Acknowledgements

Sincere gratitude to those who made this book possible: Alison Mclean and Lindsay Humphreys at Wiley, Judy Phillips, Pat Loi, Ian Koo and Adrian So.

We appreciate the careful recipe testing by: Misuzu Noguchi and Dan Malloy.

We greatly appreciate our taste testers: Vesanto's wonderful neighbours at WindSong Cohousing community, including Alan Carpenter, Chandra Carlson, Evan McFee, Gillian Allan, Howard Staples, Kayla Vierling, Jacob Wolfheart, Jessica Bustard, Leslie Wood, Linda Duarte, Michael Mogardo, Mina Mogardo, Miriam Evers, Oliver Bustard, Susan Collerman, Susan McFee, Trevor Erikson, Tricia Carpenter, Valerie McIntyre, and the Thursday Veggie Meal Club. Also Tobias Leenaert and Melanie Jaecques of the EVA (Ethical Vegetarian Union) in Gent, Belgium; Joseph's friends Larissa Drozenko and Siripon Pittayakornpisuth.

Special thanks to: Angelina Rogon for kitchen assistance; Cam Doré for computer assistance and inspiration; Cristina Viviani for manuscript review; Lars Warje for his baking expertise; and Maureen Butler for insightful editing help.

Love and gratitude to our families and dear ones who encouraged us throughout this project, and understood when we went into hibernation to complete the manuscript: Vesanto's partner, Cam Doré; son Chris Crawford; and daughter Kavyo Crawford; Joseph's mother, Louise; brothers Ray and Forest; sisters Donna and Nicole; teachers and friends Jeffrey Armstrong, Sandi Graham, Sarah Webster, Lee Gross, Sandra Milena Arismendy, Savey Mattu, those from Monday night class, and Sunrise Ranch, and Edenvale Retreat and Conference Centers.

We would like to acknowledge the companies that provided us with their outstanding products:

Asian Family Specialty Foods (www.asianfamilyfoods.com), gardein (www.gardein.com), Grainworks (www.grainworks.com), LeSaffre Human Care (lesaffre-yeast.com/red-star/vegetarian-support-formula.html), Manitoba Harvest (www.manitobaharvest.com), Nature's Path Organic, (www.naturespath.com), Omega Nutrition (www.omeganutrition.com), Sunrise Soya Foods (www.sunrise-soya.com).

Many thanks to the chefs and recipe innovators who generously allowed us to use or adapt their recipes for this book:

Brenda Davis: Lemon Sesame Cookies, Cranberry Pecan Muffins, and Coconut Macaroons, the latter from Becoming Raw by Brenda Davis and Vesanto Melina, The Book Publishing Company, 2010

British Columbia Blueberry Board: Blueberry Mince Tart and Pie Filling

Cherie Soria: Green Giant Juice, from The Raw Food Revolution Diet by Cherie Soria, Brenda Davis, and Vesanto Melina, The Book Publishing Company, 2008

David Melina: Garden of Plenty Salad

Jennifer Cornbleet: Raw Mango Strawberry Pie, from Raw Food Made Easy, The Book Publishing Company, 2005

Jo Stepaniak: Gooda Cheeze and Gee Whiz Spread, from The Uncheese Cookbook, The Book Publishing Company, 2003

Valerie McIntyre: Pesto-the-Best-Oh!