Book Review: I Love My Instant Pot Recipe Book #SMGurusNetwork

I Love My Instant Pot Recipe Book by Michelle Fagone

Now that I have my instant pot I don’t know what I did without it! Especially during the hot spring and summer months. Coming up with recipes to make in my instant pot however can be kind of tough. So when I heard about the I Love My Instant Pot Recipe Book by Michelle Fagone I was ecstatic!

This book has so many wonderful recipes, some of them I had no idea I could even make in my instant pot.  Some of the recipes have bright colorful pictures that make you want to make the recipe. This is now my go to book for all things instant pot.

I immediately found two recipes that I absolutely loved! The first one is the recipe for Spiced Poached Pears and then there’s the one for a good old Low Country Boil. These were my favorites because spiced poached pears was a recipe that my late grandma used to make. And the low country boil was something that we always used to eat when we lived down in Texas. I was given permission to share both these recipes with you so I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. 

Excerpted from The I Love My Instant Pot© Recipe Book: From Trail Mix Oatmeal to Mongolian Beef BBQ, 175 Easy and Delicious Recipes by Michelle Fagone (CavegirlCuisine.com). Used by permission of the publisher, Adams Media, a division of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved. Photography by James Stefiuk.

Michelle Fagone is a mother of two young girls, an entrepreneur, and an avid Paleo food chef. She has a passion for healthy living and for sharing her unique insights via her recipes, her blog, and now her five cookbooks. Despite being a southern gal at heart, her travel and food experiences as a Navy brat and current Army spouse, have enabled a unique appreciation for worldly flavors. While comfort is the basis for most of her recipes, you will often find a twist of exciting flavors and combinations which makes her recipes not only appealing to a broad audience, but uniquely delicious!

Spiced Red Wine–Poached Pears

Impress your guests with this elegant, beautiful, and tasty dessert. And feel free to mix things up—use Bartlett, Anjou, or Bosc pears. Just find the best one that is ripe but still firm. Then elevate this dish before serving with a scoop of vanilla or cinnamon ice cream.

Hands-On Time: 15 minutes

Cook Time: 13 minutes

Serves 4

4 ripe but still firm pears

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

4 cups dry red wine

1⁄2 cup freshly squeezed orange juice

2 teaspoons grated orange zest

1⁄4 cup sugar

1 cinnamon stick

1⁄2 teaspoon ground cloves

1⁄2 teaspoon ground ginger

1 sprig fresh mint

Directions:

1. Rinse and peel the pears leaving the stem. Using a corer or melon baller, remove the cores from underneath without going through the top so you can maintain the stem. Brush the pears inside and out with the lemon juice.
2. Combine the wine, orange juice, orange zest, sugar, cinnamon stick, cloves, and ginger in Instant Pot®. Press the Saute button and then hit the Adjust button to change the temperature to More. Bring to a slow boil in about 3–5 minutes; stir to blend and dissolve the sugar. Carefully place the pears in liquid. Press Adjust button to change temperature to Less and simmer unlidded for 5 additional minutes. Lock lid.
3. Press Manual button and adjust time to 3 minutes. Use the Pressure button to set the pressure to Low. When the timer beeps, quick-release pressure until float valve drops and then unlock lid.
4. Use a slotted spoon to transfer the pears to a serving platter. Garnish with mint sprig.

Low-Country Boil

You’ll notice that the shrimp required in this tasty Instant Pot® recipe are frozen. Shrimp have a much lower cooking time than some of the other Low-Country Boil ingredients, so it helps if your shrimp are frozen so they don’t overcook and dry out. If you have fresh shrimp, freeze them for an hour after cleaning before adding them to the dish.

Hands-On Time: 10 minutes

Cook Time: 5 minutes

Serves 6

1 large sweet onion, peeled and chopped

4 cloves garlic, quartered

6 small red potatoes, cut in sixths

3 ears corn, cut in thirds

1 1⁄2 pounds fully cooked andouille sausage, cut in 1″ sections

1 pound frozen tail-on shrimp

1 tablespoon Old Bay Seasoning

2 cups chicken broth

1 lemon, cut into 6 wedges

1⁄2 cup chopped fresh parsley

Directions:

1. Layer onions in an even layer in the Instant Pot®. Scatter the garlic on top of onions. Add red potatoes in an even layer, then do the same for the corn and sausage. Add the shrimp and sprinkle with Old Bay Seasoning. Pour in broth.
2. Squeeze lemon wedges into the Instant Pot® and place squeezed lemon wedges into the Instant Pot®. Lock lid.
3. Press the Manual button and adjust time to 5 minutes. When timer beeps, quick-release the pressure until float valve drops and then unlock lid. Transfer ingredients to a serving platter and garnish with parsley.

Pack A Picnic

This Low-Country Boil is a great summer food. Line a picnic table with newspapers and pour all of the ingredients onto the paper in the middle of the table. Guests can enjoy this family style with no real etiquette to the meal other than to have fun. Oh, and don’t forget a roll or two of paper towels. This can get messy.