Title:	Martina's Kitchen Mix: My Recipe Playlist for Real Life
	Author:	Martina McBride
	Published:	October 30, 2018, Oxmoor House
	No. of Pages:	272
	Cover Price:	$30.00 Hardcover, $18.52 Kindle

---

The basics of a good cookbook include a good layout, good recipes, and good photographs. Martina's Kitchen Mix: My Recipe Playlist for Real Life includes these attributes, as well as personal vignettes and stories which introduce readers to country music star, Martina McBride’s, personality. She introduces her family, and mentions them throughout, giving the reader (and cooks) a sense of actually knowing them. This extra effort brings Martina and her family to a level that seems like they are ordinary people just like us.

The fact that Martina can cook (this has not been co-written by some chef), and does so for her family and friends makes it even easier to relate to her. The recipes are not only succinct and easy to follow, but they are for dishes real people want to make. Needing a snack for a gathering, I tried the Roasted Maple-Cinnamon Pecans; they were easy and it was difficult not to eat the whole batch. The Cilantro, Lime, and Black Bean Rice turned out perfectly and made an excellent side dish to some Mexican marinated grilled steaks we were having for dinner. Always looking for a good, new brunch dish, Martina’s Hashbrown Breakfast Casserole with Tomato Gravy was next on the list, and it was a hit with my family.

There are several other mouthwatering dishes in my immediate queue: Thai Slaw with Peanut Dressing, Pan-Roasted Halibut (it looks divine), and Chicken and Potatoes with Roasted Lemon and Rosemary Sauce . Martina has included several decadent and also simple desserts, too.

If you’re looking for a cookbook with personality, beautiful photographs, directions that are easy for anyone to follow, and most importantly recipes that ordinary people really want to eat, Martina's Kitchen Mix: My Recipe Playlist for Real Life is a cookbook you’ll want to include in your collection. Rather than just being a good cookbook, she includes the extras that raise it to a great cookbook (not to mention FUN).

Special thanks to NetGalley for supplying a review copy of this book.