Dinner... Done in One!

(plus a recipe and a cookbook giveaway!)

Oct 19, 2023

Disclosure: I was provided with a copy of “Done in One” for review purposes. I was not asked to write about the book, nor am I being compensated for doing so. All opinions are 100% my own.

October 19th 2023

I’m back with a recipe from Canada’s most trusted cookbook brand and a great giveaway today! That’s right, Best of Bridge: Done in One released into the world last week and it’s got some wonderful recipes for those nights when you think you can’t possibly get dinner on the table/ deal with the cleanup. A whole book of one-pot/ pan recipes? Yes please!

Hold up, I hear some of my non-Canadian readers asking…

What’s “Best of Bridge” and why is it Canada’s most trusted cookbook brand?

Ok, so the cookbook is pretty awesome but before we get to that, the history of the “brand” is fascinating!

According to the website:

In 1975, at a weekend getaway, a group of friends had an idea: since a consistent highlight of their decade-old bridge group was the food they prepared and enjoyed together, perhaps they should think about writing a cookbook.
This spur-of-the-moment notion was the impetus for The Best of Bridge, which went on to become one of the most successful brands in Canadian publishing.

How cool is that? In itself, the idea of a groups of friends collaborating on a cookbook based on recipes they had shared and enjoyed together is wonderful and I know there are friend, family, community and church groups who produce books like this on a (much) smaller scale. But nearly 50 years and millions of copies sold later, the “Best of Bridge” brand is still going strong! Over the years, the authors of the books changed as life intervened and the original “ladies”1 retired allowing “food writers, culinary experts and old family friends” to carry on the legacy” - over 25 BoB cookbooks have been published to this day!

The two most recent authors are Sylvia Kong and Emily Richards (a good friend who has worked countless times with my cooking club in person and online) - they are “thrilled to carry on the tradition and connect Best of Bridge to a whole new generation of home cooks".”

You can read more about The Best of Bridge and its culinary legacy here.

OK, so, about “Done in One”:

I’ve written about this book on my blog already so if you’re a blog reader, some of this info might not be new, but for non-blog readers, here’s the scoop:"

From the publisher:

Generations of home cooks have come to trust Best of Bridge for their family-friendly, easy-to-prepare meals This all-new collection includes 105 recipes perfected for preparing in one pot, pan, sheet pan, skillet or bowl After almost 50 years and 4 million books, who better than Best of Bridge to create the ultimate book of one pot recipes? Best of Bridge recipes are always budget conscious and include ingredients you can find at any grocery store, so you don’t have to break the bank to eat the good food you and your family deserve
We listened to Best of Bridge fans, and now we’ve got more salads and dressings than ever and tons of tips for recipe flavor variations, ingredient substitutions, make ahead planning, freezer-friendly options and easier clean-up Super-fast and filling after-work dinners like Skillet Gnocchi and Shrimp and cheer-worthy crowd-pleasers like Sheet-Pan Beef and Mushroom Fajitas are guaranteed hits We’ve updated some classic Bridge favorites, too, including the Instant Pot Best of Bridge Hamburger Soup and a delectable No-Bake Biscoff Ice Box Cake Best of Bridge Done in One will have you sharing memories and living large all without creating a chaotic mess of a kitchen

As I continue my recovery from brain surgery in May, life is a little slower these days. While I’m doing so much better in terms of managing things like planning meals, I’m still looking for easy and easy-cleanup recipes as I re-enter the real world. What used to be easy (getting dinner on the table a few times a week) now requires extra planning and a bit extra energy but I’m committed to making things work. Which is why I was so excited to receive a review copy of Done in One. Knowing that such recipes come from the trusted names of Emily Richards and Sylvia Kong takes the guesswork out of meal planning – with those names behind the recipes, you just know they will work!

So many people these days are looking for recipes that use minimal equipment and easy-to-find ingredients. For many, knowing that a recipe is easy, the ingredients are easy to source, and that the dish won’t take long or dirty many dishes is the difference between cooking and ordering takeout/ fast food (which is okay once in a while but too often adds up and may not always be the healthiest choice).

In Done in One, Emily and Sylvia share recipes for every meal of the day. Recipes are divided into Breakfast and Brunch, Appetizers, Salads, Soups and Sandwiches, Beef and Veal, Chicken and Turkey, Pork and Lamb, Fish and Seafood, Vegetarian, Sides and Sweets chapters. There are handy icons accompanying the recipes letting you know;

You can Make Ahead
The recipe includes 5 Ingredients or Fewer
The recipe takes 30 Minutes or Less
The recipe uses a Sheet Pan
The recipe is a One Skillet/ Pot Meal
The recipe is Vegetarian
The recipe is Gluten-Free

In typical Best of Bridge style, the book includes loads of tips, ingredient substitutions, how-tos, and ideas for riffing on the recipes. You’ll notice the ingredients use easy-to-find products and some grocery store “cheats” (frozen puff pastry, canned beans and fish, frozen vegetables etc…) which can speed things up and make a home-cooked meal “doable” on a weeknight. There are recipes for Instant Pot users, too! It really has something for everyone’s tastebuds and every level of cook.

All-in-all, a fabulous book full of “must make” recipes that I know I’ll be referring to over and over this school year! Less mess, more flavour? Sign me up!

Recipe: Sheet-Pan Chicken Shawarma

Image excerpted from **Best of Bridge Done in One**. Courtesy of Robert Rose Inc. Photography by Jonathan Bielaski © 2023 Reprinted with permission.

I made this on a busy weeknight and it delivered - loads of flavour with minimal prep and cleanup. Bonus? Ingredients I already had on hand! A winning combination on a weeknight (and there were leftovers which worked well for lunches the next day!).

I’m pleased to have been given permission to share the recipe with you from the publisher - this is one you’ll want to add to your weekly rotation!

click here for the recipe

Giveaway!

That’s right, thanks to the kind folks at Robert Rose, I have TWO copies of Done in One to give away to readers in Canada, the US, Europe and the UK (sorry other international readers)!

To enter (maximum of 2 entries per person)2:

Simply leave a comment on this post telling me why you need help getting meals on the table faster!

For a bonus entry, share this newsletter on some form of social media (Instagram, Instagram Stories, Facebook, X fka Twitter, Threads etc.) and come back and let me know where in a separate comment.

Want another recipe from Done in One ?

It’s a GIANT skillet chocolate chip cookie…..

Head on over to my blog post for the printable recipe!

Thanks for reading and good luck! Let me know if you try this recipe or pick up a copy of the book!

Cheers,
Mardi

“We spent two weeks in Nerac at this fully-equipped, centrally-located home. It is within walking distance of everything, including the canal, stone bridges, museums, parks, historic churches and of course restaurants and local shopping. (and if you are there on a Saturday, a huge outdoor market is a 5-minute walk away). We enjoyed all the features of this home and especially the patio. We sampled all the food and wine the French are known for. We also joined the locals in playing Pétanque at the square just up the street. Would highly recommend!

~ guest review, October 2022

Our charming house in Nérac, halfway between Bordeaux and Toulouse is in the heart of Gascony. Book ahead for next year!

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