Linger: Salads, Sweets, and Stories to Savor

In this appetizing vegetarian cookbook, bestseller McKinnon (To Asia, with Love) sets out to prove that “salad [is] a dish with limitless possibilities.” Whether or not home cooks are swayed by her expansive definition of the dish, the recipes she puts forward as evidence hold undeniable appeal. Some contain leafy greens—including tofu and kale with sweet peanut sauce, and a rice paper spring roll salad, which is served on a bed of butter lettuce—but others are entirely leafless, among them spicy tomatoes with pearl couscous, herby roasted cinnamon delicata squash and quinoa, and figs with farro and tahini. Asian influences pervade in soba noodles with crunchy vegetables and fermented tofu sesame sauce, noodles with mushroom and black bean sauce and daikon pickles, and tom kha noodle salad with seared mushrooms. McKinnon’s creativity shines when reinterpreting the classics: a savory twist on trifle, for example, layers grilled and puréed eggplant with grains; and falafel inspires a salad of pan-fried smashed chickpeas, tomatoes, cucumbers, and tahini. Exciting desserts round things out, from Hong Kong milk tea tres leches cake to plum and cardamom galette. McKinnon is especially good at offering suggestions for simple substitutions and modifications, with vegan and gluten-free riffs available for most recipes. The result is an inventive collection that transforms humble produce into something extraordinary. (Oct.)