Chapter One begins with the newly single parent, giving suggestions on weathering the first steps of the transition, with an emphasis on the traumas of dividing up property and figuring out what to keep in a suddenly smaller kitchen; how to economize on purchases, including using coupons, avoiding expensive and unhealthy junk food, and making the kids still feel loved at meal times.
Chapter Two tackles a tough subject for some children: vegetables. More ideas about saving money on food purchases, mainly by avoiding wastage (frozen vs. fresh); also, making the veggies taste good and look interesting to the kids.
Chapter Three is titled "Everything You [N]Ever Wanted to Know About Pasta," which contains all the author's wit and wisdom about cooking macaroni and pasta in ways that children will not get bored with it; includes substituting rice for variety or food sensitivities.
Chapter Four talks about how to use eggs, especially at times when there is nothing else in the house worth eating. The emphasis is on omelets, which can be stuffed with everything from vegetables to leftover meats or casseroles, and scrambled eggs that no one will complain about for dinner.
Chapter Five is all about chicken, which is often the only fresh meat that a struggling family ever eats. The chapter details both how to cook chicken from scratch and how to use leftovers in ways that will please the children and nurture their bodies as well, including cooking extra chicken ahead of time and using it as sandwich meat or protein for salads.
Chapter Six is a peon to the versatility of hamburger meat (into which can be hidden vegetables), in everything from stews like chili con carne all the way to basic meatloaf. Included is a fun meal of kid-friendly tacos, good for times when the single parent has to host a party or other gathering.
Chapter Seven: Salad as a Meal
Whole Dinner Salad
Chapter Eight details the joys of potatoes, from basic baked to boiled, and even a few more exotic dishes from the British Isles.
Chapter Nine eases the nervous novice cook's mind about roasting meats, with very simple methods for roasting the occasional pork roast or pot roast.
Chapter Ten is more about snacking and lunches, because it deals with sandwiches for all occasions. Helps the parent to keep the child from being bored with the same old sandwiches by providing many creative but simple variations on the basics.
Chapter Eleven is what we've all been dreaming of, desserts. Many of these recipes are sneaky ways to get your child to eat fruit, by blending it into pudding , vanilla yogurt, or even ice cream.
Chapter Eleven contains some stories behind a few of the recipes, sort of slices of the life of the author.
Appendix "A" contains cooking terms and notes on kitchen stuff, things which may not be obvious to the inexperienced cook (or the suddenly single dad).
Appendix "B" is all about microwaves, demystifying the basic means of cooking food with these appliances, without ruining the food.
The last section of the book is the Bibliography and Recommended Reading, where I highly praise and thank all my "teachers" who helped the author learn to cook by her bootstraps.
Witty Blurb:
"This book has everything AND the kitchen sink." (Gee, I hope someone says that besides me!)
Chapter One: When Disaster Strikes – Helps for the Newly Single Parent
Appliances; Storage Containers; Shopping; Coupons; Finicky Kids; Pre-processed Junk vs. Healthy Snacks; Baby Food Bargains; Get the Kids Involved; Making it Taste Great; Substitutions; Disposables; Celebrate
Chapter Two: Veggies – Fresh vs. Frozen
Hot Vegetable Salad; Italian Veggies; Spinach and Basil Leaves; Creamed Cabbage
Chapter Three: Everything You [N]Ever Wanted to Know About Pasta
Pasta with Veggies and Cheese; My Favorite Meatballs and Sauce (Variation: Sausage); Mac-and-Cheese for a Meal; Endless Potential Ramen; Egg Drop Ramen Soup; Stir-Fried Veggies and Rice; Pasta Party Feast; My Favorite Tuna Salad
Chapter Four: Eggs Anytime
Basic Spanish Omelet; Cheese Omelet; Scrambled Eggs for Dinner (Variation: Pseudo-Frittata)
Chapter Five: Chicken – The Only Fresh Meat?
Basic Oven Roasted Chicken; Bottled Sauces: Teriyaki, Oriental-Style Peanut Sauce, Honey-Mustard-Garlic Sauce, Orange-Ginger or Lemon-Ginger Chicken, Tomato-Basil Chicken, Rosemary Chicken, Mango Chicken; Chicken or Turkey Salad (Variation: Oriental Salad); Hunk of Chicken (or Turkey) Sandwich; Just Plain Salad with Chicken or Turkey
Chapter Six: Hamburger Help
Basic Hamburgers; Stuffed Bell Peppers; Chili con Carne; Basic Meatloaf; Meatballs and Pasta (see PASTA chapter); Sloppy Joes; Basic Stew; Taco Party Feast
Chapter Seven: Salad as a Meal
Whole Dinner Salad
Chapter Eight: Hot Potatoes
Basic Microwave-Baked Potatoes; Basic Oven-Baked Potatoes; Boiled Potatoes; Colcannon; Clapshot; Sweet Potatoes and Peas
Chapter Nine: Roasting is Not Just for Marshmallows
Basic Pot Roast or Pork Roast
Chapter Ten: Sandwiches for All Occasions
Basic ham and cheese; Cold cuts; meatball sandwiches; sloppy joes; peanut butter and jelly variations; hoagie feast
Chapter Eleven: Desserts for the Deserving
popcorn cake; Rice Krispies treats; easy pudding pie; fruit bettys; fruit topping for pound cake; fruit in general; homemade popsicles; my slant on the famous Tollhouse recipe
Chapter Eleven: Some Sweet Stories Behind the Recipes
Chili con Carne; Mango Chicken; Looking Gift Cookies in the Mouth; Healing Chicken Soup and a Poem
Appendix “A”: Cooking Terms and Notes on Kitchen Stuff
Appendix “B”: About Microwaves
Bibliography and Recommended Reading
Reviews
Cheryl Wright...
If you’re a single parent, and even if you’re not, “Guerilla Tactics” will guide you toward ways to save not only money, but time and effort as well.
From baby to adult and everything in-between, Lillian Owl will show you what to do when you find yourself suddenly single with kids to bring up. You’ll learn how to avoid overly processed foods (which add up to $$$’s), advice with selecting appliances, how to cope with finicky kids and much, much more.
If you cringe at the price of packaged baby food, help is at hand. Or maybe you think cheap cooking equals bland food? Think again!
This book includes tons of recipes to fill your family’s bellies without breaking your budget, ways to turn leftovers into kid’s snacks, tricks with pasta, vegetable ideas, treats, and a beautiful, heart wrenching poem, along with a tale of tragedy, love, and friendship.
This heartwarming, soul-bearing and recipe-filled book is available at a surprisingly low price from SynergEbooks.
http://www.catalog.synergebooks.com/customer/product.php?productid=17471cat=&page=1
If only Lil’s cookbook at been around when my finicky brood were littlies...
About the Author
Lillian Owl has a B.A. in English, and is deeply immersed in many creative writing projects. She was a single mom for 14 years, and still lives quite frugally in a very small apartment with her soulmate on Miami Beach. A Single Parent's "Guerilla Tactics" is her first cookbook.
A Single Parent's "Guerilla Tactics" Cookbook
by Lillian Owl
