how easy is that?

Ina Garten is back with a new cookbook, which is always a reason for celebration. Anyone who knows of her work as The Barfoot Contessa or as just Ina Garten know that she is all about using the best ingredients you can afford and using simple techniques to bring out the most flavor. She wants cooks to enjoy their time in the kitchen, so there is no shame in using store-bought shortcuts. Garten just wants us to make delicious meals for those we love, whether it’s a family dinner or a weekend dinner party, she brings the flavor like no other chef.

Go-To Dinners is one of those projects that grew out of the pandemic, so while a lot of Garten’s cookbooks are for gatherings, this is one that focuses more on eating at home. She took some of her favorite recipes and found ways to make them simpler, with components that could be made ahead and assembled at the last minute or frozen for a day you need a break. And some of these recipes are Two-Fers, ones where you can take the leftovers and create a different dish the next night.

It’s not that there aren’t recipes in here for gatherings—in fact, Garten took the trend of using boards for more than just cheese and created several ideas for family or friends. It’s like these recipes are for more relaxed gatherings, so you can work less and focus on spending the time with your loved ones. If you’ve ever felt intimidated by Garten’s cooking, by her Long Island, fancy dinner party lifestyle, then this is the cookbook you need to take a closer look at. She is more relatable than ever.

She starts with a chapter on drinks and appetizers, so you can see how to make a Bourbon Arnold Palmers, Watermelon Cosmopolitans, or Hot Spiced Mulled Wine along with some Smoked Salmon Quesadillas, Creamy Hummus, or an Antipasto Board. But then she gets right into the comfort of breakfast for dinner with dishes like Scrambled Eggs Cacio e Pepe, Avocado & Fried Egg Tartines, Overnight Irish Oatmeal, or Blueberry Ricotta Breakfast Cake. If you like a sweet breakfast, you can try the English Cream Scones with her Fresh Strawberry Rhubarb Preserves, or you can put some fruit, granola, ham, jammy eggs, croissants, and anything else you like for a Breakfast-for-Dinner Board.

Then it’s on to Light Dinners, with recipes like Ravioli en Brodo, Chicken Ramen Noodle Soup, Tuscan White Bean Soup, Hot Dogs in Puff Pastry, Warm Vegetable & Grain Bowl, Roasted Shrimp Panzanella, or a Potato Salad a la Julia Child. But for those nights you need more energy for a big day coming up or you have some friends over, there are Garten’s Family Dinners. There is Creamy Chicken Thighs with Lemon & Thyme, Rosemary Roasted Pork Tenderloins, Veal Meatballs, Hasselback Kielbasa, Grilled Porterhouse Steak with Rosemary & Fennel, Salmon Teriyaki & Broccolini, or Weeknight Spaghettoni with Tomatoes & Pancetta.

Then she finishes with chapters on Vegetables & Sides and Desserts. And while these are great chapters for any time of the year, they seem particularly helpful at this time of year, when there we all get invited to meals and parties and need a dish to take a long, What’s better than showing up with some Honey-Roasted Delicata Squash, Molasses Baked Beans, Parmesan Polenta, Slow-Roasted Tomatoes with Fennel, or Asparagus Cacio e Pepe? Or if you want to win with a sweet treat, you could try the Panettone Bread Pudding, Dark Chocolate Tart, Lemon Meringue Squares, Beatty’s Chocolate Cupcakes, or a Bourbon Chocolate Pecan Pie.

But if you really want to win the holidays, then you will bring the Overnight Mac & Cheese. I tried this one, and it’s incredibly easy and unbelievably good. These are the basics: you get a couple of really good cheeses and grate them. You cook the noodles, but only for about 4 minutes. As the noodles are cooking, you combine cream, the seasonings, and some of the cheese. When your noodles are ready, drain them and add them to the cream and cheese. You let the heat of the noodles warm the sauce, and then cover it and refrigerate overnight. The next day, you pull it out of the fridge and let it come to room temperature, then stir it well and pour it into a baking dish. Cover it with the rest of the shredded cheese and buttered bread crumbs and bake. That’s it. That is all the work that it takes, and you have an incredibly delicious mac and cheese that you can share with friends and family. And that’s just one of the recipes in this collection.

I have been a fan of Ina Garten for a long time, but I don’t always feel like I can cook her foods. The recipes in Go-To Dinners are my kind of food though. They ae comforting but elevated, uncomplicated but sophisticated. As I become a better cook, Garten becomes more accessible, and this is the book where we meet in the middle. I have a lot more of these recipes that I need to try, and I have a few months of winter coming up where I will want to stay in and eat hearty, warming meals, so I will be digging into Go-To Dinners for inspiration and flavor, and I can’t wait.

I’ve received a free copy of Go-To Dinners from Clarkson Potter in exchange for a free and unbiased review, with many thanks.