Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the opportunity to ready this book. I thought this cookbook was laid out well and had some great ideas for how to stock your pantry. The meal plan lists by week would be great for someone who is looking to totally revamp how they eat and needs it spelled out in an easy to follow format. I did think a lot of the initial information was very basic, so this might be good for a person who is just starting to take on the task of cooking and caring for themselves in a more thoughtful way.

I love reading cookbooks that have new, out of the box ideas, and this book unfortunately did not provide that for me. All of the recipes were something that I've either made a version of before or weren't all that creative. They were, however, lightened up and healthier versions of some old favorites.

I would recommend this book for someone who is looking for some basic recipes that are a go-to option when you want something healthy, and as a great option for someone who wants to completely overhaul their meal plan.

This cookbook is the author's answer to the common complaint that eating healthy is too expensive for the average home cook. This book offers an innovative approach to both cooking and trying to eat healthier and/or lose weight. She provides weekly meal plans, as well as a shopping list for each week. Each meal on the weekly plan includes an estimated cost of the meal. The author also includes a fairly comprehensive introduction that tackles tips for saving money when shopping, as well as the benefits (and cost savings) to be found by eating real food, cooked at home. There are not a lot of pictures of the recipes in this book; however the pictures that are included are very appetizing. One important note: the nutritional information is NOT included for the recipes in this book. The recipes are offered in very logical sections--baked goods, breakfast, party appetizers, soups, salads, sides, pasta, restaurant favorites, meatless, land and sea, drinks, desserts and basics. There is also a great index. One of the best things about the book is that it feels very much like a family project. There are lots of pictures of the author, her husband and her children throughout the book, either preparing food or enjoying food. If you are already a fan of the author's other two books, this is a definite MUST add to your collection. If you haven't tried any of the authors other cookbooks, this budget friendly and creative cookbook is a great place to start.

Thank you to NetGalley and Houghton Mifflin Harcourt for the advance copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This is my first cookbook by Brittany Williams. I have heard of her books, but never got around to purchasing one - even though I love healthy eating and my Instant Pot. What in the world was I waiting for? I adore this cookbook! I can't wait to make Oat Bread and Minestrone soup. Plus there are lots of other recipes that are going in line to be made as well
Thank you to Houghton Mifflin Harcourt and NetGalley for the opportunity to read and review this cookbook.

I really liked this cookbook! I appreciated that all of the recipes were pretty cheap to make and also easy to follow. My family also liked the meals!

This book explores big questions like these, explaining the breakthroughs and discoveries that have shaped our modern-day understanding of medicine and helped us protect and promote our health. Written in plain English, The Medicine Book cuts through the jargon and is packed with pithy explanations of the most important milestones in medical history, with step-by-step diagrams and witty illustrations that untangle knotty concepts.

I thought this was a fun cook book. I like that at the beginning she gives a background of what motivated her an dhow she went about loosing weight. I also liked the information like how bi a portion is and just the general information about eating healthier. I like that she gives you a breakdown of some ideas of a grocery list and meal list for different weeks. The one thing I wish was I know these are better for you meals, but I still would like to have the calories for each meal. Besides that though I really enjoyed it and can't wait to use some of these recipes.

I received an advance reader copy of this book to read in exchange for an honest review via netgalley and the publishers.

Instant Loss on a Budget is a great sized cookbook full of recipes with a similar ingredient type (such as flour etc) and should be pretty inexpensive once the ingredients have been purchased at the start of using it.
I really enjoyed the introduction at the beginning of this book and really warmed towards Brittany.
This book is especially good for those with a gluten or dairy intolerance and those who try to avoid refined sugar as Brittany avoids using these types of ingredients in her cooking.
The photographs have a very homely and family feel about them and the food looks amazing.
I will definitely be giving a few of these recipes a go.

I am so excited about this cookbook and I’m delighted that I got to read an advance reading copy of it. Now that it’s published, I am going to get my hands on a real copy of it for my cookbook shelf! There’s lots of excellent information at the beginning about how to save money while eating well, lots of gorgeous pictures that make me want to try every single recipe in the book, and easy to make recipes that look like they will taste fantastic.

The only thing that would make this book better for me would be breakdowns of calories, saturated fat, sodium, sugar, and carbohydrates.

Thanks to NetGalley, the author and publisher for an advanced reading copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

Loved this book. I tried a few recipes in this book already and I’m very happy with the outcome. One of my fav recipes is the healthy version of hot chocolate!

I’ll definitely be making more things from the book!

I am a big fan of Brittany Williams- not only for what she puts out for the community but for how she has stayed grounded through all her fame and success. Reading the book is exactly like hearing from her online/social media. She speaks as if she is talking to you and writes with great clarity, support and understanding. She has never forgotten how she struggled with weight loss and exercise and she brings a positivity that is inspiring! This book is perfect for those looking to take the first steps towards healthier eating and weight loss without deprivation. Recipes are easy to understand and while might be a bit adventurous for those used to eating less than healthy, there are plenty of attainable meals and snacks to choose from. Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

Instant Loss on a Budget by Brittany Williams is a beautiful cookbook. The recipes are accessible, even for an inexperienced cook. I like the beginning of the book with the authors journey, meal plans, and basic kitchen information. The budget aspect is nice but not feasible for my area because items are just more expensive. The nutritional information would have been helpful for the instant loss portion of the book.

***** I received an ARC from NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for my honest review. *****

I really enjoyed this cook book a lot! I liked a few of the recipes in this book and will definitely be using them in my kitchen more soon! I would recommend this to any of my friends because it was easy to follow and the recipes were super yummy! I'm so happy I requested this! Brittany Williams is brilliant and did an outstanding job with this one!

As always, Brittany has once again provided a great source for healthy recipes with a new spin.

I love all the different ideas she comes up in each book and find myself repeating these recipes over and over again all year long.

Beautiful photos on each page give a good example of almost every recipe in the book- and there are some goodies! I cannot wait to try the mini everything bagels!

I am sure the budget theme of this book will resonate with many of Brittany’s original followers and new ones. She is able to explain her background and reasoning for her different choices which I respect- and these ingredients can be substituted to fit your needs if you don’t have or like one - in most cases.

In this book she also gives a breakdown on approximate cost per serving for your budget. As well as some sample meal plans and useful tips and facts at the beginning. I especially love the cook times for veggies in the instant pot!

Having met Brittany at previous book signings, I can say she is just as genuine as this book portrays. I am fortunate to have been selected to read an e-ARC of this cookbook by NetGalley and cannot wait to get my hands on my physical copy which will be lovingly used weekly for years to come!

This cook book was BEAUTIFUL! All of the recipes had lovely pictures to accompany them. The author did a fantastic job of explaining menu and pricing of each recipe so that someone could plan out their meal budget appropriately and still lose weight!

Not for me. I’ve never heard of the author before, so I wasn’t really expecting what this book was. It’s gluten free, dairy free, and skimpy on meat. I’m all for eating healthy but not like this. Further there is no way my kids would eat most of the dishes. My biggest complaint however was the incessant use of gadgets (mainly the electric pressure cooker), and the faulty assertion that cheap knives are just as good as expensive ones.

Instant Loss on a Budget: Super-Affordable Recipes for the Health-Conscious Cook by Brittany Williams
Publisher: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Genre: Cooking, Food & Wine
Release Date: December 29, 2020

Instant Loss on a Budget by Brittany Williams is a guide an recipe book for weight loss foods that taste food and won't break the bank. There are 125 recipes that are all gluten-free and dairy free.

I loved that most of the recipes included easy to find ingredients and don't require anything too exotic. Most of the recipes use a presser cooker or air fryer, but alternative cooking methods are also provided.

I look forward to incorporating some of these recipes into my household menu, especially since they are better for me & my husband and will actually lower our grocery bill.

I would recommend this to anyone who is looking to incorporate gluten- and diary-free recipes into their lives while still enjoying familiar favorites!

Before you even reach the recipes, the author provides so much information, such as alternative protein sources, definitions of 'buzzwords', the differences between how meats are raised, and tips for shopping.

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

This cookbook is fantastic! So many great recipes, easy to follow directions and great pictures. I’ve made a few recipes already.

Right off the bat, Instant Loss on a Budget by Brittany Williams would seem to be a hit. After all, who doesn’t want to cook healthy meals cheaply? I was very much on board until I started reading.

I liked the fact that weekly menus as well as shopping lists are included. For people who need to see the complete picture, this is very useful. However, the dishes seemed to mostly consist of “one-pot” meals, which bordered on monotonous. I was not fond of the fact that nutritional information was left out. This wasn’t an oversight but a purposeful decision on Williams’ part based on the possibility of substituting ingredients. My feeling was: but still, nutritional info regarding the recipe as written would have been useful.

Once I started reviewing the recipes, I noted that Instant Loss on a Budget is a gimmicky cookbook centered on the use of gadgets. Now, I love gadgets and I love to cook but frankly reading an entire cookbook in which simple tasks like beating eggs in a bowl with seasonings now must occur in your multi-talented high-speed blender . . . because . . . it’s quicker? (Seriously?) . . . drives me a little nuts. All of the recipes either involve said high-speed blender, an air fryer, or a multi-talented high pressure cooker. It really would have been nice if the blurb has stated that clearly (I presume the “instant” in the title is an allusion) so that I could be prepared.

While I’ve never heard of Ms. Williams, I do admire her savviness in finding a healthful path for herself. However, it is very clear that she is not a chef. In the introductory chapters in which she discusses useful kitchen items, she erroneously compares cheap knives to expensive chef knives indicating that they’re interchangeable because they both require care to keep them sharp and in working condition. And a Maserati and a Ford Fiesta are also interchangeable because they need gas and servicing.

A good number of the recipes utilize unusual ingredients like different types of flours (cassava, for instance) that may not be readily obtained. Some of the recipes made me cringe such as the Brunswick Stew, which I used to cook a lot when I ate meat, now incorporates barbecue sauce and is served on mashed potatoes (the author claims that this is the way it’s served in the south, Southern California, maybe?). So, yup, even if I were still an omnivore, I’d hard pass on many of these recipes.

Logistics is also curiously missing from this book. The author suggests that the lentil masala could be served over the Jamaican rice and peas. But both recipes use your Instant Pot. Imagine how much easier it would be if the dishes could be cooked simultaneously and served together rather than waiting for that Instant Pot to cook one and then the other.

I am “meh” about Instant Loss on a Budget. While recipes like the cauliflower ones sound tasty, I just can’t imagine using an Instant Pot to cook them and the author provides no alternatives. I can definitely see where new cooks who are floundering in the kitchen would find it a useful tool for feeding their families, but even here, with the limited ingredients, this could be hit or miss. Also, since the author has specific dietary concerns, I can see where individuals with the same issues would find the recipes helpful. If, however, you actually enjoy cooking, I can’t imagine that you would find much of use in Instant Loss on a Budget.

I received an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

2020 hit us all hard, and our bodies are paying for it frequently with bad food choices. Sometimes cooking healthy can be costly and take a lot of time, which is harder during lockdown, where sometimes food is more difficult to procure and we're dealing with budget issues from job loss. Then there's the fact that working from home and/or homeschooling kids can mean a lack of exercise and proper physical activity levels. Instant Loss on a Budget helps get us back on track with delicious recipes that are easy to make, don't require obscure recipes and that will have our family asking for more.

This review is based solely on a digital copy, so I believe it may have less photos than the print version, but the photos I did see were engaging and personal to the author, making it relatable and visually appealing.

Instant Loss on a Budget does assume you'll have access to an electric pressure cooker, but there are recipes that do not require one. That said, to get the most out of the book, you will need one. The recipes include proper time and settings for your pressure cooker, helping remove the worry and mystique from a kitchen appliance that many people are hesitant to start using. If you're new to pressure cooking, this book will help you learn, using recipes that are good for weight loss and nutrition while helping you to stay on budget.

One particular good additional piece of information you'll find in this cookbook is the recipe cost. This helps you plan your weekly grocery shopping expenses before you go to the store. (Wandering the store without a list is a great way to spend more money than you intended, so this book does lean towards planning in advance. It takes a little bit of time to do but once you get in the habit, you'll find you save time because you're not scrambling each day to figure out what to cook.) The Meal Plan chapter is incredibly helpful as is the breakdown of kitchen tools and initial investment.

Some recipes do use substitutions to basic ingredients in order to contribute towards weight loss. For example, some recipes are dairy- and gluten-free based, and some discuss alternatives to processed sugar. I'm not a fan of cashews, so the Cashew Ricotta Cheese for the Lasagna Soup recipe was a no, but it did offer up the suggestion of replacing them with sunflower seeds or just using more real ricotta cheese.

Before you get to the recipes, the author shares a significant amount of personal information about what motivated her to start this type of lifestyle. It won't necessarily apply to everyone but it does help the reader to relate to our own personal eating choices and lifestyle. The Table of Contents breaks down the chapters by types of food. You'll find a lot of basics, such as granola, hearty bone broth, seasonings, homemade condiments and nut milk.

I need to give a shoutout to the Lemon-Turmeric Tea! I'd have never thought about making tea in the pressure cooker, but it's great when you need a little pick-me-up or aren't feeling well. And it just smells as delicious as it tastes.

This book is a good investment into your health and you'll find a lot of recipes that help you not only fill bellies healthily but bring a little restaurant feel into your home when you can't leave.

#InstantLossonaBudget #NetGalley

Special thanks to NetGalley and Houghton Harcourt for providing me with ARC.

I loved this book so much and the author is brilliant.