I Like Food, Food Tastes Good, a cookbook with recipes from some of my favorite bands (and not so favorite bands) compiled by Kara Zuaro, has been sitting in my various kitchens since last year. (I say “various” because I’ve had three since I got the book.) I purchased the book as soon as I saw it; the appeal, of course, being that I’d actually heard of the cooks. It’s all well and fine to buy a Food Network star’s cookbook, but since I only watch cake competitions on the Food Network, Rachael Ray doesn’t really do much for me.

When I saw the Soup’s On challenge, I knew that this would be the first cookbook I’d use. It’s not the one I’ve had the longest, nor does it seem like it’d be the most fun (not much baking in here), but it is one of the more “well rounded” ones, offering recipes for breakfast, soups and starters, sandwiches, main courses for meateaters and vegetarians, drinks, and desserts. All from bands I admire! I also expected the ingredients relatively inexpensive to gather and the recipes quick to whip up, as I am not sure a lot of bands have tons of money and time to make dinner.

Before I continue on to what I made and what I enjoyed, I’m going to get something out of the way for this review and all others concerning cooking: My boyfriend is a picky eater. He won’t eat seafood, he hates most things that are green, and tofu is not even an option. (Seriously, even though tofu only tastes like whatever you’re eating it with, he won’t touch the stuff.) That in mind, I was unlimited in choices for what I’d try, but I had to be very particular about sharing this experience with him.

So! “I like food, food tastes good” is a lyric from a song by the Descendents called, appropriately, “I Like Food.” It’s a short song without a lot of flavor, but it’s catchy. Actually, it mostly consists of greasy things and ketchup, maybe a teenage girl here or there… But I was happy to see that overall the book named after the song was not full of such disgusting habits. I found quite a few recipes to be healthy and appealing, full of protein and just the right about of veggies, though the book is lacking in various fruit-related dishes (there are a few, but as I tend to like my reds and oranges more than my greens, I had hoped for more).

My first recipe was a breakfast selection, which I actually ended up eating for lunch. It was delicious and filling; I may have used too much tofu and not enough spinach, but I don’t have a lot of experience cooking. In fact, this is sad – I had to look up the word “saute” to see what the hell I was supposed to be doing with all those diced onions and squash. I’m hoping that this cookbook challenge will help me familiarize myself with cooking terms so I can some day be a good wife. Anyway, my Tofu Scramble recipe was submitted by Calexico, whom I’ve never heard, but who are a Tucson-based band that “zigzag” between indie rock, Latin music, country, blues, and jazz. I had to take out some of the ingredients I didn’t like (like the red bell pepper) and thus took out some of the color I’m sure this recipe would have flourished with, but overall I was pretty satisfied with it. Took about 20 minutes to prepare, though now that I know what “saute” means it’ll probably take less time when I make it again. Yellow onion, tofu, squash, zucchini, garlic cloves, and spinach all combine to make what the book calls an “alternative to scrambled eggs,” but which I call a very yummy meal. The recipe serves 2-3 people, but since I am only one person it was more than enough for a day or two of leftovers.

I made another selection just for Richard, because as I said, I didn’t want him to miss out on the fun of me actually cooking stuff. Well, I only kind of cheated on his, because it didn’t require doing anything which we don’t normally do – cooking Ramen. Suggested by a member of the band Strung Out, a band which I listened to for one or two minutes in the mid 90’s, the Rock’N’Ramen dish had a lot of appeal due to its name. It also involved two different kinds of Ramen, and it made Richard’s day. A winning combination! I didn’t eat any of it (it has pepper and Tabasco sauce, which are among the few ingredients I won’t eat) so I can’t give a personal account, but he wouldn’t have been able to put it down if I begged him after he took that first bite! Combining Creamy Chicken Ramen, Roast Chicken Ramen, Tabasco sauce, butter, pepper, garlic powder, parmesan cheese, and just a bit of milk apparently makes something worth ignoring your girlfriend!

From the dessert menu we tried the Oatmeal Cake suggested by Pelican. I wasn’t sure about this one – I like oatmeal and I like cake, but would I like them together? (Note: I am one of those sorry folks who does not think mixing great things always makes even greater things.) However, from years of experience in eating dough and batter, I knew it was going to be delicious once I had licked the spatula. It’s been ages since I’ve made a cake from scratch (ages, literally – I was probably about 10 the last time) but the effort was definitely worth it. It’s definitely a different texture in a cake than I’ve ever had – it’s gooey and soft and very thick. I whipped some cream cheese frosting on the top; there was a recipe for a topping but it involved coconut and evaporated milk, both ingredients which I didn’t happen to have lying around and thus couldn’t use on a whim. The cream cheese frosting complemented it quite well, though. This is a new favorite!

Though I only tried three recipes from this book, it was overall a rewarding experience. The food was good, I learned a bit about each band and why they recommend the recipes, and better yet – I had a successful first try at cooking meals that don’t come from a package! (Don’t mention the one that had Ramen in it, beacuse it also had other stuff, okay?) Just from browsing through I can see that the foods in this book will be relatively inexpensive and effortless, quick and easy, and most important of all – flexible. I made my Tofu Scramble into a Boca Scramble after my leftovers were gone and loved it almost just as much. I’ll be making fine use of this cookbook and I only have high hopes for the next.