Cooking to survive and escape the pandemic

This past year, I have only eaten out once, and it was at an outside restaurant last summer when case numbers in Michigan were very, very low. My family and I have regularly been buying takeout a lot to support local restaurants, but we have also cooked a lot more at home than ever before. We used to eat out at least two times a week, but that has not been the case this past year. Over the past year, I have gone through ups and downs with regards to cooking at home — I started out making really nice, elaborate meals, but then got bored and was cooking the same five things over and over. A few months ago I tried to vary things a bit more. Since cookbooks are one of my favorite ways to find cooking inspiration, I decided to check out some new ones from PWPL. 

“Skinnytaste Meal Prep” by Gina Homolka (641.555 HO) is great if you are looking for healthy meal inspiration. Her buddha bowls have really helped me incorporate new flavors, and get vegetables into more meals. This cookbook has recipes that include a wide variety of flavors, and the pictures are so beautiful, and bright and vibrant. While I have not used this cookbook for meal prep (as it is mostly intended), it got me out of my lasagna, risotto, and pasta rut. This cookbook was recently featured in the New York Times, and it is also available on Libby.

“Sweet Laurel” by Laurel Galluci and Thomas (641.86 GA) shares recipes from the LA based bakery of the same name that specializes in healthy-ish desserts that cater to paleo, vegan and raw diets. If you haven’t seen the cakes made by Sweet Laurel, you are missing out. Their unfinished, layer cakes are particularly beautiful! With my son’s second birthday quickly approaching, and with me being much more of a baker than a cook, I am ready to pull out all the stops. We missed having a party for his first birthday due to the pandemic, and I am ready to create a multi-tiered cake to make up for last year. The “Vanilla Coconut Jam Cake”, “Hello Dolly Layer Bars”, and “Classic Snickerdoodles” look particularly good. If you are looking to create simple but beautiful desserts, and you follow a grain free diet, I highly recommend this cookbook.

“Sweet Laurel Savory” by Laurel Galluci (641.86 GA) and Thomas is a brand new publication, while the above cookbook is older (although it is new to PWPL). If you are a baker, looking to bake some savory dishes, this cookbook is for you. It also includes grain free recipes (like their desserts cookbook), as well as lots of vegan recipes. “The Ultimate Sweet Laurel Burger,” “Summer Vegetable Pizza,” and “Simple Spring Quiche with Asparagus” look really delicious. If you are on an autoimmune diet, you may really enjoy this, as there are lots of different options for different diets.

“Simply Julia” by Julia Turshen (641.3 TU) is from the author of many cookbooks, but she is often behind the scenes. This book is full of 110 of Julia’s favorite and go-to recipes, perfect for weeknight meals. As she says in the opening, this cookbook is all about healthy comfort food. “The Sizzle Burgers” and “Swedish Meatballs” immediately caught my eye, but Julia uses lots of different flavors from around the world, which is great if you are wanting to try new flavors and recipes.

“New York Times Cooking No-Recipe Recipes” by Sam Sifton (641.5 SI) is the book for you, if you are a no recipe cook. This book features ingredients, no measurements, and is perfect for pandemic cooking inspiration. It’s a great size and weight too. There are TONS of recipes in here–breakfast, soups, sandwiches, salads, seafood, chicken, meats and desserts. This book made me so hungry when I looked through it, I had to go and eat something. As a baker, this cookbook would be hard for me to cook from, but great for inspiration. If cooking is in your blood though, I would highly recommend it.