Diverse ethnic influences inform more than 150 recipes for an array of original, flavorful, healthy, vegetarian dishes that are easy to prepare and that stress fresh ingredients and imagination. Original. National ad/promo. Tour. This is true fusion cooking, mixing elements of Vietnamese, Portuguese, Turkish, Italian, French, Chinese, Indian, and American cuisines. Italian tortellini is tossed with Thai curry paste and coconut milk. Kale-Apple Soup brings together earthy Chinese and tart American ingredients. Sweet-and-Sour Cabbage seems German, but features an Indian Peanut Sauce. Greek orzo is mixed with raisins, onions, and garlic and stuffed into a New England maple squash. Kirchner, author of several Indian cookbooks, grew up in India but has traveled all over the world. Here she presents vegetarian recipes from what she calls "the emerging world cuisine." Neelam Batra's The Indian Vegetarian (LJ 6/15/94) is in a similar vein, with its cross-cultural American/Indian dishes, but Kirchner's recipes reflect a greater diversity of cuisines, from Mexican to Middle Eastern to Eastern European to Japanese. She has some interesting ideas, sure to appeal to both vegetarians and meat-eaters alike; in fact, some recipe variations include suggestions for those who eat fish or are not strict vegetarians. For most collections. Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. Bharti Kirchner is the acclaimed author of The Healthy Cuisines of India, India Inspired, and The Bold Vegetarian, and is a frequent contributor to such magazines as Vegetarian Times. Born in India, she currently lives in Seattle, WA.