Cooking and experimenting in the kitchen has always been my thing. Before I had my son, I flew by the seat of my pants pretty much every night for dinner…Now I can’t imagine doing that EVERY night with kids! Trust me, I tried and meal time was all kinds of stressful. I slowly started to force myself to meal plan and do one grocery shopping trip per week.
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One of the things that makes meal planning successful is having lots of good recipes to pull from. While Pinterest is great, it isn’t always a reliable source for recipes…and sometimes I spend an hour looking a still have no actual dinner ideas! (Am I right??!?) Personally, I think cookbooks are the way to go. I’ll be the first to admit that I am a bit of a cookbook fanatic. It’s the first section I visit in a bookstore and my bookshelves at home are covered with 60+ cookbooks.
Some nights getting dinner on the table is a challenge, let alone making a dinner that the whole family will like. I’ve put together a list of my favorite family friendly cookbooks that I use to make meal planning easier. As busy moms we want healthy and delicious recipes that everyone at the table will enjoy. Here are a few of my favorites:
Healthy Family Cookbook by America’s Test Kitchen
Why we love it: This book has a little bit of everything and it’s all healthy – and by healthy I mean loaded with veggies, whole grains and lean meat. I have had this book for years (before kids!) and have used it for nightly meals more times than I can count. Best of all it’s all in a big binder with tabs so it makes it easy to locate recipes quickly. Also “fast” recipes are designated with a little red square that make it easy to find something when you’re in a pinch.
Must try recipes: Where do I begin?!? Lately we’ve been loving the Shrimp with Garlic & Lemon and I really love all the quick and easy sauces all through the book –from salad dressing to stir fry sauces to marinades – they are made with pantry staples and are far healthier than ones you can buy.
The Skinnytaste Cookbook by Gina Homolka
Why we love it: I have been a big fan of Gina’s blog for many years so this cookbook was a must have for me. Her recipes have simple fresh ingredients but don’t lack in flavor.
Must try recipes: Slow Cooker Santa Fe Chicken is so good and very kid friendly (plus it takes minutes to throw together!). We also love the Striped Bass with Garlic Crumb Topping served along side the Summer Pearl Couscous.
Healthy Slow Cooker Revolution by America’s Test Kitchen
Why we love it: Sensing a theme here? I LOVE America’s Test Kitchen – their recipes are tested tons of times so they are reliable and taste wonderful! This slow cooker cookbook is a gem – its full of unique slow cooker dishes that are healthy. Lots of them are meatless main dishes as well!
Must try recipes: We love the Sweet and Tangy Pulled Chicken and it has a quick easy slaw to top it with – and the Quinoa, Sweet Potato and Corn Casserole is always a hit in our house.
The Thug Kitchen Official Cookbook
Why we love it: This cookbook is very untraditional – just open it to any page and read the directions to the recipe and you’ll understand why. It’s an edgy vegan cookbook. Half of these recipes you would never guess were vegan. We do Meatless Mondays in our house so we love a hearty, flavorful meat-free meal,
Must try recipes: Sweet Corn and Green Chile Baked Flautas, White Bean and Red Lentil Burgers – and if you’re looking for an addicting snack, try the Roasted Sriracha Cauliflower Bites.
The Make-Ahead Cook by America’s Test Kitchen
Why we love it: This cookbook is all about planning ahead. It’s full of meals that you can make ahead and reheat, big batch recipes, ways to take one bag of groceries work for 3 different meals and more! I don’t cook out of this book regularly, but use it when I want to get my freezer stocked up or need a meal I can prep one day and reheat another.
Must try recipes: Both the Shepherds Pie and Chicken Pot Pie from the Stock the Freezer section are wonderful (the mac and cheese is another good one!)
Skinnytaste Fast and Slow by Gina Homolka
Why we love it: This is her latest recipe (it just came out last week!) but I am already in love. I started bookmarking recipes and just gave up because I realized I would just have to cook my way through the whole thing! Exactly like the title states, these recipes are all either made in the slow cooker OR are completed in 30 minutes or less – that is a busy moms dream! I also love that she has a whole months worth of menus at the beginning of the book.
Must try recipes: I love her Slow Cooker Taco Chili recipe and the Slow Cooker Bolognese
100 Days of Real Food
Why we love it: This is the perfect book for anyone who is interested in learning to cook without processed ingredients and using whole foods. I love her approach to tackling this with her family and doing it within a budget! She has shopping lists and menus – everything you need to tackle this on your own!
Must try recipes: Macaroni Casserole and the Berry Sauce (so yummy over ice cream!)
What’s For Dinner by Curtis Stone
Why we love it: If you like making fancy sounding meals this book is for you. The best part is that they are all simple to make and doable for weeknight cooking. He has one pot meals, 5 ingredients or less and even fancier meals for Saturday nights. I checked this book out at my local library but it is definitely next on my list of cookbooks to purchase.
Must try recipes: Rigatoni with Italian Sausage, Arugula, and Lemon Ricotta
The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime by Ree Drummond
Why we love it: Ok so Pioneer Woman isn’t exactly known for healthy dishes but in general she knows how to make a meal that everyone at your table will enjoy. While most of her recipes fall under the “comfort” food catergory, we still love them!
Must try recipes: Tuna Noodle Casserole
