What do you think?
Rate this book
I Dream of Dinner
With minimal ingredients and maximum joy in mind, Ali Slagle's no-nonsense, completely delicious recipes are ideal for dinner tonight—and every single night. Like she does with her instantly beloved recipes in the New York Times , Ali combines readily available, inexpensive ingredients in clever, uncomplicated ways for meals that spark everyday magic. Maybe it’s Fish & Chips Tacos tonight, a bowl of Olive Oil-Braised Chickpeas tomorrow, and Farro Carbonara forever and ever. All come together with fewer than eight ingredients and forty-five minutes, using one or two pots and pans. Half the recipes are plant-based, too.
Organized by main ingredients like eggs, noodles, beans, and chicken, chapters include quick tricks for riffable cooking methods and flavor combinations so that dinner bends to your life, not the other way around (no meal-planning required!). Whether in need of comfort and calm, fire and fun—directions to cling to, or the inspiration to wing it— I Dream of Dinner (so You Don't Have To) is the only phone-a-friend you need. That’s because Ali, a home cook turned recipe developer, guides with a reassuring calm, puckish curiosity, and desire for everyone, everywhere, to make great food—and fast. (Phew!)
Organized by main ingredients like eggs, noodles, beans, and chicken, chapters include quick tricks for riffable cooking methods and flavor combinations so that dinner bends to your life, not the other way around (no meal-planning required!). Whether in need of comfort and calm, fire and fun—directions to cling to, or the inspiration to wing it— I Dream of Dinner (so You Don't Have To) is the only phone-a-friend you need. That’s because Ali, a home cook turned recipe developer, guides with a reassuring calm, puckish curiosity, and desire for everyone, everywhere, to make great food—and fast. (Phew!)
398 pages, Kindle Edition
Published April 12, 2022
361 people are currently reading
1236 people want to read
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews
May 14, 2022
This was a library book that i must return but I’m definitely going to buy a copy.
Creative, easy to follow and using most things you already have on hand…’minimal ingredients… minimal effort.
If your a vegetarian, many meatless options!
Creative, easy to follow and using most things you already have on hand…’minimal ingredients… minimal effort.
If your a vegetarian, many meatless options!
May 12, 2022
The listing ingredients but not the measurements? And then putting the measurements in the middle of a text block paragraph? Hate it. Absolutely despise it. AND not a single recipe worth my time which, when discussing a cookbook with literally hundreds of recipes? Is shameful. I desperately want cookbook authors to STOP TRYING TO BE THE NEXT ALISON ROMAN PLS GOD PLS SHES NOT THAT GREAT AND YALL ARE JUST AS MEDIOCRE AS HER WHEN YOU COPY HER god
April 25, 2022
I've never written a book review about a cookbook so this is a first! But I felt like I had to jot down why this cookbook in particular both fascinated and irked me. The recipes intrigued me but ultimately led me down some weird acrobatic paths in the kitchen that felt more like imposter choreography, with steps and instructions that defy how I move in the kitchen according to I understand about food and flavor. I made three recipes from this book within 10 days, to give it a fair chance. Two out of the three I tried did not amount to a dish I'd try again, but the process was interesting and gave me insight into the minds of other home chefs. The chicken zucchini patties were really more like chicken meatballs with too many fennel seeds in it, and I knew that instinctually before I threw them in there. I ended up with greasy chicken meatballs with a pickled zucchini side that tasted kind of like the garnish on a MacDonald's hamburger! And eating this with a splash of yogurt kinda did not make sense to me flavor-wise, at odds with the sausage vibe that the fennel brings. OK, then I tried the coconut rice with shrimp and green beans. Here, too, the directions felt out of sync with what I'd normally do when prepping these types of ingredients. As per instructions, I cooked the rice in a full can of coconut milk (too much) and then, once the rice cooked for about 15 minutes, I added marinated raw shrimp and raw green beans on top of the rice, as directed. Slagle assures you that the "steam" from the rice will just magically cook the marinated shrimp and green beans, making this a one-pot dish but guess what? No. I was left with a pot of overcooked coconut rice that turned to mush with raw shrimp and uncooked veggies on top. Gross and inedible. I then decided to transfer the shrimp and veggies to another pan, sauté it all and then throw it back to the rice pot. So much for a one-pot dish. If I had done it my way, I'd have cooked the veggies first, then add the coconut milk and shrimp to it. The rice would cook separately and then I'd spoon the coconut mixture over the rice. This was really a disaster and we hardly ate it. Also, again, the cumin seeds were a bit much in this dish. OK, finally, I made the rice with chickpeas, flavored with turmeric and dill. This was so good but once again, I think the order of instructions was off. Next time, I'd pan-fry the chickpeas with the onions and aromatics and then add the cooked rice to that mixture to crisp it all up and serve with yogurt — not tahini sauce, too rich for this and there's already chickpeas in it, so it made it kinda chalky instead of light. I guess I have a lot of opinions about cookbooks and these recipes. Reading these, actually *reading* them, gave me some really interesting insights into the minds and moves of a home chef, but this ultimately served as a reminder to TRUST MYSELF and my own instincts in the kitchen.
September 13, 2022
Great recipies.
June 17, 2022
Checked this out from the library but I plan to buy a physical copy. This is a solid, flexible, adaptable arsenal of recipes for dinner. I really like that it's focused on dinner recipes and doesn't mess around with other courses. If you get a CSA or often have veggies on hand to use up, there are lots of ideas for flexing recipes to fit your needs, and Slagle frequently recommends other flavor and food combinations. I'm always happy to see authors teaching how to be creative based on what you have.
We cooked 5-6 recipes from this while it was checked out, and loved all but one. (The Black Bean Soup was...not good lol.) Like with any recipe, I recommend looking it over and tweaking to suit your needs. Frankly, the cookbook is structured to encourage that.
I have mixed feelings about the way the recipes were structured. I actually really liked having the ingredient amounts listed in-line with the directions (to avoid having to flip back and forth) but it was a little annoying not having a list of amounts at the beginning when I was building my meal plans.
Also, fwiw... it is very weird to me how many people left low starred reviews of this cookbook and didn't even cook anything out of it. Cookbook reviews are strange.
We cooked 5-6 recipes from this while it was checked out, and loved all but one. (The Black Bean Soup was...not good lol.) Like with any recipe, I recommend looking it over and tweaking to suit your needs. Frankly, the cookbook is structured to encourage that.
I have mixed feelings about the way the recipes were structured. I actually really liked having the ingredient amounts listed in-line with the directions (to avoid having to flip back and forth) but it was a little annoying not having a list of amounts at the beginning when I was building my meal plans.
Also, fwiw... it is very weird to me how many people left low starred reviews of this cookbook and didn't even cook anything out of it. Cookbook reviews are strange.
March 8, 2023
I really enjoyed the concept of this one, with a lot of simple, filling dinners, with minimal ingredients and fussing. A good amount of variety here, and I particularly appreciated the broad range of vegetarian recipes. Most recipes had a photo, and I bookmarked quite a few to make later that I'm quite excited about. I will say, I'm not entirely sold the on recipe formatting. All of the ingredients are listed on the side without amounts, and then the amounts are provided within the text of the recipe. I can see possibly what the idea is here, getting us to think more about the ingredients and then sort of customizing the amounts to what we have/want to make, but I don't think it was actually that effective and it ultimately felt a bit confusing/frustrating. Saying a recipe contains "broccoli" doesn't actually help me know how much of it to buy...
Recipes I've Made:
Rice & Cheese - this was the recipe that most caught my eye, and it was a winner!! Naturally gluten-free take on mac & cheese, made with sushi rice, milk, and cheese. Dead simple and seriously delicious! Comfort in a bowl.
Broccoli Bits with Cheddar and Dates - another recipe that I couldn't stop thinking about--it made me nostalgic for those almond/dried cranberry/cheese snack packs as a kid! Really quick to make, and it hits all the right notes in terms of a variety of flavors and textures that all work so well together!
Farro Carbonara with Brussels Sprouts - Brussels were overcooked--needed about 5-10 less. Not bad, but not my fav use of Farro, though possibly a more processed variety would work better.
Recipes I've Made:
Rice & Cheese - this was the recipe that most caught my eye, and it was a winner!! Naturally gluten-free take on mac & cheese, made with sushi rice, milk, and cheese. Dead simple and seriously delicious! Comfort in a bowl.
Broccoli Bits with Cheddar and Dates - another recipe that I couldn't stop thinking about--it made me nostalgic for those almond/dried cranberry/cheese snack packs as a kid! Really quick to make, and it hits all the right notes in terms of a variety of flavors and textures that all work so well together!
Farro Carbonara with Brussels Sprouts - Brussels were overcooked--needed about 5-10 less. Not bad, but not my fav use of Farro, though possibly a more processed variety would work better.
June 12, 2022
So, this is probably an unfair review since I haven't made any recipe from it (I would normally smh at this kind of review) but...there were only a handful of "recipes" that even slightly piqued my interest. A lot seemed almost too simple-is a heap of beans and onions with cheese on top really satisfying enough for dinner? A fried egg with ketchup on a bun (blech)? Nothing really stood out to me as interesting or worth bookmarking.
I also disliked the recipe format, which placed ingredient quantities within the recipe text. I'd much rather have a solid list on the side of the page so I can wrap my head around it/buy ingredients without digging through text to find quantities.
Overall, this book had gorgeous photography and a fun, playful vibe, and yet...the food itself did not have me dreaming of having any of it for dinner.
I also disliked the recipe format, which placed ingredient quantities within the recipe text. I'd much rather have a solid list on the side of the page so I can wrap my head around it/buy ingredients without digging through text to find quantities.
Overall, this book had gorgeous photography and a fun, playful vibe, and yet...the food itself did not have me dreaming of having any of it for dinner.
October 23, 2022
it's got a pasta dish with cooked pepperoni in it
how can you not like that, even if it might not be a very good cold dish
how can you not like that, even if it might not be a very good cold dish
January 14, 2023
Everything we've made from this is FABULOUS.
July 1, 2023
I was skeptical at first- the layout was different, some of the recipes seemed odd and I wasn’t sure they would work, and as I was reading this as an ebook, I didn’t have the benefit of beautiful color photography.
I was finally lured in by a merguez recipe: abundant in France, I never know what to do with them. The recipe was easy and the flavor mix was perfect. Oily, slightly spicy sausage, accompanied by sweet, chewy roasted dates & soft sweet potatoes, chunks of roasted lemon, and a flavor-packed herb sauce to finish. I made it again two days later. And again the next week. And then served it to guests. I can now make it with my eyes closed. I know what I like to serve with it (couscous salad with apricot vinaigrette) and what tweaks I make for our tastes (more lemon! Line the pan with a ton of foil to avoid scrubbing off merguez oil, it’s the worst!) In short, I’ve made it my own, which Slagle encourages readers to do. Almost every recipe is packed with extra ideas: what you could add, what you could leave out, and they really pave the way for creativity.
Through some alchemy, these recipes just work, and even the odder ones (tacos with Brussels sprouts?) are bound to be good. She’s earned my trust. Every time I have tried something from this book, my husband and I have planned out how soon we can eat it again (sometimes it has been the next day).
So far:
• Blistered Peppers with Mozzarella & Croutons (“like if Romesco sauce never got blitzed”)
• Broccoli Bits with Cheddar & Dates
• Gochujang Gravy (serve with rice and edamame, done)
• Salumi Butter Pasta
• the aforementioned Merguez with Sweet Potatoes & Dates
• Sloppy Lentils (a totally different way to use red lentils)
This will always be the book I cooked from while we prepared for an international move with three little kids underfoot. Really. The recipes are that make-able, that even living in chaos, surrounded by cardboard boxes, I can whip them up at the end of a sweaty summer day. Slagle has done all the legwork of removing time-consuming, fussy steps present in so many recipe collections where prep work gets buried in an ingredient list (ie: “1 cup chickpeas, soaked for at least eight hours.” Cool…)
Sometimes you just need to eat. This is extremely *real life* cooking, yet balanced, fresh, interesting, funky.
Definitely buying a hard copy once we land!
I was finally lured in by a merguez recipe: abundant in France, I never know what to do with them. The recipe was easy and the flavor mix was perfect. Oily, slightly spicy sausage, accompanied by sweet, chewy roasted dates & soft sweet potatoes, chunks of roasted lemon, and a flavor-packed herb sauce to finish. I made it again two days later. And again the next week. And then served it to guests. I can now make it with my eyes closed. I know what I like to serve with it (couscous salad with apricot vinaigrette) and what tweaks I make for our tastes (more lemon! Line the pan with a ton of foil to avoid scrubbing off merguez oil, it’s the worst!) In short, I’ve made it my own, which Slagle encourages readers to do. Almost every recipe is packed with extra ideas: what you could add, what you could leave out, and they really pave the way for creativity.
Through some alchemy, these recipes just work, and even the odder ones (tacos with Brussels sprouts?) are bound to be good. She’s earned my trust. Every time I have tried something from this book, my husband and I have planned out how soon we can eat it again (sometimes it has been the next day).
So far:
• Blistered Peppers with Mozzarella & Croutons (“like if Romesco sauce never got blitzed”)
• Broccoli Bits with Cheddar & Dates
• Gochujang Gravy (serve with rice and edamame, done)
• Salumi Butter Pasta
• the aforementioned Merguez with Sweet Potatoes & Dates
• Sloppy Lentils (a totally different way to use red lentils)
This will always be the book I cooked from while we prepared for an international move with three little kids underfoot. Really. The recipes are that make-able, that even living in chaos, surrounded by cardboard boxes, I can whip them up at the end of a sweaty summer day. Slagle has done all the legwork of removing time-consuming, fussy steps present in so many recipe collections where prep work gets buried in an ingredient list (ie: “1 cup chickpeas, soaked for at least eight hours.” Cool…)
Sometimes you just need to eat. This is extremely *real life* cooking, yet balanced, fresh, interesting, funky.
Definitely buying a hard copy once we land!
October 23, 2022
I love reading cookbooks. I cook enough so I get a sense of what will be a good recipe. Sadly, the title of this book is intriguing, but the set up and usability is non-existent. I could hardly even read the recipes, since they are written in paragraph style. Also, I tried to imagine cooking with this recipe in front of me, I KNOW someone trying to follow along would lose their place, get lost, and fail.
The few recipes that looked intriguing based on what I like to make look, well, BAD-TASTING!
Fish Tacos: The slaw part is cabbage and onion with lime juice on it. Cabbage dressed with lime juice - I don't think that will taste good!
She also says 8 or less ingredients, but then most of the seasonings, or vinegars, or even ginger that you have to prep - she doesn't count.
She says "easy" but the Baked Pasta recipe seems incredibly complicated grating parmesan, cutting up mozzarella, mashing the sauce, pouring the pasta back into the sheet pan, again written in a paragraph style that makes it seem so difficult. It's just baked pasta!
ug- non-tasty I bet: White Bean Bake, she put the words French Onion in front to make it sound fancy, basically a can of beans with cheese and onion on top.
400 plus pages and not 1 recipe to try.
The few recipes that looked intriguing based on what I like to make look, well, BAD-TASTING!
Fish Tacos: The slaw part is cabbage and onion with lime juice on it. Cabbage dressed with lime juice - I don't think that will taste good!
She also says 8 or less ingredients, but then most of the seasonings, or vinegars, or even ginger that you have to prep - she doesn't count.
She says "easy" but the Baked Pasta recipe seems incredibly complicated grating parmesan, cutting up mozzarella, mashing the sauce, pouring the pasta back into the sheet pan, again written in a paragraph style that makes it seem so difficult. It's just baked pasta!
ug- non-tasty I bet: White Bean Bake, she put the words French Onion in front to make it sound fancy, basically a can of beans with cheese and onion on top.
400 plus pages and not 1 recipe to try.
October 25, 2022
The recipes in this book are less interesting than I had hoped. A few look good, but most look too bare-bones, are oddly fussy, or are just not to my taste (or my low-sodium diet).
WHO PUTS SALT IN A SOY SAUCE DRESSING? One chicken recipe adds a teaspoon of salt to 1/2 cup of soy sauce!!! I hope Ali has a good cardiologist.
And the recipe format is extremely annoying. Each recipe starts with a partial list of ingredients -- not all of them -- without any amounts. You have to read through the following paragraphs to find all the ingredients and how much is required. I HATE THIS.
I give thanks to my public library for providing this book so I didn't have to spend money on it.
WHO PUTS SALT IN A SOY SAUCE DRESSING? One chicken recipe adds a teaspoon of salt to 1/2 cup of soy sauce!!! I hope Ali has a good cardiologist.
And the recipe format is extremely annoying. Each recipe starts with a partial list of ingredients -- not all of them -- without any amounts. You have to read through the following paragraphs to find all the ingredients and how much is required. I HATE THIS.
I give thanks to my public library for providing this book so I didn't have to spend money on it.
December 21, 2022
The New York Times’ Ali Slagle has produced a serviceable cookbook. I was expecting more, but I’m not sorry I checked it out of the library. I would be unhappy if I had bought it.
Still, what cookbook just lists the ingredients without the quantities? You have to go into the instructions to discover how much you need. SMH
Still, what cookbook just lists the ingredients without the quantities? You have to go into the instructions to discover how much you need. SMH
May 22, 2022
I received a copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for an honest review.
3.5 rounded to 4 stars
Cooking in the summertime is always a struggle for me. We don't grill out so all our cooking is done indoors, which means I need easy-ish recipes that don't heat up my whole kitchen. I feel like I've found a great collection of these types of recipes in I Dream of Dinner. The sections: Eggs; Beans; Pasta; Grains; Vegetables; Chicken; Beef, Pork, and Lamb; and Sea Creatures are divided into 2-3 smaller subsections to help you find the perfect recipe and cooking style to suit your mood. Since I love pasta, some of the first recipes I'm going to be trying are Corn & Spicy Sausage Orecchiette, Skillet Broccoli Spaghetti, and Ginger-Scallion Soba & Shrimp. I'm going to change up my regular roasted Brussels sprouts game with Farro Carbonara with Brussels Sprouts and I'm always looking for an easy new chicken recipe so One-Pan Chicken Piccata & Orzo definitely deserves a try. My husband doesn't like seafood but I think I'd eat every single option offered here, maybe starting with Caramelized Black Pepper Trout or Swordfish with Asparagus & Little Beans.
However, there is a major flaw in the recipe presentations. Ingredients are listed in a separate column but there are no measurements included here. Instead, the measurements are included in the body of the directions. Even as an experienced cook, this will take extra time for me to shop for, prep, and set out my ingredients. I can see this being confusing and leading to major problems for less experienced cooks.
Come chat with me about books here, too:
Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest
3.5 rounded to 4 stars
Cooking in the summertime is always a struggle for me. We don't grill out so all our cooking is done indoors, which means I need easy-ish recipes that don't heat up my whole kitchen. I feel like I've found a great collection of these types of recipes in I Dream of Dinner. The sections: Eggs; Beans; Pasta; Grains; Vegetables; Chicken; Beef, Pork, and Lamb; and Sea Creatures are divided into 2-3 smaller subsections to help you find the perfect recipe and cooking style to suit your mood. Since I love pasta, some of the first recipes I'm going to be trying are Corn & Spicy Sausage Orecchiette, Skillet Broccoli Spaghetti, and Ginger-Scallion Soba & Shrimp. I'm going to change up my regular roasted Brussels sprouts game with Farro Carbonara with Brussels Sprouts and I'm always looking for an easy new chicken recipe so One-Pan Chicken Piccata & Orzo definitely deserves a try. My husband doesn't like seafood but I think I'd eat every single option offered here, maybe starting with Caramelized Black Pepper Trout or Swordfish with Asparagus & Little Beans.
However, there is a major flaw in the recipe presentations. Ingredients are listed in a separate column but there are no measurements included here. Instead, the measurements are included in the body of the directions. Even as an experienced cook, this will take extra time for me to shop for, prep, and set out my ingredients. I can see this being confusing and leading to major problems for less experienced cooks.
Come chat with me about books here, too:
Blog | Instagram | Twitter | Pinterest
July 9, 2022
This is unreadable. The recipes seem fantastic so it’s very disappointing that someone would publish a cookbook without adding ratios/proportions in the ingredient list. You have to find the amount of what you need within the instructions which is nonsensical. Not everyone has time for that and that’s precisely why it should be simplified. What a shame because as I said, I don’t have time for that.
September 7, 2022
For the oh-shit-what-should-I-cook-for-dinner kinda person who has children who will scream if dinner isn’t on the table in 29 minutes.
August 31, 2024
Over the course of 2+ years I made every recipe in this book (all 150).
Pros: Overall I would recommend this cookbook. I really appreciated that the recipe fit to one page and most recipes had realistic pictures of the final product. The recipes for me were really easy to follow and most took under 30 minutes to prepare and if not that under an hour so you could prepare all these recipes throughout the week after work no problem. Most recipes had under 10 ingredients and most ingredients were easy to find in typical grocery stores with a handful of exceptions I had to source online or at an Asian grocery store. I also appreciated that this author tended to use the same types of ingredients throughout the book so I could use up some of the more unique items that I may not have another use for. There were some really good recipes throughout this book that I never would have thought to make for myself if I hadn’t cooked through the whole book. I especially loved the pasta section and the egg section in this book. Definitely a lot of hidden gems and some I will continue to make in the future regularly. The book is also very vegetarian recipe heavy which is great for those thinking about cutting back on meat.
Cons: The ingredient list doesn’t include quantities which was frustrating for putting together a grocery list. Luckily the quantities are in bold in the recipe but at that point why not just put it in the list? My other gripe with this cookbook is that the portion sizes are not consistent whatsoever. The majority of recipes say 4 servings and sometimes it felt like more than a meals worth and other times it was hardly a side portion. I wish the portions were more consistent or that it wasn’t listed as 4 servings for each recipe when some clearly aren’t. My last tiny complaint is that some recipes in this book did not make for good leftovers and were best freshly made - this isn’t something necessarily wrong on the author’s part it’s just a complaint I have being in a two person household making 4 serving meals.
Pros: Overall I would recommend this cookbook. I really appreciated that the recipe fit to one page and most recipes had realistic pictures of the final product. The recipes for me were really easy to follow and most took under 30 minutes to prepare and if not that under an hour so you could prepare all these recipes throughout the week after work no problem. Most recipes had under 10 ingredients and most ingredients were easy to find in typical grocery stores with a handful of exceptions I had to source online or at an Asian grocery store. I also appreciated that this author tended to use the same types of ingredients throughout the book so I could use up some of the more unique items that I may not have another use for. There were some really good recipes throughout this book that I never would have thought to make for myself if I hadn’t cooked through the whole book. I especially loved the pasta section and the egg section in this book. Definitely a lot of hidden gems and some I will continue to make in the future regularly. The book is also very vegetarian recipe heavy which is great for those thinking about cutting back on meat.
Cons: The ingredient list doesn’t include quantities which was frustrating for putting together a grocery list. Luckily the quantities are in bold in the recipe but at that point why not just put it in the list? My other gripe with this cookbook is that the portion sizes are not consistent whatsoever. The majority of recipes say 4 servings and sometimes it felt like more than a meals worth and other times it was hardly a side portion. I wish the portions were more consistent or that it wasn’t listed as 4 servings for each recipe when some clearly aren’t. My last tiny complaint is that some recipes in this book did not make for good leftovers and were best freshly made - this isn’t something necessarily wrong on the author’s part it’s just a complaint I have being in a two person household making 4 serving meals.
February 11, 2024
This was a good cookbook to take out of the library, at least for me. I don't eat meat and I don't really need a general cookbook. Also, I get that all cookbooks have to have a hook and a gimmick, but I find that some of the cutesy cookbook writing wears me out. Like, where all the recipes have short descriptors, but they are something like, "a one-pan bear hug," or "an envelope of confetti." Or, what was it, "cuddly, but not snoozy." Also, salt and pepper is always abbreviated "S and P." OK, simmer down!
But, on the other hand, I really want to make the "cuddly, but not snoozy" recipe, which is for a mushy brown rice and lentil stew with coconut milk. It looks like my kind of thing. Even though there is a little bit of trendiness here, it's not out of control. Yes, there is gochujang, yes, there is farro, yes, there is bacon, yes, there's a bit of chipotle. OK, but--the author also knows that not everyone eats meat and provides suggestions for alternatives for a lot of recipes that include meat. Also some really good vegetarian recipes, including a tempeh sandwich based on one from Tommy's in Cleveland Heights! I am going to try some of these.
I think this is a good book for new cooks who have young families and are omnivores. The recipes seem pretty easy to me. You do need to always have olive oil on hand and, um, s. and p. It might be a good present for someone who is getting married or moving in with their sweetie. I think you do have to have a little cooking savvy to know when the measurements matter and when they don't.
But, on the other hand, I really want to make the "cuddly, but not snoozy" recipe, which is for a mushy brown rice and lentil stew with coconut milk. It looks like my kind of thing. Even though there is a little bit of trendiness here, it's not out of control. Yes, there is gochujang, yes, there is farro, yes, there is bacon, yes, there's a bit of chipotle. OK, but--the author also knows that not everyone eats meat and provides suggestions for alternatives for a lot of recipes that include meat. Also some really good vegetarian recipes, including a tempeh sandwich based on one from Tommy's in Cleveland Heights! I am going to try some of these.
I think this is a good book for new cooks who have young families and are omnivores. The recipes seem pretty easy to me. You do need to always have olive oil on hand and, um, s. and p. It might be a good present for someone who is getting married or moving in with their sweetie. I think you do have to have a little cooking savvy to know when the measurements matter and when they don't.
January 1, 2025
FWIW this is a temporary rating because I have not yet cooked anything from this cookbook. BUT I read it cover to cover and am rating it now based on the overall concept of meals with less than 10 ingredients that take under 45 min to make INCLUDING PREP. This is truly a dream for a busy mom like me and I am so sick of recipes that are like “perfect X in 20 min” but actually there is an hour of chopping, and bringing water to boil, etc. I loved that the prep is IN the recipe so I have confidence that these will actually take me less than 45 min. I also really loved the extensive information on HOW to cook things before each section. I like to think I’m already a decent cook but I still picked up a lot of helpful information. Two qualms with the book: first, just from reading, I can tell you that a lot of these recipes would work for dinner for 1 but are not actually suitable for dinner for 4. For example, I’m trying the turmeric dill over with chickpeas this week as a side, but I don’t feel like I could ever serve this as a main dish for my family - it’s just not hearty enough. Second, the author has a couple of hot takes, some of which I love (you don’t have to rinse your rice!!) but one that I cannot get behind is the idea that you can eat shrimp tails. This is…UNHINGED.
Ok, may add more here when I actually make food from this book.
Ok, may add more here when I actually make food from this book.
April 18, 2023
I think we’re all used to the basic written recipe form. But in the ingredients list for each recipe, this cookbook doesn’t bother to mention how much of anything you’ll need to make the recipe. Then the actual amounts are finally mentioned in the directions, as they’re incorporated into the dish. Frustrating, unhelpful, and not remotely user friendly. It made me want to purposely avoid making anything that would require my re-opening this cookbook. The upside is, it was a library rental, so it only cost me time and patience.
July 26, 2022
Will likely buy. More recipe concepts than recipes, so may depend on one's cooking style whether that is appealing. An extremely charming read.
August 29, 2022
This one is a must buy!
January 6, 2023
One of the more vegetarian friendly cookbooks I've come across, very flexible and encourages creativity with simple dishes.
January 29, 2024
I’ve been steadily cooking my way through this book for the past month and almost every recipe has been one that I will happily add to the rotation of weeknight meals. Healthy, minimal fuss, delicious.
November 7, 2022
Every recipe has been a hit. I'm learning new kitchen tricks. And, recipes are written uniquely, with lots of flexibility.
November 1, 2023
There were so many recipes that I’m excited to try! All looked so delicious!
April 5, 2023
Minimal ingredients. Generally things that a homecook has on hand. Big flavors. It's the cookbook I've wanted for a long time - one I think is beautiful, well organized, and I'll actually cook from. I'm planning to purchase this based on the number of recipes I intend to try.
I learned about this book from a recent bookish podcast, and I'm so thrilled to have discovered it.
I learned about this book from a recent bookish podcast, and I'm so thrilled to have discovered it.
June 4, 2022
This is a good looking book, and I found the egg and chicken recipes to be most useful. I like that there's a picture for almost every recipe, and there's some repurposing of leftovers. I didn't like that the measurements aren't listed with the ingredients - that was a big pet peeve. The serving sizes are also a little wonky (though the author admits that). The instructions are straightforward and easy to follow, though in some cases a little long for a weeknight.
If you cook dinner daily, you'll get some fresh ideas from this and the author's tone is helpful. In her notes, there are substitutes and tips that I also found useful. But because of the layout, and the way the recipes were grouped, I found it a little difficult to use.
While there's no nutritional info, most of the book is vegetarian meals and even those with meat weren't too heavy.
If you cook dinner daily, you'll get some fresh ideas from this and the author's tone is helpful. In her notes, there are substitutes and tips that I also found useful. But because of the layout, and the way the recipes were grouped, I found it a little difficult to use.
While there's no nutritional info, most of the book is vegetarian meals and even those with meat weren't too heavy.
April 16, 2022
No matter how we try to plan, it seems like dinner is a struggle every week. Almost every evening there is the “What do you want for dinner?” discussion, and it usually ends with something we’ve had over and over and over or takeout. I want to do better, but then life fills up with problems and drama, soccer games, meetings, spring colds, inflation, and a hundred other excuses not to make something new for dinner.
That’s what Ali Slagle thinks about. She thinks about dinner. As a recipe developer for media outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post, and Food 52, Slagle thinks about dinner for a living. She thinks about the ingredients she has in her pantry and fridge. She thinks about how much time she has. And she puts it together in a way that creates lots of flavor with little fuss, or as she puts it, “Dinner Tetris.” And when she explains it all to us, she organizes the information in a way that is unique, thoughtful, and offers lots of creativity and experimentation (or none, if you’d rather not).
The book is broken up into chapters based on main ingredients. For example, there is an entire chapter on chicken. There is one on sea creatures. There is one on pasta. There is one on eggs. And if you’re looking for plant-based options, there is also a chapter on beans and one on grains and one on vegetables, and those recipes offer up as much comfort or heartiness as what you’ll find in the chapter on beef, pork, and lamb.
But if’s how she breaks down those chapters that make I Dream of Dinner so different. Looking at eggs, she breaks the chapter down into three sections. The first group of recipes are under Beat, meaning you’re beating the eggs for those—Creamed Leeks and Eggs, Green Eggs and Ham Quesadilla, or the Stovetop Frittata Any Way, among others. The second group of recipes is based on Soft Boil eggs, like her Godmother’s Egg Salad or Egg and Charred Pepper Stew. The third group is Fry Hot, so the Egg Sliders, Garlic Bread Egg in a Hole with Mushrooms, or Croque Monday all incorporate a fried egg with lacy edges and a soft and runny yolk.
As you read on you’ll see that your grain recipes are divided into Fluff, Simmer Like Pasta, or Make Mush. The pasta chapter is divided into Butter (Verb), Olive Oil (Also a Verb), Tomato, Vegetables Plus Pasta, and Chill. With beef, pork, and lamb you can Fast Track with Sausage; Brown, Bother, Repeat; or Simmer Softly. Slagle has spent so much time thinking about dinner that she is on a different plane from the rest of us, and she wants to lift us up there too.
And if you still struggle to see things her way, she’s made it easier with a couple pages in the back labeled Recipes by Cravings, Mood, and Realities. This is Dinner for real life. Here, the recipes are divided up by how we’d need them. There is Dinner in Ten Minutes, Max Two Dirty Dishes, To Set It and Forget It, To Also Make Lunch, To Clear the Veg Drawer, To Also Stock the Freezer, Dinner on a Sick Day, and the one that has to be my favorite, Gooey, Creamy Cheese. Clearly, she understands the dinner struggle and is here to help with smart seasoning, substitution ideas, an understanding of how to develop flavor, and a lot of flexibility.
I am not saying that I Dream of Dinner with fix all your dinner struggles. But for me, I can’t wait to try those Oven Quesadillas (cheddar, black beans, oregano, and tortillas are the only ingredients!) the next time I have a day off work and want cheesy quesadillas for lunch. I’m going to have to share that All-Corner-Pieces Baked Pasta with my Italian chef (my boyfriend) for the next time he makes a baked pasta (that photo makes my mouth water), and I’m thinking my freezer needs some of the My Forever Chicken and Rice Soup for my future office lunches. In other words, I am inspired by Slagle and her meal ideas, and I honestly believe you will be too.
I’ve received a free copy of I Dream of Dinner from Clarkson Potter in exchange for a free and unbiased review, with many thanks.
That’s what Ali Slagle thinks about. She thinks about dinner. As a recipe developer for media outlets like The New York Times, Washington Post, and Food 52, Slagle thinks about dinner for a living. She thinks about the ingredients she has in her pantry and fridge. She thinks about how much time she has. And she puts it together in a way that creates lots of flavor with little fuss, or as she puts it, “Dinner Tetris.” And when she explains it all to us, she organizes the information in a way that is unique, thoughtful, and offers lots of creativity and experimentation (or none, if you’d rather not).
The book is broken up into chapters based on main ingredients. For example, there is an entire chapter on chicken. There is one on sea creatures. There is one on pasta. There is one on eggs. And if you’re looking for plant-based options, there is also a chapter on beans and one on grains and one on vegetables, and those recipes offer up as much comfort or heartiness as what you’ll find in the chapter on beef, pork, and lamb.
But if’s how she breaks down those chapters that make I Dream of Dinner so different. Looking at eggs, she breaks the chapter down into three sections. The first group of recipes are under Beat, meaning you’re beating the eggs for those—Creamed Leeks and Eggs, Green Eggs and Ham Quesadilla, or the Stovetop Frittata Any Way, among others. The second group of recipes is based on Soft Boil eggs, like her Godmother’s Egg Salad or Egg and Charred Pepper Stew. The third group is Fry Hot, so the Egg Sliders, Garlic Bread Egg in a Hole with Mushrooms, or Croque Monday all incorporate a fried egg with lacy edges and a soft and runny yolk.
As you read on you’ll see that your grain recipes are divided into Fluff, Simmer Like Pasta, or Make Mush. The pasta chapter is divided into Butter (Verb), Olive Oil (Also a Verb), Tomato, Vegetables Plus Pasta, and Chill. With beef, pork, and lamb you can Fast Track with Sausage; Brown, Bother, Repeat; or Simmer Softly. Slagle has spent so much time thinking about dinner that she is on a different plane from the rest of us, and she wants to lift us up there too.
And if you still struggle to see things her way, she’s made it easier with a couple pages in the back labeled Recipes by Cravings, Mood, and Realities. This is Dinner for real life. Here, the recipes are divided up by how we’d need them. There is Dinner in Ten Minutes, Max Two Dirty Dishes, To Set It and Forget It, To Also Make Lunch, To Clear the Veg Drawer, To Also Stock the Freezer, Dinner on a Sick Day, and the one that has to be my favorite, Gooey, Creamy Cheese. Clearly, she understands the dinner struggle and is here to help with smart seasoning, substitution ideas, an understanding of how to develop flavor, and a lot of flexibility.
I am not saying that I Dream of Dinner with fix all your dinner struggles. But for me, I can’t wait to try those Oven Quesadillas (cheddar, black beans, oregano, and tortillas are the only ingredients!) the next time I have a day off work and want cheesy quesadillas for lunch. I’m going to have to share that All-Corner-Pieces Baked Pasta with my Italian chef (my boyfriend) for the next time he makes a baked pasta (that photo makes my mouth water), and I’m thinking my freezer needs some of the My Forever Chicken and Rice Soup for my future office lunches. In other words, I am inspired by Slagle and her meal ideas, and I honestly believe you will be too.
I’ve received a free copy of I Dream of Dinner from Clarkson Potter in exchange for a free and unbiased review, with many thanks.
October 1, 2022
Thanks to my library for providing a copy of this so I didn’t waste money on it. I was on page 60 and we were still talking about eggs.
The formatting is terrible- partial list of ingredients but you have to comb through the text of the recipe to find out how much you need of anything. An editor must have thought this was cute? People who cook need to make grocery lists. I always read through a recipe before I begin, even a day or two before in case I need to know about a marinating step or something like that. But while I’m making the grocery list? No.
Hundreds of recipes and not one appealed.
If you tend toward vegetarian or meat-lite and you’re not on a low sodium trend, and you know nothing about cooking or how to approach a weekly meal plan, shopping list, or daily habits in the kitchen, you could start with this. Otherwise I’d pass.
The formatting is terrible- partial list of ingredients but you have to comb through the text of the recipe to find out how much you need of anything. An editor must have thought this was cute? People who cook need to make grocery lists. I always read through a recipe before I begin, even a day or two before in case I need to know about a marinating step or something like that. But while I’m making the grocery list? No.
Hundreds of recipes and not one appealed.
If you tend toward vegetarian or meat-lite and you’re not on a low sodium trend, and you know nothing about cooking or how to approach a weekly meal plan, shopping list, or daily habits in the kitchen, you could start with this. Otherwise I’d pass.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 126 reviews