Amazon.com
Does the thought of cooking from scratch make you panic? Do you stand in front of your supermarket's canned vegetables display frozen with indecision? Is your fridge filled with takeout containers, and your oven used for storage? If you answered these questions with an emphatic "Yes," Sandra Lee's Semi-Homemade Cooking might be the cookbook for you.
There are plenty of excellent quick-and-easy cookbooks out there, but this book feels like a cross between a giant advertisement and one of those free recipe books you get with mail-in proofs of purchase. Every ingredient that can possibly be branded is labeled as such. Lee's Salad Chinois is made with Swanson premium chunk chicken breast, Kikkoman soy sauce, McCormick ground ginger, Hellman's or Best Foods mayonnaise, La Choy chow mein noodles, Fresh Express prepared green salad, Chun King chow mein vegetables, and Dole mandarin orange segments. Gnocchi Dippers are whipped up with Alessi gnocchi, Bertolli olive oil, and, believe it or not, Kraft Velveeta cheese. The Malibu Rum Cake includes Malibu Rum, Duncan Hines Moist Deluxe yellow cake mix, and Jell-O vanilla instant pudding. And not only does Lee dictate brand names, she chimes in with advice on music and wine selections, as well. One can only hope that Wolfgang Puck wrote the introduction to this book without ever seeing it. --Leora Y. Bloom
From Publishers Weekly
Replete with high-gloss, high-glam food photography, Lee's debut looks like a sophisticated cookbook, but closer inspection reveals that most recipes offer little a neophyte couldn't figure out for himself. A professional "lifestylist," Lee includes recipes such as a Golden Mushroom Soup that's simply a gussied-up can of Campbell's, and a Kahlua Tiramisu that demands three containers of refrigerated pudding. Harried home cooks might appreciate her shortcuts on the nights that authentically homemade meals are strategically impossible, but some will take issue with her use of brand names for virtually everything but the cooking water-a decision that, unfortunately, makes the book read as though it were underwritten by Nabisco, Kraft and Swanson. Pumpkin Cinnamon Pancakes, for example, call for Aunt Jemima pancake mix, and the Tropical Salmon necessitates French's mustard and Sunsweet Fruitlings. Lee even extends to animals the prospect of semi-homemade dishes: the chapter on pet foods includes a recipe for Kitty Tuna Cakes, wherein the intrepid cat-lover is instructed to fry Purina Pet Chow and StarKist tuna into patties. With a eye towards crafting the whole dining experience, Lee also suggests wine and music for some of her creations: pork kabobs, for instance, call for Hugel Gentil (an Alsatian white) and Celine Dion. Television appearances and Lee's sunny persona will help sales, but purists should look elsewhere for quick recipes. Copyright 2002 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Faith Popcorn
"Sandra's Semi-Homemade approach creates the ability to live life easier."
Dick Clark
"Sandra Lee showed me an amazing new way to cook that everyone can enjoy . . . delicious and quick."
Phil Paleologos, Talk America Radio Network
"Sandra is an absolute delight. Informative and helpful. On a scale of 1 to 10, she is a 14!"
Ellen Rose, Cook's Library, Los Angeles, CA
"Semi-Homemade Cooking definitely will appeal to so many people . . . it thinks for them."
Karen Grant, The Grant Radio Show
"Sandra Lee's philosophy makes sense and her delivery is entertaining."
The Today Show
"Brilliant."
The New York Daily News
"This liberally illustrated book outlines more than 100 artfully presented, homemade-tasting snacks."
The Everett Herald
"Recipes are easy to follow and come with beautifully simple photographs."
Readers Digest
"Fast and fab."
Entertainment Tonight
"Sandra Lee will make you look like a master chef."
Book Description
The new way to cook -- quick, marvelous meals and nothing is made from scratch. Sandra Lee has been making everyday lives a little bit easier for over ten years with her Semi-Homemade techniques. Now, she brings her inspiring, practical ideas into the kitchen in her very first cookbook, with recipes that are quick, easy, and most of all delicious. Semi-Homemade Cooking combines fresh ingredients with carefully chosen prepackaged foods -- everything from ready-made pastry to premade soups -- to create a worry-free, timesaving new approach to home cooking. Nothing is made from scratch -- but everything tastes completely homemade. Semi-Homemade Cooking is packed with over one hundred inspiring recipes -- from classic dishes like Southwestern Turkey Chili and Corn Bread, Six-Cheese Tortellini, and French Apple Raisin Sandwiches, to more sophisticated fare, such as Spicy Crab Salad and Roasted Pepper Soup to mouth-watering desserts like Cream Cheese Flan, and Raspberry Trifle with Rum Cream Sauce. It's all here: appetizers, soups, salads, main dishes, desserts, snacks, even treats for your pet -- beautifully presented, artfully selected, and most can be prepared in less than 30 minutes. Sandra also includes recommendations for her favorite product brands, grocery store shopping lists, helpful leftover hints, storage suggestions, and music and wine suggestions to accompany the meals. Semi-Homemade Cooking is perfect for anyone who wants homemade meals without spending hours in the kitchen.
About the Author
Sandra Lee is known to audiences nationwide from her many appearances on the QVC shopping channel and numerous network and cable television programs, demonstrating her hugely popular product lines for the home. She has shared her many down-to-earth secrets to decorating, gardening, and crafts, creating a lifestyle that is beautiful, affordable, and, ultimately, doable. Sandra and her many Semi-Homemade solutions have been featured in Good Housekeeping, Redbook, Country Living Gardener, Better Homes and Gardens, Woman's World, Victoria, and People. She has appeared on many television programs, such as NBC's Today, FOX's Good Day LA and Good Day New York, and several popular cable shows aired on such networks as Lifetime Television for Women, The Discovery Channel, and TNN. Sandra now turns her friendly, realistic approach to cooking with her very first cookbook, Semi-Homemade Cooking. She is a member of the International Association of Culinary Professionals and studied at the acclaimed Cordon Bleu. She lives in Los Angeles with her husband Bruce and Aspen, their dog.
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