Please recommend me a couple of cookbooks

[Bird222]

This may be impossible. I am looking a cookbook that has healthy meals to help me lose weight, that are quick to prepare and have several dishes that I can make that last 2-3 dinners so I don't have to cook everyday.

I also would like a healthy soup cookbook. What do you guys recommend?

 

[Kaido]

Are you into slow cookers at all? Crockpot 365 has a ton of great recipes:

http://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2007/12/alphabetical-listing-of-recipes.html

If you don't mind some extra expense, they sell disposable liners so you don't even have to do cleanup: (think of it as a trash bag for your crockpot)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00578EKRY

From there, either get some disposable plastic TV dinner trays, or else some reusable glass containers with rubbery lids for microwaving (I have some from Rubbermaid or Pyrex or whoever that have a pop-up vent built into the lid for microwaving, awesome stuff). Some more info on that stuff here:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?p=36965205

 

[velimark]

I used this book before and I found this book useful during cooking. I hope other people might have good experience with this as well.

 

[herm0016]

http://feedzonecookbook.com/

this is a good one that i have used in the past. Skratch labs has great products as well. the author of this book is on of the founders i believe.

 

[Bird222]

Are you into slow cookers at all? Crockpot 365 has a ton of great recipes:

http://www.ayearofslowcooking.com/2007/12/alphabetical-listing-of-recipes.html

If you don't mind some extra expense, they sell disposable liners so you don't even have to do cleanup: (think of it as a trash bag for your crockpot)

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00578EKRY

From there, either get some disposable plastic TV dinner trays, or else some reusable glass containers with rubbery lids for microwaving (I have some from Rubbermaid or Pyrex or whoever that have a pop-up vent built into the lid for microwaving, awesome stuff). Some more info on that stuff here:

http://forums.anandtech.com/showthread.php?p=36965205

I'm not opposed to getting a slow cooker but I don't have one now.

 

[pete6032]

Try Budgetbytes.com. Lots of rice and bean dishes.

 

[calahan]

This may be impossible. I am looking a cookbook that has healthy meals to help me lose weight, that are quick to prepare and have several dishes that I can make that last 2-3 dinners so I don't have to cook everyday.

I also would like a healthy soup cookbook. What do you guys recommend?

I never read any cookbooks, just practice more and your will find the way how to cook perfectly any food.

 

[blackdogdeek]

OP, what cooking implements do you have? Grill? Cast iron pan? Oven only?

 

[Bird222]

OP, what cooking implements do you have? Grill? Cast iron pan? Oven only?

Cast iron pans, pots, oven, no grill though. I do have a 'george foreman'.

 

[blackdogdeek]

With a cast iron pan you can buy a nice big 2lbs prime sirloin and pan sear it in light olive oil and then cut it into uniform weights and put leftovers in the fridge so you know how much protein/fat/cals are in each meal. You can similarly cook chicken, or scallops, or pork chops. Pair it with cooked white rice that you make and measure yourself and it's very easy to track your macros. For a really quick meal I'll sometimes just open up a can of tuna in olive oil and heat it in a pan, sprinkle in a little garlic salt and then mix in some white rice. If you have more time you can cut whatever meat you have into small slices and pan fry and then mix in some soy sauce and a little bit of lemon juice and then save any leftovers. Ovens are great for cooking up big batches of food. I like to bake chicken thighs skin-side up on a tinfoil-covered baking sheet with garlic salt sprinkled on both sides and then save the leftovers in the fridge. You can also make a nice beef brisket in an oven and it's dead simple. My wife has a recipe she uses but it's something like: put big brisket in disposable pan, add canned mushrooms, teriyaki sauce, onion soup mix, vegetable broth, cover with tin foil, cook on low heat for about 4 hours. I can get specifics if you want but I'm sure it's pretty google-able. I occasionally make this chicken jambalaya: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/15849/chicken-jambalaya-i. It takes a while but it lasts a long time and actually gets better the longer it stays in the fridge. I double the recipe and add andouille sausage and cook it in a big pot.

 

[JackTheB]

http://feedzonecookbook.com/

this is a good one that i have used in the past. Skratch labs has great products as well. the author of this book is on of the founders i believe.

awesome cook book!

 

[calahan]

you just need to marry a Chinese, Philipino girl and you forget how to cook )))

 

[Bird222]

you just need to marry a Chinese, Philipino girl and you forget how to cook )))

Pass one to me.

 

[Kaido]

I'm not opposed to getting a slow cooker but I don't have one now.

Small one is $15:

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00DE89CIG

Slickdeals sometimes posts deals for $10 models. Or check locally at like a Goodwill or garage sale, people are always getting rid of them. Pretty much just dump the food in, turn the dial on, and let it sit for X number of minutes or hours, per the recipe. I have a fancy one that has an automatic timer on it; used to use a manual dial timer for the outlet from Home Depot so I wouldn't forget to turn it off when it was done. Definitely a good investment if you want easy-to-make healthy food, especially if you get a larger-sized crockpot for doing enough food for a few meals at a time. Oh yeah, and you can do soups in them as well:

http://www.familyfreshmeals.com/2014/09/25-comforting-crockpot-soups-and-stews.html

 

[Kaido]

http://feedzonecookbook.com/

this is a good one that i have used in the past. Skratch labs has great products as well. the author of this book is on of the founders i believe.

WHOA, Skratch Paper looks awesome!

 

[QueBert]

That Skratch Paper does look sweet, but I suck at math so I have a question. Now I know if I buy the Reynolds Pan Lining Paper and cut my own it will be much cheaper. But I'm trying to figure out exactly how many same sized sheets I could get from a 35 square foot roll of the Reynolds paper so I can figure out the actual cost difference.

 

[Kaido]

That Skratch Paper does look sweet, but I suck at math so I have a question. Now I know if I buy the Reynolds Pan Lining Paper and cut my own it will be much cheaper. But I'm trying to figure out exactly how many same sized sheets I could get from a 35 square foot roll of the Reynolds paper so I can figure out the actual cost difference.

Apparently Martha Wrap is like half the cost, it's just hard to find. I like the concept of wrapping "portables" - no-mess meals! There's also an entire cookbook on cooking with folded parchment paper:

http://www.amazon.com/The-Parchment-Paper-Cookbook-180-Healthy-Fast-Delicious-Dishes/dp/1440528594/

+1 for easy cleanup!