This is not a gluten-free cookbook but the recipes are easy to transition to gluten-free with simple substitutions. Just be sure to carefully check out ingredients you aren’t sure about.
I was recently sent a copy of Simply Suppers: Comfort Food You Can Get on the Table in No Time Flat by Jennifer Chandler to review. The first things to pop into my recipe-obsessive mind were:
- This is comfort food at its delicious best.
- The food photography is exceptional.
- These recipes fit every occasion imaginable.
- I’d better get started today, because I intend to make every recipe in the collection.
Author Jennifer Chandler graduated at the top of her class with Le Grand Diplome and a Mention Tres Bien in Pastry from Le Cordon Bleu in Paris. Suffice to say, she knows her way around the culinary world. As the mother of two girls, she also knows a thing or two about making delicious food that your family wants to eat. There’s simply no way that one-two combo can be beaten.
Jennifer Chandler is also the author of another outstanding cookbook, Simply Salads: More than 100 Delicious Creative Recipes Made from Prepackaged Greens and a Few Easy-to-Find Ingredients.
Simply Suppers, literally, has a recipe for every occasion:
- Comforting, beautiful suppers you like to hit your loved ones with when they come home each night.
- Tailgating food for taking TO games or for bringing games TO you.
- Super special meals for Christmas, Thanksgiving, Easter, anniversaries…
- Hot Cocoa Chocolate Pudding for making the world a better place.
One of the things I love the most about Simply Suppers: Comfort Food You Can Get on the Table in No Time Flat is the fact that these are spectacular, beautiful recipes that still manage to feature simple, easy-to-find ingredients. Success! No scouring the entire region for foods I’ve never even heard of or searching for hours for substitutes for foods I can’t possibly find.
Hate that.
Some of the outstanding recipes in Simply Suppers include:
- Crock Pot Beef Stew
- Corn Chowder
- Sauteed Spaghetti Squash
- Double-Decker Peach Cobbler (be still my heart)
- Baked Rigatoni with Sausage Meatballs and Spinach
- Potatoes Au Gratin
- Chicken Tortilla Soup
- Shrimp, Chicken, and Sausage Jambalaya
- Chicken Pot Pie
- Roast Chicken with Pan Gravy (You should see the picture!)
- Yellow Squash Casserole
- Cheddar-Pecan Green Bean Casserole (Knock their socks off this Thanksgiving)
- Smothered Pork Chops (recipe below)
- Many, many more!
With entrees, side dishes, and unforgettable desserts, Simply Suppers will become one of your favorite cookbooks. You know, the kind you keep nearby at all times and return to again and again.
Below is one of the recipes form Simply Suppers. Try it. Love it. And, whatever you do, grab a copy of this cookbook as soon as possible – it’s simply perfect.
Smothered Pork Chops Recipe from Simply Suppers
4 thinly sliced center-cut pork chops (about 1-1/4 pounds)
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion (1 large onion)
1 can (10-3/4 ounce) cream of celery soup
1 can water
Pat the pork chops dry with a paper towel and generously season with salt and pepper. In a large saucepan over medium-high heat, warm the oil until a few droplets of water sizzle when carefully sprinkled in the pan. Sear the meat until nicely browned on both sides, about 4 minutes per side. Transfer the meat to a plate and reserve.
Drain all but about 1 tablespoon of fat from the pan. Add the onions and saute until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the soup and water, and stir to combine. Over high heat, bring the mixture to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium-low. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Return the meat to the pan. Cover and simmer until the meat is tender, about 45 minutes. Adjust seasonings as needed. Serve the pork chops hot with the sauce ladled on top.
Serves 4.
COOKING TIP: You can use either bone-in or boneless pork chops for this recipe.
The recipe, above, is on page 71 of Simply Suppers and is just one of the many, many wonderful recipes you’ll flip for. This 256 page cookbook is a must-have and would make a PERFECT gift for new brides, new grooms, or frankly anyone who wants to cook great food for those they love.
When I was looking for a recipe to include in the post, the Smothered Pork Chops recipe stood out. Then I noticed the caption under the recipe title and it all made sense: The author wrote “This delicious, old-fashioned recipe is from my dear mom. Slow cooking turns tough pork chops into a fork tender treat.”
It seems like our best recipes always come form the same person we came from! Mom. It’s kind of what puts the comfort in comfort food.
You’re going to love this cookbook: Simply Suppers: Comfort Food You Can Get on the Table in No Time Flat