Cookbooks for easy cooking????

[MusiqChic99]

My sister just came to me and was talking about how she can't find a good cookbook that she likes. The lightbulb went off in my head and I immediately thought Christmas gift!

Now I just need some ideas.

What cookbooks do you enjoy and have really used over the years? I have a few cookbooks from local churches I really enjoy. I know she has Racheal Ray and didn't like any of them.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Angelhalo]

How easy are you looking for? I bought my brother a cookbook last year called "A Man, A Can, and a Plan" The recipes all have 3-6 items in them and are super duper easy.

 

[npmommie]

LOL, I was going to say Racheal Ray.........

I have one of those Taste of Home cookbooks, I think its the prizewinning recipes one, and also a classic Betty Crocker one and those are both easy, nothing fancy or elaborate about them. all ingredients that are easy to find.

 

[My2Cinderellas]

taste of home has a "quick cooking" magazine and there is probably an annual cookbook of the recipes. They have several different cooking magazines with different foci, all are good, but the quick cooking sounds best for your gift.

 

[Bren's Mom]

I like the Good Housekeeping basic cookbook, or the Betty Crocker one. My GH one has been with me for years.

I also think this one might be a good choice:

http://www.amazon.com/Pillsbury-Fas...=sr_1_7?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1260286702&sr=1-7

 

[amid chaos]

My DH trained at Culinary Institute of America and has been in the restaurant business for 30 years. When i say we have 100s of cookbooks I am most likely underestimating.

That being said, my two favorites are old local cookbooks. One is called The Hoosier Cookbook and the other is called Forum Feasts. Find some local cookbooks from your area whether it's from churches, women's groups, schools, etc.

 

[liamsaunt]

The Barefoot Contessa books are all good. I especially like Barefoot Contessa: Family Style.

The Pioneer Woman--Ree Drummond, just released a cookbook. It has lots of pictures, which is helpful for newer cooks.

And, you can't go wrong with the Joy of Cooking!

 

[lspst8]

I bought How to Cook Everything by Mark Bittman this summer, and I love it. It's huge ... about 1000 pages, but includes everything from how to make scrambled eggs to homemade pita bread to osso bucco. Only one recipe turned out badly (meatloaf) and I try to make something new from it at least once a week. It doesn't have any pictures which is my only complaint.

I bought it for my sister and her new husband as a wedding gift in October, and they love it too.

 

[BethID]

I highly recommend Desperation Dinners! by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross.
It gives lots of ideas for quick dinners. 30 minutes from start to finish. Also uses lots of ingredients that people have on hand. There is nothing worse than finding a great recipe and realizing you don't have 50% of the ingredients because they are something weird or expensive that you would not buy. I use this cookbook all the time and have never been disappointed.

 

[lattemomof3]

Gooseberry Patch cookbooks! At gooseberrypatch.com, or I've seen a few of them at Hobby Lobby. I just order them from the website, though. Most of our family favorites are from these cookbooks (I have about 10 of their cookbooks). Easy to make, normal food that DH and the kids will eat. Everyone I recommend them to loves them. We eat fairly healthy around here, so I just sub low fat dairy products, whole grain pasta or rice, etc, and lean meats. They are fun to read, too. Tonight we are having chicken parmigiana casserole. Good food with minimun fuss!

edited to add: I also love my subscription to Taste of Home Simple & Delicious - It has color photos & also has normal food easily found at the regular grocery store.

 

[nutterbutter2010]

I was going to say rachael ray too.... how about the new bobby flay one? I think its all burgers! Mmmmmm

 

[maslex]

I must have atleast 20 or more cookbooks and 98% of them are from Taste of Home. You cannot go wrong with any of these. I have some that are specific cookbooks (all chicken, all desserts, BBQ, etc), I have some of the yearly ones, I have some of their magazines, etc.

I especially love them because there is a picture for every recipe and the ingredient list is always very simple.

 

[overlyspoiled4sure]

We like TASTE OF HOME too, as well as their "sister" publication SIMPLE & DELICIOUS! Simple recipes with ingredients most of us already have in the cupboard.

Sad to say I finally let my subscription end; just can't keep all the magazines around so we're going through most of them again to see what we missed first time around. Some I copied onto recipe cards so they're easier to find.

Good luck deciding!

 

[clutter]

I just bought the "Better Homes and Garden Cookbook" for dd12 for christmas. Basic stuff, good info.

 

[AshleyW]

I have this one:

and it is AWESOME. Almost everything is super simple, plus it has color pictures of everything - I hate cookbooks that don't have pictures. In addition to the recipes, it has basic technique tips and how-to's, ingredient substitutions chart, measurement equivalencies, temperature guidelines, etc. so I use it a lot more often than I normally would a regular cookbook. Another thing I love is that it's a binder, so you can just pull out the page for the recipe you're looking at, instead of having the big book taking up a bunch of counter space.

 

[mrsheppo]

I have to agree about the Taste of Home recipe books. Very simple, delicious recipes and pictures of the recipes. I have quite a few of them.

 

[JennaTX]

My favorite is Southern Living's Easy Weeknight Favorites, I use it all of the time! Most recipes are 30 -45 minutes.

 

[okeydokey]

How about Sandra Lee semi-homemade?

http://www.semihomemade.com/

 

[C.Ann]

I have to agree about the Taste of Home recipe books. Very simple, delicious recipes and pictures of the recipes. I have quite a few of them.

I agree with this as well..

 

[Hidden_Mickey]

A friend who was a good cook recommended the Fannie Farmer cookbook to me when I said I needed a basic cookbook, and I like it. It gives recipes for simple foods, like scrambled eggs, as well as more complicated ones. There are no pictures but that's OK for me. It has basic cooking info, like tells you what temperature you should cook certain meats to, etc.

I also have Cheap, Fast Good, by Beverly Mills and Alicia Moss. I like it and the recipes really are simple and quick. However the rest of my family is picky so I don't use it as often as I would like to.

So, I ordered Desperation Dinners yesterday from Amazon after reading this thread.

I like the concept of planning meals but some times we are so busy that I just crack open a can of soup or have a bowl of cereal. I really need to start planning again.