Keeping the (Blogging) Spark Alive

So it's been over FOUR years (I CANNOT believe I've been blogging for 4 years) since I threw down the gauntlet here, challenging myself to try a new recipe at least twice a week. So if I do the math, that's over 400 new recipes I've tested and fed to my family!! I'll be the first to admit that there have been many repeats over the years, but that's still a lot of experimenting and research! 

So it comes to no surprise I found myself in a cooking rut from time to time - staring at an open fridge, tired of trying to come up with something to cook for dinner. Phone at the ready, ready to call in an order for take out. Or packing the kids in the car to grab a quick bite at the neighborhood restaurant. But then I discovered Jenny Rosenstrach's blog Dinner: A Love Story. It was like she was writing just to me with honest and funny posts about the challenges of getting dinner on the table. Plus amazingly simple and delicious recipes to boot. My Dinner: A Love Story cookbook is practically falling apart because I use it so often.

So you can imagine the joy I experienced when I was picked to preview her latest book, Dinner: The Playbook and to test some new recipes. Most of the recipes take between 30-45 minutes to make, and are all thoroughly delicious. But my favorite thing about this book are the practical tips busy parents like myself can use to help get dinner on the table fast. Everything from different weekly menu plans (Super Simple, Quick and Strategic, or Classic School Nights) to what to do on the weekends and suggested sides, have made meal planning a whole lot easier. 

Did I mention the recipes are so good and with just the right amount of creativity that even this veteran (heh) food blogger gets excited to photograph my latest creation and share it with the world? 

Thank you Jenny for keeping the blogging and cooking spark alive for me. And for helping me answer the dreaded question, "What's for dinner?"