  Great recipes, but not really money saving
Like many who picked up this cookbook, the idea of "money saving meals" is what sold me. I'm not a big Sandra Lee fan, but I was all over the idea of saving money on my grocery bills. While I appreciate the sentiment, Sandra's meals aren't all that money saving, especially if you use the brands Sandra suggested. While they aren't top of the line, there are other brands out there that would save more money. The recipes themselves also have a large number of ingredients, some of which aren't exactly cheap. While the recipes themselves are great for family and quite tasty, they don't exactly save you money.
That aside, Sandra offers up some great ideas for leftovers and to maximize the amount of time you spend in the kitchen in conjunction with some crowd-pleasing recipes that are great for family dinners, entertaining and special get-togethers. Recipes include hefty entrees, sandwiches, salads, desserts, Sandra's signature cocktails, pastas and other foods such as Greek Chicken and Rice, Creamy Penne Pesto Bake, Chicken Lasagna Roll-ups, Enchilada Lasagna and Sausage-stuffed Mushrooms. The recipes are easy to follow, down-to-earth and less foody, great for family and tasty.
There's also an ample amount of food photography here, which makes the food comes alive on the page. I have to admit that I've been spoiled by better, but it's not the worst I've ever seen.
Sandra's cooking abilities shine through in this tasty collection of recipes, but her money saving sentiments don't really come alive here. I would have preferred if that was a stronger focus of the cookbook, but I can't get too upset when the result was so tasty.
Love to cook, love Sandys shortcuts!
I have collected about 6 of Sandra Lee's cookbooks so far and I love them all. This one is really great because she has a chapter that shows you how to cook a big meal one day, like a ham on Sunday, and use that ham to make 2 additional meals during the week! This is a very good book that is filled with a ton of great meals. I'm really enjoying this book - as I do with all of the others!
Bought this as a gift
I bought this as a gift so I cannot comment on the content. The price was the best I could get anywhere, even with a coupon at a bookstore. The book arrived in perfect condition very fast.
Semi homemade Saving Meals
I love this cookbook and the fact it was in great condition was a plus!
Sandra's Best! But Misleading Title...
I love watching (and reading) the Food Network celebrity chefs. Sandra Lee has never been my favorite, although I do own some of her work (Cooking Light, Cooking 3, Desserts).
Most of the time, I didn't like her recipes because (often) they didn't save me time or steps in comparison to a homemade recipe. I often wondered: Why use store-bought ingredients when starting from scratch takes the same amount of time as Sandra's semi-homemade method?
In this book, however, I truly understand and appreciate Sandra's methods. There are many casseroles in this book, as well as Round 2 Recipes (such as cooking a 5-6 pound turkey and using the leftovers for more recipes), and freezer meals (with helpful information on freezing and reheating).
The reason I appreciate this book more than Sandra's previous books is because it really does save time! I also feel that Sandra uses more fresh ingredients in this book. Sometimes I don't want to make her dishes because they call for so many processed ingredients. This book utilizes grocery store standbys from the deli that - while more expensive - are at least freshly made!
Which brings me to my next point...the title of the book is misleading! You WILL NOT save money compared to Sandra's other books. I don't know why this isn't called "Semi-Homemade Cooking 4"...the recipes aren't more cost-friendly than usual. Perhaps her publishers and Food Network were looking for a new angle? I would say that you'll spend between $15-30 on any meal in the book (with an average-stocked pantry).
Therefore, I recommend the book to fans of Sandra (obviously) but NOT to those looking to really save money. In my personal opinion, this is Sandra's best cookbook yet. I just wish it didn't mislead readers into thinking they'll save a pretty penny.
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