Centrepiece: Bold, vibrant recipes to put vegetables in the spotlight

Publisher: Octopus Publishing Group
Publish date: 9 April 2026
Pages: 224
Language: English

Subjects: Cooking, Entertaining, Regional & Ethnic, Vegetarian, Middle Eastern

YOTAM OTTOLENGHI: 'Helen carries the torch for all the ingredients I love most. Vegetables behaving exactly as they should. A cook after my own heart.'


A celebration of bold, vibrant vegetarian dishes designed to inspire, delight and put vegetables exactly where they belong: centre stage.

Drawing inspiration from the rich flavours of the Middle East and North Africa, as well as Helen Graham's Ashkenazi Jewish heritage, this cookbook features 100 inventive, vegetable-based recipes that will transform your table. With accessible ingredients and simple methods, Helen's flavour-packed combinations of spices, herbs and sauces elevate vegetables into something truly showstopping.

Contents includes:
- The Meal Before the Meal, including Mushrooms with Tamari & Pomegranate Skewers and Halloumi-Ricotta Fritters with Spiced Lemon 'Honey'
- The Main Event, including Harissa Roast Carrots, Mango Labneh & Mint and Hispi Cabbage with Date Butter & Tahini
- On the Side, including Potato Salad with Basil Zhoug & Coconut Crunch and Hawaij Roast Potatoes with Preserved Lemon Roast Shallots
- Something Sweet, including Za'atar & Cherry Chocolate Refrigerator Cake Bars and Poppy Seed & Orange Blossom Babka

Helen Graham was Executive Chef at renowned London restaurant Bubala for 5 years, following working at critically acclaimed restaurants the Palomar and the Barbary, as well as the Ottolenghi Test Kitchen.

Praise for Helen Graham:
JAY RAYNER: 'Helen Graham has a thrillingly unique way with flavours, which makes you look at familiar ingredients anew. Her bold plant-based cookery takes the Middle Eastern repertoire and shakes it by the scruff of the neck.'
MEERA SODHA: 'Helen's recipes are the most exciting thing to have happened to vegetables since Ottolenghi.'