A review: Smitten Kitchen Keepers

Featuring green spaghetti, walnut brittle chocolate chip cookies and more

As a long-time fan of Deb from Smitten Kitchen, I’ve made dozens of her recipes, both from her blog and her first two cookbooks. I love that her self-described perfectionist tendencies in the kitchen lead to consistently delicious results. I have similar taste preferences—vegetable forward, often vegetarian, but not exclusively so—so I can often find an answer to the “what is for dinner” question with a quick browse on her website.

I’ve been waiting patiently for her newest cookbook, Smitten Kitchen Keepers, to come up on my holds list at the library* and March was finally the month. Here’s a little mini review.

*I have a self-imposed rule that I test drive a cookbook via the library before adding to my collection, due to space constraints. And while I hesitate to call it my best life hack, I’m not *not* calling it my best life hack.

Deb shared her recipe for Green Angel Hair here- I’ve shared this picture before and I’ve since made it again (and froze half the sauce successfully!) and it really is a keeper for me: a super-easy pasta dish that still offers some nutrients from all the spinach in the sauce.

First, the recipes I’ve made (so far):

• The aforementioned Green Angel Hair with Garlic Butter

• Slow-Simmered Lentils with Kale and Goat Cheese

• Creamy Tomato Chickpea Masala

• Creamy Coconut Rice with Chili-Lime Vegetables

• Chocolate Chip Cookies with Salted Walnut Brittle

All were a 10/10, both in their simplicity and their deliciousness. Maybe I’m weird, but I so appreciate a recipe for lentils that’s like, SO GOOD. *insert a side eye from my husband here, while he watches me down a bowl of lentils for dinner*

Overall though, I’m not sure the book will make it into my permanent collection. While I do think there’s a good mix of recipes, and I flagged about 15 of them that I’d like to try, I don’t think there’s enough recipes that I would come back to over and over again. And that’s for various reasons: not enough recipes that would appeal to my whole family (right now), quite a few that are a little more involved than I want, etc.

There’s also a substantial baking section, which is cool but for some reason I seem to prefer having my cooking books and my baking books separate… meaning I always gravitate to towards Dorie or Claire or Erin when I want to bake something, and I think that’s unlikely to change. That said, the addition of salted walnut brittle to chocolate chip cookies is brilliant, and it has inspired me to play more with that technique.

I loved these cookies, and that the walnut brittle stayed crunchy after baking, adding both a depth of flavour and texture

So, my final take? A cookbook well worth testing out, with some real gems that could be added to your dinner rotation. And definitely make the Green Angel Hair.

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This Week’s Best Things

The best song to blast in the car: this week I bought tickets to see The Chicks with my girlfriend in September, and while we won’t get to hear Daddy Lessons by Beyoncé and The Chicks at the concert, it’s one of my faves ever. It’s everything.

The best throwback recipe: I made twice-baked potatoes this past weekend, which I realize may be considered a staple for many (rightfully so!), but it’s not something I’ve made in a long time. In fact, we don’t eat a ton of potatoes in general, especially since they seem to be hit or miss with the kids. I’m happy to report they are twice-baked potato converts! Indulgent, yes, but also so yum.

The best board game: it’s impossible to pick a best ever board game, but Escape From the Dark Castle is SO fun. We borrowed it from the board game cafe in our neighbourhood (unfortunately I think it might be hard to find!). It’s a co-op card game in which you work together to escape a dark castle, using dice rolling and special item cards. One of our friends had the idea to play a spooky soundtrack while we played and I would highly recommend the experience.