Smashed roasted garlic potatoes | The Novice Housewife

Andie Mitchell is the author  of the New York Times bestseller It Was Me All Along, a memoir where she talks about her 135 pounds weight loss, body image issues and her journey towards self-acceptance.

Eating in the Middle: A Mostly Wholesome Cookbook is her debut cookbook where she shares recipes that have helped her maintain these lifestyle changes.

Smashed roasted garlic potatoes | The Novice Housewife

With a very motivating and honest introduction, Andie Mitchell’s Eating in the Middle is loaded with “recipes that are healthy, wholesome with a focus on big, boisterous flavors“.  She admits that depravation is not the key to a healthy lifestyle and so to keep a fair balance, the book also has its share of recipes that are richer and more decadent, which is what I love about the cookbook. Struggling with weight loss and going on the all or nothing diets is what makes lifestyle changes difficult. Andie dismisses these extreme changes and tells us through her recipes and storytelling to embrace a path that does not deny us the decadent treats and teaches us to enjoy food in a balanced way.

While on one hand you have nourishing dishes like butternut squash salad with kale and pomegranate and arugula with orange segments, spiced walnuts and goat cheese; on the other hand, to keep things realistic, you  have gooey chocolate chip cookie pie and peanut butter mousse pie with marshmallow whipped cream (yum!).

And then there are more balanced meals like the chicken and mushrooms in mustard marsala cream sauce and spicy chipotle chicken enchiladas.

Smashed roasted garlic potatoes | The Novice Housewife

Each recipe has a corresponding picture of the finished product which photographer Aran Goyoaga and prop stylist Jenn Elliot Blake have beautifully captured. A per serving information chart is given along with every recipe, and even though I am not a calorie counting person it is definitely helpful to know.

The book has so many recipes that I would like to try and have already stocked up my refrigerator to make the spicy tofu stir-fry next.

Today  though, I am sharing this quick and easy recipe for smashed roasted garlic potatoes from the book, which makes a perfect side dish. In Andie’s words “they are crisp and crusty with soft, mashy middles.”

Hope you enjoy them.

The book is available on Amazon here.

eating in the middle

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Strawberry Rye Tart | The Novice Housewife

Let’s be honest. I only got Sweeter off the Vine for Yossy Arefi’s photographs. I follow her on instagram and love all her pictures. So I kind of already knew I would like this book.

I love baking with fruits and if you do too, this book is a gem. The book is categorized into different seasons and baking with fruits available during these seasons. Of course the fruit available will depend on the place you stay and these days some fruits are available throughout the year but the book focuses on seasonal fruits and baking with them, which I love.

The Spring section has herbs, rhubarb, strawberries and cherries based recipes. Summer uses apricots, mixed berries, melons, stone fruits, raspberries and figs. Grapes, permissons, pomegranates, apples, pears, quince, squash and pumpkins feature in fall recipes. And winter has recipes using cranberries, citrus and dates.

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Drunken Chicken Banh Mi | The Novice Housewife

I recently got the Banh Mi Handbook by Andrea Nguyen and I love it.

The first time I had the popular Vietnamese sandwich was in Toronto when I was staying there for my cake decorating course.

Most of my stay was with my uncle and his family (and my nani),  but I did spend a few days with my college friend who lived close to downtown Toronto. While staying with her, my friend took me to Banh Mi Boys, a top rated place on yelp and that is when my life was introduced these crazy delicious vietnamese sandwiches.

I had never tried making these sandwiches at home though. Until now.

Homemade banh mi rolls | The Novice Housewife

Andrea Nguyen runs a blog by the name of Viet World Kitchen and has authored a couple of cookbooks on asian cuisine including The Banh Mi Handbook . The cookbook starts with a brief look into Andrea’s long association with the sandwich and then talks about the basic pantry essentials to make your own banh mi. Andrea also includes recipes for homemade sauces and pickled vegetables that make the banh mi so special. And for people who would like to make their own banh mi buns instead of using store bought, Andrea has a very good recipe along with step-by-step pictorial instructions.

There are around 50 recipes in the book. What I love about the cookbook is that it gives a lot of options to customize the banh mi sandwiches to your liking. My husband does not eat any other kind of meat besides chicken (and on certain rare occasions lamb), and is vegetarian on two days of the week, which makes this cookbook a good addition to my collection because of the various chicken and vegetarian filling recipes it has.

Drunken Chicken Banh Mi | The Novice Housewife

Drunken Chicken Banh Mi | The Novice Housewife

Drunken Chicken Banh Mi | The Novice Housewife

Almost all the ingredients in the book are easily available and if not, Andrea offers substitutions. Andrea also offers little notes with each recipe with tips and variations to customize the recipe and create a banh mi that you will love.

While there are many recipes that I would like to try I started with making homemade banh mi rolls. And made the book’s drunken chicken banh mi.

Both V and I loved the drunk chicken banh mi and I am sharing the recipe today. The drunken chicken filling is absolutely delicious. I will be trying the Hanoi grilled chicken banh mi or maybe the coconut curry tofu next.

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