Mix and Match Recipes: Creative Ideas for Busy Kitchens (Paperback)

by Deborah Taylor-Hough (Author) "Ever hear that question in your house?..." (more)
Key Phrases: freezer meatballs, pop molds, candy molds, Monterey Jack, Prepare Butter Cookie (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
A little bit of this--a little bit of that... mix it together and you’ll have Mix-N-Match! Deborah Taylor-Hough teaches home chefs yet another key in cooking creatively. Mix and Match Recipes: Creative Ideas for Busy Kitchens will teach you how to take "nothing in the pantry" and turn it into a meal! Don’t stare at your sparsely stocked pantry in horror--simply get creative with these Mix and Match solutions. You’ll also find creative kitchen crafts, quick tips, grocery savings and much more.

About the Author
Deborah Taylor-Hough is the bestselling author of the Frozen Assets Series--including Frozen Assets: how to cook for a day and eat for a month and Frozen Assets Lite & Easy.She lives in Washington State with her husband and three children.

Product Details

• Paperback: 90 pages
• Publisher: Sourcebooks, Inc. (May 20, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 189140007X
• ISBN-13: 978-1891400070
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.4 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #834,646 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A "must-have" for all home cooks, especially new ones!, December 27, 2002

By A Customer

I'm adding this book to my list of gifts to give at Bridal Showers. If you're like me, you have days when you stare into the pantry wondering what to make for dinner. There's food in there but does it make a meal? With this helpful little book, I've been able to go to the cupboard and pull together a complete meal for my family without running to the store for missing ingredients. My two favorite ideas in this book are the Master Skillet Meal and Master Soup recipes. A bit of this, a dab of that, throw it all in the pot or skillet, cook for awhile, and dinner's served. I'll never buy those convenient pre-packaged boxed dinners for tuna or hamburger again!

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recipes from Seattle, January 28, 2004

By	Rebecca Johnson "SeasonedwithLove.com" (Washington State) - See all my reviews (TOP 10 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)

"The recipes in this book are a result of creatively meeting the needs and desires of my family over many years of living on a tight budge with competing demands on my time and energy. Sounds a bit like the story of modern American life, doesn't it? Extremely busy, sometimes broke, but always resilient and resourceful." ~Deborah Taylor-Hough

Have you ever thought of making cookies with a cake mix? Well, lately, I even made biscotti from a cake mix. It seems there is no limit to what you can do with a cake mix when it comes to cakes, cookies and all things dessert.

Deborah shows you how to "mix and match" various items from your pantry so you don't have to run out to the store every time you want to make something different. Of course you will want to have a certain number of ingredients on hand. There is a nice list on page 21 that gives you a list of pantry items. You probably already have many of these items lurking about on your refrigerator shelves or in the pantry.

Sometimes I like to challenge myself and see how long I can go without buying anything at the grocery store. This book is helpful in that regard. Sometimes all you need is a bit of inspiration and you can turn a few ingredients into an appetizing meal.

In Deborah's Mix and Match Soup, you have so many choices. You are sure to have one of the ingredients for each section of the recipe. If you don't have rice, you can use corn or pasta. If you don't have tomato soup, you can use chicken. It is that easy.

Some of the recipes you will enjoy include:

Create a Casserole
Mix and Match Quiche
Super Smoothies - lots of ways to make delicious fresh fruit smoothies
Mix and Match Quick Bread
More Creative Cookies - one recipe with three variations
Warm and Wonderful Drink Mixes - Fireside Coffee Mix and Café Vienna Coffee Mix. Remember "Russian Tea with Tang?" This book has the recipe.
Plenty of Pies - Pies you make with ice cream and ready-made crusts

The last section of the book starts with a "master" mix recipe. You make the mix, store it and then use as many cups as needed to make recipes like Biscuits, Snack Cake and Shortcake.

Now, this book is not just about edible recipes, you can also make a spa milk bath, facial mask or fizzing bath bombs. So, there is fun to be had. Kids will enjoy making sidewalk chalk, soap crayons, homemade stickers and edible finger paints.

Mix and Match is a tiny treasure of a cookbook that will get you in and out of the kitchen in a hurry. The recipe for the Mix and Match Fruit Crisp is worth the price of the book. I love this recipe, especially served with ice cream.

~The Rebecca Review

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Your kitchen recipe solution to the mealtime dilemma, June 9, 2004

By	Penmouse "Penmouse" - See all my reviews

This cookbook maybe thin but it is jam packed with recipe solutions. One of our favorite meals is the mix and match skillet recipe. A definite buy!