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The Sad Bastard Cookbook: Food You Can Make So You Don't Die
Life is hard. Some days are at the absolute limit of what we can manage. Some days are worse than that. Eating—picking a meal, making it, putting it into your facehole—can feel like an insurmountable challenge. We wrote this cookbook to share our coping strategies. It has recipes to make when you've worked a 16-hour day, when you can't stop crying and you don't know why, when you accidentally woke up an Eldritch abomination at the bottom of the ocean. But most of all, this cookbook exists to help sad bastards like us feel a little less alone at mealtimes.
The Sad Bastard Cookbook is funny, realistic, and kind. It's vegetarian/vegan. It's a community-built project. And the e-book is free on the Night Beats website. It's hard to survive late capitalism and we want to help.
Content notes: Mental and physical illness, disordered eating, and dark humour throughout, as well as occasional mentions of alcohol, swearing, and political references. If you have specific food triggers, some recipes may be unpalatable to you.
The Sad Bastard Cookbook is funny, realistic, and kind. It's vegetarian/vegan. It's a community-built project. And the e-book is free on the Night Beats website. It's hard to survive late capitalism and we want to help.
Content notes: Mental and physical illness, disordered eating, and dark humour throughout, as well as occasional mentions of alcohol, swearing, and political references. If you have specific food triggers, some recipes may be unpalatable to you.
146 pages, Paperback
First published November 27, 2022
14 people are currently reading
314 people want to read
About the author
Zilla Novikov
5 books24 followersZilla Novikov (she/her) is on her fourth iteration of living through this timeline, and she's starting to get the hang of it. She compiled the sum total of her wisdom into The Sad Bastard Cookbook: Food You Can Make So You Don't Die, which she co-authored with Rachel A. Rosen. Query, on the other hand, contains no wisdom whatsoever.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 89 reviews
December 15, 2023
Do you have minimal access to cooking devices? Maybe just a hot plate, camp stove, and/or microwave? Maybe a crockpot? Do you have one semi-sharp kitchen knife? One pot and one frying pan? Are generally a shambolic cook at the best of times and this is not the best of times? Are you lacking in money? This book is for you.
The dishes included sound fairly tasty. (I tried the Top Ramen recipe and it was delicious) and they are quick and will keep you alive but they are high in starches, fat, salt and generally lean to the unhealthy end of the nutrition chart. Sometimes, that's just what you need.
The dishes included sound fairly tasty. (I tried the Top Ramen recipe and it was delicious) and they are quick and will keep you alive but they are high in starches, fat, salt and generally lean to the unhealthy end of the nutrition chart. Sometimes, that's just what you need.
August 8, 2024
Finally, after all these years, I've found a cookery book that is on my level! I know this because I read it just after eating couscous with frozen spinach, olives, and grated cheese for dinner. (I considered going grocery shopping, but it was raining.) Genuinely, it is so helpful to have suggestions of new variations for my dinner format of carb + vegetable + cheddar cheese that require very little executive function or fresh ingredients to prepare. And you can pseudo-bake apples in the microwave?? This is excellent news.
December 4, 2022
Depression can feel like being the body during an out-of-body experience. Or like being a rickety boat sailing a beam sea. You can find it an ordeal to do even the simplest things—like eating. This cookbook understands that you might be broke or even poor, beaten down by fatigue, unable to cope with basic physical tasks, and/or lacking the wherewithal to open a jar of jam. The book prods you, with a gentle humour that is sympathetic to your depressive paralysis, to get something down your gullet.
Some of the recipes here satisfy the minimum requirements of what might be called actual recipes—but then there are "Peanut Butter on a Spoon" or "Eat a Dill Pickle Out of the Jar While Standing in Front of the Fridge". How do these qualify as recipes? Well, I myself have experienced spirits low enough that basic life tasks went undone simply because there was nobody standing there telling me, "Now do this. Next do that." The Sad Bastard Cookbook recognises that, some days, you're probably going to max out simply by taking one thing (hopefully not mouldy or expired) from your cupboard and choking it down raw.
But remember, you could take not one but *two* things, or at the God-Tier level *three* things, combine them, zap them in the microwave, and satisfy basic caloric intake requirements in a slightly less sorry-ass way, even as you continue to stagger under the crushing burden of your depression. Which is a way, maybe, to be slightly less sad.
Some of the recipes here satisfy the minimum requirements of what might be called actual recipes—but then there are "Peanut Butter on a Spoon" or "Eat a Dill Pickle Out of the Jar While Standing in Front of the Fridge". How do these qualify as recipes? Well, I myself have experienced spirits low enough that basic life tasks went undone simply because there was nobody standing there telling me, "Now do this. Next do that." The Sad Bastard Cookbook recognises that, some days, you're probably going to max out simply by taking one thing (hopefully not mouldy or expired) from your cupboard and choking it down raw.
But remember, you could take not one but *two* things, or at the God-Tier level *three* things, combine them, zap them in the microwave, and satisfy basic caloric intake requirements in a slightly less sorry-ass way, even as you continue to stagger under the crushing burden of your depression. Which is a way, maybe, to be slightly less sad.
January 26, 2023
This is the cook book your absolute best friend would write for you.
If you think of someone who'll come visit you and not blink twice when your wearing the same clothes you wore last time they saw you, just with more stains, this is that person in book form.
It is filled with warm kindness and each recipe has a comforting feel as if it's saying through recipes, 'it's okay to be not okay, just be whatever you can be right now in this moment'.
There's no judgement, just acceptance, plus I learnt, much to my dubious surprise, that hash browns are quite tasty in noodles!
If you think of someone who'll come visit you and not blink twice when your wearing the same clothes you wore last time they saw you, just with more stains, this is that person in book form.
It is filled with warm kindness and each recipe has a comforting feel as if it's saying through recipes, 'it's okay to be not okay, just be whatever you can be right now in this moment'.
There's no judgement, just acceptance, plus I learnt, much to my dubious surprise, that hash browns are quite tasty in noodles!
March 26, 2025
Highly amusing, and actually quite helpful with some yummy to eat ideas and/or tips!! Loved that it WASN’T rude, or full of sarcastic idiotic “jokes/comments”
I’ll be honest, I’ve never cooked Couscous (pg.46), wanted to, but seems like one of those things that should be easy but that’ll leave you crying with a permanently ruined pot for some unknown reason… but I’m willing to give it a try 😬😁
🫐🥟🫐 Blueberry pierogis… sounds yummy, must find 😁🫐🥟🫐
(pg.90) HolyCrap 😮🤯😱 Someone actually put -Don’t eat Grapefruit if you’re on Blood Pressure Meds!!!!!!!! Finally someone else recognizes this!! 🧡😭🧡 You have no idea how many times people argue with me about this or been called a liar about it, just made my day🌻
In case there’s any confusion, this IS a Cookbook 👩🍳⏲️📖
Simple, but fantastic 😉
⭐️⭐️I got for FREE⭐️⭐️on “Play Books”⭐️⭐️
I’ll be honest, I’ve never cooked Couscous (pg.46), wanted to, but seems like one of those things that should be easy but that’ll leave you crying with a permanently ruined pot for some unknown reason… but I’m willing to give it a try 😬😁
🫐🥟🫐 Blueberry pierogis… sounds yummy, must find 😁🫐🥟🫐
(pg.90) HolyCrap 😮🤯😱 Someone actually put -Don’t eat Grapefruit if you’re on Blood Pressure Meds!!!!!!!! Finally someone else recognizes this!! 🧡😭🧡 You have no idea how many times people argue with me about this or been called a liar about it, just made my day🌻
In case there’s any confusion, this IS a Cookbook 👩🍳⏲️📖
Simple, but fantastic 😉
⭐️⭐️I got for FREE⭐️⭐️on “Play Books”⭐️⭐️
November 20, 2022
An easy and inspiring compilation of simple recipes (that can be jazzed up to God tier of sophistication!), written for those who struggle to put together even simple meals. This is for anyone who ever had trouble getting out of bed in the morning and then felt like putting food in their mouth was almost too much of a burden. This book will inspire you to eat, to scour your cupboards for packets of ramen, and it might even inspire you to shop in an actual store and put together a lovely healthy meal. Small steps to big leaps! The book is written with humor, compassion, and love for struggling humans. I greatly enjoyed reading it - and I don’t normally read cookbooks. I will even cook something from it soon! Highly recommended for all cooking prowess levels.
December 24, 2022
"Big Pancake doesn’t want you to know this, but making pancakes is easier than you think." I'd like everyone to know that you don't have to be depressed to find a use for this cookbook. If you object to measuring spoons, this is for you. Personally I do not own measuring spoons. Special shout-out to Peanut Butter Balls. What goes in them, other than peanut butter? Some other stuff! (otherwise, the recipe'd be called Peanut Butter Jars) Fortunately, not much other stuff! Important rules for Crackers 'n' Stuff: Eat while watching Night Beats.
October 9, 2022
While this book provides very handy and quick recipes, it is so much more than a cookbook. It is a companion through tough times, a crutch when you are struggling and a shared smile when you need just that.
These are not gourmet recipes, but they will get you by and introduce variety when you just can't make that extra effort.
These are not gourmet recipes, but they will get you by and introduce variety when you just can't make that extra effort.
December 1, 2022
Vegetarian and vegan recipes for when you are out of energy, maybe because of injury, chronic illness, or depression. Written with lots of variations. Most recipes have few steps and require little measuring. I enjoyed the humor and the drawings. I'm impressed with the variety of ingredients used, which is especially important for somebody who is having trouble summoning the energy to cook. (You can put canned pumpkin in a quesadilla! I never knew!) Calorie counts not included, which is fine. If you're really struggling, then every calorie you consume is probably a good calorie.
January 15, 2023
I have 17 cookbooks. They've been sitting on my shelf for the past 8 years. Not once in those 8 years have I opened one of them, thought to myself "wow, this is a recipe I can realistically cook today", and then proceeded to cook that recipe.
This cookbook is different. Like many others, it promises to offer simple, cheap, tasty veggie recipes. But here's the thing: It KEEPS that promise.
These are things you can manage to make even on your worst days, and you will still feel good about it because it has a cute name like "parfait" or "bubble and squeak", except it's a simplified version of the dish and the instructions are written so that even someone with an attention span of 0.2 milliseconds who is also very very bad at cooking can understand them.
Plus most of the recipes don't even require 500 ingredients that will go off in your fridge after 2 days. In short, it's exactly what I've been looking for my entire life.
And yes, I actually read through this book entirely like it's a novel because it was funny and, despite its title, rather uplifting.
https://nightbeatseu.ca/works/the-sad...
Thanks for the free PDF!
This cookbook is different. Like many others, it promises to offer simple, cheap, tasty veggie recipes. But here's the thing: It KEEPS that promise.
These are things you can manage to make even on your worst days, and you will still feel good about it because it has a cute name like "parfait" or "bubble and squeak", except it's a simplified version of the dish and the instructions are written so that even someone with an attention span of 0.2 milliseconds who is also very very bad at cooking can understand them.
Plus most of the recipes don't even require 500 ingredients that will go off in your fridge after 2 days. In short, it's exactly what I've been looking for my entire life.
And yes, I actually read through this book entirely like it's a novel because it was funny and, despite its title, rather uplifting.
https://nightbeatseu.ca/works/the-sad...
Thanks for the free PDF!
August 28, 2022
I received an Advance Reader Copy in return for an honest review.
Some days, there’s not enough time. Some days, you just don’t have the energy. Some days, you feel like a sad bastard and literally don’t know what to do. That’s when you pick up The Sad Bastard Cookbook and just read. It will make you laugh. It will keep you company. It will help you find something to cook, on your level for the day. Make the core recipe, add something if you feel for it, or—on a good day—go all in.
The Sad Bastard Cookbook has already saved my ass several times when it comes to solve the "what's for dinner"-question. The recipes are simple and you’ve probably made most of them before. But here’s the thing; it’s up to you where you set the bar. You don’t have to follow the recipe strictly, but, if you need it, there are a lot of suggestions how to pimp your food. And, it will taste good!
Some days, there’s not enough time. Some days, you just don’t have the energy. Some days, you feel like a sad bastard and literally don’t know what to do. That’s when you pick up The Sad Bastard Cookbook and just read. It will make you laugh. It will keep you company. It will help you find something to cook, on your level for the day. Make the core recipe, add something if you feel for it, or—on a good day—go all in.
The Sad Bastard Cookbook has already saved my ass several times when it comes to solve the "what's for dinner"-question. The recipes are simple and you’ve probably made most of them before. But here’s the thing; it’s up to you where you set the bar. You don’t have to follow the recipe strictly, but, if you need it, there are a lot of suggestions how to pimp your food. And, it will taste good!
December 1, 2022
you're allowed to review books you contributed to, right? after all, i only contributed one page, and the rest of the pages are great, too. the purpose of this cookbook, is to give you options for getting tasty food into yourself when you are ill, depressed, overwhelmed, or otherwise cooking-impaired, although most of the recipes do involve some cooking. it's free if you subscribe to their newsletter and get an e-copy, otherwise, small charge to cover printing and paper. it's a wonderful gift to the world, and i already have added to my store of ideas about what to do when acquiring food seems like more than i can handle.
December 7, 2022
This has honestly changed my life. I had downloaded an ebook for ADHDers before in hopes to get my shit together but it was far too advanced. This is the shit for when you're at rock bottom. You need to start from scratch and it's okay. I have been on antidepressants for years now so I feel like I earned to own a Sad Bastard Cookbook but the truth is everyone does. Treat yourself to decency. Get a Sad Bastard cookbook
October 25, 2023
Was I Attacked? Or was I validated?!
I just read this book out loud to my two teens. We all laughed so hard that we teared up at times and were wheezing. Seriously did not expect that. I found the link to this book on a reddit thread for cooking while disabled. I have depression, PTSD, chronic pain, among other things and rarely have spoons to do much more than take something out of freezer and throw in air fryer/instant pot/microwave to cook. Or I drink a protein shake. Or sad sack it with ramen or a hot pocket. I have so much brain fog remembering simple meals is hard and anything that takes more than 5 minutes of standing is going to be left up to the teens at this point. I appreciate anything and anyone that recognizes the struggle of a depressed person. So while I feel like I was being pointed at with a thousand fingers, I felt validated and actually like I wasn't being judged for needing these very simple recipes. So often I get frustrated by not having access to reminders of simple foods I can make. I get frustrated at so many recipes saying they are easy when frankly, for me, they are God tier and beyond. I am also so very tired of being in pain just from trying to make a meal for myself and my family.
I'm that person with more than wilty veggies in the fridge because I forgot I bought them and I haven't been able to look in the fridge for days. That person who has stacks of cook books and printed recipes all over. That person horrified to find I now have a potato plant. This book let me release just a little bit of that shame.
I found recipes that reminded me "oh yeah! I used to do that! That's a good idea, I'm glad they put that in here!" I found some that I do currently. I found some that I was like I gotta try that variation.
And the best part of it all? My teens are autistic and have many sensory food related issues. Almost every single recipe has a variation that they deemed worthy of trying. I wonder if the authors realize what a huge thing this is. Like seriously. HUGE!
The set up of this cook book is perfect for someone like me.
Start with the basics and list different options and variations. Spot on. This doesn't make me look through a million recipes to find a single one that I can figure out a way to modify to meet everyone's needs. Nope, it's right there. And it's simple enough that my kids are like, well yeah I can do that! That's easy!
So to the authors and the rest of the contributers, I genuinely and sincerely thank you. I will be purchasing a physical copy as soon as I have the funds! It means so much to me that you have all put in the time and effort to create this resource and should know just how valuable it is.
I just read this book out loud to my two teens. We all laughed so hard that we teared up at times and were wheezing. Seriously did not expect that. I found the link to this book on a reddit thread for cooking while disabled. I have depression, PTSD, chronic pain, among other things and rarely have spoons to do much more than take something out of freezer and throw in air fryer/instant pot/microwave to cook. Or I drink a protein shake. Or sad sack it with ramen or a hot pocket. I have so much brain fog remembering simple meals is hard and anything that takes more than 5 minutes of standing is going to be left up to the teens at this point. I appreciate anything and anyone that recognizes the struggle of a depressed person. So while I feel like I was being pointed at with a thousand fingers, I felt validated and actually like I wasn't being judged for needing these very simple recipes. So often I get frustrated by not having access to reminders of simple foods I can make. I get frustrated at so many recipes saying they are easy when frankly, for me, they are God tier and beyond. I am also so very tired of being in pain just from trying to make a meal for myself and my family.
I'm that person with more than wilty veggies in the fridge because I forgot I bought them and I haven't been able to look in the fridge for days. That person who has stacks of cook books and printed recipes all over. That person horrified to find I now have a potato plant. This book let me release just a little bit of that shame.
I found recipes that reminded me "oh yeah! I used to do that! That's a good idea, I'm glad they put that in here!" I found some that I do currently. I found some that I was like I gotta try that variation.
And the best part of it all? My teens are autistic and have many sensory food related issues. Almost every single recipe has a variation that they deemed worthy of trying. I wonder if the authors realize what a huge thing this is. Like seriously. HUGE!
The set up of this cook book is perfect for someone like me.
Start with the basics and list different options and variations. Spot on. This doesn't make me look through a million recipes to find a single one that I can figure out a way to modify to meet everyone's needs. Nope, it's right there. And it's simple enough that my kids are like, well yeah I can do that! That's easy!
So to the authors and the rest of the contributers, I genuinely and sincerely thank you. I will be purchasing a physical copy as soon as I have the funds! It means so much to me that you have all put in the time and effort to create this resource and should know just how valuable it is.
November 27, 2022
I am close to the target audience of this book but not quite. The "not quite" encompasses a story about generational difference in the epoch of capitalist decay.
Full disclosure: Rachel has been a friend of mine for a couple decades now. But she's just a bit younger. That generational difference is, it turns out, the difference between what marketers have labeled and libeled as "Generation X" vs. "Millennials". That difference boils down to how much of the relative privileges of our parents' generation we were able to salvage before everything started to fall apart. The slightly more that my partner and I could nab means that, even with me having had long-term major depression and her having chronic illness (and episodic depression), we always somehow manage to keep the refrigerator and pantry full. Part of this is that, for idiosyncratic biographical reasons, even when I am near my worst, cooking is an act of self-care that brings me joy. And also, we have kids, and when one is responsible for the existence of smaller, less competent human beings it's best not to let them starve. So when I am at my absolute worst, and can't even arse myself to cook, I ask my partner to do it, and if some random part of hers is throbbing with excruciating pain, then we order takeout (or, if we're both in really bad shape, delivery) and make sure the kids at least are fine.
Even though I mostly found my own cuisine reflected, at best, in the "God-Tier" levels of recipes, there are moments of humor with which I could relate. "Eat a Dill Pickle out of the Jar while Standing in Front of the Fridge," for example, translates well to those days when I barely manage to pull myself out of bed at by 11am and I know I need to put something in my stomach so that I don't start snarling at the people who love me.
But I am going to keep hold of the e-book. Not for my own use, but because my 15-year-old is prone to depression, and neither my generation nor Rachel's has succeeded yet in overturning capitalism, with its debilitating long workdays, bullshit jobs, and social alienation, and replacing it with an ethos of collective care. So if, seven years from now, I find that my kid, having graduated from college, is having trouble keeping the pantry stocked in their shared apartment and seems to be losing weight, I'll send them a copy of this and remind them that, even if they can't stand up at the kitchen counter long enough to chop the garlic for the spaghetti aglio e olio (the fanciest Italian food in this book), I already taught them how to make cacio e pepe (also fancy and tasty Italian) and it's even easier.
Full disclosure: Rachel has been a friend of mine for a couple decades now. But she's just a bit younger. That generational difference is, it turns out, the difference between what marketers have labeled and libeled as "Generation X" vs. "Millennials". That difference boils down to how much of the relative privileges of our parents' generation we were able to salvage before everything started to fall apart. The slightly more that my partner and I could nab means that, even with me having had long-term major depression and her having chronic illness (and episodic depression), we always somehow manage to keep the refrigerator and pantry full. Part of this is that, for idiosyncratic biographical reasons, even when I am near my worst, cooking is an act of self-care that brings me joy. And also, we have kids, and when one is responsible for the existence of smaller, less competent human beings it's best not to let them starve. So when I am at my absolute worst, and can't even arse myself to cook, I ask my partner to do it, and if some random part of hers is throbbing with excruciating pain, then we order takeout (or, if we're both in really bad shape, delivery) and make sure the kids at least are fine.
Even though I mostly found my own cuisine reflected, at best, in the "God-Tier" levels of recipes, there are moments of humor with which I could relate. "Eat a Dill Pickle out of the Jar while Standing in Front of the Fridge," for example, translates well to those days when I barely manage to pull myself out of bed at by 11am and I know I need to put something in my stomach so that I don't start snarling at the people who love me.
But I am going to keep hold of the e-book. Not for my own use, but because my 15-year-old is prone to depression, and neither my generation nor Rachel's has succeeded yet in overturning capitalism, with its debilitating long workdays, bullshit jobs, and social alienation, and replacing it with an ethos of collective care. So if, seven years from now, I find that my kid, having graduated from college, is having trouble keeping the pantry stocked in their shared apartment and seems to be losing weight, I'll send them a copy of this and remind them that, even if they can't stand up at the kitchen counter long enough to chop the garlic for the spaghetti aglio e olio (the fanciest Italian food in this book), I already taught them how to make cacio e pepe (also fancy and tasty Italian) and it's even easier.
September 29, 2022
I've never reviewed a cookbook before, but there is a first time for everything!
Let's start with the cover: This design took me back to the cookbooks my parents used to have--the composition, the color--the ramen... with ketchup on it? Siracha? Is that blood??? Ok, this isn't my parents' cookbook. Childhood and nostalgia is over and cooking is actually a bitch (and if you live alone/are broke/are sick/unlucky at feeding yourself or some intersection of multiple of those, it's just that much worse). Luckily, the author gets that entirely.
So this is a collection of not so much recipes (which promise to make a delicious presentation in fantasy, but in reality, often provide more stress with complicated ingredients and preparations and PRESSURE to not fuck up)--it's more a collection of tips; concrete looser guidelines that result in meals, without strict measurements. Which results, hopefully, in another day where one of us could feed our sorry asses and feel a little less like a fuckup. It's also funny! And this book is free <3 So I recommend you give it a download; the recipes are great to peruse and to collect ideas for those mental rainy days :/ (weeks?? :////)
Let's start with the cover: This design took me back to the cookbooks my parents used to have--the composition, the color--the ramen... with ketchup on it? Siracha? Is that blood??? Ok, this isn't my parents' cookbook. Childhood and nostalgia is over and cooking is actually a bitch (and if you live alone/are broke/are sick/unlucky at feeding yourself or some intersection of multiple of those, it's just that much worse). Luckily, the author gets that entirely.
So this is a collection of not so much recipes (which promise to make a delicious presentation in fantasy, but in reality, often provide more stress with complicated ingredients and preparations and PRESSURE to not fuck up)--it's more a collection of tips; concrete looser guidelines that result in meals, without strict measurements. Which results, hopefully, in another day where one of us could feed our sorry asses and feel a little less like a fuckup. It's also funny! And this book is free <3 So I recommend you give it a download; the recipes are great to peruse and to collect ideas for those mental rainy days :/ (weeks?? :////)
January 10, 2023
The authors love you. They get you. They want you to be — if not perfectly well (because they are realistic), then at least comfortable. This book is clever, sweet, and practical. It may just be — quite literally— a lifesaver. This is not the cookbook you pull off your shelf because it’s the third date and you’re trying to impress them (cue Ina Garten’s Engagement Chicken). This is the cookbook you turn to when everything is bleak and you used your last burst of energy to brush your teeth, but you know you should eat something, and soon. You have eggs, the book says. You’ll be OK.
Life is hard. Dinner shouldn’t be.
Life is hard. Dinner shouldn’t be.
March 14, 2023
A reminder that you don't have to choose between a three course meal with fresh ingredients, and dying.
Made grilled cheese with a microwave because I was too sad to wash up my pans. 10./10.
"Put sliced cheese between two sides of bread. If you use American cheese singles,
you don't need to slice the cheese yourself. But on the downside, then you need to
eat American cheese singles."
Made grilled cheese with a microwave because I was too sad to wash up my pans. 10./10.
"Put sliced cheese between two sides of bread. If you use American cheese singles,
you don't need to slice the cheese yourself. But on the downside, then you need to
eat American cheese singles."
September 6, 2023
Not for people who have energy to put into food preparation. But for those of us who sometimes don’t, this free Kindle not-really-a-cookbook may inspire you to put something new onto your toast or into your quesadilla.
January 21, 2024
Can confirm. Very sad. 5/5 on the depression scale.
September 9, 2023
Finally, a realistic cookbook for people who lack the health or the time for the work called for in other supposedly basic cookbooks. Yes, some recipes are more reminders than recipes, but if you need a cookbook like this, sometimes you need the reminders too.
September 29, 2023
Food is a weird thing that I love and can also be an anxiety producing annoyance that I rarely have sufficient spoons to deal with in a way that leaves me satisfied. The ethos of the book is that there is a food preparation available for every taste and energy level.
Did I walk away with huge takeaways? Not so much. A couple of things were unfamiliar to me or were ideas that I had not thought of before. Did I feel seen, much the way I did when I read How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizingby KC Davis two years ago? Absolutely yes, and that alone is worth spending some time here. The authorial tone and illustrations are funny, wise, and deeply kind. It also helps to mainstream the sort of eating that this book has as its focus. These are struggle meals, many of us eat mostly struggle meals on a day-to-day basis. The idea that this is okay and can be made easier and healthier while remaining struggle meals is not what you find out in the world when trying to do the best with your limited resources. This book is not trying to change or ‘improve’ you; it is trying to change and improve your coping mechanisms – and that is a significant difference to me.
full review: https://faintingviolet.wordpress.com/...
Did I walk away with huge takeaways? Not so much. A couple of things were unfamiliar to me or were ideas that I had not thought of before. Did I feel seen, much the way I did when I read How to Keep House While Drowning: A Gentle Approach to Cleaning and Organizingby KC Davis two years ago? Absolutely yes, and that alone is worth spending some time here. The authorial tone and illustrations are funny, wise, and deeply kind. It also helps to mainstream the sort of eating that this book has as its focus. These are struggle meals, many of us eat mostly struggle meals on a day-to-day basis. The idea that this is okay and can be made easier and healthier while remaining struggle meals is not what you find out in the world when trying to do the best with your limited resources. This book is not trying to change or ‘improve’ you; it is trying to change and improve your coping mechanisms – and that is a significant difference to me.
full review: https://faintingviolet.wordpress.com/...
December 29, 2022
Have you ever had every intention of cooking a healthy dinner, but when the time comes to do it, you just don't have the spoons (literal or metaphorical), so you end up ordering in, or worse, not eating at all? I have. I consider myself a decent cook at this point in my life, but sometimes I just don't have the energy at the end of the day to follow through on my planned meals.
Not to mention if I don't have a plan to begin with! The horror! How will I be able to make dinner when I have to 1) look through recipes, 2) find one that sounds appetizing, 3) see if I have the ingredients, 4) get the missing ingredients, 5) prep the ingredients, 6) cook the ingredients, 7) serve the ingredients -- never mind all the complications that can arise like: oh no, the dishes weren't done, how can I progress past step 5? The cognitive burden is sometimes just too much to bear on top of the physical.
That's where this cookbook comes in. Its recipes may not look like other cookbooks, because part of its greatness is that it gives the reader permission to eat peanut butter on a spoon, for example, because it’s better than nothing. (I'm a fan of the pumpki-dilla - it's quick, easy, and I usually have all the ingredients on hand.)
That's why this is more than a cookbook, in my opinion, but a reminder to be kind to yourself. If all you can manage is eating a pickle from the jar? Plenty of us have been there. Go ahead, and, if you can, enjoy.
Not to mention if I don't have a plan to begin with! The horror! How will I be able to make dinner when I have to 1) look through recipes, 2) find one that sounds appetizing, 3) see if I have the ingredients, 4) get the missing ingredients, 5) prep the ingredients, 6) cook the ingredients, 7) serve the ingredients -- never mind all the complications that can arise like: oh no, the dishes weren't done, how can I progress past step 5? The cognitive burden is sometimes just too much to bear on top of the physical.
That's where this cookbook comes in. Its recipes may not look like other cookbooks, because part of its greatness is that it gives the reader permission to eat peanut butter on a spoon, for example, because it’s better than nothing. (I'm a fan of the pumpki-dilla - it's quick, easy, and I usually have all the ingredients on hand.)
That's why this is more than a cookbook, in my opinion, but a reminder to be kind to yourself. If all you can manage is eating a pickle from the jar? Plenty of us have been there. Go ahead, and, if you can, enjoy.
August 12, 2023
Book Review #1: Sad Bastard Perspective
This book has has actual usable recipes that will in fact help you survive. It is funny but it is not a joke. I mean, there are jokes, and they are funny.... I am looking at you “Peanut Butter on a Spoon”... but then, I have prepared and eaten that. In fact, I have prepared and eaten a lot of this, especially when poor, especially when tired, especially when vegetarian.
Book Review #2: Kitchen Warlock Perspective
Kitchen conjuring is a delicate magic. Chaos or upheaval can cause imbalances that block the creative flow of eldritch forces in the kitchen warlock making it difficult to cast his most intricate spells. Sometimes what we have lost in our Faustian bargain saps our power and inner strength. This book reminds me that the healing power of kitchen sorcery endures even if my most potent summoning takes the form of adding stuff to cooked rice. When you imagine your kitchen cantrips aren’t enough you can remember that feeding people is a precious act of commitment that affirms that they are worthy of life, love, and food that makes them happy. Some things can only be said with food.
Book Review #3: Political perspective
“you are worthy of love and worthy of food that makes you happy”(pg 8)
“...feeding people not as charity, but as an act of solidarity” (pg 10)
So buy the book and make the world a better place.
This book has has actual usable recipes that will in fact help you survive. It is funny but it is not a joke. I mean, there are jokes, and they are funny.... I am looking at you “Peanut Butter on a Spoon”... but then, I have prepared and eaten that. In fact, I have prepared and eaten a lot of this, especially when poor, especially when tired, especially when vegetarian.
Book Review #2: Kitchen Warlock Perspective
Kitchen conjuring is a delicate magic. Chaos or upheaval can cause imbalances that block the creative flow of eldritch forces in the kitchen warlock making it difficult to cast his most intricate spells. Sometimes what we have lost in our Faustian bargain saps our power and inner strength. This book reminds me that the healing power of kitchen sorcery endures even if my most potent summoning takes the form of adding stuff to cooked rice. When you imagine your kitchen cantrips aren’t enough you can remember that feeding people is a precious act of commitment that affirms that they are worthy of life, love, and food that makes them happy. Some things can only be said with food.
Book Review #3: Political perspective
“you are worthy of love and worthy of food that makes you happy”(pg 8)
“...feeding people not as charity, but as an act of solidarity” (pg 10)
So buy the book and make the world a better place.
December 17, 2022
This is an awesome vegetarian/vegan cookbook filled with simple, no fuss recipes. Full disclosure, I am typically very picky about cookbooks that don't have photos, but in this case IT WORKS! Each recipe has little notes, or witty descriptions and instructions. This book is both hilarious AND practical. I'm inclined to say it would be a perfect for a teenager or young adult heading out on their own, but the truth is, as a middle aged mom I will ABSOLUTELY be using this for myself and my family!
November 27, 2022
This is a very important book! Everyone deserves to eat - even when their brain is telling them that nothing is worth the effort.
It doesn’t match the kind of depression I get but is a great go to for the stressed and overwhelmed as well as the sad. So I think this is an essential book for most people.
I signed up for the newsletter so I could get the PDF - it is now saved in my files for when I need it.
It doesn’t match the kind of depression I get but is a great go to for the stressed and overwhelmed as well as the sad. So I think this is an essential book for most people.
I signed up for the newsletter so I could get the PDF - it is now saved in my files for when I need it.
November 29, 2022
True to the title, eating this food will not kill you.
December 16, 2022
(Full disclosure: I am the publisher at The BumblePuppy Press, which released Rachel A. Rosen's debut novel, Cascade this past July, and which will soon publish co-author Zilla Novikov's own debut, Rachel A. Rosen and Zilla Novikov (ably assisted by Marten Norr, who also illustrated Rachel's chapbook, So Human As I Am) struck out on their own between last summer’s publication of Rachel’s Cascade, and Zilla’s forthcoming debut, Reprise (available for pre-order on Amazon), by writing a cookbook that is both useful and funny.
It's a cookbook, and one I've had on (virtual) hand for only a couple of days, so I would be lying if I told you I have read it from cover to cover. But I have spot-read it and can tell you three things.
First, it is a pragmatic cookbook, one that makes no pretence it will turn you into a master chef, but rather, that it will help you feed yourself on your worst, most stressed-out, days.
Second, it is a funny book. Aimed specifically at dealing with depression or other mental or physical illnesses, as well as people who are simply over-stressed by the demands of living in a brutal, late-capitalist world where "leisure time" is more often an aspiration than a reality, it is at once snarky, kind-hearted, and justifiably angry at the state of the world. (It is also rich with in-jokes to the authors' own books, as well as some by their friends. You don't have to have read Cascade or be looking forward to Reprise, but you'll get more chuckles out of the SBCB if you have done.)
The recipes are chatty but concise, with vague but clear directions allowing the reader/cook the option of following the directions as written or working on variations, confident we won't ruin a dinner we're very nearly too tired to make in the first place.
And third, The Sad Bastard Cookbook includes enough of a variety of recipes not only to keep you alive in trying times, but to keep you and your taste-buds from getting bored.
You can buy the book in paper from what some call The Big A, but the authors have chosen to also publish the book under a Creative Commons License and are offering it as a free download from the Night Beats Extended Universe website.
February 1, 2025
This book accomplishes what it set out to do — remind people who have a hard time feeding themselves while depressed that there are very basic things you can eat. The intended audience might skew towards those in college/new adults in general, people who have not spent a lot of time cooking for themselves, even when they feel capable.
The recipes within are less about measurements and more about adequate ideas, with variations depending on how much effort you might want to put into a dish. Even though I have been (to toot my own horn) a really good cook for almost 20 years now, and even though certain prep methods contained within made me go "I CANNOT imagine doing it like that," I know I'm not exactly the intended audience! People who like cooking for themselves and love new recipes are going to be like "Peanut butter on a spoon? Seriously???" But that's not the point here! The point is, when you're knee-deep in some sort of awful circumstance, sometimes you really need someone to say, "Hey, it's fine if all you manage is some instant oatmeal right now."
BTW, the ebook version of this is free online, so if you need a little extra help, that's one less hurdle to deal with.
The recipes within are less about measurements and more about adequate ideas, with variations depending on how much effort you might want to put into a dish. Even though I have been (to toot my own horn) a really good cook for almost 20 years now, and even though certain prep methods contained within made me go "I CANNOT imagine doing it like that," I know I'm not exactly the intended audience! People who like cooking for themselves and love new recipes are going to be like "Peanut butter on a spoon? Seriously???" But that's not the point here! The point is, when you're knee-deep in some sort of awful circumstance, sometimes you really need someone to say, "Hey, it's fine if all you manage is some instant oatmeal right now."
BTW, the ebook version of this is free online, so if you need a little extra help, that's one less hurdle to deal with.
October 24, 2023
If you ever struggle to make food for yourself, because you are tired, depressed or overwhelmed with life - this book is great for you! It was also great at making me laugh out loud in public transport.
I like cooking and would like to think I'm quite good at it, but when life becomes too intense for me, I have zero energy and motivation to even think what is an edible item I could fill up my stomach with. And this book is great for such occasions. Besides classics of lazy cooking, such as instant ramen and just eating a random food item straight out of the fridge, it also has some creative easy recipes, that really might enhance one's menu. It also serves some good jokes, that I would not expect out of the cookbook, but it is probably the only cookbook I ever read from beginning to the end, so who knows, maybe they are usually this amusing.
Also, a good read for any person that just moved out of their parents and needs to learn how to cook.
I like cooking and would like to think I'm quite good at it, but when life becomes too intense for me, I have zero energy and motivation to even think what is an edible item I could fill up my stomach with. And this book is great for such occasions. Besides classics of lazy cooking, such as instant ramen and just eating a random food item straight out of the fridge, it also has some creative easy recipes, that really might enhance one's menu. It also serves some good jokes, that I would not expect out of the cookbook, but it is probably the only cookbook I ever read from beginning to the end, so who knows, maybe they are usually this amusing.
Also, a good read for any person that just moved out of their parents and needs to learn how to cook.
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