Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook (Series) [Hardcover]

Betty Crocker (Author)

Book Description

Series: Series | Publication Date: October 1996

For those who think a home-cooked meal on a rushed weekday is wishful thinking, Betty Crocker comes to the rescue with a collection of 350 welcome recipes which are really good and easy. Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook provides terrific new ideas and streamlines favorite menus for every type of cook. Preparation times, numbered steps, and nutrition information are included with each recipe to provide even more guidance to the cook. 150 color photos. Satelite media tour.

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review

The brand name Betty Crocker conjures images of straightforward, time-tested recipes that even novices can follow. Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook keeps to this tradition, offering uncomplicated recipes with clear instructions and color photos. The sheer simplicity of the recipes--350 of them with prep times between 2 and 20 minutes--makes the book a busy cook's dream. Even experienced cooks looking for new ideas for interesting meals to whip up will find plenty to keep them happy--and well fed--here. Traditional favorites like Tuna-Macaroni Casserole and Honey Mustard Ham mingle with such exotic dishes as Sichuan Cashew Chicken, Easy Picadillo, and Wild Rice and Broccoli Timbales. The book abounds in tips on substitutions, cooking times, and recipe shortcuts. Special bonuses include such numerous special features as a "Do-Ahead" section, which features meals that can be stored in the refrigerator or freezer to be popped into the oven anytime, and a chapter called "Super Express Cooking," in which most recipes have prep times of five minutes or less. No matter how busy you are, or what your experience level in the kitchen, Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook will have you cooking delicious meals in no time. --Robin Donovan --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

"Easy," yes, but these recipes rely on so many canned and other packaged convenience foods that it's hard to know about the "good." Betty Crocker's New Cookbook (LJ 5/15/96) included lots of fresh ingredients and fresh recipes, so it's disappointing to see canned cream soups, bottled salad dressings, ready-made sauces, and other such items in so many dishes. And some of the "super-express" dishes seem more like ideas than actual recipes (Double Cheese Tortellini calls for three ingredients: canned tomato sauce, packaged tortellini, and Parmesan cheese). There are lots of charts, boxes, and lists, but some are more helpful than others (several, for example, suggest take-out food for dinner as "a recipe shortcut"). Buy for demand.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 432 pages
• Publisher: Macmillan General Reference; Ringbound edition (October 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0028612566
• ISBN-13: 978-0028612560
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 9.5 x 2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (23 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #797,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Since 1921, the Betty Crocker name has symbolized the General Mills continuing tradition of service to consumers. Although Betty was never a real person, her name and identity have become synonymous with helpfulness, trustworthiness and quality.

Betty Crocker has survived the decades by providing consumers with food information and food products that are contemporary without being faddish. The first hardcover cookbook, Betty Crocker's Picture Cookbook was published in 1950 and quickly became a national best seller. Since then, more than 250 Betty Crocker cookbooks have been published.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

30 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Fancied-up prepared foods; insults the reader's intelligence, November 7, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook (Plastic Comb)

I was very disappointed with this book. The recipes asked for lots of prepared foods that I would not only not have on hand, but wouldn't even know where to find (like frozen banana-nut bread). Most of the recipes seemed to be doctoring up prepared items. And some were downright insulting to the intelligence. You can't mix chocolate syrup with whipped cream and call it chocolate mousse.

And the tips on quick food preparation was a joke. The first one was to get take-out or delivered food! Like, duh, how stupid do you think we are, that we need to be told that?

Forget this book. If you want good and easy recipes, buy something by Peg Bracken.

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars TERRIFIC FOR BOTH BEGINNERS AND ACCOMPLISHED COOKS, September 23, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook (Plastic Comb)

If there is any cookbook that will inspire a new cook AND a husband to get in the kitchen and prepare a meal for the family this is the cookbook that will do it.

I bought this book for my soon-to-be-married sister-in-law as part of her shower gift. She is a beginning cook with little time on her hands. I wanted to get her a cookbook that I knew she would use instead of letting sit and get dusty on the shelf (or sold in a garage sale for that matter). This is the perfect book for her. The recipes really are easy. They really are good. It is a terrific cookbook to get someone who is a novice and who doesn't want to take the time in preparing something that takes 2 hours. Many of the recipes call for already prepared foods (for example, jarred spaghetti sauce, Bisquick biscuit mix, etc.) Some food snobs may look down on this book for that very reason, but this book is a huge motivator to get new cooks cooking and inspired to try more adventurous recipes and move on to foods that are not pre-packaged. The book contains many tips that will help save time, make substitutions, menu planning, and even location of the food items in the groceries. I am an accomplished cook and purchased the book for myself after giving it to my sister-in-law. My husband even uses it - that has made the purchase worth it right there.

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great for Beginners!, June 3, 2005

By 

Justice - See all my reviews

This review is from: Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook (Plastic Comb)

I can't tell you how many times I have used these recipes!
This was one of the first cookbooks I got when I was married five years ago and my husband and I really didn't know how to cook. It is a great cookbook for beginners, but really for anyone who wants a quick, tasty, healthy meal on the table very quickly.

Most recipes have very simple instructions, require few ingredients or equpiment, and are extremely user friendly. Plus, there is quite a bit of variety and plenty of great ideas. One thing I really liked was that the book provided cooking charts of ideal times to cook chicken, beef, and pork. As a beginning chef, this is very valuable, because you're pretty intimidated with meat and afraid you'll food poison yourself!

Not to mention, there is nutrition information for all the recipes, which I always find important. If you are health or weight conscious, you'll appreciate that most of the recipes in here are actually quite low in calories, and very healthy. You can simply replace some of the ingredients with low-fat dairy ones to make them even more so. Most recipes serve about four people, so you may want to double them if you have a large family.

Also, there are do-ahead recipes which I'm always on the lookout for, so you can cook a few up in advance and freeze them, and I've found these to be very reliable. It's a great cookbook for busy people, amateur chefs, and just anyone who likes tasty and quick meals. It's paid for itself many times over. You know those cookbooks you get home and there's only one recipe you can use and even with that one it asks you to use items you don't own and buy some spice you can't find? This is NOT one of those cookbooks, thank goodness. Most things can be made effortlessly.