Congratulations to lucky commenter #57, Kelli, the winner of the Hip Girl’s Guide to the Kitchen! Kelli says:
I already pat myself on the back for a lot of rock star-ism in the kitchen as far as basics goes but I know there is always more to learn and discover. now I am about to go complicated and try my hand at the pesky French macaron.
also, you know, I have yet to do real, actual canning, the hot water bath sealing kind.
that is somewhat daunting to me, I don’t know why, but, there it is.
Congratulations, Kelii! Enjoy!
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You all know Kate, a.k.a. The Hip Girl, right? She’s been a friend since back in the old Can Jam days and has since spent a few nights chillin’ in my loft (or back deck) while touring for her first book, The Hip Girl’s Guide To Homemaking.
It’s hard to believe that the years have gone by and now I’m about to host Kate while she tours for her second book. Harper Collins was gracious enough to send me a review copy of The Hip Girl’s Guide to the Kitchen: A Hit-the-Ground Running Approach to Stocking Up and Cooking Delicious, Nutritious, and Affordable Meals.
The new book is a comprehensive manual on the all-important task of feeding yourself: how to build your kitchen with key pieces and useful gadgets without breaking the bank; how to stock a pantry that is both useful & flexible, and keep it stocked; simple recipes that every girl (or guy) should have in her arsenal (homemade granola, french toast, whole roasted chicken or a simple pot of beans); and how to master basic cooking techniques that will have you tossing out the recipes and letting your inner creative kitchen-freak flag fly.
Through it all we have Kate’s supportive yet cheerful tone, encouraging you to build your kitchen savvy while she reminds you that you don’t need a million bucks to feed yourself, or your loved ones, well. We also get treated to the same great line drawings, pull-outs with Hip Tricks and sidebars, and hand-drawn calligraphy that graced the pages of Kate’s first book.
The last section of the book, Feeding Others: Entertaining and Sharing Food with Friends, may well be my favorite. With chapters like “using stuff up,” “homemade entertaining,” and “better together,” on edible gifts and food parties, she is a girl after my own heart. I can’t wait to have more time to sink back on the couch and really spend some time with this jam-packed reference manual and all-around delightful read.
The good folks at Harper Collins have offered up one free copy of The Hip Girl’s Guide to the Kitchen: A Hit-the-Ground Running Approach to Stocking Up and Cooking Delicious, Nutritious, and Affordable Meals to a lucky Local Kitchen reader (US folks only, please: sorry Rest of The World!). Simply leave a comment below telling me what kitchen skill you’d like to learn or improve. Comments will close at midnight on Wednesday, May 28. I’ll randomly select a winner and announce it here on the blog. One comment per person, please. Comments are moderated: please be patient and yours will appear.
Want to learn more about the book? Check out the video trailer or browse Kate’s blog for book tour stops near you. Too excited to wait for the giveaway? You can order your own copy here.
For more stops on Kate’s online book tour, please visit the following blogs:
May 20 – Food In Jars
May 21 – Healthy Green Kitchen
May 23 – Autumn Makes and Does
May 27 – Punk Domestics
May 28 – Spinach Tiger
May 29 – Local Savour
May 30 – Love and Lemons
June 2 – Kitchen Ecosystem
localkitchenblog.com 
There’s so much i still want to learn. I cook, but find mincing garlic a daunting taste. I take forever! lol. And I’d love to learn how to make jam, =)
I find I’m always learning, especially when I find the opportunity to cook with someone else. I don’t have to plan to learn, it just happens. ;>
This book would be the perfect gift for my favorite niece. She wants to raise her family healthier than she was – not an easy task with the current food challenges. I want to see her 3 little ones have home grown and home prepared meals as they grow.
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Better “home entertaining” needs improvement in my home 🙂
I love cooking but basics like making a whole chicken is something I need to learn. I have a son so I imagine my future will be filled with the need for lots of food on the table! Lol
I would love to be better at budgeting!
I need to learn organization skills. My pots and pans are overflowing in my cabinets. Also I need to organize my food pantry better, I never can find the things I need.
That book sounds great! I find cooking for other (besides my immediate family) rather daunting. I’d like to gain more confidence at it!
I would like to learn how to cut down meat – specifically pork. Honor the life of the animal by doing a good job of it and then use the odd bits and mistakes for sausage.
I would love to improve my canning skills. Have a fabulous weekend and thanks for the giveaway!
I’d like to finally perfect to art of making macarons without them flopping. Oh macaron, how you break my heart.
I need to get better at putting together a menu for get togethers.
I’d love to learn more about preserving!
I would love to improve my chopping/dicing/slicing skills, whether it is chopping an onion, an apple, or other vegetables/fruit.
Baking bread…my biggest downfall. Anything requiring yeast turns into a disaster in my hands!
i’d love to learn how to simplify things, so I can get delicious food without spending too long in the kitchen
I’d like to learn how to cut up an onion properly.
I, too, would like to get better with bread. My boyfriend is the dough master, but he never bakes any!
I need to improve my knife skills!
I love “using things up” and always appreciate new ideas on ways to do that. Also, I need to learn to cut up a chicken.
Same as Julie – I need to learn some serious knife skills that will give me the confidence to break down a whole chicken, fillet a fresh fish, and so on.
I’d love to get better at canning and using leftovers more creatively.
I need to learn ALL skills! I recently had to ‘dust’ my stove…not ‘clean’ my stove. 🙂
I need to learn how to cook gluten free without breaking the bank!!
i would like to improve my chopping skills.
I’d love to learn some “fancy” knife skills, especially how to perfectly julienne my veggies.
I would love to learn Cheese making!
I’d love to improve my time management and cutting skills!
I’d love to learn cheese making and how to use a pressure canner!
This book sounds amazing! I’m super excited to check it out soon. I think the skill I want to improve most is making a decent pie crust. Either that or homemade sushi! NOM. Thanks for the giveaway opportunity!
The sample of the book I’ve seen looks pretty good.
I live in a rural village in Alaska that is only accessible by plane. We have been here almost a year and I have tackled a lot of things I never thought I would try to make, because getting groceries here can be quite the ordeal. I have learned to make a lot of breads, yogurt, crackers, and a lot of other things. I love that it has forced my hand at making things I would have never tried and when we leave here for the more modern world I hope to incorporate that into my more busy life then. I have never done any canning and we have just started a garden. I would love to learn how to bring some of those fresh delights to my table in the middle of the dark winter!
Bread! I have a huge and irrational mental barrier to working with yeast.
Meal planning…..I just can’t seem to do it and end up making something lengthy from what is on-hand and then eating late after being super hungry all afternoon. A terrible cycle that I need to break! Looks like a great book 🙂
I would love to learn better knife skills! Being able to chop things up quickly would definitely get me in the kitchen more.
Making French macaroons.
I’m pretty adept at many things in the kitchen, but sourdough is one thing I have yet to conquer!
Like to learn better knife skills.
I need to learn how to “use it up”. Leftover anything doesn’t do well in my kitchen.
I need to get better at whole chicken butchery. It’s currently functional, but not pretty. And I want to master some more basic baking when I have an oven I hate less. Hopefully later this year!
I’d love to improve my butchery skills.
I’m always working to improve my canning & preserving skills, but something I really need to work on is my knife skills. I tend to cut-in-hand rather than use my cutting boards. Thanks for the giveaway!
I would like to learn some tips about having people over for dinner. I get so nervous that I don’t do it very often and really feel I am missing out on sharing food with friends.
I’d like to improve my chopping skills.
I don’t suppose that she teaches how to eat more without gaining weight?? Actually I saw one recipe is making aioli which has been on my list for some time. Thanks!
I’d like to learn more about baking. I can cook pretty well, but I am absymal at baking anything!
I consider myself a pretty accomplished cook but for the life of me I can’t make a fluffy pot of rice!!
Knife skills. I would love work on that.
I’d love to know clever tasty things to do with fish besides grilling or frying
I would love to learn how to make some yummy meats on the stove rather than the grill (that I don’t own)!
I’d like to try making pickles!
I’d love to have the confidence to entertain more. I get flustered and never know what to cook. In an attempt to impress, I usually make something time-consuming that I’ve never made before.
I would like to learn canning, preferably by the easiest and safest methods — I am growing a lot of tomatoes and beans this year and will have surplus to can if the garden does well.
I’d like to be better with anything involving meringue.
I would love to pass this book along to my youngest, who is headed off to graduate school this year. He’s got the basics down fairly well, but this looks like a great way to feed his inner kitchen geek.
I would like to learn how to use ingredients before they go bad.
I already pat myself on the back for a lot of rock star-ism in the kitchen as far as basics goes but I know there is always more to learn and discover. now I am about to go complicated and try my hand at the pesky French macaron.
also, you know, I have yet to do real, actual canning, the hot water bath sealing kind.
that is somewhat daunting to me, I don’t know why, but, there it is.
Keeping knives sharp would be an excellent skill!
I’d love to get better at edible gifting. I think making food as a gift (baking, mostly) is such a cute idea!
And using everything to its maximum value and potential too. Like, mixing and combining whatever I have left in my kitchen to make a killer meal!
I want to learn how to properly de-choke an artichoke! It seems so intimidating.
I need to improve my ability to use what I have on hand and not lose overstocked items to spoilage (I’m guessing it has something to do with better keeping track of my inventory).
I feel like I’m pretty good at “using stuff up” but I would like to be better at menu planning.
I’d love to be better at creative leftovers use.