The Conscious Kitchen is for everyone who wish to be more conscious about their habits and do their part preserve the Earth. It is an important book, and even you pick it up for upgrading your kitchen game, this is a wonderful resource with great insights.

I received an ARC of this cookbook from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This cookbook is filled with interesting, creative recipes that are good for the Earth and good for you!

As someone who has followed Immy Lucas for years, I was thrilled to see that she published a new book. While I’m not vegan and don’t plan to be in the near future, I am interested in adopting a more frugal and mindful approach to food, including incorporating more plant-based recipes into our diet. That being said, I believe this book offers something for everyone, even those who don’t exclusively follow a plant-based lifestyle.

I was especially pleased to find an entire chapter dedicated to fermenting and preserving food, as it’s something I’ve been wanting to try myself—though I feel a bit embarrassed, given that I come from a culture with a long history of food preservation. The book also includes multiple chapters focused on seasonal eating, offering a variety of recipes to suit all tastes. Additionally, I appreciated the chapter on reducing food waste.

Following Immy’s content over the years has shifted how I think about food. Her work inspired me to start small projects like growing my own herbs and to pay more attention to the source and quality of what I eat. I think this book will be a go-to source of inspiration for me for years to come.

This book is a breath of fresh air for anyone looking to create a healthier home and planet through sustainable kitchen practices. Focusing on year-round seasonal eating and plant-based recipes, it offers a comprehensive approach to reducing waste and making the most of every ingredient.

What I love most about this book is its commitment to a no-waste philosophy. Filled with practical tips and creative ideas for utilizing food scraps and leftovers, turning what might normally be discarded into delicious meals. The author’s passion for cooking with what you have shines through, making it easy to see how we can all reduce our food waste without sacrificing flavor or nutrition.

The sections on food preservation techniques, including canning, fermenting, and preserving, are particularly enlightening. It demystifies these methods, making them accessible for home cooks at any skill level. With clear instructions and helpful tips, you’ll feel empowered to experiment with preserving your seasonal bounty. The recipes provided are not only healthy and plant-based but also highlight the importance of eating in sync with nature. You’ll find creative and wholesome ideas for incorporating seasonal produce into your meals, ensuring that you’re always eating at the peak of freshness.

Moreover, the book addresses ethical shopping and food storage practices, encouraging readers to be mindful of their purchasing decisions. It emphasizes the importance of supporting local farmers and producers, which is a crucial step towards building a sustainable food system. The author also provides valuable insights on composting, teaching readers how to turn kitchen scraps into nutrient-rich soil for their gardens, further reducing waste and contributing to a circular economy.

This guide is not just about cooking; it’s about fostering a mindset of sustainability in our daily lives. It inspires readers to rethink their relationship with food and to consider the broader impact of their choices on the environment. With a wealth of information and practical advice, this book is an essential resource for anyone looking to make meaningful changes in their kitchen and beyond.

Whether you’re a seasoned eco-conscious cook or just beginning your journey towards a more sustainable lifestyle, this book is an invaluable companion. It provides the tools and knowledge needed to create a healthier home and planet, one delicious meal at a time.

Immy Lucas of popular YouTube channel Sustainably Vegan empowers you to embrace seasonal, plant-based eating and other low-impact practices to create your own conscious kitchen.

We all want to make a difference in the fight against climate change. We all want to live on a healthier planet, have healthier homes, invest in a healthier future. But going fully zero-waste, living off-grid, or completely abandoning fossil fuels isn’t easy, affordable, or even possible for many people. For the average consumer who just wants to do a little better, where to begin?

For Immy Lucas, the answer is clear. Since our food system is one of the most high-impact, wasteful areas of modern life, the path to a more sustainable future starts in the kitchen. In The Conscious Kitchen, Immy provides you with the starting tools you need to create a more sustainable kitchen in your own home by rethinking the way you source, prepare, cook, store, and dispose of food.

Rooted in a strong foundation of seasonal, plant-based eating, the book is all about how small steps can have a big impact. How switching to a more seasonal way of eating, being a more considerate shopper, investing in traditional skills like pickling and fermenting, and considering alternative uses for food scraps and leftovers can help improve the health of your home and, ultimately, the health of the planet.

In The Conscious Kitchen, you’ll discover:


A guide to year-round seasonal eating with more than 30 plant-based recipes
Food preservation recipes and techniques based on traditional skills like canning, preserving, and fermenting food
Strategies and recipes for cooking with food scraps and leftovers
Ethical shopping and food sourcing guidelines
Easy food storage and organization hacks to help your stores last longer
An overview of composting techniques and how to use compost to start your first kitchen garden
And more!

Eminently practical, approachable, and ideal for beginners, The Conscious Kitchen is the perfect book for climate advocates, vegan cooks, homesteaders, zero-waste warriors, and anyone interested in taking their first steps into the world of more sustainable living.

My Take:
Although I am not familiar with Immy Lucas and am not a vegan, I am keen on reducing food waste, contributing to a healthier planet, and adding more meat-free options to my diet. The "take-aways" from this book caught my attention, and I can envision integrating this knowledge into my lifestyle. The book impressed me with its non-preachy tone, providing historical insights and practical advice for both the US and UK. It's also concise. For those interested in composting or utilizing vegetable and fruit peels, this book could be quite beneficial.

I didn’t realize this book was focused on the four seasons. Coming from a tropical country, this isn’t fully applicable to me, but it didn’t stop me from appreciating the approach, message, and aesthetics of The Conscious Kitchen. Immy Lucas offers practical, thoughtful guidance on how small changes in our kitchens can make a big difference for the planet. The emphasis on plant-based eating, ethical sourcing, and reducing food waste is inspiring, even if the seasonal aspect may not resonate as much in my context. Overall, it's a valuable resource for anyone looking to live more sustainably.

This is the book for you if you want to get back to the basics. You learn how to live a no-waste kitchen life, which I think is fantastic! There is no way I would be able to life such a life however I did get ideas of what switches I can make around my house to help eliminate unneeded waste! This book is wonderful, helpful and easy to read. I cant wait to try some of the recipes like the mushroom and lentil lasagna, and the candied lemon and orange peels (I have never thought of doing that)!! So excited to put what I learned to use in my household.