The Pioneer Woman Cooks: Recipes from an Accidental Country Girl by Ree Drummond

From the Publisher

My name is Ree.

Some folks know me as The Pioneer Woman.

After years of living in Los Angeles, I made a pit stop in my hometown in Oklahoma on the way to a new, exciting life in Chicago. It was during my stay at home that I met Marlboro Man, a mysterious cowboy with steely blue eyes and a muscular, work-honed body. A strict vegetarian, I fell hard and fast, and before I knew it we were married and living on his ranch in the middle of nowhere, taking care of animals, and managing a brood of four young children. I had no idea how I'd wound up there, but I knew it was exactly where I belonged.

The Pioneer Woman Cooks is a homespun collection of photography, rural stories, and scrumptious recipes that have defined my experience in the country. I share many of the delicious cowboy-tested recipes I've learned to make during my years as an accidental ranch wife—including Rib-Eye Steak with Whiskey Cream Sauce, Lasagna, Fried Chicken, Patsy's Blackberry Cobbler, and Cinnamon Rolls—not to mention several "cowgirl-friendly" dishes, such as Sherried Tomato Soup, Olive Cheese Bread, and CrÈme BrÛlÉe. I show my recipes in full color, step-by-step detail, so it's as easy as pie to follow along.

You'll also find colorful images of rural life: cows, horses, country kids, and plenty of chaps-wearing cowboys.

I hope you get a kick out of this book of mine. I hope it makes you smile. I hope the recipes bring you recognition, accolades, and marriage proposals. And I hope it encourages even the most harried urban cook to slow down, relish the joys of family, nature, and great food, and enjoylife.

Publishers Weekly

Blogger-turned-author Drummond gives readers a slice of frontier life in this likeable-enough collection of recipes and dispatches from the Oklahoma ranch she shares with her husband and children. Replicating the step-by-step photography that made her blog such a hit, Drummond walks readers through dishes ranging from simple-Guacamole, Chili, Artichoke Dip-to more complex, such as from-scratch Cinnamon Rolls and Sherried Tomato Soup. Drummond's careful coaching will help anyone intimidated by the kitchen fearlessly crank out favorites like Chicken Fried Steak, Meat Loaf and Rib Eye Steak with Whiskey Cream Sauce. While the recipes are reliable home cooking standards, relentless references to her husband, known as the Marlboro Man, range from distracting to juvenile, giving what could have been a comfort food classic the feel of a junior-high class project.
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Library Journal

Named one of Time's 25 Best Blogs of 2009, Drummond's thepioneerwoman.com details her life as a rancher's wife. Her cookbook debut features such classics as buttermilk biscuits and macaroni and cheese (with roasted chilies and fresh jalapeños). A warning for the calorie conscious: this grub calls for whole milk, heavy cream, and butter. The easy-to-follow recipes include step-by-step pictures, which accommodate beginning cooks. While this is certainly not the first ranch-style cookbook (see B. Byron Price's National Cowboy Hall of Fame Chuck Wagon Cookbook for more authentic ranch recipes and details on cowboy life), Drummond's blog notoriety and down-home dishes will surely make this book a hot ticket. [Author tour.]

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