I drooled over the recipes, and copied out more than a few (particularly some creative vegetarian or otherwise vegetable-based recipes), but the book does not accomplish its goal: saving me money. First, there are very few tips beyond the obvious - actually, there were very few tips, period. Second, the tips are simply that, not teaching you to truly follow concepts in designing your own meal plan to save money. Third, there is not any explanation for how a recipe saves money, so you must just trust that following his plan will work. Fourth, the cookbook is very context specific and may not translate to savings in other countries (like Canada, or perhaps even those within the British Isles), particularly since it does not explain and give you transferable knowledge/teaching.

Why did the cookbook receive even this high a rating?I drooled over the recipes. I do not understand what people have trouble with the concept of using cooked meat in other recipes (though, so long as you eat all the leftovers, who cares if you eat straight leftovers?) and question how many are not doing so (freakish hold-outs like my Dad, sure, but the average person?). Many of the recipes are similar to ones I already made, e.g. my pork roasts become pulled pork BBQ sandwiches, pork burritos, and pork stir-fry. That said, I copied out a few new ideas and a lot of vegetable recipes (as previously stated).

Beyond that, the cookbook was returned to the library very quickly and I have no intention of buying the book.

EDIT: My family ended up buying me the book, because they noticed a gap in my collection. While I still say it doesn't translate to savings, they still love the recipes - I mean, it's Jamie Oliver! ( )

I drooled over the recipes, and copied out more than a few (particularly some creative vegetarian or otherwise vegetable-based recipes), but the book does not accomplish its goal: saving me money. First, there are very few tips beyond the obvious - actually, there were very few tips, period. Second, the tips are simply that, not teaching you to truly follow concepts in designing your own meal plan to save money. Third, there is not any explanation for how a recipe saves money, so you must just trust that following his plan will work. Fourth, the cookbook is very context specific and may not translate to savings in other countries (like Canada, or perhaps even those within the British Isles), particularly since it does not explain and give you transferable knowledge/teaching.

Why did the cookbook receive even this high a rating?I drooled over the recipes. I do not understand what people have trouble with the concept of using cooked meat in other recipes (though, so long as you eat all the leftovers, who cares if you eat straight leftovers?) and question how many are not doing so (freakish hold-outs like my Dad, sure, but the average person?). Many of the recipes are similar to ones I already made, e.g. my pork roasts become pulled pork BBQ sandwiches, pork burritos, and pork stir-fry. That said, I copied out a few new ideas and a lot of vegetable recipes (as previously stated).

Beyond that, the cookbook was returned to the library very quickly and I have no intention of buying the book.

EDIT: My family ended up buying me the book, because they noticed a gap in my collection. While I still say it doesn't translate to savings, they still love the recipes - I mean, it's Jamie Oliver! ( )