The Vegetarian Table: Mexico

Mouth-watering color photos enhance the appeal of these 90 recipes, which adapt Mexican cuisine to the vegetarian diet. Wise (American Charcuterie), a former first chef of Chez Panisse, avoids animal ingredients except for eggs and dairy products and replaces lard with the more healthful olive oil, though many of the recipes are not low-fat. Six chapters present salsas and condiments; tortilla cuisine; soups; pasta, rice and beans; salads and vegetables; and sweets. Tradition shares space happily with the innovative: a recipe for fresh tomato salsa leads into one combining jicama and watermelon, and another mixing grapefruit and pumpkin seeds; a classic tortilla soup is followed up by one calling for russet potatoes, cantaloupe, lime, serrano chiles and milk. Frequently calling for traditional ingredients with which many cooks may be unfamiliar, Wise includes a useful glossary of ingredients in this handsome, tempting collection. (May)