Vegetarian Cooking for Good Health

False modesty is no problem for Null ( The New Vegetarian Cookbook ), who encourages readers to ``use this cookbook as a guide to help you make positive changes in all aspects of your life,'' although he doesn't explain how a cookbook can accomplish such a far-ranging goal. The collection comprises more than 300 mostly vegetarian recipes (there is a fish chapter), ranging from soups and salads through main courses and side dishes to desserts and sauces, adding some handy dishes to the meatless repertoire. Null states that several dishes are designed for people who have food allergies or who want to control cholesterol intake, but the book offers no clues as to which these are. A number of recipes, such as tempeh with arame (seaweed) and fresh ginger or lentil pea soup flavored with Herbimare (a vegetable seasoning salt), require ingredients from health food or oriental supply stores. Generally, the collection has a slightly dated feel, but when Null goes trendy, he does it with a vengeance; for example, he is lavish with extra-virgin olive oil, even when the delicate flavor of this pricey item clearly is overpowered by other ingredients (such as frying eggplant in it to prepare spaghetti with eggplant and garlic). (Aug.)