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Half Baked Harvest Super Simple by Tieghan Gerard Review: Comfort Food Made Faster and Foolproof
Half Baked Harvest Super Simple is a New York Times bestseller from Tieghan Gerard — the blogger and author behind the Half Baked Harvest brand — that delivers more than 125 comfort-food-forward recipes streamlined for busy home cooks, using techniques such as one-pot cooking, Instant Pot, slow cooker, and night-before meal prep. Named one of the best cookbooks of the year by BuzzFeed and Food Network, it builds on the popularity of Gerard's debut cookbook while deliberately lowering the barrier to entry, making her signature style of wholesome, indulgent cooking more accessible without abandoning the ambition that built her following.
Tap to enlargeLuvemBooks Verdict
Best for
Home cooks who feel intimidated by complex recipes and want to make Gerard's signature comfort-food dishes — one-pot meals, slow cooker and Instant Pot preparations, and make-ahead dinners — without sacrificing visual appeal or flavour.
Worth it if
You want a well-organised, accessibility-first comfort cookbook with multiple practical entry points (one-pot, overnight, meal-prep) and you're new to Gerard's work or looking to cook her style more confidently on busy weeknights.
Skip if
You already own the debut Half Baked Harvest Cookbook and follow the blog closely — this is an intentional distillation rather than a reinvention — or if you're primarily seeking lighter, globally diverse, or diet-specific recipes beyond comfort-food territory.
What readers & critics say
The book debuted as a New York Times bestseller and was named one of the best cookbooks of the year by both BuzzFeed and Food Network, as noted across multiple retrieved sources including penguinrandomhouse.com and barnesandnoble.com. Reader and blog reviews retrieved from rdbooks.org and asnotedbyme.com reflect consistent enthusiasm for Gerard's flavour-forward recipes and the book's approachable, Instagrammable aesthetic.
Sources: Penguin Random House, Barnes & Noble, RD Books, As Noted By Me4.8from 13,323 Amazon ratings— reader ratings, not a LuvemBooks score
In This Review
- What Works & What Doesn't
- What the Book Is and Does
- Reception and Recognition
- The Book's Core Strengths
- Accessibility and Audience Fit
- Limitations Worth Noting
What Works & What Doesn't
What Works
- A New York Times bestseller named one of the best cookbooks of the year by BuzzFeed and Food Network
- More than 125 recipes organised across practical cooking modes — one-pot, Instant Pot, slow cooker, overnight, and meal-prep — giving the same cook multiple entry points
- Designed to make Gerard's signature comfort-food style accessible to less-confident home cooks without sacrificing ambition
- Includes vegan and vegetarian options throughout, broadening household utility
- Builds directly on the established Half Baked Harvest following while functioning as a strong standalone introduction for new readers
What Doesn't
- Readers who own the debut *Half Baked Harvest Cookbook* and follow the blog closely may find the stylistic territory familiar, as this book is openly a distillation rather than a reinvention
- The Instant Pot and slow cooker sections assume equipment ownership; cooks without those appliances will find those chapters inaccessible
- The comfort-food focus, while a strength for its target audience, makes the collection narrower in range for readers seeking lighter, diet-specific, or globally diverse recipes
This review assesses Half Baked Harvest Super Simple based on its content, organisation, and published reception — not a kitchen test.
What the Book Is and Does
Half Baked Harvest Super Simple, published by Clarkson Potter on October 29, 2019, is Tieghan Gerard's second cookbook, following her debut Half Baked Harvest Cookbook. Where the debut showcased Gerard's range, this follow-up has a sharper editorial mission: take the comfort-food-forward recipes her blog audience already loves and strip away the complexity that might keep home cooks from attempting them. The result is a collection of more than 125 recipes organised around practical cooking modes — one-pot meals, Instant Pot and slow cooker preparations, overnight and meal-prepped dishes, and what the book frames as genuinely easy weeknight options. Vegan and vegetarian options are included throughout, broadening the book's utility across different households. As one passage from the book's own framing reads: "The complexities of cooking often scare aspiring cooks out of the kitchen, but this book is here to gently guide you back in."
“The complexities of cooking often scare aspiring cooks out of the kitchen, but this book is here to gently guide you back in.”
A recipe spread featuring golden-brown French toast topped with blueberries, jam, and whipped cream on a speckled plate.
Reception and Recognition
The cookbook landed on the New York Times bestseller list and was named one of the best cookbooks of the year by both BuzzFeed and Food Network — a combination of popular and editorial recognition that reflects its broad appeal. Gerard had already built a substantial following through her Half Baked Harvest blog before this book's release, and Super Simple was designed to convert that audience into committed home cooks rather than just admirers of her photography. The publisher's own positioning — "fewer ingredients, foolproof meal-prepping, effortless entertaining" — aligns with the kind of promise that has made technique-driven comfort cookbooks a reliable category, and the reception suggests the book delivered on it convincingly enough to earn that bestseller distinction.
A recipe spread showing a stack of golden pancakes with maple syrup being drizzled on top and whipped cream.
The Book's Core Strengths
The defining promise of Super Simple is that Gerard's signature aesthetic — described consistently across sources as "wholesome decadence" with a "non-fussy approach" — does not require sacrificing visual ambition for speed. The book is structured to give cooks multiple entry points depending on time and equipment: a reader with an Instant Pot finds dedicated recipes; a reader who prefers to work ahead finds overnight and meal-prep options; a reader who wants a single pan to wash finds one-pot dishes. That layered organisation means the book is designed to serve the same cook on different days, not just a single type of user. The recipes are also written with the inclusion of vegan and vegetarian alternatives, which the publisher specifically highlights as part of the book's "something for everyone" design intent.
A recipe spread featuring a flatbread pizza topped with melted cheese, bacon, and caramelized onions, demonstrating simple comfort food cooking.
Accessibility and Audience Fit
Gerard's stated goal with this collection is to address a specific reader: the home cook who has been intimidated out of the kitchen by complexity. The book is explicitly positioned as a re-entry point, and the structure — fewer ingredients per recipe, techniques that front-load or automate effort — supports that. Readers already familiar with Gerard's blog will recognise the ethos; newcomers to her work will find this a well-signposted introduction. That said, the book's comfort-food orientation means readers seeking light, diet-specific, or globally adventurous cooking will find the range narrower than the large recipe count might suggest. The focus is deliberately on satisfying, crowd-pleasing dishes rather than culinary experimentation.
Artisan bread loaf on linen cloth with a quote about reader feedback inspiring the cookbook.
Limitations Worth Noting
The book's greatest strength — its comfort-food focus and streamlined approach — is also the source of its most honest limitation. Cooks who already own Gerard's debut cookbook and follow her blog closely may find some stylistic overlap, since Super Simple is openly positioned as a distillation of what worked in the first book rather than a radical departure. Some readers who gravitate toward highly technical or globally varied cookbooks may find the book's accessible-by-design register less engaging. Additionally, while the Instant Pot and slow cooker sections extend the book's utility, cooks without those appliances will simply skip those chapters — the equipment assumptions are real, even if they affect only a portion of the collection.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Half Baked Harvest Super Simple written for?
The review identifies the target reader as the home cook who has been intimidated out of the kitchen by complexity. The book is explicitly positioned as a re-entry point, with fewer ingredients per recipe and techniques that front-load or automate effort, making it equally welcoming to longtime fans of Gerard's blog and newcomers to her work.
Is Half Baked Harvest Super Simple worth buying?
The review notes the book landed on the New York Times bestseller list and was named one of the best cookbooks of the year by both BuzzFeed and Food Network, suggesting it delivered convincingly on its promise of accessible comfort food. At its current price, it represents strong value for home cooks seeking a well-organised, crowd-pleasing collection, though those wanting highly technical or globally adventurous recipes may find the range narrower than expected.
What is the main theme of Half Baked Harvest Super Simple?
The central theme is making comfort-food cooking genuinely accessible without sacrificing visual ambition or flavour. Gerard's guiding philosophy, described in the review as 'wholesome decadence' with a 'non-fussy approach,' runs throughout the book, with every structural choice oriented toward removing the complexity that keeps aspiring cooks out of the kitchen.
How is the book structured or organised?
The book is organised around practical cooking modes rather than ingredient types or cuisines. Sections cover one-pot meals, Instant Pot and slow cooker preparations, overnight and meal-prepped dishes, and easy weeknight options, giving the same cook multiple entry points depending on their available time and equipment on any given day.
How does Super Simple compare to Gerard's first cookbook?
The review describes the debut Half Baked Harvest Cookbook as showcasing Gerard's full range, while Super Simple has a sharper editorial mission: distilling the comfort-food recipes her blog audience already loves and stripping away complexity. Cooks who already own the debut and follow the blog closely may find some stylistic overlap, since Super Simple is openly positioned as a refinement of what worked in the first book rather than a radical departure.
Does the book include options for vegetarians and vegans?
Yes, the review notes that vegan and vegetarian options are included throughout the collection, which the publisher specifically highlights as part of the book's 'something for everyone' design intent. This broadens the book's utility across different households without making it a dedicated plant-based cookbook.
What cooking equipment does the book assume you have?
The book includes dedicated sections for Instant Pot and slow cooker recipes, and the review acknowledges that the equipment assumptions are real. Cooks without those appliances will simply skip those chapters, though those sections represent only a portion of the overall collection of more than 125 recipes.
What are the biggest limitations of this cookbook?
The review identifies two honest caveats: readers who already own Gerard's debut cookbook may encounter stylistic overlap, and cooks seeking light, diet-specific, or globally adventurous cooking will find the range narrower than the large recipe count might suggest. The book's comfort-food focus and accessible-by-design register, while a strength for its target audience, will feel less engaging to those who prefer highly technical or internationally varied recipes.
What does 'wholesome decadence' mean in the context of this book?
The review uses 'wholesome decadence' to describe Gerard's signature aesthetic, which balances satisfying, indulgent comfort food with a non-fussy, approachable cooking style. The book's promise is that this aesthetic does not require sacrificing visual ambition for speed, meaning the dishes look impressive without demanding complex technique.
How many recipes are in Half Baked Harvest Super Simple?
The book contains more than 125 recipes, organised across sections covering different cooking modes including one-pot meals, Instant Pot and slow cooker dishes, overnight and meal-prepped options, and easy weeknight dinners. The review notes that despite the large count, the comfort-food orientation means the stylistic range is deliberately focused rather than wide-ranging.
Sources & Further Reading
The key facts and claims in this review are grounded in the retrieved, verified sources listed below.
- Cited in this review
- 1
- 2
- Further reading
- 3
halfbakedharvest.com
- 4
- 5
asnotedbyme.com
- 6
- 7
- 8
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