Sheryl Crow’s New Cookbook, If It Makes You Healthy, Time For a Giveaway!

Time for a change of pace!

Time for a cookbook give away!

If you are like me, you have a cupboard full of cookbooks. I received my first “official” cookbook at my bridal shower more than a few years ago. My mother-in-law-to-be gave me the Better Homes and Gardens full-size cookbook. You know the three-ring binder one with the red and white checkerboard cover. And of course, what new bride could be without the advice of Betty Crocker? Someone gave me that one too. Over the years I have received countless cookbooks from various friends and relatives. I have no idea where some of them came from.

Considering how many cookbooks I have, you might think I am a pretty darn good cook. You might think I am always trying out new recipes. You might think I eat really healthy. Unfortunately, you would be wrong on all counts.

However, I am resolving to do better on all fronts!
Why is it most of us tend to go back to preparing/eating the same old foods?
 

Why don’t we open up those cookbooks in our cupboards and utilize all those recipes literally at our fingertips?

After a cancer diagnosis, you start to seriously give more thought to what foods you put into your body.

Just ask Sheryl Crow. She says the exact same thing.

Lately there has even been a lot of talk suggesting certain foods prevent cancer. While I think this kind of thinking can be a bit misleading, there is no doubt what we eat affects our health.

St. Martin’s Press recently contacted me to do a review for If It Makes You Healthy, More Than 100 Delicious Recipes Inspired by the Seasons, a new cookbook by Sheryl Crow and Chuck White. Yes, that Sheryl Crow!

At first I said no, because come on, Sheryl Crow cooking? Really? (Actually, it turns out she does  do some cooking herself). Another celebrity promoting a book? No thanks. Then I decided well, why not? Who doesn’t like the chance to get a free book?

Like many of the rest of us, after Sheryl’s breast cancer diagnosis five years ago, she became more interested in nutrition and eating healthier. Her wise oncologist suggested she meet with a nutritionist, which she did. That led her to her meeting and getting to know Chuck White, a professional chef. He set out to teach Sheryl a thing or two about cooking and eating healthier.
 

If It Makes You Healthy is a collection of more than 100 recipes. They are grouped seasonally following Sheryl’s On the Road, Spring/Summer schedule and In the Studio, Fall/Winter schedule. The recipe categories are:  appetizers and snacks, soups, salads, main courses, side dishes and desserts. There are also a few tips thrown in by Sheryl’s nutritionist Rachel S. Beller, MS RD. Sheryl also shares a little about her cancer experience, although she does not go into much detail there. I respect that. The book also has really lovely colorful photos by Victoria Pearson, which add to the book’s appeal.
 

Overall, I think it’s a pretty good cookbook full of healthy recipes for sure. Some of them seem to require a few too many steps for me I must admit. I’m more of a healthy, but also fast, easy and few ingredients kind of cook. But all of them sound relatively easy, delicious and most importantly very healthy. I can honestly recommend this cookbook if you are incorporating a healthier diet into your life.

A couple of recipes that stood out to me, sound really worthwhile  easy/tasty and are ones I will actually try are the Roma Tomato Soup (I happen to love tomato soup), the Roasted Vegetable and Quinoa Pasta Salad, Sheryl’s Tuna Salad (trying that one for sure), Hot Mulled Apple Cider, Slow-Cooked Salsa Chicken Tacos, Pecan-Crusted Trout, Mostly Vegetarian lasagna and of course, the Vegan Chocolate-Mint Brownies.
 

Finally, getting to the nitty gritty – if you would like to be included in a drawing to receive your FREE copy of If It Makes You Healthy, simply leave a comment below. Anybody who comments by day’s end Sunday, May 8th, will get their name thrown into a hat and I will draw out the name of the winner on Monday. The book will be shipped to them directly by St.Martin’s Press. I will contact the lucky winner to get their address. Unlike many other “contests” this one IS open to family and friends too!

Who doesn’t need a new recipe or two? Or 100? Who doesn’t need a little motivation to eat healthier? If you can’t have your own professional chef, isn’t a cupboard full of cookbooks the next best thing? And who doesn’t have room for one more cookbook? Especially a FREE one! (And this one is priced at $29.99!)

What a deal!

So go ahead, leave a comment and enter!

How many cookbooks do you have and which is your favorite?

Or, what is your favorite thing to cook? I’m just curious. (It doesn’t even have to be something healthy!)

Lastly,  here is a link for all to enjoy for one of the book’s featured recipes, Mom’s Reconstructed Chili.

Mom’s Reconstructed Chili