A few months back I was contacted by the PR person for the NY Times bestselling book Fix-It and Forget-It Cookbook, a book of slow cooker recipes, by Phyllis Pellman Good. Here's my review.

Right off the bat I thought, "This woman is an expert in the process of marketing and derivation!". I look at this book as a cooking series like unto the "Chicken Soup" series, but for convenience cooking. It's made up from a lot of contributors who are folks, in real life and time crunch situations, needing convenient answers to the daily question, "What's for dinner?", without having to go the expensive route of restaurant hopping or the nutritionally challenged route of fast food convenience.

The way Fix-It and Forget-It is laid out is a directed approach for those who aren't looking for the "art" of food, via the visual representations of your well choreographed photos, but are looking for a quick list of 'to dos' to get the job done and get food on the family dinner table. I think it accomplishes that goal, and very powerfully, I might add. It's loaded with
some 700 recipes ranging from appetizers to beverages and everything in between.

I liked this about the book:

• it's easy reading straight to the point
  multi cultural
  impecably structured
  offers great versatility
  has excellent tips and suggestions [pages 5-8]
  is kind of cut and paste when it comes to cooking
  the "Kitchen Tools and Equipment You Really
  Oughta Have" section [page 264]
  the price is right [$15.95 for 700 recipes]

This is what I didn't like about the book:

• the lack of visuals [I'm a serious picture person. I eat w/ my eyes first]
  the layout [It felt crowded and 'cookie-cutter', there were too many recipes on each page. I like to sit w/ a recipe for a moment to let my imagination run wild without the interruptions of other recipes.]
  the percentage of recipes w/ canned and or processed ingredients

All that said... overall, I really liked not only the book, but the forward thinking of the author in planning an approach to flavorful cuisine for the active household. Almost all of the recipes can be modified to reflect a healthier approach. Although I received a review copy of the book, gratis, I would recomend it for purchase, especially for those individuals who don't
care about the lack of pictures and descriptive language, need to get down to it in the kitchen, feed themselves and or their families, and don't have the time or inclination to emote and entertain food fantasies.

Great book!

As always, it's my pleasure sharing my thoughts with you and my reviews. Until next time...