Book excerpt: Any meal is only as good as the company with whom it's shared, which is why this book unites food and its local community. This cookbook is a celebration of shared homes and their most iconic dishes--the food designed to feed the crowd, without breaking the bank or spending hours in the kitchen. It is a book about community, warmth, love, and the unique connection of a nurturing home, where shared meals are central to the environment. Plus, without getting preachy or "clean 'n green eating" about it, all the recipes in the book are vegetarian and vegan. The eight chapters are captured in different share houses throughout the sunshiny inner suburbs of Brisbane, Australia. Each chapter has a distinct theme, as dictated by the culinary skills of those living in the featured house: a breakfast-spread menu; hungover brunch; a leisurely long lunch; eat it with your hands; a Mexican-inspired feast; a Mediterranean dinner party; pasta night; and comfort-food spread. Through its clean and bright photography--all taken by Clare's own friends and roommates--The Shared Table is simultaneously luxe and sincere. It's a warm and inviting cookbook that every share house needs on their communal bookshelf.