There are all kinds of ways to approach vegan cuisine, says Lillian Cumic, and that means there are all kinds of vegan cookbooks.

The vegan diet, which avoids all animal products, has definite health benefits, and many adherents adopt it for just that reason.

Cumic’s cookbook isn’t targeted to that group.

“I never, ever create a recipe thinking it’s going to be for a vegan. I’m thinking of the nonvegan, a person not on a plant-based diet who wants something that tastes good,” said Cumic, a vegan chef for more than 20 years.

Cumic’s “Hawai‘i, A Vegan Paradise,” to be released at the end of the month, is a collection of 120 do-able recipes that she calls “a vegan book about Hawaii food.” That tie to local foods, she said, provides accessibility.

“The book works for that reason. It’s a way to ease into these recipes.”

Cumic understands local flavors, pulling from her more than two decades living and cooking in Japan, and growing up in Australia tasting her Fijian mother’s Polynesian cooking.

She provides her takes on common nonmeat dishes such as chili garlic edamame, potato mac salad, vegetable tempura and haupia. But there are also vegan versions for tacos (filled with spiced-up mashed beans), noodles (soba and saimin to fettuccine and pancit), pizza, no-bake cheesecake and even loco moco. A bonus: a section on cocktails.

“I concentrate a lot on umami flavors. That’s the difference between a nice dish and a fantastic dish. I think that’s what’s missing in a lot of vegan dishes,” she said.

To that point, one of the most useful aspects of the book are “foundational” recipes that keep the dishes interesting to all palates.

There is her Ultimate Cheese Sauce, a satisfying cashew-based concotion that can be spiced up and poured over nachos, turned into soup or thickened and embellished with add-ons to transform into a variety of spreadable and sliceable vegan cheeses.

There are simple recipes for vegan butter, konbu dashi, powdered vegetable stock, balsamic syrup, chocolate sauce and even furikake.

Each of these is utilized repeatedly in Cumic’s dishes, and they provide the added benefit of a healthful option to commercial versions often filled with sodium and chemicals. But these just provide flexibility. Cooks who seek pure convenience can tap products on store shelves, Cumic said.

Particularly useful is a glossary and substitution list. A vegan pantry list includes only two items that require some effort to access: kala namak, a salt high in sulfur that replicates the flavor of eggs (find it at India Market in Moiiliili); and kappa carageenan, a seaweed-based thickener for solidifying the cheese sauce (order online).

HURRICANE SWEET POTATO FRIES

Adapted from “Hawai‘i, A Vegan Paradise” by Lillian Cumic (Mutual Publishing, $25.95)

• 2 pounds sweet potato, cut into long rectangular sticks
• 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
• Pepper, to taste
• 1/4 to 1/2 cup teriyaki sauce, for garnish (recipe follows)
• >> Hurricane seasoning:
• 2 sheets nori, torn into small pieces
• 3 tablespoons white toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon black toasted sesame seeds
• 1 tablespoon garlic granules
• 1 teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 teaspoon kombu dashi powder (recipe follows)
• 1 teaspoon onion powder
• 1 teaspoon smoked paprika

>> To make hurricane seasoning: Pulse ingredients in a food processor or coffee grinder and blitz until nori has broken up and sesame seeds are partially ground. Store refrigerated in an airtight container for up to 2 weeks.

Heat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment.

In large bowl, toss sweet potato with olive oil, salt and pepper. Arrange on baking sheet and bake 35 to 40 minutes, or until golden.

Transfer to serving bowl, drizzle with teriyaki sauce and sprinkle with hurricane seasoning to taste. Serves 3 to 4.

Variation: Substitute russets or kabocha for sweet potato.

Approximate nutritional information, per serving (based on 1/4 cup teriyaki sauce): 350 calories, 13 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, no cholesterol, 800 mg sodium, 54 g carbohydrate, 8 g fiber, 14 g sugar, 7 g protein.

KONBU DASHI POWDER

• 4 (6-by-4-inch) pieces kombu, broken into very small pieces
• 3 tablespoons onion powder
• 2 teaspoons salt

Grind ingredients in coffee or spice grinder for 8 to 10 minutes, to a powder consistency. Store in airtight container for up to 3 months. Makes 1/2 cup.

Approximate nutritional information, per teaspoon: 5 calories, 250 mg sodium, 1 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, no fat, cholesterol, sugar or protein.

TERIYAKI SAUCE

• 1/2 cup mirin
• 1/2 cup sake
• 1/2 cup shoyu
• 1/4 cup sugar

In small pot, whisk ingredients; over medium, bring to a simmer to thicken slightly, about 4 to 5 minutes. Makes about 1-1/2 cups.

Approximate nutritional information, per tablespoon serving: 30 calories, 300 mg sodium, 5 g carbohydrate, 3 g sugar, 1 g protein, no fat, cholesterol or fiber.