternative to scanty side-dish fare. Real Food Daily is offering a vegan Thanksgiving To-Go, full of lots of flavor that is 100% plant-based. The dinner includes: Butternut Bisque, Faux Turkey Breast, Corn Sage Stuffing, Candied Garnet Yams, Mashed Potatoes and Parsnips, Golden Gravy, Herb Roasted Vegetables, Baby Green Bean Salad, Cranberry Relish and a slice of Pumpkin Pie with Tofu Whip. The whole meal is just $36.95 per person, but there are only a few days left to get your order in by calling the restaurant. They also have organic, maple-syrup sweetened vegan pies, Pumpkin and Pecan, that would be great for dessert if you want something to share with the whole family, as well as an Apple Pear Spice Cake with vanilla maple cream.

If you're ever in the mood for some extra food porn, the Post Punk Kitchen forums have a great section dedicated to it. This particularly mouthwatering photo is of Apple Peanut Butter Caramel Bars, which have a graham cracker crust, cooked apple filling, crumb topping and a layer of caramel. Although I haven't had a chance to try out the recipe myself yet, I suspect that the caramel is really the star of this dessert. Instead of being based on a sugar and butter combination, it is a mix of peanut butter and maple syrup, strong flavors that make a dangerously addictive combination - and a unique one at that. The caramel would also be a great topping for ice cream, if you don't want to make the whole dessert.

As you might suspect from the photo, these are not bars that you can pick up easily and eat out of your hand, as you might with a brownie or a cheesecake bar. They are so loaded up with stuff, the bars should be served sliced and plated, just a like a pie.

Some blogs just talk about food, but others go into great detail with recipes and general issues they encounter. I'm not talking about politics here (even though I won't deny it that it can come up from time to time), but about issues with food and eating that anyone can relate to. For example, Jennifer, of Vegan Lunchbox, is in a position that many parents find easy to relate to, as she prepares different (and hopefully both appealing and reasonably healthy) meals for her son's school lunches. Some bloggers mention struggling with weight loss and some just want to bake more cookies.

These are all great reads with great photography and, if you're interested, offer up some recipes that are worth trying - whether you're a vegan or not.

1. Vegan lunchbox: As I mentioned above, this chronicles the daily lunchboxes - as healthy, balanced, tasty and creative - as Jennifer can come up with for her son. She's also working on a cookbook and shares some good recipes.
2. Vegan Feast Kitchen: This site is a particular favorite of mine, since Bryanna Clark Grogan is a very talented chef who has shared many, many recipes over the years in her newsletter and in her cookbooks. Does vegan cooking sound easy enough to make "talented" sound like an understatement? Think again. She recently devised a vegan angel food cake.

Vegetarians might be feeling left out of our steak day celebration here at Slashfood, but there is definitely a work-around for those who don't eat red meat: portobello mushrooms. Portobellos, also called portabellas, are actually just the mature versions of brown cremini mushrooms. They are known for their size, which makes the more versatile than many smaller mushrooms. They have a juicy, meaty texture with just the right amount of chew to them. The mushrooms can be seasoned and grilled (broiled, baked, etc) much in the same way as steaks can be, too. To make a vegetarian steak with a mushroom, just clean it carefully, coat it with some olive/vegetable oil and a spice rub (or let it sit in a marinade for 30 minutes), then cook as desired until tender. I cook mushrooms this way frequently, grilling them or letting them cook under the broiler. Here are a few vegetarian recipes to get you started:

• Butternut Squash Risotto with Portobello Steak
• Balsamic Portobello Steaks
• Portabella Steak Burgers

[Image Williams-Sonoma]