The Whole Smiths Real Food Every Day
Healthy Recipes to Keep Your Family Happy Throughout the Week
by Michelle Smith
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Genre: Cooking, Food & Wine
Release Date: December 29, 2020

I thought the 26 tips at the beginning of the book were super helpful and a great idea to include!

I am on a health journey and have been trying to find cleaner, healthier versions of my husbands favorite meals (or at least meals that he will eat). When I saw this book, I was hoping that this would include a lot recipes I could try with my husband, but unfortunately he won't eat most of the ingredients used (yes, because they are healthier...but also because they can't be disguised well).

I did find some recipes that I think he would be willing to try though, like the Sheet Pan Harissa Chicken and Veggies, Apple-Cinnamon Mini Frittatas, Balsamic Chicken Thighs with Mushroms and Caramelized Onions, Apple "Pasta", Chai-Spiced Kettle-Style Apples, Drive-Through Burger Bowls, Hawaiian Chicken Thighs, and Carnitas Ramen Noodles. I am excited to try some of these, since they are made from better ingredients and I think they'll be better for us in the long run because they are made from real food.

There are a lot of pictures and easy to follow instructions. Some of the recipes seemed a little overwhelming, but I think that once I became familiar with the techniques and ingredients they would become easier.

Each recipes lists an estimated number of servings and which dietary restrictions the recipes meets. There is no nutrition information for the recipes though.

I'm so grateful to Michelle Smith, Houghton Mifflin Harcourt, and NetGalley for providing me with a free copy of this ARC ebook in exchange for my honest review.

As someone with Celiac Disease this cookbook is heaven! So many incredible gluten free recipes with tons of other variations available such as dairy free, vegan, etc. I already tried my hand at making the chicken and pesto stuffed sweet potatoes and they turned out incredible. I’m looking forward to making the gluten free blueberry hand pies this weekend. Overall this is a worthy addition to any chef’s cookbook collection :) Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced copy.

**I received and voluntarily read an e-ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.**

At the beginning of the book, you'll find some great tips on how to make your cooking life a little bit easier. While a couple of them were familiar to me, the 26 tips you'll find there are great for those new to cooking.

Most of the recipes look delicious and like things that I would love to eat. I like that at the beginning of the recipes, the author lists the approximate serving size the recipes create as well as the diets that the recipes cater to (dairy free, gluten free, paleo, vegetarian, etc.)

The photos were nice and the food looked good. If she and the publisher insisted on including so many photos of her and her family in the book, it would have been nice if they seemed a little more natural and less like everything had been run through several instagram filters.

Overall, there are some great looking recipes to be found within this book.

Lots of yummy recipes! Love the pictures that accompany each recipe as well! Just need to fix the formatting issues.

I am unsure of what diet this is aimed at meat but no dairy unless it’s cheeses, no wheats or grains most of the time. Still have a different take on meals.

What a fantastic cookbook! I really loved how Michelle Smith adapted each recipe to allow for people with sensitivities to enjoy them as well. I have saved quite a few of these recipes and look forward to trying them.

Thank you to netgalley and the publishers for providing me with an arc for an honest review.

Date reviewed: August 22, 2020

When life for the entire universe and planet turns on its end and like everyone else you "have nothing to do" while your place of work is closed and you are continuing to be in #COVID19 #socialisolation,  superspeed readers like me can read 250+ pages/hour, so yes, I have read the book … and many more today. And it is way too hot to go outside, so why not sit in from of the blasting a/c and read and review books??  BTW - stay home and save lives!!!!!!!! No tan is worth dying for.

I requested and received a temporary digital Advance Reader Copy of this book from #NetGalley, the publisher and the author in exchange for an honest review.  

From the publisher, as I do not repeat the contents or story of books in reviews, I let them do it as they do it better than I do 😸.

The follow-up to the best-selling The Whole Smiths Good Food Cookbook with easy recipes for weeknight cooking

Today, more than ever, people are looking to transition to a whole foods-based diet, aware of the health benefits of fresh foods over highly processed options. Still, people are used to convenience and have busy schedules and little time to put a meal on the table. The Whole Smiths Real Food Every Day solves the problem of what’s for dinner during a hectic week. With simple, accessible recipes that are designed to be made ahead, used for leftovers, or thrown into a slow cooker, families will be able to easily prepare healthy meals on a regular basis. 

Chapters like Sheet Pan Recipes, One-Pot Wonders, Meal Prep, and Leftover Makeovers will guide readers in making the most of their time in the kitchen while delivering healthy recipes that can be made with minimal effort. This follow-up to the best-selling The Whole Smiths Good Food Cookbook will also highlight which recipes are gluten-free, grain-free, dairy-free, and more, making it easy to prepare recipes to fit into any diet.

The recipes in this book are wonderful - well written and appealable to all levels of cooks and those with special diets. They are also very adaptable for people like me who not only love gluten and grains but also like to add real dairy cheese to everything. There are some wonderful recipes in here that I can see making over and over again and I cannot say that about a lot of cookbooks I read and review.

What I love about the book is that it uses whole ingredients instead of pre-prepared and packaged foods. I do draw the line at making my own cheese,  and canning tomatoes but the more "ingredients" you use the better.  My one nephew says that I never have any food in my house, only ingredients --- that is why I cook so much. I also refuse to eat or cook with "chick'n" and its 88 ingredients vs. 🐔chicken🐔 having one!)

As always, I try to find a reason to not rate with stars as I love emojis (outside of their incessant use by "🙏-ed Social Influencer Millennials/#BachelorNation survivors/Tik-Tok and YouTube  Millionaires/etc. " on Instagram and Twitter... Get a real job, people!) so let's give it 🍑🍑🍑🍑🍑