Ready, Set, Cook: How To Make Good Food with What's On Hand

by Dawn Perry

Create delicious meals in no time with more than 125 recipes the whole family will love from the former food director of Real Simple Dawn Perry.

Former food director of Real Simple Dawn Perry used to wake up at the crack of dawn to hit the farmers market and scour specialty food stores for peak-season vegetables and lesser-known spices. But as she started to have a family, she became less interested in spending her mornings and weekends food shopping and meal prepping than building couch forts and making play-doh spaghetti. If you're time-crunched for any reason—early meeting at the office or late night on the town—this book will help. Here, Dawn offers her very own playbook for getting good food on the table fast so you can spend more time doing what you love with your free time and energy.

In Ready, Set, Cook Dawn shares her secrets for creating delicious meals in no time. It starts with a well-stocked pantry. Dawn shows you what simple staples—some store-bought, others homemade—to keep in your cupboard, refrigerator, and freezer. She also provides more than 125 fool-proof recipes, ideas, and tricks for creating good food with what you have on hand. A can of tomatoes transforms into Dawn’s 15-Minute Marinara, which then can be used as the base for her cheesy, creamy Freestyle Baked Pasta or as the beginning of her Cheater’s Tomato Soup (and a Special Grilled Cheese) or spooned onto her Crispy Chicken Cutlets and topped with a slice of mozzarella.

Whether you’re new to cooking and don’t know where to start or you’re a seasoned cook in need of a streamlined approach, this book is for you. No need to plan and shop ahead or dig through recipe boxes (virtual or otherwise), now you’ll have great meals in minutes without breaking a sweat.

Genres: Cookbooks, Cooking, Food, Nonfiction

336 pages, Hardcover

Published November 2, 2021

Reviews

[Laura · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the author's tone - it's like talking to a mom-friend. And her recipe writing skills are great. It was tough for me to figure out who this was for - on one hand, there are chapters on pantry stocking and food storage, leading me to think this is for a new cook. But a lot of the recipes were family-friendly, which would lead me to this that these people have been cooking a while. Also, the title of the book says that it will help you cook with what's on hand - if I have an very well stocked pantry, my options aren't very limited, are they?

And that was an issue I had with the book - there aren't as many substitutions as I expected. There is flexibility in the vegetables used, or occasionally the meat, but a lot of these are pretty specific. I wasn't sure about the organization either - the dressings and sauces came first, and I might have preferred them at the end. With an index. But there are photos for pretty much every recipe, and the recipes are sound. For me, the dressings, sauces and breakfast chapters were the strongest. I like her egg dishes a lot.

I like the Real Simple Cooking section, and this book is very similar in tone to that. If you like that part of the magazine, then this book is probably for you.

[Books To Bowls · Rating 5 out of 5]

A perfect source for making your kitchen more efficient and cost effective. It has chapters on what staples to keep on hand, how to set up your pantry, keeping your refrigerator healthy and stocked, what basic pans, utensils and baking items you should have. The second half of the book is recipes. They rely on what you have in the house, you don't need a trip to grocery. The recipes are well illustrated and easy to follow. Ranges from soup to dessert. The premise of making good food with what is on hand is simple and satisfying. The recipes are delicious. From stocking the pantry, to making spice blends and salad dressings, this cookbook is very practical and well laid out. Full scale photos are inspiring and the way the book lays flat is great on my kitchen counter. RECOMMENDED: The banana bread recipe alone is worth the price of the book, the sweet potato and Chorizo salad is moi beuno.

[Ann · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book for new and older cooks. I only have one complaint, it has no index at the end to help locate a recipe or chapter. Other than that this is a perfect source for making your kitchen more efficient and cost effective. It has chapters on what staples to keep on hand, how to set up your pantry, keeping your refrigerator healthy and stocked, what basic pans, utensils and baking items you should have. The second half of the book is recipes. They rely on what you have in the house, you don't need a trip to grocery. The recipes are well illustrated and easy to follow. Range from soup to dessert. I received a copy of this ARC in exchange for a fair and honest review.

[Amy Mancini · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a high rating for a cookbook, but after reading it, I’ve decided to purchase the book. This will be my first cookbook purchase in many years. I can’t think of higher praise. The beginning chapters are worth reading and studying; she lays out a pantry that is versatile and easy. There’s no fussy ingredients or difficult techniques. Her style and mine match perfectly: simple, clean foods made from a few ingredients kept on hand. No mixes or premade ingredients like canned soups, just good food made from a well-stocked pantry.

[Michelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Simple and quick recipes! Ms Perry is refreshingly honest, reminding the reader that dinner doesn't have to be so tiring to put together. She includes substitutions for many ingredients (if you don't have, or don't like) for lots of flexibility, and uses lots of pantry goods that most people can get. I especially liked the section where she talks about office bowls, combinations of grains or greens with other components. It reminded me a bit of the last non-recipe cookbook I read, due to its applicability to my lifestyle and its empowerment to do your own thing. Now to try some recipes out!

[Alisa]

Pretty good if you are looking for repeatable weeknight basics. I snagged the recipes for some dressings and sauces, since I still haven’t learned to make those off the cuff, but the rest of the recipes are things I make without using a cookbook.

[Timea · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't think I'm the target audience, but I think it would be a great resource for new cooks! I loved the fun tone and simple guidance on making cooking less intimidating. Personally, I was hoping for it to be a little more educational about flavor profiles and creativity in the kitchen.

[Malani · Rating 2 out of 5]

Disappointing. Not what I was expecting. The section on stocking your pantry was fine, but a book about how to cook with what is available should have recipes with plenty of substitution options.

[Laura · Rating 4 out of 5]

great and simple recipes that are easy to make

[Beka · Rating 3 out of 5]

Some good ideas, but not much that stood out to me.

[Catie · Rating 3 out of 5]

I found a few ideas, but it is an interesting book and it's great for when you have not been to the grocery store for a bit.

[Kelly · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished reading through this book, and I can honestly say that I plan to make 90-95% of the recipes. Not many are anything outrageously innovative, but Perry's flavor combinations are spot on and her pairing tips make it easy to assemble dinner with whatever is on hand. Cooking has been less fun, and more of a chore, for me since the beginning of 2020 (I wonder why...), but this collection of recipes is a great motivation to get back in the kitchen to make some delicious, and easy, meals. I can see many of the recipes becoming part of my family's go-tos, which is the highest praise I can give.

[Pinky · Rating 3 out of 5]

Want to try the Scallion Corn Cakes, Any Vegetable Fritters, and the Brown Butter Chocolate Chip Cookie recipes.