You have zucchini, I have ways to use it

And my book is six weeks away!!! AHHHHH

First, a little bit of housekeeping:

You can get the pre-order bonus PDF for my book here! It is filled with an exclusive bonus recipe + dinner party menus from my book! Once the pre-orders are done, so is this PDF. Claim it here.

I’ll be cooking on LIVE next week! For the first time ever?? I have fears. We can chat in real time, answer questions, and cook together! Link to get reminded is here. TUESDAY AT 7PM EASTERN! No tickets required.

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Now hello! Good morning. How is your weekend going? I know we are only ten hours into your weekend and you probably spent eight of those hours sleeping, but I still care. I hope it was a good sleep.

And (drumroll please) WE ARE NOW SIX WEEKS AWAY FROM MY COOKBOOK!! I cannot contain my excitement. It’s daily tears around here (good crying!)… but that’s also because I just cry a lot.

I’ve been cooking up a storm, but also planning up a storm for everything that is about to happen in the next few months. You only have your firstborn once, so I’m pulling out all the stops. We will announce book tour next week (so stay tuned for updates here!), and then they’ll be a flurry of bonuses and perks to follow. I’m looking at one giant *bonus* sitting in a box in my office right now. And that’s all you’ll hear about that for now ;)

Thank you for pre-ordering, it means more than you know. And if you want to join thousands of happy customers, you can pre-order here.

But no book exists in a vacuum, and because I’m a FIRM believer that good energy begets good energy, here are a few other cookbooks I’ve been in LOVE with this fall season!

Somehow, somewhere, a book publicist found out I share a lot of cookbooks. My address has been leaked among the sneaky PR teams, and I get sent at least 3-4 cookbooks a week. I’m a book critic now. My cups overfloweth.

But the beauty of that is I can use my VERY DISCERNING TASTE to tell my fellow cookbook lovers what books I think are worth it this season. Of the books I’ve seen so far (caveat: books that are already published!), these are my favorites:

• Dac Biet: An Extra-Special Vietnamese Cookbook by Nini Nguyen - I love when I can dip into a book and see how much time and care went into the whole thing, not just the recipes. Not only is this book cool, it reads like a magazine, and every recipe is something I want to learn more about.

• What to Cook When You Don’t Feel Like Cooking by Caroline Chambers - She’s just spent a casual month (MONTH!) on the NYT bestseller list for this. Which I think emphasizes just how good this book is. This is for when you are looking at your pantry with zero ideas. Think of her book as what to do when you cannot fathom cooking, and my book as the book for when you feel like you need to whip out the sauté pan ASAP.

• Zoë Bakes: Cookies by Zoë Francios - I think it is hard for a legacy author to make a huge splash with every book. But Zoë does it every time. I flipped through this book on my couch before bed this week and earmarked maybe a dozen things. And I’m picky!

• Salty, Cheesy, Herby, Crispy Snackable Bakes By Jessie Sheehan - I forgive Jessie for this long-a$$ title because I love Jessie. ADORE HER. When Zoë gives us sweet, Jessie gives us savory. And the crackers in this book are goooooood.

Notice how there are no men on this list. It’s not because I don’t like men! I’ve just yet to be impressed. Work harder, boys.

Now, the weekly round-up!

Three new recipes this week, and I’ve thrown in a few zucchini favorites, just to keep our list from feeling sparse, you know? PS: Buy some zucchini! It’s the cheapest it’ll ever be right now.

Basil Tahini Chickpea & Farro Bowl - with strands of sweet zucchini! This bowl takes 30 minutes, tops. 20 if you’re quick. Plus, it’s just so pretty.

Butternut Squash Pizza with Crispy Sage & Hot Honey - so yes, making your own pizza dough seems like an undertaking, but this dough recipe only needs one hour, and then you’re done! I’m remaking this into a tart soon, because I need to have these flavors in my life again ASAP.

And a Spoon Salad! The latest in my YouTube series. And, between us, long-form content has brought me so much joy. It honestly feels like the next logical step for my brand, and they are by far my favorite videos to film. I’m so glad you’ve been liking them. You can stream the whole thing here.

Zucchini rapid-fire

Just ideas!

Zucchini Muffins with Cinnamon Chocolate

Lemon Zucchini Farro Bowl - which shockingly went viral when I posted it last year

Zucchini Risotto

And of course…Sticky Oaty Zucchini Cookies

Phew! Now time to truly begin the weekend. I have a friend staying with us so I’m off to give her a tour of our truly chaotic farmers’ market (you either go at 8am or you risk 9:30am crowds…the drama). See you next week, and I hope one of these recipes makes your table before then!

Xoxo,

Book Critic_Snacks