Enjoy fast, free delivery, exclusive deals, and award-winning movies & TV shows with Prime
Try Prime and start saving today with fast, free delivery

Kindle
$6.99

Available instantly

Hardcover
$18.99

$18.99 with 37 percent savings

List Price: $29.99

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns

FREE delivery Thursday, May 16 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35. Order within 3 hrs 13 mins

Select delivery location

In Stock

$$18.99 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Ships from

Amazon.com

Ships from

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Sold by

Amazon.com

Returns

30-day easy returns

Returns

30-day easy returns

This item can be returned in its original condition for a full refund or replacement within 30 days of receipt.

Read full return policy

Payment

Secure transaction

Payment

Secure transaction

We work hard to protect your security and privacy. Our payment security system encrypts your information during transmission. We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others. Learn more

Details

Add a gift receipt for easy returns

$16.93

Get Fast, Free Shipping with Amazon Prime FREE Returns

Book in Good Condition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed. Ships Fast!!! Book in Good Condition. 100% Satisfaction Guaranteed. Ships Fast!!! See less

FREE delivery Friday, May 17 on orders shipped by Amazon over $35

Select delivery location

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

$$18.99 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Enhancements you chose aren't available for this seller. Details

${cardName} not available for the seller you chose

${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}.

Sold by Ulf Poductions Llc. and Fulfilled by Amazon.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (71) from $12.91 + $3.99 shipping

Follow the author

Ali Slagle

+ Follow

More books from this author

I Dream of DinnerPenguin Random House LLC

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

2 VIDEOS

I Dream of Dinner (so You Don't Have To): Low-Effort, High-Reward Recipes: A Cookbook Hardcover – April 12, 2022

by Ali Slagle (Author)

4.6 460 ratings

Editors' pick Best Cookbooks, Food & Wine

See all formats and editions

Great on Kindle

Great Experience. Great Value.

Enjoy a great reading experience when you buy the Kindle edition of this book. Learn more about Great on Kindle, available in select categories.

View Kindle Edition

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$18.99","priceAmount":18.99,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"18","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"99","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"QUrqUSwn7mYrENi9cXK1C7wMxZztqctQT4EXE4s4cdU7NdIDEyPFC2sEJTnecBDi2wk0gfmnbo5gBFYbqUMaeeGTczO1fn4Gw04QMbE5E1UpBX8JRzWDuQ%2FLOfaIsZOxkhLQdz7%2BceELy05cadpSNA%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$16.93","priceAmount":16.93,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"16","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"93","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"QUrqUSwn7mYrENi9cXK1C7wMxZztqctQPAbK%2BGx6Fkdd2KPUP1mCUPKoIomXpJce%2FkIBYn4RVhifGzew92z5TqGbV3pn3t05SwHTKlU6oXSRJw9tOeQn0g%2FhUjSd36KEzyAxrCSxBlIAqUCTjaYBDPpbPQxMbLDNbP%2FVRWwN8Z4bM1mNcxBamguNeSrtTWbl","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

JAMES BEARD AWARD NOMINEE • 150 fast and flexible recipes to use what you have and make what you want, from New York Times contributor Ali Slagle

“Ali has pulled off the near-impossible with a collection of delicious, doable, recipes that don’t just tell you how to make a specific dish, but how to expand your way of thinking.”—Sohla El-Waylly, chef and all-around awesome person

ONE OF THE TEN BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR: Simply Recipes
ONE OF THE BEST COOKBOOKS OF THE YEAR: Bon Appétit, The Boston Globe, Food & Wine, Salon, Saveur, Mother Jones, Delish, Epicurious

With minimal ingredients and maximum joy in mind, Ali Slagle's no-nonsense, completely delicious recipes are ideal for dinner tonight—and every single night. Like she does with her instantly beloved recipes in the New York Times, Ali combines readily available, inexpensive ingredients in clever, uncomplicated ways for meals that spark everyday magic. Maybe it’s Fish & Chips Tacos tonight, a bowl of Olive Oil-Braised Chickpeas tomorrow, and Farro Carbonara forever and ever. All come together with fewer than eight ingredients and forty-five minutes, using one or two pots and pans. Half the recipes are plant-based, too.

Organized by main ingredients like eggs, noodles, beans, and chicken, chapters include quick tricks for riffable cooking methods and flavor combinations so that dinner bends to your life, not the other way around (no meal-planning required!). Whether in need of comfort and calm, fire and fun—directions to cling to, or the inspiration to wing it—I Dream of Dinner (so You Don't Have To) is the only phone-a-friend you need. That’s because Ali, a home cook turned recipe developer, guides with a reassuring calm, puckish curiosity, and desire for everyone, everywhere, to make great food—and fast. (Phew!)

Frequently bought together

I Dream of Dinner (so You Don't Have To): Low-Effort, High-Reward Recipes: A Cookbook

$18.99

Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

+

Dinner in One: Exceptional & Easy One-Pan Meals: A Cookbook

$16.69

Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

+

$18.14

Get it as soon as Thursday, May 16

In Stock

Ships from and sold by Amazon.com.

Total price:

To see our price, add these items to your cart.

Try again!

Details

Added to Cart

Choose items to buy together.

Melissa Clark
879
Hardcover
82 offers from $9.88
Deb Perelman
775
Hardcover
77 offers from $12.77
Carla Lalli Music
960
Hardcover
72 offers from $11.16
Jennifer Segal
1,824
Hardcover
83 offers from $8.02
Molly Baz
3,041
Hardcover
75 offers from $11.92
Alison Roman
2,633
Hardcover
89 offers from $7.21

From the Publisher

Fast and flexible recipes ideal for every night of the week


Ricotta Frittata with Lemon Crumbs	Skillet Thighs with Peas & Pickled Chiles	Sloppy Lennys

maximize your time, minimize your waste, and nourish with food that feels good to make and eat

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Finally, a recipe creator who understands what a realistic end-of-week pantry looks like!”—Eater

“Her recipes carry the comforting pragmatism of an impatient home cook: she maps out the smoothest way to get from ingredients to dinner, and maximizes flavor wherever possible.”—Marian Bull, food writer

“The recipes are unique, easy to follow, and even easier to commit to memory. It’s exciting to think of a whole cookbook worth of them.”—Food52

“Slagle is generous with permission to break the rules in service of minimizing effort or maximizing pleasure, ideally both.”—The New Yorker

“As you can imagine there is a lot of talk of cookbooks in our proverbial halls (a.k.a. Zoom calls), and occasionally it seems everyone is in love with the same one. This month the brilliantly titled I Dream of Dinner (so You Don’t Have To) by Ali Slagle is a house favorite.”—Dawn Davis, editor in chief of Bon Appétit

“I Dream of Dinner is brilliantly designed, clearly written, and filled with a ton of quick, simple recipes to help get a happy dinner on the table at the end of a long day.”—Samin Nosrat, author of Salt, Fat, Acid, Heat

“[Ali Slagle], is a super smart cook and recipe writer who’s also damn funny. Her humor and ideas will get you through making dinner in about 45 minutes.”—Andrea Nguyen, author of Vietnamese Food Any Day and The Pho Cookbook

“Ali has pulled off the near-impossible with a collection of delicious, doable, recipes that don’t just tell you how to make a specific dish, but how to expand your way of thinking so you can cook with a flexible pantry. Let’s face it, it’s tough to organize your life around recipes with specific ingredients. Instead, I Dream of Dinner makes room for your life.”—Sohla El-Waylly, chef and all-around awesome person

“Many books purport to offer easy weeknight meals but disguise cooking time with hidden prep and other complications—not Slagle’s. She hits it out of the park with her first cookbook, collecting recipes that take 45 minutes or less and use 10 or fewer ingredients.”—Library Journal

“This makes the task of cooking feel like a celebration.”—Publishers Weekly

About the Author

Ali Slagle is a recipe developer, stylist, and—most important of all—home cook. She’s a frequent contributor to the New York Times and Washington Post, where she’s published hundreds of weeknight-ready recipes. Previously, she cut her teeth on the editorial and creative teams at Food52 and Ten Speed Press. You’ll find her in Brooklyn, without a dishwasher, food processor, or stand mixer.

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.

Introduction

Some count sheep—I dream up dinner.

My favorite cooks are people who “make food.” Their skills and taste buds are honed by real life, by making do with what they have, and by sticking their fingers into lots of hot pots. They cook quickly but thoughtfully, feed extremely hungry people night after night—and then do the dishes whether they want to or not.

That includes my mom and nonna, and not just because I love them so much. Their cooking is soulful, scrappy, confident, and completely delicious. They make dinner with ten ingredients and in 45 minutes, probably, but who’s counting? They don’t have patience for time-sucks and finicky recipes, but they also won’t sacrifice an ounce of joy or flavor along the way.

Take my mom’s chili, which is made from cans, jars, and ketchup. It’s not real-deal chili but it’s so good, people joke it’ll be celebrated on her gravestone (it’s the Shortcut Chicken Chili on page 286). And when you ask my nonna for her biscotti recipe, what you get is on the next page—good luck! She cooks outside the lines, clearly.

I thankfully inherited their resourcefulness and love for cooking. When I go on walks or zone out on the train, I’m playing Dinner Tetris in my head. I’m imagining the moves I’ll make to efficiently, enjoyably use the ingredients I have to make what I want. The results of these daydreams (and actual dreams) become meals for me and recipes for you—I dream of dinner so you don’t have to! The 150 recipes in this book meet you wherever you are: hungry, hurried, happy. In need of calm and comfort or fire and fun. On yet another Wednesday. At 6 p.m., realizing oh right, dinner.

My promise is that the effort-to-reward ratio is engineered in your favor. The recipes won’t use more than 45 minutes, ten ingredients (though usually just five to eight), and your indispensables (meet them on page 16). They approach pantry lurkers and produce on its last leg as enthusiastically as farmers’ market celebrities, and are flexible enough to modify wildly. No need to go to the store for one ingredient unless you also need ice cream.

Instead of hiding work in an ingredient list—did you know “½ cup toasted, chopped, skin-off hazelnuts” takes half an hour?—there’s a grocery list to scan. When you’re ready to cook, bring the ingredients to the counter and follow along: All the prep happens in the recipe itself. You can cling to the recipes for dear life or you may never follow any precisely—cooking is a wild thing that really can’t (and shouldn’t) be contained within precise steps and amounts.

This book provides just enough structure to get you to excellent meals, in your kitchen, your way. The recipes are organized by the basic processes that turn their main ingredient into dinner. Seeing recipes as templates creates routine, which is practical but rarely boring because it provides avenues for improvisation (a fact of life). Each section starts with quick tricks for each process so that you can off-road and recover if there’s a screw-up (another fact of life).

This fast and loose way of cooking will make the mediocre days better and the good days great. It will maximize your time, minimize your waste, spark inspiration, and nourish with food that feels good to make and eat. Just remember: Do more with less. Don’t overthink it. And also: It’s only dinner.

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Clarkson Potter (April 12, 2022)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 400 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0593232518
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0593232514
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 2.6 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 7.63 x 1.45 x 9.06 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #17,346 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #55 in Cooking for One or Two
- #74 in U.S. Regional Cooking, Food & Wine
- #160 in Quick & Easy Cooking (Books)

Customer Reviews:
4.6 460 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Ali Slagle

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Ali is a recipe developer, stylist, and frequent contributor to the New York Times, Bon Appetit, and Washington Post. Most of all, though, she's a home cook.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5

460 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Reviews with images

See all photos

Sort reviews by

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews right now. Please try again later.

Curious Epicure

Easy, delicious and fun!

Reviewed in the United States on July 17, 2022

Verified Purchase

When I friend who is famous for her cooking told me her niece said she HAD to get this book, I figured I had to as well. That niece must really know a thing or two because this book is most fun I've had reading or cooking from a book in a while. If you are a cookbook reader, this one is a stellar read.

To me the book is pretty perfect, but there are a few potential problems worth noting:
-- The first problem, which is a good one to have, was deciding which of the recipes to make - there's hardly a one that doesn't sound 100% appealing.

-- The second problem, which was not so good, was getting into the format - although the ingredients are listed in a column next to the instructions, the amounts are within the bodies of the instructions paragraphs. I'm not a fan of that style because it takes longer to write a shopping list. But I love these recipes enough to work with that.

-- The third is that there are a lot of ingredients in this book that, to adventurous cooks are not that exotic, but may be for cooks who tend to cook less adventurously. I now live in a small Southern city and, even here, I have some really good Asian and Hispanic food markets here and I've not had trouble finding even the most unusual of the ingredients. I heartily suggest seeking them out to try these recipes, but rest assured that plenty of the recipes have ingredients that most supermarkets readily carry.

Mainly, the recipes are the thing. Among the ones I've made and loved:
-- Green Chile Pork with Crispy Rice - this was amazing even though I didn't quite get the rice right
-- Broccoli Bits with Dates & Cheddar - can't stop eating this
-- Gochujang Gravy - a Sunday ragu done anew
-- Sesame-Chicken Meatballs - husband went crazy over these
-- One-pan Chicken Piccata & Orzo - very good and super easy
-- Skirt Steak with Corn & Feta - this was really tasty
-- Cauliflower Mash with Smoked Trout - also love the suggestions for using smoked trout at the end
-- Fennel & Radicchio with Macerated Apricots - roasted and served with farro and parm *sigh*

Most of the recipes have further suggestions for what to do with one or more or the ingredients in them. I love this because it gives ways to use ingredients if not all are used.

One of the things I really like about this book is the feeling of confidence it imparts to the person cooking from it. It's along the lines of, oh, just throw these things together and it will be delicious.

So far, that's how cooking from this book is going - it's not only bringing new flavors (I never used toasted rice powder before!) to my table, but making it's making cooking very fun to do again.

I highly recommend this book.

54 people found this helpful

Helpful

Annie

The best for weeknight dinners!

Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2023

Verified Purchase

This has quickly become one of my favorite cookbooks of all time. I checked it out from my local library, but after making 6 of the recipes and loving them all, I decided to buy it, and I'm so glad I did. Ali Slagle's dishes are now a staple in our home, particularly during the week when we're looking for veggie-centric meals with not much prep time. Most of the meals use ingredients we typically have on hand, or provide options for substitutions. Overall the recipes are well-written, easy to prepare, and taste delicious!

One person found this helpful

Helpful

jonesparg

Low effort recipes

Reviewed in the United States on April 16, 2024

Verified Purchase

Tired of preparing fussy (that is, way too many steps) food, or of cooking the same darned things week after week? Try this book. I admit I bought it for my young-adult daughter, but I'm a convert now. You'll learn to keep culinary staples in the cupboard and fridge and throw them together for quick healthy and interesting meals.

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Priscilla Feral

Half-plant-based recipes? Not so quick to find

Reviewed in the United States on May 2, 2022

Verified Purchase

I'm vegan, an author of two cookbooks, and don't purchase ones that aren't vegan, however, I've been a fan of Ali Slagle's recipes in the NYTimes and hoped the vegan, plant-based recipes would be easily identifiable in a section. They are not. I've had to leave post-its on pages throughout hundreds of pages to mark recipes I'll make. Also, eggs, by the way, don't arrive from plants, and when there's a "Vegetable" section, it's aggravating to find bacon as an ingredient.
The book is beautifully designed, with eye-popping photography and it opens wherever you choose so that pages are flat. That, alone makes it a gem. Ali Slagle's culinary talent is undeniable.

10 people found this helpful

Helpful

CS

A stellar cookbook for busy weeknight cooks

Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2022

Verified Purchase

I never write product reviews but just finished reading this book (cover to cover, of course) and needed to tell everyone else that this book is the real deal. First, this is the rare cookbook where every recipe looks delicious. I want to cook them all. She tees up each chapter with the most helpful tips I have seen in a cookbook to date. I learned so much after a single read, and I’m sure I’ll learn more as I start cooking. (No, I haven’t made anything from this *yet* but am familiar with Ali’s food and recipes from the NYT Cooking app. Everything I’ve made turns out great). Second, each recipe is forgiving with room for improvisation should you prefer it, or if you simply make a mistake. She also includes alternative flavor combinations based on pantry essentials. Third, much of this can be made in a single pot and relatively quickly. Finally, while not vegetarian, there are a lot of veggies on this book and and all recipes are gluten free or easily made gluten free with gf pasta, gf bread, or cornstarch.

Bravo, Ali for a simple, refined, educational addition to a home cook’s weeknight arsenal.

16 people found this helpful

Helpful

Vicki

What a great addition to my cookbook collection!!

Reviewed in the United States on September 10, 2022

Verified Purchase

After seeing an article in the local Larchmont Chronicle, and finding out Ms Slagel grew up in the neighborhood, I had to check out her new book! I've had the pleasure of a trying out a few of her NYT recipes, and this "quick and easy dinner" collection seemed like just the thing.

So a day after delivery, getting home a little late, tired, not in the mood to figure out dinner, I opened my new book up, having some sausages to cook and tried "Merquez with Sweet potatoes and dates" - as I had spicy italian sausages, and all the other ingredients - sweet potato, dates, lemon, parsley (used frozen), garlic.

I cannot tell you how HAPPY I was about 30 minutes later - this dish was AMAZING and so darn easy (5 minutes prep) !!! The recipe didn't seem to make sense when reading, but after tasting? HOW DID I NOT THINK OF THIS BEFORE!

I can't wait to try the next recipe, and the next, etc. ;) I've tagged a few more, and its amazing how many recipes incorporate items I normally have on hand.

Thrilled to add this cookbook to my ever growing collection - I predict my friends will be getting this one for gifts soon!

8 people found this helpful

Helpful

Top reviews from other countries

Helena

Entertaining and enticing

Reviewed in Canada on July 25, 2022

Verified Purchase

I never write reviews, but the book just arrived and I read it from cover to cover, drooling all the way. I just want to cook every page! There are so many smart tips and interesting twists on old standards. Can’t write anymore, gotta cook!

Carol Mathis

Easy, Standout Recipes

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on May 5, 2023

Verified Purchase

I love everything about this book—the layout, photography, writing. The recipes are interesting, doable, and accessible; I can find the ingredients here in Portugal (not always an easy task). It’s fun to cook from and the results are outstanding.

2 people found this helpful

See more reviews

Return this item for free

Return this item for free

Follow the author

Image Unavailable