Cook Once Eat All Week – book review

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Cook Once Eat All Week by Cassy Joy Garcia, NC
26 Weeks of gluten-free, affordable meal prep to preserve your time & sanity

I’m reviewing this book because I checked it out from the library and then WENT OUT AND BOUGHT MY OWN COPY! It is rare that happens. It is rare that I get 15-20 new recipes from one cookbook. These are recipes I will actually try, don’t have over-complicated steps or ingredients that I don’t normally have on hand, and recipes with “normal people” budget ingredients! So I guess I’m starting out by saying I LOVE this cookbook.

The premise of this cookbook is that you use the same “base” ingredients for the majority of that week’s recipes. You’ll spend some time prepping those ingredients one day and then quickly assemble those each evening when it’s dinner time.

This saves money because:

  • The weekly menu considers what foods are in season together
  • You can optimize bulk buys
  • There’s no waste since all the main ingredients are used multiple times

This saves time because:

  • you cook the main ingredients once and use them throughout the week
  • The precooking can be done in a Vitaclay or other cooker of choice
  • Assembly is quick and there’s minimal “active” kitchen time each evening

I will admit that I don’t do the plans exactly as written, but this book has taught me how much meal prep I can do ahead of time to make dinner super fast later. I may not do that entire week as outlined, but I’ll use her steps to prep what I DO plan to make and mix and match as I like!

Pros:

  • Regular ingredients everyone knows and recognizes.
  • When there’s a sale on a food, particularly a type of meat, I have a collection of recipes to use with that all ready to go.
  • Flexible ingredients (switch up the proteins and veggies)
  • If you are not a menu planner, this might help push you into that territory in a sneaky way.
  • Simple, but creative combinations – this is what I am always looking for to inspire me!
  • Uses what I consider nutritious foods and gives options for specialty diets.
    • including low carb, paleo, grain-free, dairy-free, egg-free and nut-free.
  • If freezer meals never spoke to you and doing ALL THE FOOD PREP on one day seems too much, this is a great way to come up with your own manageable model.
  • The dishes are family-friendly.
  • The author increases variety by adding bonus meals that are simple five-ingredient-or-less options you can plan into your weekly meal schedule.
  • Each week’s plan has a comprehensive shopping list and meal prep plan, clearly outlined.
  • Lots of variety!!

Cons

  • I can cook very, very few of these recipes in the summer because I try to reduce oven and even stovetop use as much as possible! I will focus more on adapting some of these for summer, but there are so many great options for most of the year.
  • Limited options for vegetarians and vegans. Most meals are meat/veggie/protein.

As I mentioned above, I found this book worth enough to get a hard copy and I keep it out at all times! A few of my favorite recipes include Firecracker Meatballs, Mediterranean Skillet and Loaded Cauliflower Casserole. You’ll have to see which ones speak to you most.

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