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Darn Good Eats: The Cookbook for Creative Chefs and Reluctant Cooks

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Whether you love to cook or would rather starve than spend time in a kitchen, Darn Good Eats: The Cookbook for Creative Chefs and Reluctant Cooks is for you!

Reluctant Cook and author Jodi Ambrose teamed up with her Creative Chef husband, Grant, to bring you a cookbook with an unusual twist. Darn Good Eats provides scrumptious recipes for both the kitchen aficionado and the bumbling cook. Pooling together all of their combined kitchen savvy, they've created a cookbook that applies to anyone and everyone.

Along with a list of must-have items for your kitchen, helpful measurement conversions, delightful personal anecdotes and a witty sense of humor, this cookbook delivers over 70 delectable and inspired recipes for both the kitchen novice and cooking expert. You no longer have to be a good cook to make great food.

So that it's easy to navigate, the cookbook is split into two parts. The first part is for Creative Chefs who love, or at least like, to cook. It contains tantalizing recipes which range from simple to challenging and are bound to be crowd-pleasers. The second part is for people who prefer eating over cooking and find the kitchen to be more of a chore than a delight. The Reluctant Cook will now have a wonderful array of options for making "homemade" meals that (shhh...don't tell) in some cases are far from homemade, but are still mouthwateringly delicious.

Whether you love or hate the kitchen, Darn Good Eats: The Cookbook for Creative Chefs and Reluctant Cooks has plenty of tasty recipes to please even the most discerning palate. We know that you'll enjoy both the food and fun contained within this cookbook and we wish for you many happy and delicious meals.

190 pages, Paperback

First published February 3, 2011

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About the author

Jodi Ambrose

4 books23 followers
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5 stars
17 (45%)
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16 (43%)
3 stars
3 (8%)
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Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews
Profile Image for Carolina Courtland.
Author 5 books40 followers
November 21, 2012
This is a great cookbook for those who hate to cook or don't know how to cook. It is a wonderful collection of appetizers, salads, sandwiches, breakfast dishes, main courses, and desserts from different cultures.

The recipes range from basic fare like fresh Salsa to slightly more exotic dishes like Lamb Korma. All the recipes are solid and easy to follow.

There is something here for every level of chef. The recipes range from super easy, like Fake Homemade Baked Ziti and Strawberry Angel Food Cake Delight to a little more advanced, like Catfish in Red Curry Sauce and Fettuccini Alfredo.

I highly recommend this cookbook for an inexperienced chef or someone who just hates to cook, but wants to prepare a tasty dish for company.
Profile Image for Ellen Campbell.
81 reviews13 followers
May 10, 2013
I really love this cookbook. I was afraid when I received it that it would just sit on my cookbook shelf because I really do not like to cook. But so far I have made three of the recipes. I have read some of the other reviews and most people have probably made more of the recipes than I have, but three recipes are a LOT for me to have attempted. And they were all terrific.
But I have to say this is the first cookbook I have ever had that I have read cover to cover as if it were a tantalizing novel. SO funny. You can almost hear this author and her husband with their opposing views on the art of cooking deciding the details of each recipe.
There is a recipe for Fettuccini alfredo that the author refers to as a "naughty food" and suggests eating no more than once a month.LOL.
Of course the three recipes that I made came from the first half of the book that is written for people who hate to cook
Loved the "Fancy Pants Grilled Cheese"!
Profile Image for Meka♥books.
506 reviews3 followers
August 5, 2016
A light hearted cookbook that's humorous. The recipes range from breakfast to dessert and are simple with clearly written instructions. Additional cooking options are given on some. A "breath meter" or in this book's case "dragon-breath-o-meter scale" is indicated after each recipe to show the consumer if toothpaste is warranted after eating the dish, or a mere piece of gum or mint will suffice.

The beginning of the book provides a list of cooking items (pots, pans, colander, etc) needed for all recipes. Of course, for each individual recipe you will see where each item is utilized. Nothing is out of the ordinary and every household generally will have the needed items.

Some of the recipes seemed a little… strange to me but isn’t cooking all about using your imagination?

If you're looking for a cookbook with recipes for a medium to advanced cook or without humor, stay away from this one. If you're ok with simple recipes and funny instructions, give this a try.
Profile Image for Sabrina.
3 reviews
February 15, 2013
Who knew a cookbook could be funny and have great recipes? I think this cookbook is not only a nice change from more traditional cookbooks, but I love that there are so many different types of recipes--for people who love to cook and people who don't like to. What an unusual concept for a cookbook--and refreshing. It's very eclectic, has great anecdotes and something I've never seen in any cookbook before: A dragon breath-o-meter scale. It's hysterical! It tells you, by the number of dragons shown, just how bad your breath will be after eating a certain recipe. I laughed my head off when I read her descriptions.

I think this cookbook is a breath of fresh air and would recommend it to anyone who wants to make good food and have fun while doing so. Great read and delicious food, all wrapped up into one cookbook.
Profile Image for Lynn.
2 reviews
February 16, 2013
I really enjoyed both the recipes and unusual concept of this book. The first line of it is "I hate cooking." I laughed out loud when I read that. Really, only half the book is for people who hate cooking and has a bunch of easy-to-follow recipes that taste really good too. My favorites are the spaghetti sauce and the dump cake. The other half has more detailed and complicated recipes for people who like to cook. I made the Korma and it was fantastic. The cookbook also has a measurements/conversions chart which is really handy. I use it all the time. I think just about anyone could find a bunch of recipes they'll like in this book, from hard to really easy, it has it all. Excellent cookbook.
Profile Image for Reggie.
2 reviews
February 13, 2013
I love this cookbook! I've made 11 of the recipes so far and every one of them has been delicious according to my fiance. She usually does all the cooking, but with this cookbook and it's section for "reluctant cooks" I can make good food that is easy to make. This cookbook also has alot of fun stories and helpful kitchen hints. I highly recommend it to everyone as it has recipes that are complex for people who like to cook and super easy recipes for people who don't. I got this cookbook as a Christmas present from my mom and next year I'm giving it to my two cousins who also don't know how to cook. Really fun cookbook with great recipes. I highly recommend it.
Profile Image for Julie Barrett.
9,095 reviews198 followers
February 16, 2016
Darn Good Eats: The Cookbook for Creative Chefs and Reluctant Cooks
Starts out with how the author hates to cook so hubby does it. A collection of his recipes along with chapters about the hot meter and list of utensils you will need.
Very challenging recipes. Lots of categories to choose from. Some recipes have a photo, very nice photo of the finished item along with various ways to make it depending on how healthy you want to eat.
No nutritional information but you can tell from the ingredients just how healthy it will be.
Back of the book is more package mixes to speed up the process of everyday cooking. Measurement tables at the end.
6 reviews
February 15, 2013
I don't like cooking, but this cookbook makes it easy and quick. I guess that's why my family got this book for me. 1/2 of the book has recipes for cooking-challenged people like me and so far all of those recipes are really good. I've made about a dozen of them and they all tasted great and took almost no time to make. One day I may try to make a recipe out of the other half of the cookbook which is written for people who like to cook. Not all of them look too hard to try. This book also has a good sense of humor, which makes it fun to read.
Profile Image for Megan.
4 reviews
February 15, 2013
Delicious food. Funny stories. Helpful kitchen info. You can't go wrong with this cookbook. I like that it has recipes for people who don't like cooking--they are easy and still really good. I've never seen a cookbook that has recipes written by someone who hates cooking, but once I read it, I totally got it. And the other half of the cookbook is for people who love cooking and has both easy and complicated recipes in it. Really unusual and really well done. 5 stars!
Profile Image for BJ.
462 reviews5 followers
March 31, 2018
Fun read!

I love reading cookbooks! Having said that, I was delighted with this one. The descriptions, written by Jodi, ( I hate to cook), gave me a chuckle or two! The first half has recipes from her husband, Grant, (chef/cook extraordinaire), that are easy to follow,and, in my opinion, quite good. The second half has recipes by Jodi, and some of her family members. They include ingredients that might be jarred, boxed and otherwise packaged. Easy, but good for a novice. You'll enjoy just reading through it and, like me, will probably try a few of their dishes!
Displaying 1 - 10 of 10 reviews

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