The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime: Comfort Classics, Freezer Food, 16-Minute Meals, and Other Delicious Ways to Solve Supper!

by Ree Drummond

THERE’S NO TIME LIKE DINNERTIME!

Oh, don’t get me wrong. I adore breakfast. I love lunch! But dinnertime definitely tops them all. It’s the time of day when we reunite with our sweeties, our kids, our friends, our parents . . . and catch up on the events of the day over something mouthwatering and delicious. Dinnertime anchors us, nourishes us, and reassures us. It’s the greatest meal of the day!

 The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime is a beloved collection of all the scrumptious supper recipes that make their way through my kitchen in regular rotation, from main dish salads to satisfying soups to hearty casseroles to comfort food classics . . . and everything in between. I lay out all the different ways I tackle dinner in my house, from super-quick 16-Minute Meals to make-ahead Freezer Food to irresistible pastas and a bundle of brand-new favorites of my crew.

You’ll want to immediately dive into surefire hits like Tomato Soup with Parmesan Croutons, Buffalo Chicken Salad, Baked Ziti, and Shrimp Scampi. But just wait till you try the Cashew Chicken, French Dip Sandwiches, Chicken Marsala, and Beef Stroganoff. And don’t even get me started on the Tomato Tart, Chicken with Mustard Cream Sauce, and Pan-Fried Pork Chops. You’ll have a very tough time deciding on a favorite!

To take away the guesswork, I made sure to include all the step-by-step recipe photos I love to share, and I packed as much deliciousness into each chapter as possible. My hope is that you will turn to this book regularly to solve your dinnertime dilemmas, and that you will use these recipes to feed your family time and time again. The more stains, smudges, and smears on the pages, the better!

Enjoy dinnertime in your household, friends!

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Nonfiction, Food, Foodie, Reference, Food and Drink

400 pages, Hardcover

First published October 20, 2015

About the author

Ree Drummond began blogging in 2006 and has built an award-winning website, where she shares recipes, showcases her photography, and documents her hilarious transition from city life to ranch wife. She is the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling cookbook The Pioneer Woman Cooks . Ree lives on a working cattle ranch near Pawhuska, Oklahoma, with her husband, Ladd; their four kids; their beloved basset hound; and lots of other animals.

Reviews

[Carol [Goodreads Addict] · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Pioneer Woman Cooks Dinnertime is by Ree Drummond. If I had to describe this cookbook in one word, I think it would have to be delightful. This is not just a cookbook, it is so much more!

The cover of the book claims that it includes comfort classics, freezer food, 16-minute meals, and other delicious ways to solve supper. But there is a lot more to this book. It starts out with an introduction and a peek at a typical week in Ree Drummond’s life. Ree lives on a real, working ranch. This is one busy woman! Throughout the cookbook, there are photos included of Ree and her family around the ranch. I loved these. Yes, there are awesome recipes in this book but she also made me just want to sit down with it and thumb through it looking at all of the pictures and reading her little anecdotes.



I came across one of The Pioneer Woman’s recipes online for baked beans. I made it for a get together and am now asked to bring “my” baked beans every time any of our family gets together. So I asked for one of her cookbooks for Christmas. All of the recipes include easy to come by ingredients. No weird or unusual ingredients. For me this is important. Although I don’t live on a ranch, I do live in the country so I can’t just run down the street to a grocery store.



The few recipes I have tried so far have all been a complete success. I’m old enough to feel confident if I want to change something small to fit our likes but I love having the book for so many new and wonderful ideas to try. Each recipe includes not only an ingredient list but step by step photos along with instructions. What a lot of work must have gone into taking all the photos for each recipe.



Ree also likes to cook ahead and throughout the book are so many ways to do that. She will teach you how to make up a whole bunch of meatballs to be frozen and used for different things. There are also plenty of helpful hints like simmering some barbecue sauce on the stove with chopped garlic to use. Wow did this taste good!

I look forward to so many more recipes in this book that I want to try and also, I hope to pick up some of her other cookbooks as well. Even in this age of digital books, I like to have a real, hard copy cookbook to sit on the counter while following a recipe. If you enjoy real, country cooking but want an entertaining book as well, you definitely should give this a try.

[Nicole · Rating 5 out of 5]

After completing a whopping 64 recipes out of this cookbook (list of all recipes below with individual ratings), only 3 recipes were ones I wouldn't make again and a total of 20 made it into my personal recipe box!

For those who say Ree only produces butter heavy, heart-attack recipes, let me be the first to contradict. This book had a beautiful selection of vibrant and healthy salads to pick from. My favorites included easy and quick homemade dressings that you'll want to stock your fridge with. Beyond salads, look forward to a handful of innovative vegetable side dishes that will spices up any cook's repertoire. Think you know what roast carrots should taste like? Think again.

Beyond the glorious greens (oranges, whites, reds, and purples), there is a wide selection of great recipes to choose from. From hearty roasts to the lightest, most delicate French toast you've ever had, take a look inside and find some new family favorites! Highly recommended.

Breakfast for Dinner: 6/12 Recipes
Greek Yogurt Pancakes (3/5)
Waffles (4/5)
Frittata (3/5)
Croissant French Toast (5/5)
Meat and Potato Scramble (3/5)
Wild Rive Pancakes (4/5)

Salad for Dinner: 6/11 Recipes
Ginger Steak Salad (4/5)
Sesame Chicken Salad (4/5)
Grilled Chicken and Strawberry Salad Wrap (3/5)
Chicken Taco Salad (5/5)
Buffalo Chicken Salad (4/5)
Mediterranean Orzo Salad (2/5)

Soup for Dinner: 4/11 Recipes
Tomato Soup with Parmesan Croutons (3/5)
Potato Soup (3/5)
Butternut Squash Soup (3/5)
Cheesy Cauliflower Soup (3/5)

Freezer Food: 9/17 Recipes
Ready-to-Go Freezer Meatballs (3/5)
Sweet and Sour Meatballs (4/5)
Swedish Meatballs (3/5)
BBQ Meatballs (3/5)
Ready-to-Go Taco Chicken (4/5)
Chicken Nachos (3/5)
Ready-to-Go Beef Taco Filling (4/5)
Salad Tacos (3/5)
Red, White and Green Stuffed Shells (3/5)

16-Minute Meals: 6/11 Recipes
Chicken with Mustard Cream Sauce (3/5)
Pan Fried Pork Chops (2/5)
Orange Chicken (3/5)
Beef with Snow Peas (3/5)
Spicy Cauliflower Stir Fry (3/5)
Chow Mein (3/5)

Pasta Pronto: 6/13 Recipes
Bow-Tie Chicken Alfredo (3/5)
Pasta with Vodka Sauce (5/5)
Seafood Pasta in a Foil Package (3/5)
Skillet Lasagna (3/5)
Roasted Red Pepper Pasta (4/5)
Zucchini Noodles (3/5)

Comfort Classics: 6/11 Recipes
Quick Shells and Cheese (3/5)
Salisbury Steak (3/5)
Chicken Cacciatore (3/5)
Tuna Noodle Casserole (4/5)
Oven Barbecued Chicken (4/5)
Red Wine Pot Roast (3/5)

New Favorites: 9/11 Recipes
Pork Chops with Wine and Roasted Garlic (4/5)
Pollo Asado (3/5)
Chicken Marsala (4/5)
Coconut Curry Shrimp (5/5)
Tomato Tart (4/5)
Pork Chops w/Pineapple Fried Rice (5/5)
Chicken Milanese (3/5)
Pawhuska Cheesesteaks (3/5)
Green Chile Chicken (3/5)

Veggie Sides: 7/11 Recipes
Roasted Asparagus (3/5)
Roasted Grape Tomatoes (3/5)
*Broccoli Cauliflower Casserole (5/5)
Beautiful Roasted Vegetables (4/5)
Lemony Green Beans (2/5)
Colorful Coleslaw (3/5)
Peas and Carrots (3/5)
Roasted Carrots with Vinaigrette (5/5)

Starchy Sides: 1/12 Recipes
Cheese Biscuits (3/5

Quick Desserts: 4/14 Recipes
Vanilla Pudding (3/5)
*Butterscotch Pudding (3/5)
Chocolate Pudding (3/5)
Mini Blueberry Galettes (3/5)
Rice Pudding (5/5)

*Recipe reviews contributed by Goodreads friend, Sara. Thanks Sara!

[Christina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I adore Ree Drummond...and her blog...and her cookbooks, this one especially :)

[Cyndi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lots of great recipes to try and excellent shots of ranch life. I will probably try some of the recipes but the ranch stuff looks like way too much work! Its no wonder they eat huge amounts of food. They need tons of energy.

[Ivonne Rovira · Rating 3 out of 5]

It is impossible not to adore blogger-turned-Food Channel chef Ree Drummond; it is possible not to love her cookbooks. Her first book — made up of equal parts recipes and whimsical looks at Drummond’s life amongst cattle, horses, dogs, cowhands, husband, kids and beautiful, beautiful, beautiful vistas — wowed me more for the memoir part than the cookbook part. This cookbook, which really is just a cookbook, emphasizes how much of what I enjoyed was the glimpse into a life on a modern working ranch. The recipes are still good, but, while there are photos of Drummond’s family and ranch and especially of the charming basset hound Charlie (I’m a fan!), it’s not as fun as the first one. Still, a solid three stars for a slightly better-than-average cookbook.

Caveat lector: If you like to prepare meals in advance, freeze them and then pop them into the oven when you need them, add an extra star. This book is one for you. My stand-up freezer is broken just now, and, even when it worked, I didn’t freeze meals ahead. Ever.

[Cheryl · Rating 4 out of 5]

Step by step directions for making great dinners! Colorful pictures accompany each recipe. (They are mouth watering pics!) She also gives variations for the recipes (substitutes/additions for various ingredients) and "serve with" suggestions as well. Lots of family photos too! (Purchased this cookbook at a book signing event in December 2015 and thought Ree was warm and friendly to the huge number of people who stood in line to have their books signed).

[Jeannie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I received this as a gift. What a great gift idea. The photos in this cookbook are gorgeous.
I loved the step by step photo directions. I can't wait to try many of the recipes in this book, there are also several vegetarian options. I highly recommend the skillet lasagna, it is fabulous!

[Coleen (The Book Ramblings) · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Dinnertime is releasing next week, on October 20th, so what better time to write a review? My mother and I adore Ree Drummond; we watch her on the Food Network check out her blog, and like numerous social media pages because she is a phenomenal cook, but also such a genuine, approachable person. This is the first Pioneer Woman cookbook that I own, so I was anticipating it’s arrival to check out what is inside, and get cooking in the kitchen. In this cookbook, there are over 125 simple, step-by-step recipes for delicious meals that the whole family will love, and want again!

There are eleven sections in this cookbook, which consist of Breakfast for Dinner; Salad for Dinner; Soup for Dinner; Freezer Food; 16-Minute Meals; Pasta Pronto; Comfort Classics; New Favorites; Veggie Sides; Starchy Sides; Quick Dinners. Before getting into the different recipes sections, there is an Introduction just like all cookbooks, but what I love comes after that, which includes A Typical Week, Prep Tips, and Stocking Up. In Typical Week is self-explanatory, but I know that anyone who adores Ree loves to hear from her point-of-view, or just about her day because she makes it enjoyable, and it’s nice to have the creator open up, and let those of us readers or foodie’s see a peek into their world, but also speaking about the recipes found within the cookbook. The Prep Tips and Stocking Up are two sections that I appreciate because as someone cooking in the kitchen, you can never have enough tips, insight, and guidance!

Each recipe includes serving size, step-by-step instructions with photos, along with make ahead tips, variations, and what can be served with the recipe. Prior to the ingredients and instructions, there are little paragraphs by Ree, which I could not help but reading in her voice, and it was a great start before getting into each recipe. When it comes to the recipes, I loved that there are a variety that anyone in the family can enjoy, but also easy-to-follow, and photos are included as a way to check and make sure you’re following the recipe right. I have to say that my favorite recipe sections are Breakfast for Dinner, Soup for Dinner, and Quick Dinner. But there are so many to choose from, and this is a cookbook that can be used year around because it isn’t just for one season, and the variations note that includes different ways to serve the particular meal. I tried numerous recipes over the past week, and every dish was a hit in this household, with many more to be prepared over the week to come.

This is a cookbook that I am recommending to everyone who is a fan of Ree Drummond, or is just looking for a new cookbook to add to their collection. I know that I will be purchasing one to give to someone as a gift for the upcoming holidays because it’s a cookbook that I love, and I know without a doubt that other’s will love it, too.

I received this cookbook for reviewing purposes. Thank you to William Morrow Cookbooks for sending me a copy.

[Kirsten · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't exactly read this, but I did look at every page and ever photo and every recipe.

Ms Drummond produces lovely cookbooks. Plenty of color photographs and good explanations of every step in the process. She even includes lists of things you should always keep in your pantry.

It would be a great addition to any cooks shelves.

[Sydna · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is my favorite of all her cookbooks! Love the format, recipes and tips. Cannot wait to get in the kitchen!

[Sheila Melo · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfect Book for Busy Families with Gorgeous Step By Step Photos and a Variety of Recipes

This cookbook focuses on dinnertime meals. Well organized and filled with recipes for a wide variety of tastes, this book is good for cooks at any level.

This book is simply beautiful. Filled with colorful and informative photos (there is a picture for every recipe), this book not only is great to look at but also gives good information for those of us who are competent but not particularly instinctive when it comes to cooking. I especially like the step by step photos so that I can get an idea of what the dish should look at while I am cooking it instead of just hoping it turns out like the finished product.

This book is organized by type of meal. With categories such as comfort food, soup for dinner, salad for dinner, breakfast for dinner, the book gives the reader a sense of the different possibilities for meals. There is also several sections on different types of side dishes and even desserts so readers can mix and match main dishes with the sides and desserts they like to make a complete meal.

I was especially pleased with the section on freezer meals. While basic and certainly not an attempt to be a treatise on the subject, this section gives readers the opportunity to prepare staples to keep frozen and then provides several different ways that those frozen staples can be used to make different meals. For example, the book provides a recipe for meatballs that can be frozen and then gives recipes for their use in sweet and sour meatballs, Swedish meatballs, etc. This section and the section on quick preparation meals are especially good for busy people who don't have hours to spend in the kitchen to prepare a dinner.

This book also has a great variety of recipes. There are recipes that are basic (especially good for picky eaters), meat and potatoes type recipes and then also recipes for more adventurous eaters. I appreciated the variety of recipes because nothing annoys me more than cooking books that are only for gourmet eaters.

Although titled Dinnertime, this book has such a great variety of recipes that they can be used all day long.

[Cori · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am an incredibly visual person when it comes to prepping, cooking, baking, ordering, or all things food. So I LOVE the pictures that accompany these recipes. The recipes are reasonable too. Good food. I'd recommend as a hearty food prep book.

[Ashley · Rating 4 out of 5]

Being 9 months pregnant, and desperate for freezer and quick dinner meal ideas, this book was absolutely perfect!

[Sierra · Rating 4 out of 5]

love the step-by-step pictures

[Andrea · Rating 3 out of 5]

I saw this sitting upstairs in my library's bookshop and was so excited at the find. I couldn't believe someone had gotten rid of this because she's so popular right now and it's so new. And this $30 book is sold for only $2 since it's a hardback so I couldn't pass it up. I was so happy to snatch it up before the customers would see it. Just looking at the edges of the pages with the book closed was nice, because they're so colorful. It's so visually appealing and eye-catching.

I remember going through it quickly and only finding a handful of recipes that I wanted to make. I mainly just wanted it for the pictures and the bits she wrote about her family. I think that's the best kind of cookbook to write: one with glimpses of their life and stories to make it more engaging. It didn't occur to me I could actually read it and add it to goodreads. I bought it months ago and put it away, but I was determined now to read it through.

I liked the breakfast for dinner section. Greek yogurt pancakes, huevos rancheros, and croissant French toast.
Salad for dinner: Panzanella, a tomato-bread salad, Cobb salad, chicken taco salad.
Freezer food: chicken nachos
Comfort classics: chicken enchiladas, tomato tart
Veggie sides: roasted grape tomatoes, roasted carrots
Starchy sides: "slice-baked" potatoes, cheesy biscuits
Quick desserts: butterscotch pudding, apple tart, raspberry fool (or any kind of berry!), hot fudge sauce, caramel sauce, strawberry sauce, dessert panini
The puffed pastry pizza looked good, without the mushrooms.

It was inspiring the way she said how important dinner is, and how you always need to know what you're having tonight. Her prep tips were revolutionary. She recommended rinsing and peeling vegetables as soon as you bring them home to save time, and take care of the prep work of your meal during the day.

With freezer food she advised to put the cover over the food as close against it as you can, that way air doesn't come in and cause freezer burn. And to put items that you froze in order so you get to them in time (the most recent things should be kept at the back because they'll last longer).

She shared that Caesar salads aren't named after Julius Caesar but Caesar Cardini, an Italian who emigrated to the U.S. and opened restaurants.

She had little captions on most of the pictures that I enjoyed reading. One picture of Lad driving the tractor said "I think his tractor's sexy." So cute!

The recipes stopped at 367 technically, and then it went into the acknowledgments and index. There was a page that said The End, or is it? And then it launched back into some more recipes which was kind of jarring and broke up the flow.

There was a random recipe for chicken nuggets and then some on toast. The one with tomato, cucumber, feta cheese and parsley on a croissant bun did look really good.

It was considered a bonus chapter but I would have preferred it to be with the other stuff and the end to be just pics of her family and some stories and stuff.

The reason I enjoyed this so much is because of all the writing. She shares so many things and has such a sense of humor that it kept it run and engaging. I like how she documents their way of life and her kid's life. And the pictures she gets of her husband are cute. And she captions them with things like he's her favorite. There was one of him standing in the mountains and she said the view is nice, and the mountains are really nice too! She finds a lot to take pictures of on the ranch, finds inspiration from the cows and the sky and the ranch work.

I was disappointed I didn't find that many recipes to try. Most of the dishes have a lot of ingredients and steps that I didn’t think I could handle. There’s also fancy flavors and sophisticated things, these meat dishes and all these vegetable side dishes that have all these spices and whatnot, that didn’t appeal to me. I like more simple food so I passed on most of these. The whole point of the cookbook is to make the recipes, but most of them aren’t my style, and I just really enjoyed her writing the most.

[Aarti Sakhuja · Rating 5 out of 5]

The actual product in Ree Drummond's "Dinnertime" met and exceeded my expectations. It was well written and thorough with each and every instruction and I could tell the author really knew what she was doing. The cookbook includes step by step instructions which is beneficial for beginner young chefs like myself, and the detailed descriptions really allow me to understand each step. There was an abundance of helpful information throughout the book, including the tips to make meal prepping easier in the beginning, as well as variations to improve or change the recipe to your liking at the end of every recipe. This showed Ree's experience in the culinary profession and her witty, helpful commentary throughout made the overall reading process of the recipe entertaining and easy to understand. There were many types of dinners she included in the book such as breakfast for dinner, soups, salads, sides, and even a touch of dessert. It provided many different types of recipes and information with specific instructions pertaining to each one, which showed her thorough exposure to all types of dinners and such. Without reading the cookbook and only judging by the title, "Dinnertime", one could assume Ree would only include meaty side dishes or heavy dinners, but she went above and beyond and added different twists to dinner classics and added a touch of her southern identity to each recipe. Her incorporation of a few dessert recipes in the end really capped the cookbook and added a sense of her sweet personality. Ree Drummond continued to inspire and educate the reader through her detailed, amusing information and her take on dinnertime.

The author's tone was inspiring because through each recipe she added a glimpse into her fun personality. Before every recipe she included a paragraph or so of her little snippet about her recipe and her inspirations behind it. Sometimes she would involve a pun or a funny story about when she made the recipe or how it made her feel and it really allows the reader to connect with the author. It brings a sense of connectivity between them and motivates the reader to make the recipe and imagine what kind of interesting feelings would come out from preparing the food. Based on Ree's little whimsical comments added everywhere throughout the book, I could tell she has an almost natural charm and charisma that draws the reader into her amiable spirit that shows in her writing. She has a happy, go-with-the-flow, sweet natured viewpoint towards living her life her family, and food. She has a true passion for cooking, entertaining, and helping others and one can tell much from her cheerful entries. She somehow related a frittata to "hakuna matata" and makes it all work. Her witty sense of self is shown through her words and the reader can catch a glance at who she really is and establish a sort of friendliness. This motivates and inspires me to try out every recipe and get a feel of how THE Pioneer Woman eats. I enjoy watching The Pioneer Woman on Food Network and I was delighted to receive this cookbook as a birthday present! Personally, I recommend trying the croissant french toast, chicken kale pasta, refrigerator rolls, and chocolate chunk cookies!

[Bertha Mcmaster · Rating 2 out of 5]

the only reason i gave this 2 stars and not one, is that my pet pigs really enjoyed it, we fed all of it to the pigs when we tasted it. one word to describe this would be FOWEL. the recipes for a kale salad called for 4 pounds of butter and 2 cups of salt. this salad is the reason my aunt is dead, it gave her a heart attack. the irony about this is that we served pioneer woman dishes at the funeral and everyone else died but me, who was smart enough to not eat it! whoever this, “ pioneer woman” she needs to stop smiling so much!!! it’s annoying. i hate this book and i will never feed it to anyone again.

[Barb Keister · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love to read cookbooks - just so enjoy all the family stories behind food. And not only is this one full of memories and stories, but I actually have cooked several things from it! The photographs for each step are so appreciated by a cook wannabe like me and each recipe is also accompanied by tips for variations. I think this one isn't going to stay pretty for long but will soon be splattered and dog-eared. It's a definite keeper!

[Amy the book-bat · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the way this cookbook is set up. Each recipe has step-by-step photos to guide the reader through the cooking process. It is nice to see what the recipe is supposed to look like at the various stages. The recipes are for foods my family would be willing to eat, which is important. I think I want to add a copy to my collection, so I put it on my Amazon wishlist. (hint, hint, LOL)

[Tena Edlin · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Pioneer Woman cookbooks are a guilty pleasure for me... I love the pictures and the narration, and even if I never make the recipes, they all sound delicious. I've never gone wrong with the recipes I HAVE made from these books (her salsa recipe is the BEST), so it's all worth it, right?

[Kara Thomas · Rating 5 out of 5]

Man, this one is a chunk. However, it is super full of great eats. Fancy, simple, spicy, mild, fun, romantic, freezer food, tips, etc. Plus some great pictures. I'm a bit jealous of her life.

[Anke · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have the ibooks version on my ipad and love it. This is another great cookbook by Mrs. Drummond.

[Danielle A · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love Ree's design, recipes and photography so much. Very appealing book.

[Denise Mullins · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confession: while watching cooking shows represents one of life's pleasures to me, I have eschewed The Pioneer Woman. There's something in Ree Drummond's tone that is just a tad condescending, smug, and generally annoying (Sorry, I'm not one who has homeschooled my children while balancing a vocation as wife of a cattle baron with a career as a professional photographer). However, my snarky personal opinions aside, the food she cooks looks generally appealing and very doable, so I was happy to receive this book as a gift- and it is a keeper.
Every recipe is beautifully documented with step by step photos while most ingredients are typically part of any well-stocked pantry or freezer. Drummond's creativity, and sense of visual appeal for food presentation are fun to read. Moreover, they instill a sense of confidence to readers by employing a conversational tone through written instructions so that they'll anticipate that any recipe attempted will be a success. This is a book that can be enjoyed by both novice cooks who might otherwise be intimidated by fancy jargon to those with experience just looking for some fresh ideas.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

I read cookbooks all the time but don't usually 'review' them. However, this one offered me simple yet genius ideas that I hadn't fully considered and will implement especially next winter. It's not especially gourmet, but sometimes you just need to get dinner on the table or take a dish to a friend in need.

[Abbey · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was an okay recipe book! Nothing extra special to it. I didn’t love her style of writing either.

[Tammy Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Her recipe are so easy and DELICIOUS!

[Alex (Alex's Version)]

She's adorable..

[Debby · Rating 4 out of 5]

I've been a food blogger for seven years, so I guess I've been following Ree Drummond for almost eight years. I'm a big fan of Ina Garten, Tyler Florence, Emeril Lagasse-- in other words, I do like sophisticated cooking and like to challenge my self-taught culinary skills. With that said, I still love comfort food for the soul. That's what The Pioneer Woman is to me. I've read plenty of reviewers who are disappointed that most of these recipes are on her website. I can understand that. I'm just so busy nowadays, that I haven't had time to follow many of my favorite blogs-- so lots of these recipes are new. I enjoyed discovering new (to me) recipes, her step-by-step photos, her charming photos of her family, pets and ranch life. It doesn't hurt that I owned horses for 30 years, and while I never owned a ranch, I stabled mine at my humble mini-ranch (sans cattle) and so I feel a bit of a kinship with her.
Okay, my review of the book: I know it annoys folks when someone (that would be moi) reviews a cookbook with recipes I haven't tried. Well, neener, neener, neener... lo and behold, I did find some of the recipes I've made (and blogged, and photographed myself, and loved). So there!
Page 246: Pork Chops with Wine and Roasted Garlic... made it, loved it, and it's time I make it again. There are a few others, but I'll move along now. I love her recipes with Mexican flair, because well, my DNA is half Mexican and I love it. She also has simple and flavorful pasta dishes-- I've made her pasta with red pepper sauce-- tasty!
Recipes I haven't made, but have bookmarked:
Page 2: Greek Yogurt Pancakes. I'm always looking for a new pancake version.
Page 30: Wild Rice Pancake (see reason above)
There are plenty of salads to choose from. My husband loves salads, and I need to make them more often.
Page 36: Ginger Steak Salad...I'm in!
The freezer food section looks mouth watering. I'm cooking for two, and thank goodness we have an upright freezer.
I make a good meatball recipe, myself, but I'm going to try her Ready to go Freezer Meatballs (page 192). Sure, I can buy them, but why not make them from scratch? I like her sweet & sour meatballs, Swedish, and BBQ meatballs variations from that recipe. That's manly food, and looks perfect for a quick work night dinner.
The freezer food is totally, classic comfort food: Grilled chicken, Baked Ziti, Mexican Tortilla Casserole, Stuffed Shells, Lasagna Roll-Ups... great for potlucks.
I'll be making many of the recipes in the 16-minute meal section:
Chicken with mustard cream sauce, black bean burgers, orange chicken, beef with snow peas, cashew chicken...who needs to buy takeout?
There's a pasta section, Comfort Classics (think meatloaf, Salisbury steak), Veggie Side section (broccoli cauliflower casserole has me intrigued), Starchy sides (Cheese biscuits and refrigerator rolls...yes, ma'am) and last, but not least-- Quick Desserts. Pudding anyone? Homemade fudge sauce. Rice pudding, Slice and Bake cookies...
Like I said, this is comfort food. Plenty of butter, sugar, gravies, chocolate, ranch salad dressing.
There are haters out there who poke mean fun at the Pioneer Woman. I think it's jealousy and/or they condemn her use of so much butter. So what? Moderation, foes!

I happen to find her sense of humor, in the way she writes, to be witty and very down to earth. I've never met Ree, but I'm quite sure that if I did that she would be down to earth and friendly. Yeah, I've read people saying that those aren't her recipes. Who cares? I've made at least a dozen (probably) more of her recipes over the years. Know what? They work. My husband and son love her recipes, and that's all that matters to me.

So, there ya go. My very unabridged review of my third book I've purchased by Ree Drummond. Comfort food, baby. Nothing hoity toity, nothing French-- just flavorful, simple easy recipes that I know my husband will appreciate.

[Sarah · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not a good or realistic cookbook for most people. I guess the author is kind of a celebrity? She spent an inordinate amount of time trying to convince the reader that she's "just like us!" Really, most of the recipes are too fiddly, have too many long or complicated steps, or are otherwise not useful for week nights for working families. Even the "16-minute meals" weren't useful-- they relied heavily on canned ingredients, which I can't eat (crazy, uncommon, stupid allergy) and also had a tendency toward weird combinations. Not recommended.