Simply Suppers: Part 2 The Review!

Jennifer Chandler
ISBN: 9781401600594
Thomas Nelson Publishers
To purchase click the image to the left

Simply Suppers was a delicious journey of dinners for my family. I was excited at the prospect of reviewing a cookbook as I love to cook and explore new recipes. Simply Suppers is full of easy to make comfort foods that your family will enjoy. The recipes generally do not have items that are hard to find or abnormal. Jennifer uses carefully combined spices to bring a variety of flavor into her foods. The book had a wide range of selections for dinner time! I found myself marking many of the recipes with a post-it for further exploration. For the purposes of reviewing this cook book I settled on 3 of the 4 recipes I wanted to make. The fourth, Mac’n’Cheese with a Twist, was a little too expensive in cost of ingredients(white cheddar and Gruyere Cheeses) for me at this time so it will have to wait, but I will be making it and I am excited to discover the wonderful flavor I am sure it has! Below are the recipes I have explored and made for this review.

Corn Chowder

 An absolute favorite food for me, this recipe brought me back home to cold days in New England and the warmth of my favorite wholesome and comforting chowder. It was everything I have been craving and more! Jennifer combined wonderful ingredients to make a vivid and sensual flavor that even my children loved! This recipe was a favorite of my entire family including my daughters who said “Mom, you make the best soup ever” and “Mommy, more soup”! Everything about this chowder, from the flavor to the texture and ease of making, was perfect.

I substituted canned corn instead of fresh corn for this recipe. I do not feel it took away from the flavor of the chowder, but it did save me some time in making the dinner for my family. The meal was extremely budget friendly and easy to make. My children and husband loved it. The recipe gets bonus points for tasting just as great re-heated as it did right off the stove!

Chicken Parmesan

I made this meal for a family dinner night which included my parents and in-laws. Everyone enjoyed this dish! Due to the amount of people (8) I had over for dinner my husband’s help was required to pull this meal off. I loved the flavor of the coating Jennifer uses for her chicken parmesan. I received many compliments on this dish which was ego boosting! While the process was very simple and easy to follow the time for this dish was a little lengthier than the Chowder. I estimated the total time to make this dish being an hour and 30 minutes from start to plate. The outcome was well worth the time spent. I feel this dish was one that will improve which each new attempt at making it.

Peanut Butter Cup Tart

I doubled this recipe, which ended up making 3 tarts, and sent a tart home with my dad and another to work with my husband. My husband came home quite stunned due to the amount of people asking him about the cookbook I made this tart from and the unlimited compliments he received! I have to admit at this point that my husband made this recipe! I was taking care of an under the weather daughter and read him the ingredients as well as instructions from a rocking chair! The tart was very easy to make and he did a great job! I was impressed with the ease of this tasty dessert! I did not have time to make the crust myself so I bought a store brand crust in Oreo, chocolate and graham cracker crust. The tart was great in each of these. The author actually suggested the store bough Oreo crust if you did not have time to make the cookie crust yourself. I personally felt the recipe needed more peanut butter for my taste because I am not a fan of cream cheese. The flavor resembled that of a cheese cake that would be peanut butter flavored.

Overall Opinion

These recipes were easy to make with clear directions, wonderful flavor and great reviews from my unsuspecting taste testers! I think it is a great cookbook with a wonderful variety. The recipes vary in budget and are full of flavor. It truly is a wholesome home cooking dinner cookbook. They are delicious and filling! I still have many recipes marked “to make” and I look forward to it! The book is not a quick make and serve cookbook, but the dishes are well worth the time and effort spent to make them. I do wish the author had included an estimated prep and cook time with each recipe. I went into each one blindly, not sure of how long it would take me to make each. I did like how she gave cooking tips, time saving tips and basic recipes for sauces, chicken stock, pie crust, and more in the back! I would highly suggest Simply Suppers to moms and cooks everywhere. No matter what your skill range, this book is for you. The recipes are challenging enough for seasoned cooks yet easy to follow and understand for beginners.
 

Reviewed for Book Pleasures