Vickie Hutchins and Jo Ann Martin’s Busy Day SLOW COOKING is a BETWEEN the covers, lay flat when opened, work jam-packed with easy to follow recipes, homey notes and suggestions offered across 224 pages. While I have prepared many meals over the last 4 decades or so, and do have many standby old favorites, I DO like to add to the repertoire now and again. The cover of this book caught my eye as it stood on the shelf near the check out of the big box store where I shop.
Crockpot cooking was always a heavily relied on method as my children were growing up and I was teaching school each day. Now that I am no longer working and the children are grown I continue to use crockpot, albeit in smaller size for provide tasty meals for Husband and myself.
For those readers who like contests and like to cook is presented occasion to have one of their own much loved recipes featured in the subsequent cookbook offered by the twosome. The first page in the collection is one to be used for writing a trusted recipe, prize offered is a free copy of the cookbook in which the recipe is placed.
A Table of Contents helps busy cooks swiftly find a recipe needed for preparing a flavorsome Breakfast, Soup or Weeknight supper. Beginning on page 5 are found recipes for Warm & Cozy Breakfasts, I found the Cheddar Cheese Strata to be a particularly easy to prepare and downright tasty Breakfast, or even fall suppertime meal. Other Breakfast offerings include more Stratas, Family Favorite Potatoes, Quiche, Grits, Burritos, Casseroles and more. Apple Coffee Cake will be my next recipe to try.
The section beginning on page 25 provides recipes for Hot Sandwiches to share. BBQ Roast, Sloppy Joes, Chicken, Pulled Pork, Hot Ham, Open Faced and Meat to spoon over Buns, Hoagies and Tacos, are all included. Grandma’s Sloppy Joes proved to be a hit at my house.
Simmering Soups begins on page 60 and includes Chowders, Chilis, Stews, Bean Soups, Vegetable Soups, Lentils and Peas, one recipe on a page at a time over 60+ pages. Mom’s So Simple Chili is one I marked to make for our first fall football on the TV and soup in the Crock Pot. Delicious!!
EASY WEEKNIGHT Meals sbegin with Courtney’s Chicken & Noodles, offers several more chicken recipes then moves to Ham & Potatoes and Cabbage & Chops, Casseroles, Enchiladas, Pasta, Beans, and more, comprise these 43 recipes. Sloppy Burritos are becoming a family favorite. Casseroles and Enchiladas have been tried, and enjoyed.
Page 139 Potlucks and GET TOGETHERS begins one of my favorite meal fixing times, family and Scout potlucks and Church Suppers always bring together wonderful food and likeminded people. Braised Beef, Meatballs, Spaghetti, Cabbage Rolls, Pot Roast, Scalloped Potatoes, Italian Sausage, Meat Sauce, and more are included in this collection of nearly 50 recipes. The Easy Beef Stroganoff was easy to prepare, tasted delicious and Husband ate!
Beginning on page 185 commences a group of Party Food, SNACKS AND SWEETS. BBQ Meatballs, Chicken Wings, Dips, Appetizers, Wassail, cider, Fondue, Spice Coated Pecans, Chocolate Nut Cups, Pudding, Salad Dessert, Cobbler and Cake, Thanksgiving Cake, and Christmasy Cran Apple Cobbler provide lots of yummy treats. Cran Apple Cobbler is a long standing favorite for holiday time; this recipe is easy to follow, and was well received by family. I already plan to try Pumpkin Bread Pudding when next Thanksgiving is nigh.
An Index, table with US to Metric Recipe Equivalents and a little note telling the reader something of the story behind the cook books is found on the last pages of the book.
I found the format used for this edition to be especially quick and easy to use, my cookbook lays flat when open allowing me to see the recipe easily, I like that. Most recipes are offered on their own 1 page spread with a handy hint, interesting quote or shopping suggestions at the bottom of the page.
The find the wipe off cover to be sturdy, section cover page is a full page graphic which appears as a pleasing to the eye pen and ink, hand drawn image. One especially nice feature: Font size used for printing the recipes is large enough that my older eyes can see without need to fumble for reading glasses as I work.
Recipes presented in this work are the type I have always found to be the best when thinking about buying a cookbook, recipes women have kept and shared for as long as we have cooked, shared ideas with friends and family are recipes children and Husbands eat, THAT is a definite plus in my way of thinking. Similar to the cookbooks many of us have had a part in as a fundraising effort for school, church, scouts, band and the like; these recipes are the ones that women know they can put together quickly using items from their pantry, to produce a meal children, husbands and other family WILL enjoy. The collaborative cookbooks have always been my favorite type to purchase, use, gift to others and collect.
I especially enjoyed reading who had submitted a particular recipe and learn where in the nation the recipe may be a local favorite. Personal notes concerning how the dish is served, how family or other enjoys the dish, suggestions for selling as concession offering and the like; make the recipes all the more interesting.
All in all I find Busy Day SLOW COOKING to be an admirable, usable cookbook sure to please new brides, longtime cooks needing a new recipe or two, and those who prefer lots of home cooking rather than relying on fast food.
A must have for the personal cooking book shelf, tucking into a wedding shower gift basket, and anyone who uses a crock pot frequently for home food preparation.
Happy to recommend.
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Reviewed by Molly’s Reviews
molly martin
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Amazon About the Author
Gooseberry Patch was started in 1984 one day over the backyard fence in Delaware, Ohio, by two women, Vickie Hutchins and Jo Ann Martin. They were next-door neighbors who shared a love of collecting antiques, gardening, and country decorating. Though neither of them had any experience (Jo Ann was a first-grade school teacher and Vickie, a flight attendant and legal secretary), they decided to try their hands at the mail-order business. Since they both had young children, this was perfect for them. They could work from their kitchen tables and keep an eye on the kids, too! As the children grew, so did their "little" business. They now have their own building in the country, filled to the brim with kitchenware, gourmet goodies, enamelware, bowls and their own very successful line of cookbooks, and calendars.
Product Details and Shipping Information from Amazon
Paperback plastic comb binding
AUTHOR Vickie Hutchins and Jo Ann Martin
GENRE
Product Details
Series: Everyday Cookbook Collection
Plastic Comb: 224 pages
Publisher: Gooseberry Patch; Spi edition (January 7, 2016)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1620931877
ISBN-13: 978-1620931875
Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 1.1 x 9.3 inches
richard if your wife does locate the book and uses it, I hope you all like it as much as i do.... we live out of the crock pot esp during cold SOUP and CHILI months!
Ron why don't you work up your mom's recipes into a self pubbed eBook
many of us like the old tried and true recipes of a generation or so ago
The only time I ever used a cookbook in my many years of cooking for myself and others I only used a recipe from one, once. It was a total disaster and my roommates wouldn't eat it! I cooked some of my mother's recipes and modified them as well as shared them with roommates over the years. I posted all of her recipes (mostly in her own handwriting) for my 92-year-old mother on my website, here:
http://ronhullauthor.com/nina-recipes.htm
Ron