I was pretty excited when I saw The I Quit Sugar cookbook at the store.  I wanted to have it because I was curious what it was all about.  But I’m going to be honest…it wasn’t quite what I thought it would be.  Maybe I should have done more research about it or maybe I should have asked friends – I don’t know.
I was not impressed with this cookbook. Â The ideas behind it seem great – the writing and illustrations are really interesting. Â But the recipes themselves leave much to be desired. Â Maybe it’s because I like more simple recipes that use ingredients that I already have/know. Â I am also not a huge fan of cleanses or juicing. Â It seems like such work for a smaller benefit. Â I know I need to try it, but it just doesn’t appeal to me.
Trying to come up with a recipe for the review of this cookbook, I truly struggled.  I just couldn’t find anything that I wanted to make…much less try to eat.  While her photography in the cookbook was really pretty, I just couldn’t find anything that looked like I might want to eat it.  And if I’m having a hard time finding something that I want to cook, I always wonder how Jeremy will react to it.
I did find this slow cooker beer and mash brisket recipe that looked tasty. Â It looked more like stew to me, which was something I had been craving. Â I did realize that the hardest thing is making you buy the right kind of brisket. Â This recipe was supposed to look more like shredded brisket, but mine didn’t come out like that. Â I would probably cook the beef at the bottom of the crockpot, and not on top of the veggies. Â I think this dried it out and didn’t allow me to shred it like I was supposed to.
This recipe also took a while. Â Yes, it’s a slow cooker recipe so you just add all the veggies and meat and cook for 5 hours. Â I loved that part, but I think the extra steps after the meat was cooked took a while. Â And I would probably have added in the meat back into the juices to make it even more flavorful.
I wish the cookbook had more recipes that made me excited to cook, but unfortunately for me, it didn’t quite deliver. Â There are maybe 6 recipes that I want to make from this cookbook of over 306 recipes. Â I know that this cookbook is geared toward people who are looking for more clean eating, and I totally respect that. Â But this just didn’t knock my socks off.
I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review.
Slow Cooker Beer and Mash Brisket
Ingredients
- 1 lb parsnips (or potatoes carrots or sweet potatoes) cut into chunks
- 2 onions chopped
- 2-3 lbs beef brisket
- 1 1/2 Tablespoons Dijon mustard
- sea salt and pepper
- 3 sprigs fresh thyme
- 2 leaves bay
- 1/2 cup beer
- 3 handfuls of string beans trimmed
- 1/4 Tablespoon light butter
Instructions
- Place the parsnips, potatoes or sweet potatoes and the onions in the slow cooker. Coat the brisket with the Dijon mustard and salt and pepper. Place on top of the veggies.
- Add the thyme and bay leaves, and pour the beer over the meat. Cover and cook on high for 5 hours. In the last 15 minutes of cooking, place the beans on top of the meal. Cover again and cook on high until the beans are tender.
- Remove the meat and the steamed beans from the slow cooker and set aside. Using two forks, shred (pull) the brisket. Drain the sauce from the slow cooker and set aside.
- Add the butter to the veggies in the slow cooker with salt and pepper. Use a potato masher to mash the veggies until smooth.
- Serve the meat with the mash and steamed string beans. Drizzle the remaining sauce over the top.
I love brisket too, so I was so disappointed when this didn’t turn out the way I thought it was going to. It didn’t pull apart, and it seemed really dry. I just wasn’t much of a fan of the recipe or the cookbook in general, so that was sad. I hate cooking something and it not turn out the way you thought it would. This definitely wasn’t a winner for me.
I actually love brisket.. first had it in a vietnamese restaurant and it was sooo good! Such a bummer that the cookbook wasn’t great but at least you were honest about it lol! It does sound like a tasty recipe though 🙂
It might look tasty, but it just wasn’t that good. I was so disappointed in this recipe. I wanted to love it, but I hated it.
Looks tasty!
Yes, it does look like it although a lot of ingredients from this recipe weren’t in one of my favorite Filipino dishes. 😀
I tend to just search online when it comes to recipes because most cookbooks require ingredients that I’m not familiar with or hard to find. For someone who’s not a cook by nature, I find it inconvenient and intimidating.
Oh really? That’s so funny. I have no idea what kare-kare is (never heard of it), but it’s awesome if it’s similar.
Not every book – and not every cookbook – is going to be amazing. And this one just wasn’t good enough for me.
Funny this looks like a similar Filipino delicacy that I love—kare-kare, except its sauce is made from crushed peanuts or peanut butter. I actually thought you made the dish I had in mind when I saw the photo!
I’m so sorry this was such a fail. Thanks for sharing your honest thoughts on this one, though! 🙂
I really wanted to love this recipe. But I just couldn’t love it – and I barely ate any of it – because it just wasn’t what I thought it would be. It was SUCH a bummer, but I will move on to a new cookbook. That’s part of the harsh reality of getting books for review. You just never know.
It might look delicious, but I would change how it’s cooked in the slow cooker. It wasn’t what I expected it to be. I’ll try it again eventually!
I love brisket, so I’ll have to check this out. It’s a bummer when something doesn’t live up to our expectations…but I love an honest review.
We really are having a mind meld lately, I made a brisket in the crock pot this weekend! This looks delicious!