Cooking in Real Life

USA TODAY Bestseller
One of Amazon's Best Books of the Year
A Best Cookbook of the Year: Food Network, Food & Wine, Real Simple, Epicurious, Eater, and AOL
A New York Magazine Best Cookbook to Gift
A Tasting Table Best New Cookbook for Beginners
"Lidey subscribes to the same theory of home cooking that I do. We all want recipes that have ingredients you can buy in almost any grocery store, recipes that are easy enough to make without breaking a sweat that will be delicious and satisfying for either an ordinary weekday dinner or for a special occasion." —Ina Garten, from the Foreword

"What you'll find in these pages are recipes that use ingredients that you're going to be able to find at the local grocery store—or ones that you might have already—along with some seriously delicious meals that have none of the pretentiousness that might make picky eaters in your family turn up their noses." —Tasting Table

"Heuck applies...joy and rigor to the comforting, fuss-free recipes in the aptly named Cooking in Real Life." —Food Network
"Every once in a while, a cookbook comes along that does it all, from simple to sophisticated, weeknight to showstopper, and, with tons of kitchen inspiration too, this is that cookbook." - Booklist, Starred review

"The kind of recipes that will instantly become classics in your kitchen — they're delicious yet approachable, familiar but with a twist, comforting but celebration-worthy."
— Food & Wine

From the rising star who learned to cook when she worked for Ina Garten, 100 recipes that are cook-pleasing and crowd-pleasing and written with the shopper, chopper, and dish-doer in mind.

Lidey Heuck landed the most plum after-college job—working for Ina Garten in her East Hampton kitchen. There, she learned how to develop recipes that work every time and how to put together dishes that are at once special and unfussy.

Cooking in Real Life represents the golden middle ground that new and experienced home cooks crave: recipes that are inventive but not overly complicated, that use familiar ingredients but encourage us to do things a little bit differently. They are designed to be low-effort, practical, and high-reward. Lidey combines straight-forward delicious cooking with innovative, vegetable-forward recipes, inspired by bold flavors from near and far. Chapters and recipes include the following:

Busy, fuss-free weeknights: Salmon with Honey and Chili Crunch, Cider-Glazed Sausages with Apples and Fennel, Saucy Shrimp alla Vodka. Plus, dozens of ideas for turning single recipes into one complete meal (Think: adding some sauteed shrimp to Shaved Carrot Salad with Ginger Tahini Dressing).

Flexible, seasonally-inspired recipes with easy-to-find ingredients: Maple-Roasted Squash with Grapes and Shallots, Escarole with Cara Cara Oranges, Spicy Paloma Punch.

Celebratory dishes for occasions that call for something extra special: Short Ribs with Port, Shallots, and Cranberries; Champagne Chicken; and Rainbow Sprinkle Ice Cream Cake.

Throughout, Lidey includes swaps, make-ahead hacks, and tips for making leftovers into something new. Cooking in Real Life meets you where you are—whether you're here for the practical tips or the endless possibilities.

Lidey Heuck is a host of In the Test Kitchen on Netflix. She is an editor-in-residence at America's Test Kitchen and a recipe contributor to The New York Times Cooking. Lidey is the creator of LideyLikes on Substack, and her work has been featured in Food & Wine, Food Network Magazine, Real Simple, Food52 and People. She lives in New York's Hudson Valley.