(Click on the title for more of Majjie's thoughts)

This is a book of recipes for vegetarians - and non-vegetarians - alike. The recipes aren't designed for meat and then adapted ... they're original and tasty ways to cook food ... that just happen to be based on vegetables - and pasta and pulses (and the author himself, is not a vegetarian).

Many of you will have come across Yotam Ottolenghi before, he writes a weekly column called "The New Vegetarian" in the Guardian ... and he has four deli shops in London. Some of the recipes in the book are from his column but there are new ones too. The food has a strong Mediterranean and Middle Eastern influence; which is not surprising, since Yotam originally hails from Israel. It means that some of the ingredients may be a bit difficult to find but - by all accounts - it will be well worth the effort.

Chapters in the book are based on ingredients, rather than courses (and the only sweet recipes feature fruit and cheese) ... but isn't that the way we often cook ... starting with what we have available? Chapter headings include Green Things, Green Beans, Leaves Cooked and Raw, and Brassicas, and there are also chapters on mushrooms, onions, aubergines and pasta.

I came across rave reviews for: black pepper tofu, tomatoes and cous cous, lemon and aubergine risotto, caramelised garlic tart and chargrilled broccoli with chilli and garlic. Lots of people raved about the salads too, such as Moroccan carrot salad and green bean salad with mustard seeds and tarragon. There was one heretic, though ... who mentioned that many of the recipes would go splendidly with a lamb kebab!

For anyone who hasn't come across Ottolenghi before, there is a previous book, published a couple of years ago. Ottolenghi: The Cookbook by Sami Tamimi (Yotam's partner in the deli businesses) and Yotam Ottolenghi ... this one has rave reviews too ... and it includes meat, fish and sweet recipes.