OK, does anyone know of a cookbook for an extremely inexperienced chef? I have very, very simple tates and just prefer dishes with as few ingredients as possible. I just need some simple meal and snack ideas. I know there are recipes all over the web, but I need a bound book. All the cyber recipes just get all jumbled. There are too many out there. I just bought 500 Low Carb Recipes, but even that seems a little too complicated for me. There are just too many spices and ingredients. I don't even know where to begin.

I agree with you, but it usually not just low carb cookbooks that have complicated recipes they all seem to.

I usually just try and use my imagination. If I cook some fish, add some salsa and/or sour cream on top. Same with chicken.

Here's a good one, if you have a rice pot
cut up some cabbage (1/2 to whole)
add rotel tomatoes
cooked ground meat
cut up sausage
about 1/3 cup of water

And let it cook, I usually dislike cabbage, but this is wonderful even my kids love it.

I'm totally with you there! I've never been much of a cook, and all those different ingredients just make me want to eat out! But, I've been experimenting with different ideas with what I have in the kitchen and have been doing well so far. My friend gave me some ideas that really helped me.

Mix soy sauce, splenda, and water and pour over your meat right before you take it off the stove for a easy teriyaki sauce.

Sometimes I pour some heavy cream and parmesan cheese, salt & pepper to taste for a little change of pace.

Mix salsa & sour cream for a little Mexican flavor.

Whisk olive oil and lemon juice, salt & pepper to taste, works on veggies, pork, and fish.

Mix mayo & mustard, works as a dip or for seafood.

I just told my daughter to see if there are any low carb cookbooks at the library.
You might want to check out your local library.

If you like simple meals you shouldn't really need recipes. Roast a chicken with some herbs. Cook a roast of beef in a a crockpot with some herbs. Saute fish filets in butter with lemon. Saute a sirloin steak in butter to brown it. Use a little dash of steak sauce on it while its cooking to spice it up. Some basic spices help: garlic powder, liquid smoke, paprika, ginger, thyme, basil, etc.

For vegetables, slice them, and saute them in a nonstick saucepan, in butter with a little oil. If you wish, add a small amount of heavy cream at the end and let it clot and absorb. You can sometimes add a little parmesan cheese to vegetables too.

I think I eat simply overall too, and those are the types of recipes I use. I just use a little imagination to vary the flavors and textures.

Good Luck!

I've had GREAT luck with 2 spiral-bound cookbooks. I have no commercial interest in them whatsoever, I just have really liked these:

Cooking TLC, Truly Low Carb Cooking, Vol. 1, by Karen Rysavy. I think it's available for cheap on Amazon.com or at www.trulylowcarb.com

this is an excellent, practical, cook-for-the-family oriented book on lots of simple recipes, from great dressings, main dishes, breads, and desserts. It's easy, fast, and generally uses ingredients I have around the house.
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A second excellent book is Easy Living Low-Carb Cooking, by Theresa Sloan and Tracy Westbrook. It's available from www.carbsmart.com and has outstanding, fast, practical and delicious recipes. It is comb-bound and is pretty cheap, too.

I have some other recipe books (CAD cookbook, Schwarzbein cookbook, Ultimate Low Carb Diet Cookbook) and these are also good, but for no-nonsense working-mom meals, I almost always reach for Cooking TLC or Easy Living Low-Carb Cooking.

Thanks for the replies, guys! Any other really really simple cooking ideas? I got out my cookbook to make wings tonight, but instead just ended up throwing on just about every seasoning I had, baking, then adding hot sauce. I thinking of taking the book back.

You can make lots of good breakfast,lunch ,dinner or snacks using eggs! Saute some veggies in olive oil or butter, add eggs, season , add cheese if you like. You can buy ready made sausages and add these at times.
For every food I bet you can mix eggs in!

Now, one day I will try to work the oven....

For folks who aren't used to spending hours every day thinking of new ideas for dinner ( ) the sight of a full spice rack can intimidate.

I have an entire three-shelf cupboard full of spices and herbs, yet I really only use a small handful of them on a very regular basis. You can do a lot with salt, pepper, parsley, and garlic. I would say that those are necessary, at a minimum.

Once you gain some comfort with "spicing up" your creations, branch out a bit. Oregano, basil and dill are terrific flavor enhancers for eggs and veggie dishes. Lemon pepper perks up a steak or roast beef quite a lot. Dried savory is terrific on eggs, a couple good pinches in your omelette will astonish you. Paprika and cayenne for those times when bland just won't do.

Above all, don't be afraid to experiment! The worst that can happen? One meal doesn't work out. Happens to all of us, one time or another. That's when you decide "OK, scrambled eggs for dinner!"

When it does work out; when you've rolled up your sleeves and fired your imagination, and are rewarded with empty plates and full tummies, then you'll find out why so many folks love discovering cooking. I'm teaching my kids to cook, and watching their faces come alive when they turn out the sauce for dinner, or just being able to help when I ask "can you make the salad for dinner?" is so much fun.

Don't be afraid of longer recipes. Start with smaller ones. There are a lot of good contributions right here on this board. And don't be afraid to ask! Each and every idea in the recipe threads was put there by someone like you, another forum user who wanted to share.

Above all, enjoy! If we make this WOE fun and tasty, it's not a "diet" that we'll one day retreat from, but a real lifestyle change that'll stick. Have fun with it!

Atkins' Quick & Easy Cookbook is pretty good for your purpose.

Also, why not just put your "cyber" recipes in a 3-ring binder with divided tabs (a recipe box in a binder)? That way they will be nicely organized.

Wanda