Cooking from the Cupboard: Meals in Minutes from Your Pantry

by Jeanne Jones

By following Jones' guide to stocking the larder, busy readers will be prepared to whip up 150 imaginative and satisfying dishes, such as Spicy Red Pepper and Chicken Linguini, Southwestern Beef and Bean Lasagna, and Strawberry Rhubarb Crisp, quickly and easily. From baked goods to entrees to soups, all the recipes are low in fat, cholesterol, and sodium. Illustrations.

Genres: Cookbooks

338 pages, Hardcover

First published September 1, 1995

Reviews

[Carol · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to look at this book after we ate through the pantry back in March, during the COVID lock-down. When I served canned pumpkin as a side dish (a real low), we decided it was time to brave the store. But I was braced for a lot of condensed soups and not a lot I would actually want to eat. I’m pleasantly surprised. I mean, yes, there are a lot of condensed soups, and I don’t think cheese quesadillas or tubes of cooked polenta deserve to be called “recipes.” But there are some interesting things I want to try.

[Kate Seader · Rating 3 out of 5]

The premise of the book is promising and on many of the recipes it delivers. Pantry basics making quick meals. However a significant amount of the recipes fall to either side of the spectrum with ones that call for several unusual or fresh ingredients and more complicated cooking. The other kind are ‘recipes’ that tell you to put canned spaghetti sauce over ready made polenta. There is also a big push for low fat ingredients with little mention of how to substitute.
Never the less I read many recipes I plan on making. Surprisingly for me I am most excited to try out the desserts.