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The EatingWell Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook: 150 Delicious Recipes for Simple, Everyday Suppers in 45 Minutes or Less
by Jim Romanoff

review by Mimi Cummins

When I first received "The Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook" by Jim Romanoff I was delighted. I thought, this might be one cookbook I’m really going to use and not just read and set aside! Six weeks passed and for once, my prediction proved accurate.

Since the day “The Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook” arrived in the mail, every week’s meal plan has featured at least two recipes from this book. The “Healthy in a Hurry” concept is a perfect for modern mothers struggling to prepare wholesome meals with little time to spend in that short window between the end of the workday and the 6:30pm piano (or whatever) lesson. As the book’s subtitle states, the recipes are appropriate for quick and simple everyday suppers. There isn’t a lot here that you’d want to serve for special occasions, but the book features an almost endless variety of yummy weekday meals that can be whipped up in minutes.

Author Jim Romanoff of EatingWell magazine takes his inspiration from a wide variety of culinary traditions. Meals are inspired by Thai, Japanese, Korean, Middle Eastern, Italian, Indian, Greek, North African and Southwestern cuisines. About two thirds of the 150 recipes are accompanied by beautiful full-color photos. Each recipe provides prep and cook time and nutrition information, and states whether the recipe is low in carbs, high in fiber, or appropriate for a traditional “healthy weight” (ie. low fat, low calorie) lifestyle. “Nutrition Bonuses” are provided for recipes that contain 15% or more of the daily value of specific nutrients such as vitamin C, folate or iron.

“The Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook” features more than just recipes, being divided into helpful sections that can be useful in meal planning such as stocking your pantry, seasonal menu suggestions and vegetarian meals. Three sections provide ideas, if not strictly recipes, for sauces, sides and desserts “in a hurry.” Special indexes help you to select recipes for kid-friendly, healthy weight and 30-minutes-or-less meals.

A few of the recipes we have enjoyed are: Grilled Eggplant Panini, Adobo Pork & Potato Packets, Vietnamese-Style Beef & Noodle Broth, Turkey with Blueberry Pan Sauce, Chipotle Flank Steak Tacos with Pineapple Salsa and Tangerine Veal Medallions.

Just a few of the delicious recipes that I have yet to try are: Grilled Filet Mignon with Vegetable Kabobs, Shrimp Enchiladas Verde, Korean-Style Steak & Lettuce Wraps, Spiced Pork Chops & Peaches, Turkey & Balsamic Onion Quesadillas and Express Shrimp & Sausage Jambalaya.

In my large cookbook selection there are a few books that I return to repeatedly for good recipes for Sunday supper or special occasions. Others I just love to read, dreaming over the time-consuming recipes featuring expensive or exotic ingredients that I’d love to try…one of these days. But there are very few that I use regularly for my Monday through Friday dinners. “The Healthy in a Hurry Cookbook” has proved to be one of them and as such I recommend it as a valuable addition to anyone’s collection.