I received this book from Blogging for Books for this review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.  This post may contain affiliate links. 

When I read the description of the new cookbook Snack Girl to the Rescue!, I was intrigued. I am a major snacker, and in fact, I find that I manage my weight the very best when I allow myself to eat small portions frequently throughout the day. Snacking can most definitely work against me, but if I am intentional about what I am snacking on, then it actually works in my favor.

Unfortunately, Snack Girl to the Rescue! was a fail for me after 3 strikes. They might seem minor to some folks, so I’m not necessarily suggesting that you skip right over this book. I’m just sharing my personal experience.

Strike #1: No Pictures

I agreed to review this book having only seen the cover, so I didn’t realize that there weren’t any pictures included. I also didn’t realize just how important pictures were to me in cookbooks until I was staring at a cookbook that didn’t have any. It was a bummer, you guys.

Strike #2: Less-Than-Stellar Index

When I first flipped through the cookbook, I spotted a recipe for sweet potato and black bean burgers. I knew I wanted to try that first, but I didn’t have a bookmark on hand and I didn’t want to dog-ear the page. I shut the book without worry, knowing that I could look up sweet potato in the index. Only, that didn’t work. No sweet potato designation back there at all. So I had to go page-by-page through the book until I found it again.

Strike #3: The Recipe Was Terrible

Ok, so the recipe I started with was, in fact, sweet potato and black bean burgers. I followed the recipe precisely (not something I’m known for, but if I’m reviewing a cookbook I will stick to the instructions). Those poor burger patties never amounted to more than a pile of hot mush. They looked revolting and while their taste was reasonably decent, they didn’t work AT ALL as a burger. A side dish? Maybe. Definitely not the main attraction. It was bad, friends.

I want to stress to you that in the end, I only made one recipe. I don’t think that’s enough data to conclude that the book doesn’t have good recipes in it. But it was the 3rd strike for me and enough for me to give up on the cookbook.

Do you have strong feelings about pictures being included in cookbooks? And are you a rampant index-user, like me? Are these just my cookbook quirks?