Cookbook Project: Great recipes with not-so-great photos

This batch of cookbooks has some of my favorite things I’ve made in this whole project. However, I pretty much forgot to take photos for all three of these (delicious!) recipes.

#1. Indian-ish

I got this cookbook from the library initially, but after flipping through it and bookmarking pretty much every other recipe, I figured I needed my own copy!

I wanted to make “Priya’s Dal” because 1. I pretty much love all dal and 2. the headnote for the recipe talks about how it’s the best dal. After making it, I think I agree. I made this in our Instant Pot which made it incredibly easy. Bottom line: I will be making this again. Probably very soon.

I remembered to take a photo while heating up cumin seeds in oil, but the process goes so quickly after that step that I barely had a chance to grab my phone!

At least I remembered a couple of glamour shots at the end!

#2. Soup & Bread Cookbook

I’ve had this book for a long time and I have made a lot of the vegetarian recipes from it. But there’s a roasted parsnip and celery root recipe that I had never tried before.

This recipe was also a hit! It feels surprisingly light and perfect for spring even with all of the roasted veggies.

So hearty!

#3. The New Way to Cake

This is another cookbook that I initially checked out from the library and then realized that there were so many recipes I wanted to make from it that I should buy a copy.

I started out with the Golden Turmeric Cake, which is amazing. It’s more savory than sweet and is such a bright, cheery yellow. The recipe recommends using one of two specialty pans that I don’t own, but I am considering buying one because I know I’ll be making this again.

The cake doesn’t look great, mostly due to my pan substitution and messing up on the order of operations. Both issues that I plan to fix in the future!

I made the genius move of making this cake first thing in the morning. Since it’s not overly sweet, it made for a perfect breakfast!