This cookbook begins well with fresh ingredients but falls short in a few areas. I always prefer a cookbook to have more photos of the finished meals and a few pictures of how to do certain techniques (firvthose newer to cooking this is always helpful) .

The title promises that the recipes use five ingredients or less, but most of the recipes use 5-10. Not a deal breaker especially when they are spices but it seems like it might have been better not to say 5 or less if the majority of the meals take more. Especially since it dies deliver in the quick and easy-to-use department.

This cookbook would be useful for people who haven't cooked a lot before and/or don't own many cookbooks. But that may prove disappointing due to the lack of pictures. Kind of a toss up for me. Overall nit a bad beginner cookbook but I wasn't wowed by it.

I would still recommend it to newer cooks.

Cookbooks are kind of like self-help books--there's usually someone that they'll be helpful for, it just might not be me. I liked that this cookbook emphasizes making meals from fresh, nutritious ingredients without too much fuss. However, I really would like to have more pictures: at least one finished photo per item, and perhaps some in-progress shots of how to do certain techniques. Also, the title promises that the recipes use 5 ingredients or fewer, but many actually use more like 5-10. Not a big deal, especially when they are spices or whatever, but it seems odd to advertise with that gimmick and not follow it. I do think this cookbook would be useful for the person who hasn't cooked a lot before and/or doesn't own many cookbooks.

Thanks to the publishers and NetGalley for a digital ARC for the purpose of an unbiased review.

I like the 5-ingredient approach, since oftentimes it seems that there just isn't time for more elaborate recipes except on weekends. The recipes we tried were tasty and healthful. All in all, a great cookbook!

Terrific, easy to follow recipes with just a few ingredients. Highly recommended.

Many thanks to the publisher, the author, and NetGalley for my ARC. All opinions are my own.

The 5-Ingredient Fresh & Easy Cookbook offers over 90 recipes for busy cooks. My favorite part of this book is that it included a short list of easy to find ingredients along with simple preparation steps. The recipes also include tips and/or ingredient swaps. This cookbook is definitely geared toward those who are interested in avoiding processed foods while not spending all day in the kitchen. I marked several that I felt my family would enjoy which is always a sign of a good cookbook. I look forward to putting it to good use!

THE 5-INGREDIENT FRESH AND EASY COOKBOOK by Sheila Thigpen contains "90+ Recipes For Busy People Who Love to Eat Well." Sounds wonderful, doesn’t it? Thigpen keeps it simple with recipes grouped by meal (breakfast, lunch, and dinner), adding some extras (Veggies/Sides, Snacks and Dessert). Nutrition information is included (as well as descriptors like nut-free or vegetarian). A big plus is that the recipes do tend to be fairly easy, with a limited number of common ingredients. Unfortunately, though, only a few include pictures. Thigpen posts many more images on her blog called Life, Love and Good Food, but that is also pretty saturated with advertising.

Link in live post:
https://lifeloveandgoodfood.com/

I love the idea of a cookbook that only requires cooks to have a few ingredients per recipe.  It makes me feel that the 90 plus recipes in this book will be easy to make and satisfying too. 


As is true for most cookbooks, there are sections on the three daily meals plus additional sections on veggies and sides, snacks and desserts.  Some of the recipes in this book are baked blueberry oatmeal, egg in a hash with sweet potato and bacon, zesty chicken salad, banana party pepper tuna salad, Cuban mojo pork chops and orange rice, crispy oven fried fish sticks,orange kissed carrots, warm apple baked brie, and chocolate pudding cake.  I could go on and on as so many of these recipes look and sound delicious. 


The book starts with a great deal of helpful information on things to have in the kitchen, menu planning and more.  There are also many tips on cooking for busy people. The author also shares anecdotes from her life.


One note, recipes in fact have more than five ingredients but some of these are for things most would have on hand like salt, pepper, milk, etc.  Above each recipe are things to know, as for example, "make ahead-nut free-soy free-gluten free.  These headlines can be quite helpful when deciding what to make.


Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this title in exchange for an honest review.

This cookbook has some interesting recipes, such as Pasta e Fagioli Salad, Sheet Pan Sweet and Sour Chicken and Pineapple Fizz Slush. But, the title is a bit misleading. As noted in the introduction, each recipe has "just five main ingredients," but the key word there is "main." Most of the recipes really do have more than five ingredients and I would argue that some contain more than five main ingredients. So, don't expect miracles.

This might be a good cookbook for a beginning cook, as the recipes are relatively easy. I do wish there were more photos of the food, as this is such a large part of the appeal of food. I'm less likely to try a recipe if I can't see what the finished product will look like.

I like Sheila Thigpen’s style! The 5-Ingredient Fresh and Easy Cookbook: 90+ Recipes For Busy People Who Love to Eat Well is her excellent cookbook that is full of good, healthy recipes that real people will actually want to cook and eat. Many of the recipes are from her popular blog, Life, Love and Good Food, which is also excellent. Like the cookbook, it is full of down-to-earth recipes that are doable.

Not only do the recipes call for 5 ingredients (plus a few things like salt and pepper which don’t count), making for quick cooking and assembly, the instructions are easy-to-follow and suitable for all cooks from beginning to advanced. There is an excellent Blackberry Cobbler recipe, as well as a Rosemary Dijon Chicken Skillet (easy and yummy), Sheet Pan Sweet and Sour Chicken, and Black Bean Sweet Potato Chili. My queue is long and varied, and I can see me and others preparing dishes from this cookbook for months. There are appetizers, salads, soups, mains, and desserts – something for everyone in this cookbook.

The only negative to this cookbook is that there aren’t enough photographs. The photographs that are included, however, are excellent, but readers and cooks will have to take their own photos because the dishes are attractive, as well as mouthwatering.

The 5-Ingredient Fresh and Easy Cookbook: 90+ Recipes For Busy People Who Love to Eat Well is a cookbook that belongs on every cookbook shelf; there are dozens of good recipes that can be made quickly, with minimal ingredients. This one is highly recommended. It is great for a gift for beginning cooks and bored cooks.

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.

From Thanksgiving through New Year's day, I completely lose control of my healthy eating and cooking habits. Too many heavy holiday meals, too much baking, and too many parties find me on January 1st, looking to get back to healthier choices. I've used up all the cream, butter, gravies, potatoes, and the seemingly endless supply of homemade cookies, and I am ready to get back to fresh, easy to prepare meals. The 5 Ingredient Fresh and Easy Cookbook was exactly what my inner doctor ordered!
After an Introduction, the book is divided into seven chapters: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner, Veggies & Sides, Snacks, and Desserts. There is a wealth of information in the Introduction including organizing your kitchen with essential tools, refrigerator, freezer, and pantry staples to have on hand, sample weekly menu plans, and shopping tips. Recipes include some nutritional information, tips, whether the recipe is nut-free, soy-free, vegetarian, no-cook, gluten-free, dairy-free, one-pot, or make ahead. The one thing I missed in the nutritional information was how much sodium is in the recipe. I cook for someone with sodium restrictions, so to me, that's an important thing to know.
I liked the Mango Salsa, Butternut Squash Hummus, and the Zesty Chicken Salad. There are quite a few other recipes that I will try, and I am back into healthy eating and cooking mode after reading this book. I received a digital copy with very few pictures, though I am not sure if a physical copy will include more? I wouldn't buy this for a brand new cook, but think it would work for anyone with some kitchen experience who is pressed for time and would like to make more nutritious meals. 4 stars for the simplicity of the recipes and the focus on healthy, fresh ingredients.

I received a DRC from Callisto Media through NetGalley.

I am always searching for cookbooks with healthy and easy recipes. I look forward to trying several recipes including Wild Rice Mushroom Chicken Soup, Spaghetti Squash Florentine and Lemon-Basil Pasta Salad.

Thank you, Callisto Media and NetGalley!

The Five Ingredient Fresh and Easy Cookbook is a good resource for anyone who leads a busy life but also wants to provide fresh food for their family fast. It includes a section on organizing your kitchen and pantry, which will help you prepare foods fast. Recipes are labeled as gluten free, soy free, nut free, no cook, etc. as appropriate.
There are recipes for breakfast, soups, salads, veggies, main dishes, snacks, and desserts.

Some of the recipes have a lot more than 5 ingredients, so it appears the author does not include spices in the ingredient count.

I received a free copy of this book from Rockridge Press, Callisto Media, and Netgalley. My review is voluntary.

I really enjoyed the recipes in this book. I spent a week and made 3 different ones and they were easy and very delicious. I would recommend this book, especially if you love more fresh foods and would like some inspiration or want to shake up your meal routine!

This is a nice cookbook but it's pretty standard stuff. The 5 ingredient part is a bit of a stretch, since the author doesn't count a lot of ingredients as ingredients if they're used for seasoning or other utilitarian purposes. A lot of these recipes are not any shorter than recipes you'd find in any cookbook. For instance, the first recipe of the book, Baked Blueberry Oatmeal, has 11 ingredients -- oats, blueberries, vanilla, baking powder, coconut sugar, cinnamon, salt, melted coconut oil, milk, cooking spray and an egg. Other recipes call for an "ingredient" that is another recipe like a sauce you have to make up.

On the plus side, the recipes tend towards whole food, fairly healthy recipes. There are occasionally color photos of the recipes (very few). Basic nutritional information (calories, fat, saturated fat, carbs, fiber, protein) is provided for every recipe, which I really appreciate. Most of the recipes seem fairly tasty, and most ingredients are easy to source.

The top of every recipe lists selling points like one-pot and gluten free, but the gluten free tag is wildly inaccurate. I noticed that some recipes that were gluten free like soups and salads were not listed as gluten free (and then a random soup would be listed as gluten free), but then dishes that did contain gluten were marked gluten free, such as a pasta dish. It could have specified GF pasta and kept the designation, but most of the other recipes that called for bread, flour or pasta didn't, so it just seemed utterly random.

A lot of these recipes remind me of ones that would have been in my mother's cookbooks from the 70's. There's a GORP recipe for trail mix of one cup of each of cheerios, raisins, peanuts, M&Ms and banana chips, for instance. Some of the recipes are simple things like baked chicken, steak (with mushrooms) and ham and cheese pinwheels (make up a batch of pimento cheese, spread it on ham slices, sprinkle green onions, roll up and cut). Most of them are not particularly short and simple, though, while they're not recipes that will take all day either.

There's not a lot here for vegetarians or vegans. Paleo people can use some recipes but for the most part this is Standard American Diet kind of stuff, with an aim for being a little on the fancy side (bruschetta, apple baked brie, turkey pesto focaccia sandwiches, etc.) and healthier -- in the standard American view of healthier with ingredients like canola oil, low-fat cream cheese and beef bouillon cubes. It's definitely a step up in health from many, though.

I read a temporary digital ARC of this book for the purpose of review.

Simple recipes with easily accessible ingredients. Disappointed that there aren't many pictures of final dishes or even preparatory steps. Would have made this a great staple for giving folks leaving home for first time and learning to cook. Happily trying several recipes for this week's dinners for my family of 4 (2 kiddos).

This cookbook highlights many ways to make a quick supper with fresh ingredients and do it quickly... which is always a godsend to busy people. Due to health issues, I have restrictions on my diet but could easily swap out, for example, brown rice for the white or even cauliflower rice. A few ingredients would require some forethought. Naturally, the fruits and vegetables have to be purchased fresh as well as heavy cream that has a short shelf life. There’s also some ideas to keep your kitchen organized that are very good and most everyone should try to follow.

Simple easy delicious recipes I’m always looking for delicious meals that I can get on the table without spending bothers day in the kitchen.This will be a go to cookbook for me.#netgalley#callistomedia

5 stars

This is a wonderful cookbook! Thigpen provides easy to make, minimal ingredient recipes that will appeal to the beginner as well as a more advanced cook. I have saved a number of these recipes to rotate into our healthier eating lifestyle. Some of the recipes use some random expensive ingredients; however, at the bottom of each recipe substitution ideas are provided.
This would make a great wedding gift! I highly recommend this book. I received a complimentary copy of this book from NetGalley and the publisher in exchange for a honest review.

This is a great cookbook for people who either don’t know how to cook complicated meals or don’t have the time to. I’m a working mom of 2 young kids and these recipes are great! I made the sourdough French toast this morning and the whole family loved them. I’m excited to try more!

Very easy to follow recipes. Only 5 ingredients. Quick preparation of salads and appetizers and main dishes. Includes some tips plus easy to follow instructions.
I like the photos too.
Perfect book for days that you really dont have time to cook. Fresh and healthy recipes.