Dinner Survival: The Most Uncomplicated, Approachable Way to Get Dinner to Fit Your Life

by Sandi Richard

Book Overview

10 WEEKS OF DELICIOUS , HEALTHY, COMPLETE DINNERS"I can climb over the laundry heap, but I can't climb over dinner."Dinner is a lot bigger than food. It's about family, health -- both physical and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1416543643
• ISBN13: 9781416543640
• Release Date: January 2009
• Publisher: Scribner Book Company
• Length: 192 Pages
• Weight: 1.45 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 8.4" x 10.7"

Customer Reviews

Great guide to dinner

This book makes getting dinner on the table easy. Her recipes also benefit from constant testing. Unlike many chef recipes I have tried, her recipes work reliably, and taste good. Not everyone may need the shopping lists (divided by the week), but the book is certainly designed to make dinner almost automatic. Her attention to health is also a benefit. Her recipes are tasty, healthy, and balanced. Since her meals are designed to serve 4-6, they may make too much for small families to eat at a single sitting. Most make great leftovers, though. Some readers may be put off by the pedestrian titles she gives her meals. But don't be fooled--she incorporates sophisticated tastes into her food, including Asian, Indian, and African flavors. This is where her frequent testing pays off--the meals never veer into too hot or too sour, strange, etc., for most kids to eat. So children get to eat food that is good for them and gently exposes them to more refined eating choices than chicken nuggets, spaghetti-Os, and hot dogs. I have nine nieces and nephews, and have witnessed them turn their noses up at anything out of the ordinary. At times, my brothers and their wives had to prepare two meals, one of "grown-up food" and one more comforting alternative for the kids. This book should make those days a thing of the past--she prepares food that grown-ups and kids will want to eat.

good book

helpful book for our busy family, varied meals as advertised, my kids are unadventurous eaters and were hesitant to try some of the new things which is not a problem from the book, I just can't use all the meals, and unlike a comment I read in the book description, few of the meals have vegetarian suggestions

A 'must' for any general interest collection catering to busy moms or businesspeople

A complete dinner from scratch in 60 minutes flat with only 20 minutes prep time?? That's the contention of DINNER SURVIVAL: THE MOST UNCOMPLICATED, APPROACHABLE WAY TO GET DINNER TO FIT YOUR LIFE. The author is a mother of seven and knows how to fit dinner into a hectic schedule so the actual supper is relaxing for the entire family. Here each recipe receives a color-coded system correlating the recipe's prep and cook time and showing how fresh ingredients and plan-ahead techniques can streamline the dinner experience for all. A 'must' for any general interest collection catering to busy moms or businesspeople.

10 weeks of menus that truly make dinner uncomplicated.

I really liked Sandi Richards' first book The Family Dinner Fix: Cooking for the Rushed and just knew that I had to have this one when it came out. This book has 10 weeks of menus for 5 nights of the week. It only includes 5 evenings of meals because it is expected that one night you will dine out and perhaps another you will eat leftovers or have pizza. The meals are divided into color coded meals of green, blue, red, and yellow. What this symbolizes is the time it takes to prepare each meal so you decide when night you're having which color. The red and yellow coded meals are designed to be ready in under 30 minutes with the red requiring less cutting and chopping. The green and blue coded meals are designed to have dinner ready in under 60 minutes, it allows for doing something else while dinner is cooking. The green means less cutting and chopping. So while dinner is cooking you could be helping the kids with homework, starting laundry, etc. Each week has at least one of every color so you mix and match as your evening plans dictate. There are fabulous pictures and nutritional information with each recipe. Food exchanges are also included for those who need that info. Additional serving suggestions are provided to complete the dinner meal such as the addition of rolls, salad, side steamed vegetables, etc. This would be a great gift for someone who is new to cooking and dinner preparation. It really is an uncomplicated approach. Grocery lists are also included so make sure and check out her website, www.cookingfortherushed.com it's a great supplement to the book. I would also suggest Getting Ya Through the Summer (cooking for the Rushed) if you can still find it. I set my timer and made the Pecan-Crusted Salmon, sweet potato fries and broccoli per her timeline. This is a yellow coded 25 minute meal so I set the timer and started. It took me 31 minutes from start to finish. I think my delay was in reading and re-reading just to make sure I didn't miss a step. That is just my newness and inexperience with the recipe. I think her timelines are definitely within reason. Her biggest suggestion is to have a menu prepared for the whole week ahead of time. So as you as you get home you know to start water boiling or turn the oven on, etc. Then you go change clothes while the water is boiling, oven is preheating vs. starting it after you've changed when you're more likely to say "let's just order pizza." I highly recommend this book for those who need a jumpstart with dinner and getting meals in order. Family meals should be a priority and not an afterthought. Fast food is not a healthy, nutritious meal...this cookbook is. If you like this genre of cookbooks I would suggest The Food Nanny Rescues Dinner: Easy Family Meals for Every Day of the Week as well as The Candy Bar Cookbook. For the publishers, the front cover of this cookbook does not do Ms. Richards justice. It looks too similar to her first cookboo