Customer Reviews

Betty Crocker's Good and Easy Cookbook (Series)

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

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.

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.

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.

I bought this as a gift for my sister in law who is always looking for easier and quick meals to prepare, and I loved it so much, I ordered myself one. These are not from scratch type recipes. In my case they do involve ingredients I have on hand from various dry seasoning mixes to canned spaghetti sauce and frozen mixed vegetables for example. Many of the meals are quick, very easy, and very tasty, and normal things we eat as a family. It is a spiral cookbook which is always nice, but the pages are very thin, so be careful to not flip through too fast or you will rip them right out. Pictures are great, the book is nicely organized.

This is a good, solid cookbook with photos of many of the completed dishes. It's a handy inspiration for when you just don't know what to make next!

If you like to cook, but don't always have the luxury of time for preparation, this just might be the book for you. Relax on the couch and peruse the pages, while everyone else is focused on the television, and I'll bet you will find enough tempting fare to make out a menu and grocery list for the next two weeks. The recipes use mostly common pantry items, but often add a little kick to make the meals interesting -- so it's likely that you'll need to visit the grocery store before trying them.

I've already enjoyed the Cincinnati-Style Chili, Super-Easy Chicken Manicotti (just stuff the dry manicotti shells with chicken tenders, sauce them with a little extra water, refrigerate overnight, and bake the next day!), Mediterranean Couscous and Beans, and Ham-Dijon Muffins (a refreshing change for breakfast). All are keepers!

Good meals don't have to take hours to prepare!

P.S. Some of us do freeze up the second loaf of banana-nut bread when we make it!

This is a great cookbook for either the beginner or the person needing quick recipes. The book offers a wide variety of recipes. Recipes range from simple beverages to great tasting desserts. This book would be perfect for the novice cook, or the spouse. Recipes do use prepared prepackaged ingredients in interesting ways. This is definately worth your while if you need to put together food in a quick hurry. The only drawback is some recipes do require ingredients that are not in most pantries. So be sure to read ahead of time and stock up on special ingredients.

This is a great cookbook for either the beginner or the person needing quick recipes. The book offers a wide variety of recipes. Recipes range from simple beverages to great tasting desserts. This book would be perfect for the novice cook, or the spouse. Recipes do use prepared prepackaged ingredients in interesting ways. This is definately worth your while if you need to put together food in a quick hurry.

Many years ago when my children were small I had a Betty Crocker Good and Easy Cookbook. It had lots of economical,quick, everyday recipes. I used it all the time. I wanted to buy the same or similar cookbook for my daughter and daughter-in-laws. But this is nothing like the one I had back in the '60s. There are lots of ethnic recipes. Many of them are spicy foods not suitable for children. I am sure there are many delicious recipes in this book it is just not what I was expecting.

I learned to cook and bake following the recipes from Betty Crocker's Cookbook from 1950, so I have always expected good things from a Betty Crocker cookbook. This one however, severely disappionts. Lots of the recipes seem to keep repeating each other just by changing a pasta type for example. All the recipes that I looked at seemed to call for expensive preprepped convenience items from the store. Most of which I would never keep routinely in the house. Most of the recipes I couldn't get my hubby to eat nor would I be interested in them. I'm sure that many people would love this book,but I'm not one of them after being taught to cook from scratch by Betty Crocker.

This is the single best cookbook in my collection. The recipes are not only fast and easy, they generally call for ingredients that I keep on the shelf. Perfect for those nights when I just don't know what to fix.