Review: Cheap. Fast. Good!

Posted by Lynnae on September 27, 2007

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You all know by now that cooking isn’t my favorite activity. It’s hard enough for me to cook when I don’t have a grocery budget. When I’m trying to cut my budget, it’s even harder.

A few months ago I picked up the book Cheap. Fast. Good! by Beverly Mills and Alicia Ross. I was impressed with the size of the book, but I was skeptical that it would actually entice me to cook while cutting my grocery budget.

I was pleasantly surprised by the content of this book. First and foremost, it’s a cookbook with frugal recipes. The recipes are separated by category, and there are recipes for everything, including soups, pastas, meat entrees, breakfast, and batch cooking recipes.

At the beginning of each recipe, the number of servings and preparation time is clearly stated. That comes in handy when you want to find a quick recipe to make after soccer practice. Some of the recipes are also labeled “super-cheap”, so if your budget is really limited, you can easily flip through the book looking for the most frugal recipes.

I’ve tried several recipes at this point, and though none of them are what I’d consider gourmet recipes, they weren’t bad. I don’t think I’d want to cook from this book every night of the week, but I could easily eat 4-5 meals a week from this cookbook.

Where this book really stands out is in the author commentary. More than just a collection of recipes, this cookbook offers short articles on “Healthy Eating on a Budget”, “Buying a Freezer”, “Keeping Tabs on Your Grocery Inventory”, and much, much more. The authors also write commentary about their personal experiences with many of the recipes.

At a retail price of $13.95, I think Cheap. Fast. Good! is well worth the purchase price for the articles alone. The recipes are a bonus. I give this a 5 out of 5 piggy bank rating.

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Comments

8 Responses to “Review: Cheap. Fast. Good!”

Carrie on September 27th, 2007 10:06 am

Sweet! I put it on my library book list!!
Carol Mickey on September 27th, 2007 10:20 am

I bought it at Tuesday Morning for $9.99 and it is really a bargin if just for the hints in pink. I have made a few of the receipts and my fave is a topping for fish made with tomatoes and olives.
Lynnae on September 27th, 2007 11:14 am

I don’t think I’ve tried that fish recipe yet. I’ll definitely put it on my list of things to try!
plonkee on September 27th, 2007 11:33 am

Do you read http://cheaphealthygood.blogspot.com/ ?

Its a really nice blog on cheap health and good food that you might like.
Lynnae on September 27th, 2007 11:37 am

Plonkee, I’ve never heard of that blog. Thanks for letting me know about it!
Mom Chatter on September 27th, 2007 12:51 pm

I’ve been using this book for several months now… and I too would give it high reviews. The recipes are easy… AND the tips are fun and helpful!
Heather on September 27th, 2007 4:17 pm

I checked the link out for this book and what a find! This book is definately on my wish list .

Thanks!
boomeyers on September 27th, 2007 9:26 pm

I checked this out from the library and found a few helpful receipes! Definately worth a look!