"GOOD CHEAP EATS: Everyday Dinners and Fantastic Feasts for $10 or Less," by Jessica Fisher, Harvard Common Press, $16.95, 320 pages
For many people, especially those families with children, it is sometimes hard to plan healthy meals during the week. As the kids get older and their schedules get busier, it is often easier to pick up fast food somewhere than it is to cook a meal. This is made even more difficult if a family is on a strict budget.
"Good Cheap Eats: Everyday Dinners and Fantastic Feasts for $10 or Less" is a new cookbook that is for busy (and budget conscious) families. Written by fishmama.com blogger Jessica Fisher, this book contains more than 200 recipes ranging from simple-item appetizers like the Hot Cheese Dip with Tomatoes to full meals, complete with multiple items.
Fisher organized the book into easy-to-use chapters based on the recipes found in each section. A favorite chapter is “Breakfast for Supper,” which includes many easy recipes for those people who like to eat breakfast foods for dinner. Other chapter examples are: “Stretching It,” with examples of how to use less food but still get lots of flavor, and “Company Dinners,” which provides recipe ideas that can be used for more people while still being relatively less expensive.
Overall, the best feature of the book is its organization into more than 70 multicourse meals. The reader can make one item to complement a family favorite or follow recipes for a full meal, including main dish and sides.
One meal plan includes recipes for Honey Mustard Ham, Seasoned Cauliflower, Tastiest-Ever Scalloped Potatoes and Mama’s Sweet Rolls. Also included are helpful color-codes on each recipe that indicate if that recipe is dairy-free, gluten-free or meatless. The author has compiled recipes for people of all skill levels, and it is a great companion for any home's cookbook collection.
