Whatever Is Lovely

I love coloring and use any excuse to color with my kids. However, it really is lovely to have my own space for coloring that won't be colored over (as long as I hide the book). Whatever Is Lovely is a wonderful coloring book with repeating patterns and inspiration for the day.  

I received this book in exchange for my review on Blogging for Books, but the opinions are my own. 

Happy Cooking

I should start out my review by saying I have all of Giada DeLaurentiis' books and have watched every single one of her shows- most of them more than once. I even met her in person at a cookbook signing. I was so excited to receive her newest cookbook, Happy Cooking, but I would say that I felt a little underwhelmed by it. I read it over the course of a few days, which is a bad sign, because I could put it down. I also have since put it on my bookshelf and not looked at it again. 
The Pros: The recipes are easy to make an generally require few ingredients and are easy to find. The pasta section has quite a few good looking recipes and the eating clean chapter is comprehensive. 
The Cons: This book is all over the place. It even includes a recipe for peanut butter dog treats. The book is filled with anecdotes that I didn't really care to read, as many included nothing personal about Giada, and the recipes seemed squished onto the page. There are also some recipes with odd combinations, like Braised Swiss Chard with Curried Bread Crumbs and grapes. 
Overall, this book is enjoyable to flip through, but not necessarily own. I would own it because I want to have the whole collection of Giada books, but I doubt I would make anything from it. 

Camino



This is Camino is more a book about a restaurant than a book of recipes. I haven't visited Camino, so I wasn't sure what kind of food they prepare or what the recipes would be. I honestly could not find one recipe that I would prepare at home. The premise of Camino is that they head to the farmers' market, find seasonal, local foods, and prepare new and exciting menus everyday. I don't know what prompted them to write a cookbook when it is clear that there are no recipes used in the restaurant and things change every day. There were many cooking styles and ingredients that are not readily available, such as summer savory, fresh turmeric, or anise hyssop. I love reading cookbooks and watch a lot of cooking shows, but there were so many ingredients in this book that I had never heard of. If you like the restaurant Camino, you would probably like this book. 

I received this book from Blogging for Books, but the opinions are my own. 

Tacos- If You Don't Mind Pretension or Provocations

I chose to review Tacos: Recipes and Provocations by Alex Stupak because my husband and I love tacos and he is always impressed by food that seems a little more authentic. When I looked at the cover, the word "provocations" made me pause- it sounds pretentious and I wasn't quite sure how it fit with tacos.  The good: the recipes and photos are interesting enough without being too difficult for the most part. The bad: the book is pretentious.

Tortillas: If you are interested in making your own tacos from absolute scratch (including grinding your own masa), this is the book for you. Although he scorns flour tortillas as an "American" distortion of Mexican food, he also has a recipe for them. 
Salsa: There is a salsa for every occasion in this book, including tomato based and salsa verde. 
Tacos: Chicken Tacos with Kale and Salsa Verde sounds delicious. Chicken Tacos with Chilmole sounds interesting. Pineapple Tacos with a thin slice of lardo (where would you find that?) and Beer-Braised Tongue Tacos are not ones I would even be interested in trying. 

I had never heard of Alex Stupak prior to this book, but within a couple of paragraphs, I could tell that he had spent some time with notable chefs. His tone is a bit arrogant and he is (what I would consider) a food snob. He wasted no space referencing his time as a notable pastry chef at Alinea or wd-50. This all wouldn't be so hard to read without that word: "provocations." I believe he used the word to describe" food for thought", but for me the word was described as in the dictionary "action or speech that makes someone annoyed or angry, especially deliberately" for this is how I felt when I was reading it. Throughout the book Stupak continued to tell readers how Americans view Mexican culture and Mexican food.

p. 14 "Our proximity to Mexico means that, over time, its cuisine has become familiar; we've taken a kind of ownership of it." 
p. 15 "... about the way we value- or undervalue- ethnic cuisines." 
p. 88 "When you get into the more involved preparations here, you really start to see how Americans are still limited in the way we understand and characterize certain Mexican foods." 
p. 112 "Of the holy trinity of American proteins- beef, chicken and pork- beef is the least consumed in Mexico. And yet here in the United States, our revisionist version of that country's cuisine casts it in a starring role." 

At this point I was sick of hearing how "Americans" think. Stereotyping Americans is the same as stereotyping Mexican food. Stupak's arrogance really turned me off from this book. Also, Mexicans are Americans too. 

I received this book from Blogging for Books, but obviously the opinions are my own. 

Menu Planning and Flexibliity

I don't know about you, but I begin the week with the best intentions, but so many things can sideline the best of intentions. This week I caught a bug which kept me on the couch relaxing as best as I could with two young children. Not an easy task! This is a real-life comparison between planning and what actually happened. 

Meal Plan for October 4-10

• Sunday- No plan as usual (help!) but Kevin made Grilled Cheese sandwiches and Tomato Soup
• Monday- Stuffed Shells
• Tuesday- Fish Tacos
• Wednesday- Dinner at my Mom and Dad's
• Thursday- Salmon Caesar Salad
• Friday- Barefoot Contessa White Pizza
• Saturday- No plan yet ;)

The actual meals for October 4-10

• Sunday- Grilled Cheese Sandwiches and Tomato Soup
• Monday- Fish Tacos (Kevin made these when he got home from work because I decided I would make my own sauce for the stuffed shells and was way too tired to take this on.)
• Tuesday- Blueberry Muffins and Scrambled Eggs (Kevin in the kitchen again!)
• Wednesday- Stuffed Shells
• Thursday- Planning to go to my parents' for dinner
• Friday- Planning on pizza...

It is so easy for the "plan" to become derailed, but a plan is better than not. I try to keep staples in the house so we can still eat something that we like and a bit healthy so we aren't always tempted to order pizza!

My Approach To Meal Planning

Nothing makes me feel more prepared for the week than planning my meals in advance. I love looking at my calendar and seeing a week's worth of meals, writing a thorough grocery list, and (hopefully) shopping once a week. I also love pouring through my favorite magazines (Everyday Food, Cooking Light, Food Network), cookbooks (Barefoot Contessa, Giada DeLaurentiis and so many more) and, of course, Pinterest to find recipes that inspire me to cook. 

However, with two young kids, I often found myself discouraged by making dinner too late, choosing a difficult preparation, or having to hold my one-year-old while trying to chop, stir, and read a recipe. After one disastrous week where I had to tell my husband at least two times that I didn't have a "real" dinner that night, I had a breakthrough. I needed a list that I could refer to while meal planning. It needed to be flexible, include meals that my kids would eat, and take no more than 45 minutes to make. 

Compiling the list was easy. I assigned each day a different category:

• Monday- Italian
• Tuesday- Mexican
• Wednesday- Dinner at my parents'
• Thursday- Breakfast
• Friday- Pizza

and began writing. I easily filled up two months worth of meals with no repeats, except for pizza. My strategy for the weekend is a bit more complicated- we often have plans or errands that keep us out of the house on Saturdays, or make have friends over for dinner. Sundays are now filled with football and whoever we invite over to watch the Seahawks win. Unfortunately I often still have to go to the grocery store on the weekends and often spend more money than I think I will. Maybe one day I will be frustrated enough to create a plan for the weekend too!

Meal Plan for September 27-October 3

• Sunday- Dinner at Kevin's mom's house
• Monday- Pesto Pasta with Goat Cheese and Chicken (Ethan loves this so much that he talks about it in his sleep. I usually get my pesto out of the antipasto bar at Central Market and a rotisserie chicken. I added spinach and goat cheese as well and pine nuts if we have them)
• Tuesday- Easy Weeknight Chicken Tacos
• Wednesday- Dinner at my parents' house
• Thursday- Chicken with Mushroom Soup (Sear chicken tenderloins in a oven-safe skillet or cast iron pan. Take the chicken out and add diced onion and mushrooms. When both are soft- 6 min- pour one can of mushroom soup and 1/2 cup into the pan and whisk to combine. Bake in a 350 oven for 10-15 min until the chicken is cooked through and the sauce is bubbling.) We served this with Baked Parmesan Zucchini (similar)
  
• Friday-Cast Iron Skillet Brussels Sprouts Bacon Pizza (I love to use this dough recipe Perfect Pizza Dough and either freeze one half of the dough or make the Cheesy Garlic Bread Sticks)
• Saturday- Ideas needed ;)

Trim Healthy Mama

I have never heard of Trim Healthy Mama, or THM, as it is often referred to in the cookbook. I am interested in finding healthful meals for my family so I found the title of the book interesting. However, I immediately felt like I had joined a group of people that had been together for years and didn't quite get their inside jokes. There was no introduction to the authors and the book immediately jumped to serving sizes, portions, and knowing the plan. There is also a list of ingredients to round up, like mineral salt, integral collagen, pristine whey protein, and suggestions for fake sugar. I love to cook and make dinner every night and quite often make desserts and treats, but this book made my head swim trying to figure out how I could make some of these recipes using all-purpose flour and traditional sugar. All of this is to say I don't think this book was written for me since I am not interested in the Trim Healthy Mama Plan. 
However, this is a huge cookbook and I was able to find quite a few meals that my family would like with only a little tweaking. The pictures are beautiful and the book is filled with family stories of how the sisters developed the recipes and how their family enjoys them. 

I received this book from Blogging for Books, but the opinions are my own. 

If you are interested in knowing more about the Trim Healthy Mama Plan, you can buy the book here Trim Healthy Mama Cookbook