Dinner: A Love Story (affiliate link) has a lot of sentimental value for me.  It was the catalyst for recording my monthly dinner plans and learning to love the art of cooking.  It’s simple and approachable.  Her directions for roasting an entire chicken and then making broth from the remnants is my absolute favorite.  I was really excited to dive into more of her recipes and they didn’t disappoint!

For my first recipe, I chose Pork Shoulder Ragú with Pappardelle (page 179).  I doubled the amount of meat to four pounds (#bigfamilyproblems) but other than that, I stuck closely to the instructions.  It was delicious!  We had enough to eat it over pasta the first night and then in ciabatta rolls for the second.

Next up was Apple “Gazette” (page 263), an affectionately re-named term for galette made by the author’s daughter.  We went apple picking the week before, so the timing was perfect for this one.  The recipe calls for frozen pie crust, but I just whipped up my go-to homemade version.  This recipe was extra fun because I got to bake it with my oldest.  We each made a galette and his turned out way better than mine.  We baked them at the same time and I think my pan tilted in the oven because all of the juicy goodness drained to the bottom.  It was a little dry, but nothing a little powder sugar couldn’t fix!

The last recipe was Turkey Chili (page 100), made on the first fall-like evening of the season.  For the most part, it was just your average chili recipe, but I think the spices are what kicked it up a notch.  My first time adding a tiny bit of cinnamon!  It was delicious and we didn’t even have any leftovers.  I’ll be sure to double the recipe next time.

Final verdict: I love this cookbook.  Definitely one to keep and try everything.

I discovered the Calendar Cookery Challenge idea from Gillian at Tales from a Happy House who got it from Penny at The Homemade Heart.  Here are the rules: “The challenge is simple: the first week of every month, select a cookery book from your shelf and over the course of the month, cook two new recipes from it. The book can be one you have owned for ages but never cooked from, or a new book, or one that you tend to use for the same recipes each time, and have never explored further. You can use the same recipe book as many times as you wish for the Cookery Calendar Challenge, as long as you choose two new recipes from it each time you use it.”

I love cookbooks and own many, but I always seem to forget about them when I’m meal planning.  I think this challenge will lead me to be a more intentional consumer of the things I own, while also adding a little life to my uninspired dinner plans.  I’m excited!

For month number one, I chose Apples for Jam by Tessa Kiros (affiliate link).  I’ve had this cookbook since my oldest two were babies and I don’t think I’ve ever made anything from it!

For my first recipe, I chose the Berry and Buttermilk Cake (page 55), with an added dash of nutmeg to keep things interesting.  There is only a 1/2 cup of sugar in the entire recipe, so it’s not too sweet and would be perfect for breakfast with a cup of coffee.  The kids thought the sugar amount needed to be doubled, but consider the source on that one, hah.

I still had buttermilk leftover, so I decided to try the Fried Buttermilk-Marinated Chicken (page 231) next.  (No wasting – a mini frugal accomplishment!)  The recipe calls for a whole chicken cut into pieces, but I just used tenders since that was what we had on hand.  Add a handful of french fries from the freezer (#keepingitreal) and we had a great post-football game meal.

The last recipe I chose was Penne with Shrimp, Cream, and Tomato (page 152).  It came together quickly, but I think it needed a few more spices to really make the ingredients pop.  A little too simple and bland for our taste.

Final thoughts: While this cookbook is visually beautiful and fun to browse, the recipes were mostly just so-so for me.  I may give it one more chance before it heads to the donation pile.