cover image Cook90: The 30-Day Plan for Faster, Healthier, Happier Meals

Cook90: The 30-Day Plan for Faster, Healthier, Happier Meals

David Tamarkin and the editors of Epicurious. Little, Brown, $30 (272p) ISBN 978-0-316-42015-0

In this ambitious cookbook, Epicurious editor and digital director Tamarkin challenges readers to cook breakfast, lunch, and dinner for 30 consecutive days in the hopes of kickstarting a healthy lifestyle that will help readers “physically, mentally, and financially.” Tamarkin argues for planning ahead, stocking one’s pantry, and using prepared foods, such as store-bought rotisserie chicken, canned beans, and frozen vegetables, and transforming them into extraordinary meals. Highlights include an herby white bean and tuna spread, one-pot pasta primavera with shrimp, quick chicken tikka masala, and braised chicken with bacon, tomatoes, and kale. He also emphasizes “nextovers,” which are essentially batch-cooked foods that can be repurposed to create a new dish. Roasted sweet potato halves, for example, can be used to make sweet potatoes stuffed with chorizo, mushrooms, and lime cream, as well as chickpea curry with sweet potatoes and greens. A handful of notable breakfast items and baked goods, such as cocoa oats with yogurt honey, an oatmeal smoothie made with blueberries and tahini, chai-spiced tea cake, and salted almond apple crisp nicely round out this helpful book. This is a helpful, creative guide for readers who opt out of takeout in favor of home-cooked meals with the hopes of becoming better cooks in the process (Dec.)