The Comfortable Kitchen: 105 Laid-Back, Healthy, and Wholesome Recipes

by Alex Snodgrass

Overview

#1 Wall Street Journal Bestseller

New York Times Bestseller

It’s comfort food—redefined! Here are healthy meals the whole family can enjoy, night after night . . .

What does comfort mean in The Comfortable Kitchen? For Alex Snodgrass, New York Times bestselling author of The Defined Dish, bringing her family around the table to share a home-cooked meal is a favorite way to show love. Her recipes are designed to bring joy into that display of affection, from your own comfort cooking to your loved ones’ delight at the delicious flavors, to knowing that you’re caring for your family’s nutrition with each bite.

Though many of her meals are fully paleo compliant, or at the very least paleo-ish, there are plenty of other recipes with simple, flexible ingredient swaps for a cleaner meal when desired—perfect for people who are enjoying their “food freedom” stage of their health journey. And for those who have dietary restrictions, Alex clearly marks each recipe as gluten-free, dairy-free, grain-free, and paleo, as appropriate.

Alex brings back the joy of being in the kitchen for those at all levels of cooking skill and provides food for every occasion, with soups, salads, pasta, vegetarian and non-vegetarian mains, apps, and sides ranging from one-pot meals to not-so-junky junk food—and even cocktails and desserts—with recipes including:

• Cajun Chicken and Wild Rice Soup
• Green Curry Poached Halibut with Herbs
• Texas Style Brisket Tacos
• Herby Green Olive Pasta with Feta
• Sheet Pan Honey-Sesame Cauliflower
• Clayton’s Margarita
• 7-Ingredient Almond Butter Cookies

With 105 approachable and nutritious recipes for real, busy life, The Comfortable Kitchen is a must-have cookbook for everyone who cares about what they eat and what they make. 

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063075412
Publisher:	HarperCollins
Publication date:	12/28/2021
Series:	A Defined Dish Book
Pages:	272
Sales rank:	42,942
Product dimensions:	7.80(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Alex Snodgrass is a recipe developer, health enthusiast, and founder of the popular blog and social media outlet The Defined Dish. Her first two books, The Defined Dish and The Comfortable Kitchen, were instant New York Times bestsellers. Her recipes use better-for-you ingredients and are known for being simple, easy, and full of flavor. In 2018 she was recognized as a finalist in the prestigious Saveur magazine Blog Awards in the category of "Most Inspired Weeknight Meals.” In 2022, Alex launched her multipurpose dressing line, SideDish, to further make mealtime easier and more delicious. She lives in Dallas with her husband and two young daughters.

Editorial Reviews

11/15/2021

Recipe developer and blogger Snodgrass (The Defined Dish) puts a modern spin on comfort food in this versatile collection of nourishing dishes that never fall short on flavor. While many of her healthy, crowd-pleasing recipes—such as crunchy chicken tinga tacos, lemon avocado oil cake, and Vietnamese-inspired “Shaking Beef” salad—are paleo-compliant, readers shouldn’t be deterred by the label, as each one is packed with taste. Snodgrass also provides a vast assortment of recipes suitable for other dietary programs—including a creamy Cajun chicken and wild rice soup that is gluten-free and diary-free; and grain-free and vegetarian-friendly roasted veggie enchiladas verdes. Meanwhile, other dishes—like burgers, spicy shrimp pasta with tarragon and basil, and individual Texas “sheet” cakes—can be modified with simple ingredient substitutions or omissions. The book concludes with a chapter of appetizing cocktail recipes from Snodgrass’s husband, Clayton, that reimagine classics such as the margarita (which gets a raw egg white added to it for a frothy effect) and the Moscow mule (updated here with a mezcal and elderflower liqueur). This is perfect for busy home cooks who want to expand their repertoire of healthy recipes. Agent: Nicole Tourtelot, the Gernert Company. (Dec.)

Publishers Weekly

The Comfortable Kitchen is your new go-to for healthy eating inspiration, with meals full of warm flavors, simply delicious ingredient combinations, and wholesome treats.” — Melissa Urban, Whole30 cofounder and CEO

“Alex’s passion for food shines through in everything she does, and this book is no exception! It’s packed to the brim with unfussy recipes to nourish your family, your friends, and most important, yourself.” — Gaby Dalkin, creator and author of What's Gaby Cooking

“Alex has done it again—this book is loaded with mouthwatering recipes with a modern American twang. These approachable dishes are quick to whip up even on the busiest of days. This stunning cookbook is a kitchen staple that you’ll be reaching for again and again!” — Dzung Lewis, YouTuber and author of The Honeysuckle Cookbook

“The Defined Dish blogger Snodgrass debuts with this collection of dozens of gluten-free, dairy-free, and grain-free recipes that are packed with flavor...Readers looking for healthy dishes that do not sacrifice flavor will find plenty to enjoy in this outing.”  — Publishers Weekly on The Defined Dish

“Alex and The Defined Dish are my go-to for delicious recipes that are as enjoyable to make as to eat! She approaches both food and life with a playful soulfulness that nourishes my family and my heart.”  — Brené Brown, PhD, #1 New York Times best-selling author of Dare to Lead on The Defined Dish

“I discovered Alex’s cooking when I was attempting to survive a Whole30 and was at a loss. Alex’s recipes are never intimidating and are always packed with flavor . . . they are guilt-free even when they taste like a guilty pleasure, and they got me excited to be a better cook.”  — Erin Foster, comedian and amateur home cook, on The Defined Dish

“Innovative, bright, simple, absolutely delicious, and totally doable, there’s not a cookbook I’m more excited about. I can’t wait to try every last dish, especially the Better Than Takeout section—her specialty is easy swaps that transform restaurant dishes into something Whole30 and healthy. Alex teaches us how to find balance and have fun doing it.”  — Teri Turner, creator of nocrumbsleft, on The Defined Dish

Snodgrass puts a modern spin on comfort food in this versatile collection of nourishing dishes that never fall short on flavor. . . . This is perfect for busy home cooks who want to expand their repertoire of healthy recipes. — Publishers Weekly

From the Publisher

Alex’s passion for food shines through in everything she does, and this book is no exception! It’s packed to the brim with unfussy recipes to nourish your family, your friends, and most important, yourself.

Gaby Dalkin

The Comfortable Kitchen is your new go-to for healthy eating inspiration, with meals full of warm flavors, simply delicious ingredient combinations, and wholesome treats.

Melissa Urban

Alex and The Defined Dish are my go-to for delicious recipes that are as enjoyable to make as to eat! She approaches both food and life with a playful soulfulness that nourishes my family and my heart.” 

Brené Brown

I discovered Alex’s cooking when I was attempting to survive a Whole30 and was at a loss. Alex’s recipes are never intimidating and are always packed with flavor . . . they are guilt-free even when they taste like a guilty pleasure, and they got me excited to be a better cook.” 

Erin Foster

Innovative, bright, simple, absolutely delicious, and totally doable, there’s not a cookbook I’m more excited about. I can’t wait to try every last dish, especially the Better Than Takeout section—her specialty is easy swaps that transform restaurant dishes into something Whole30 and healthy. Alex teaches us how to find balance and have fun doing it.” 

Teri Turner

Alex has done it again—this book is loaded with mouthwatering recipes with a modern American twang. These approachable dishes are quick to whip up even on the busiest of days. This stunning cookbook is a kitchen staple that you’ll be reaching for again and again!

Dzung Lewis

Infused with grace, charm, and encouragement to cook what you love, involve the whole family, and create your own version of ‘balance,’ The Defined Dish—and Alex—will quickly become as beloved in your family as they are in mine.

From the Foreword of The Defined Dish by Melissa Urban

Alex and The Defined Dish are my go-to for delicious recipes that are as enjoyable to make as to eat! She approaches both food and life with a playful soulfulness that nourishes my family and my heart.” 

Brené Brown

Infused with grace, charm, and encouragement to cook what you love, involve the whole family, and create your own version of ‘balance,’ The Defined Dish—and Alex—will quickly become as beloved in your family as they are in mine.

From the Foreword by Melissa Urban

12/01/2021

Snodgrass presents a second cookbook (after the best-selling The Defined Dish) packed with sumptuous photographs and options for different diets. Snodgrass's recipes include gluten-free, dairy-free, Paleo, Whole30, grain-free, and vegetarian options; a recipe's particular dietary adherences are listed in the upper corner of each page, near the recipe title. A number of dishes receive all six labels, though many recipes include an "if modified" note, and all of the dishes already include extensive modifications/variations. The labeling system falls apart somewhat in the pasta section, where most recipes only include "gluten-free (if modified)," and the system is abandoned completely in the section of cocktail recipes. Recipes, which are standard American fare, are long, particularly with lists of ingredient substitutions, but the end results will be worth it to Paleo and Whole30 adherents as well as those with strict dietary requirements or food allergies. VERDICT This is a cookbook for confident cooks and those already familiar with various diets, as no tenets or health benefits are explained. Purchase where there is interest.—Catherine Field, Appomattox Regional Lib. Sys. Richmond, VA

Library Journal