Labor Day Thrifty #2 ~ More Rachel Ray and the Book Club Cook Book

Express Lane Meals, published in 2006. Yet another 30 minute meal cookbook from Rachel, this book focuses on entrees only. Comprised of only three chapters ~ Exhausted, Not Too Tired and Bring It On ~ each recipe is based on staples on hand to make dinner time less stressful.  Rachel employes the same grocery shopping strategy I have used for years, one BIG shop every two weeks (I try to do one large shop a month since I usually visit three or four stores in one day)  then a quick shop every two weeks for a handful of replacement items (hence the "express lane" title). Pasta and chicken make up a lot of the entrees.

As for staples, Ms Ray keeps 70 items on hand at all times including spices, canned goods and fridge and freezer foods.  The previous owner marked a few recipes, Cowboy Spaghetti and Wafflewiches - a Monte Cristo sandwich made with waffles instead of bread.

The Book Club Cook Book, published in 2004. Super large book with 496 pages of recipes representing 90+ books.  Each chapter is based on a book read by club members from around the United States, followed by a dish or two to match each title. The book titles range from contemporary fiction and non-fiction to classics with the oldest book being "Middlemarch" by George Eliot (1871).

A book club is profiled near the end of each chapter and I was pleasantly surprised to find an entry  from my hometown of Waipahu, Hawaii. The book club met at the Barnes & Noble store, which has since closed. Also noted at the end of each chapter  is a "food for thought" notation which expands on food  ideas and suggestions from other book clubs.