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3.2 AVERAGE
3.2 AVERAGE
The author was definitely a little too in love with her project. Most of the book was decent, but some parts were definitely all about her and the "sacrifices" that she had to make to eat in.
Let me start by saying I am not a huge non-fiction book reader. Which is why this book took almost a year for me to finish. The idea was intriguing and that is why I kept with it even though I don't like nonfiction. I think the main thing was at the time that I bought the book I was living in NYC and I was in need of saving money. This book was good but I don't know if I would want to read it again.
Foodies and fans of Cathy Erway’s Not Eating Out in New York blog will enjoy this companion book to her not eating out efforts that began in 2006. At 26, Erway, like so many of us, realized that her income could not support her eating out habits. Instead, she would use her love of food and cooking to prepare inventive and usually cost-efficient meals in her own kitchen. For two years, she followed a strict regimen of not eating out and discovered some interesting things about herself and New York food movements, blogging about it all the while. The Art of Eating In is a sort of behind the scenes look at those two years; a foodie memoir and a look at the New York food scene from another perspective. Erway’s story makes for some pretty entertaining and inspiring reading—you’d be hard-pressed not to want to try No Knead Bread or some of the other dishes she talks about in her book. I won’t be embracing all of Erway’s experiments in food, menudo as a hangover cure and the more out there underground food movements being a few, but I enjoyed reading about her forays into the various ins and outs of not eating out in the big city.
I wish it was good. It suffered from giving too much detail and then not enough. She treated us to word for word dialogue when it wasn't needed and overly flowery prose but then didn't give us much detail about her relationship, every day cooking or any real insight.
Lots of food for thought on the culture of eating out versus cooking at home, peppered with lots of the author's experiments, daily life, and yummy-sounding recipes. I'll be copying a few recipes and thinking about this one for a while.
An interesting book reflecting on the author's experiment of resisting eating out in restaurants in New York during a two year period. I liked that the book provided a good mix of food history,background on the author's life and recipes that she created during her process.
I'm about halfway through, I think, and am not liking this too much so far. It's kind of a skimmer. Could have been a lot shorter. For instance, did the chapter about how much waste there is with takeout food have to be so long?
Also, I guess I was hoping for some more easy cooking at home tips and recipes (quick and easy kind of stuff), but the author is kind of an obsessed foodie and, at least this far in the book, is spending most of her off-work time on the project (eating all meals at home and writing about it). She does mention a few things she whips together quickly, but only in passing.
That said, there are a few recipes in here I'd like to try.
Update: Yeah, it was just ok. Skimmed a few chapters. Odd that its subtitle is "How I Learned to Stop Spending" when the author goes to expensive eating clubs and travels to Morocco.
Also, I guess I was hoping for some more easy cooking at home tips and recipes (quick and easy kind of stuff), but the author is kind of an obsessed foodie and, at least this far in the book, is spending most of her off-work time on the project (eating all meals at home and writing about it). She does mention a few things she whips together quickly, but only in passing.
That said, there are a few recipes in here I'd like to try.
Update: Yeah, it was just ok. Skimmed a few chapters. Odd that its subtitle is "How I Learned to Stop Spending" when the author goes to expensive eating clubs and travels to Morocco.
Operation prepare for the baby/learn to self motivate has had some competition from operation hotter than hell outside/TV calling. Some days I self motivate, some days I watch TV.
But after taking back all of the labor books to the library I happened upon this book in the new books section. Bringing new books home to read from the library is strictly prohibited right now. We need books going OUT.
But one thing I have wanted to work on is eating at home more, especially since I am not working. It is a good way to save money and I am a decent cook (queue comment from Brent.) As a child, we only went out to eat for special occasions. But somewhere along the line, eating out became something that was just a normal part of my life. Even when I am bored with the food options, I often don't get my act together to bring my lunch to work.
The author spent two years not eating out in New York city. In fact that is what her blog is called: Not Eating Out in New York.
I can imagine her blog and book could readily be compared to the blog that inspired Julie and Julia. But her book is better that that book. By far!
Erway chronicles all the different experiences she has while eating at home. She learns how to cook new things, although the title is a bit mis-leading, because she is already a great cook when she started the experiment. She hangs out with friends at home, she goes on picnics, she goes to food cook-offs.
Unfortunately, we don't have similar palates, so many of her recipes I would not try, but she has inspired me to be more creative with my cooking. And her blog is great too.
But after taking back all of the labor books to the library I happened upon this book in the new books section. Bringing new books home to read from the library is strictly prohibited right now. We need books going OUT.
But one thing I have wanted to work on is eating at home more, especially since I am not working. It is a good way to save money and I am a decent cook (queue comment from Brent.) As a child, we only went out to eat for special occasions. But somewhere along the line, eating out became something that was just a normal part of my life. Even when I am bored with the food options, I often don't get my act together to bring my lunch to work.
The author spent two years not eating out in New York city. In fact that is what her blog is called: Not Eating Out in New York.
I can imagine her blog and book could readily be compared to the blog that inspired Julie and Julia. But her book is better that that book. By far!
Erway chronicles all the different experiences she has while eating at home. She learns how to cook new things, although the title is a bit mis-leading, because she is already a great cook when she started the experiment. She hangs out with friends at home, she goes on picnics, she goes to food cook-offs.
Unfortunately, we don't have similar palates, so many of her recipes I would not try, but she has inspired me to be more creative with my cooking. And her blog is great too.
I read this whole book, but I'm not sure why. It was VERY SERIOUS in tone, not as fun as I'd liked to have been -- and even though the author says that her 2 years of not eating out in NY were 2 of the best years she's ever had, I have a hard time believing her. I don't know why. While closing herself off from some experiences, she opened herself to others. I admire that. I admire that she learned more about cooking, started entering cookoffs and going to secret superclubs. So, meh. I haven't read her blog before reading this book, and I probably won't start now. But it was an interesting experiment. And maybe a little inspiring. But still...there's something I just didn't like about the book and I can't quite put my finger on it.
I never did read her blog, the book was my first introduction. I enjoyed her writing style (not too personal/confessional) and appreciate what she was trying to do by bringing more cooking into her life. I was interested in her learning curve, the recipes, some of the new social discoveries along the way.
For the last three or four chapters, there was a style change, and I began to wonder (so, I believe, did the author) where she was going with it. It's not the sort of book with a definite end, but she started drifting and putting in filler and fluff.
For the last three or four chapters, there was a style change, and I began to wonder (so, I believe, did the author) where she was going with it. It's not the sort of book with a definite end, but she started drifting and putting in filler and fluff.