Cook Book Suggestions

Updated on May 11, 2010
B.S. asks from Spring, TX
14 answers

I am looking for some cook books with easy recipes. Ones that don't require 10 or 20 ingredients and have short prep/cook time. Does anyone know of any?

1 mom found this helpful

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Thanks for all the great ideas. I have a very small kitchen and we are so tired of eating the same things over and over again.

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K.R.

answers from Houston on

"Cooking Light: 5 Ingredient 15 Minute Cookbook"

Also, the "Crock-Pot 5 Ingredients or Less Cookbook "

You can find them both on Amazon...

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D.S.

answers from Tulsa on

fund raiser cook books. any of them. they are all tried limited ingrediants and short cook time.

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L.D.

answers from Las Vegas on

I would suggest the Sandra Lee Almost Homemade and Rachel Ray 30-Second Meals cookbooks. I would also recommed the Joy of Cooking cookbook simply because it's the bible of cooking.

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L.C.

answers from Dayton on

Any of Sandra Lee's Semi-Homemade are good. I had a Rachel Ray Cookbook and it wasn't my favorite. It's not super complicated cooking it's just that lots of times there are ingredients that are not commonly found in kitchens of non-gourmets.

I agree with the church, school, fundraiser cookbooks. They are the greatest because you know someone's grandma made those recipes, so they have to be good!

Also try www.recipezaar.com because they have a million recipes, people who cook them rate them and if they make changes they tell you what they did to change or improve the recipes. Just look up a recipe for what you want and when it gives you the results then you can sort them by rating so that you get only the best ones first. Is also has a recipesifter. Go to recipes and click on it then click on the option that says, "Open the recipe sifter." Then you can put any combination of ingredients, method of cooking, time to cook, ease of the recipe and then click "show me" and it will pull up all the recipes that meet the criteria and you can sort them by rating too. I love this website and you can print off the recipes and make your OWN cookbook. =)

1 mom found this helpful
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N.T.

answers from San Antonio on

My daughter just gave me a great website. thepioneerwoman.com - check it out. There are so many recipes I am sure you will find something. Great website and some great recipes.

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A.S.

answers from Austin on

You have some great suggestions here. Yes, go to the library or half price books and browse around.

Google for recipes you're hoping to find. Especially check out slow cooker/crock pot recipes. The cooker takes up very little space and most of the recipes involve dumping everything into the cooker and turning it on. The slow cooker is great for the summer too as it doesn't heat up the kitchen. (My mom actually puts her's in her garage.)

Have fun!

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P.A.

answers from Houston on

#1 Go to Half Price Books for some cheap cook books; #2 google "5 ingredient recipes" or "quick recipes"; 1000's of recipes are online; don't have a computer? Use the library's computer. #3 buy the book "5 Ingredient Recipes".

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G.G.

answers from Austin on

I don't have a cookbook idea but I have a recipe for you. Corn tortillas (warm them one at a time in a hot skillet). Buy a rotisserie chicken and debone (use the leftovers to make fabulous chicken salad). Finely chopped cilantro, salsa, freshly sliced avocado, 1 lime. Place the chicken in a warm tortilla and top with the other ingredients. Squeeze fresh lime over the top. Healthy and yummy! Go to www.allrecipes.com. This is my favorite recipe site. Go to kid-friendly, everyday recipes, etc. I also ran across a link that's titled 20 ingredients, 20 recipes. Crock pot recipes are usually VERY easy too! This site has tons of great ones.

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M.P.

answers from Portland on

I collect cookbooks and browse book store shelves. I've seen many good cook books with "6 ingredients or less" in the title. I use both the list of ingredients and the pictures to determine how good the book is likely to be.

I use the Internet frequently to find recipes. Most sites have a search engine that allows you to easily find recipes that you want. In some you can list the number of ingredients. Here are some sites; Betty Crocker, Pillsbury, Epicurious, Gourmet, The Food Channel Magazine, All Recipes, and one I've bookmarked but not used yet is at www.whfoods.com. WH stands for World Foods and they say that all of their recipes take 30 minutes or less to prepare.

One book that I use is Rotisserie Chicken to the Rescue by Carla Fitzgerald Williams. I'm also a big fan of Betty Crocker cookbooks. Both Betty Crocker and Pillsbury have fast and healthy books that are wonderful. I also check cook books out of the library and if I find a number of good sounding recipes I buy one from the book store. You can find cook books at Amazon and Barnes and Nobel that have been used and cost less. Most cookbooks that I buy are from a used book store or a thrift store. Barnes and Noble have shelves of "remainders" that are marked down.

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A.G.

answers from Houston on

You might also try the Saving Dinner series by Leanne Ely. Her meals are simple, tasty, and nutritious. I also use the website http://allrecipes.com I have found many easy recipes that have become family favorites. Taste of Home puts out cookbooks that are wonderful as well.

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H.A.

answers from Dallas on

Brenda,

I recommend going to Half Priced Books and looking at their cooking section. I do this all the time - and have a great collection. Also, check the clearance they have, they will sell books they've had too long, or have too many copies off for $1-$2 fairly commonly. It's a great way to boost your collection.

Cook books are very personal, I like ones with lots of pictures - it helps me decide if I will actually like the meal. I haven't cooked enough to know what a food will look like by the descriptions. hehe. There are also a LOT of very cool books from food network and similar places. There is one lady, I can't remember her name :( Robin Miller, maybe? She plans a weeks worth of meals so some meals reuse extras from a previous meal. Like you might have white rice Monday with beef tips, and use leftover/extra rice you made to make fried rice Wednesday. Less work for you. Sorry I can't remember her name, if I come up with it I will edit this. :)

Good luck,
H.

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R.L.

answers from Houston on

I have a great cook book called America's Favorite One Dish Meals. I couldn't find it on Amazon however, but there were lots of other One Dish Meals cookbooks.

http://www.amazon.com/s/?ie=UTF8&keywords=one+dish+me...

I would also suggest to go check out Half Price books, they have lots of cook books!

I like this cookbook because I really hate cooking and a lot of the recipes are easy, quick and you throw it all in one pan and cook.

Happy cooking!

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