Recipe Hell: What’s for Dinner?

Today I received my latest issue of AllRecipes, just one of I don’t know how many recipe mags I’ve subscribed to over the years. As usual though, flipping through the pages I had a hard time finding any that fit my cooking style. Don’t get me wrong, I venture beyond opening cans and popping frozen meals into the microwave, I guess I just don’t love to cook a – it’s a necessity.  What I’ve found through reading countless recipe books and mags is that although the recipes look great and I have the best of intentions, I find very few that I’d actually have the energy to make. Who doesn’t want quick and easy?

I’m a “5 ingredient or less” kind of cook. And the ingredients have to be versatile enough that I’ll use them in other dishes. I love when a recipe calls for a teaspoon of an $8 spice I’ve never heard of.   Or a tablespoon of fresh minced parsley.  Just one tablespoon. Or grated fresh ginger, or orange zest. Seriously? Next.

I realize that exquisite sounding recipes are what sell and that’s why these mags are flooded with things that look amazing but I would never bother to try.  I suppose I’m a boring cook.  And I know what kind of time goes into planning meals for the week when trying to stick to a healthy eating plan.  The time involved in planning, shopping and prepping is enough, the last thing I want to do is prepare a meal with 20 ingredients. On a weeknight. Like that joke about spending $200 at the grocery store and then ordering pizza because you’re too exhausted to cook. How I wish I could just eat whatever I want, life would be so much easier!

I’ve even come across camping recipe sites that feature more complicated recipes than I’d make at home. Are you kidding? Give me a stick and a package of hot dogs. But again, I realize that normal everyday has been covered. A million times. New ideas need to be sourced all the time to deliver fresh content.

I do enjoy the recipe mags, however, sometimes I’m able to get ideas and make changes to go the healthier route, scale down the ingredients, and of course I love to study the photography. It’s a great way to keep up with industry trends.