The Dinnertime Survival Cookbook: Delicious, Inspiring Meals for Busy Families

by Debra Ponzek, Mary Goodbody

Have a fridge full of staples, a family of finicky mouths to feed, and only a few minutes to get something on the table? If this sounds all too familiar, chances are you’ll find dinner and more in this can-do approach to mealtime. The Busy Family’s Survival Cookbook is designed with the modern-day family in mind—too busy, with not nearly enough time to eat together—and makes delicious meals come together in a snap. With a focus on accessible recipes with only a few simple ingredients, this guide takes the humble pantry staple and transforms it in minutes into delicious restaurant-quality dishes.


The more-than 125 recipes are organized, not by course or time of day, but by the way people really cook: categories like pasta, vegetable dishes, salads, chicken, slow-cooking, fish, and more make the dinner dilemma easy. Try Butternut Squash and Pear Soup, Bronzino Veracruz, Baked Wild Mushroom Risotto, Roasted Chicken Enchiladas, and Meatloaf Burgers. This revolutionary approach will change the way you see dinnertime.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction

256 pages, Paperback

First published April 2, 2013

Reviews

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

One of the things that I do that shows my age (and I don't care) is read cookbooks. Oh, sure, I still Google lots of recipes, but I love paging through a cookbook and trying out recipes -- or just thinking about trying them out. This is great cookbook. The recipes are rather simple, but they're not boring. Plus, there are no "kitchen shortcuts" such as cream of whatever soup that often pop up in online recipes. The chicken and biscuits recipe is one that I have made repeatedly -- it's comfort food for my husband, a far healthier version of the frozen pot pies he would heat up for himself as a bachelor. The recipes in this book are simple enough for a beginning cook, but there's enough to interest more experienced ones as well.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

First of all HARDLY ANY PICTURES!!!!! That is a big no no. Since requesting this book I have found out that I need to be on a gluten free diet, so this book was not what I needed. On the other hand there were some decent recipes in this book but like I said there were hardly any pictures with the recipes. I just cannot get past that.

[Katy · Rating 2 out of 5]

Super basic recipes, nothing too fancy. There are several grilling recipes, which I tend to ignore since I don't have a grill nor do I have anyone to do any regular grilling for me. Also, for whatever reason, the typeface used bothered me a lot. Obviously this has nothing to do with the quality of the book itself, but I would have picked something less stuffy.

[Hana Maples · Rating 1 out of 5]

As a mom of a busy family, I found about 3 recipes that my family would actually eat. My family is not picky either, but these recipes were very obscure.

[Alisa Inman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I recently received this book for free as part of a giveaway. I had never won a book before, so I immediately sat down to read through the recipes. I absolutely love to cook, and a lot of problems I have with cookbooks are a lot of the recipes are difficult, or very few of the recipes people in my family would eat. That is not the case with this book. I enjoyed the short introductions before each recipe, as well as the layout of the recipe. The instructions are laid out fairly well and the ingredients are straight forward and any complicated ingredients are explained on what they are. I loved the little tips and explanations of different kinds of chocolate, onions, potatoes, etc. and extremely appreciated the easy separation (and creative titles) to organize different sections of the cookbook. I do wish the photos were in color. That is the only way my mouth could have been watering more. I am so anxious to try the roasted cod with bacon and leeks. I highly recommend this book!

[Ajean · Rating 5 out of 5]

I highly recommend this cookbook! I love the little tips/advice pages in between recipes. They let you know how to pick the best ingredients, and give you great tips on how to serve or pretend to be a pro on all kinds of cooking related topics. I really like the secrets she shares as a chef and as a mom, I almost feel like I'm friends with the author.

The font is large enough that I can leave it open while cooking without having to stick my nose into the book. I also like how the directions are simple, spaced and concise. There are also little blurbs that explain the dish and how to fancy it up a little.

I am determined to cook every dish in the "Breakfast for Dinner" section. (the author even includes a super easy recipe for homemade syrup!)

My only wish is that there were more pictures. I feel comfortable trying out all the recipes in the cookbook, especially after a few pep talks from the author (yes she includes these as well!)

[Hulamonkey · Rating 5 out of 5]

I sat down to thumb through this new cookbook and found myself totally engaged in reading the recipes and tips. I like the page layout of the pages - at your finger-tips list of ingredients on the side with clear instructions for what to do. Expanded possibilities for using components of some of the recipes - like butter rubs are included as well as alternatives to buying a prepared product for a recipe--if you choose to go the extra mile, like making tortillas. The recipes seem easy enough and sound fabulous. The first two recipes on the top of my list are: Thai Crab Cakes with Mango Sauce and Roasted Chicken Enchiladas

[Melanie Coombes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love cookbooks, especially ones with delicious looking meals that don't look very complicated. This cookbook seems just what I needed. The book contains soups/salads, fish, chicken, grilled foods, slow cooked meals, pasta, burgers, breakfast for dinner, sides and desserts.
My only real complaint is that my books pictures are in black and white. I really think all cookbooks need to have colored photos to be truly appreciated.
Can't wait to try the Southwestern Salmon tacos with avocado salsa, chicken and biscuits and Lemon bars. Yum!
I received a complimentary copy from the Goodreads giveaway program.

[Naomi · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 Stars

I think I expected more from this cookbook. There were only a small handful of recipes that really piqued my interest. It wasn't that the recipes were bad, but I have seen them in other cookbooks so I really didn't feel that they were authentic for the cookbook. Maybe check out this book from a library before purchasing it.

I must admit that my favorite section was the "Breakfast for Dinner" section. There were some really different recipes in that section. Other than that, for the most part, meh.

[Cali · Rating 4 out of 5]

This cookbook has some really great recipes that I am excited to try. It has a unique "breakfast for dinner" section, a section for crockpot cooking, a section for grilling, and many more. I am a beginner at cooking and plenty of these recipes are easy enough for me to try! The book is written in a very friendly tone with just the right amount of pages that are explanatory or storytelling. I don't like when a cookbook has too much non-recipe pages and this book has a great ratio.

[Marianna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pretty basic.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Want to try the Blueberry Streusel French Toast, the Dinnertime Burrito, and the Pesto
Smashed Potato recipes.

[Linda · Rating 3 out of 5]

Expected simple, comfort food recipes. Much more gourmet than I would have expected from the title!

[Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

beautiful cookbook, plenty of recipes and pictures