I can’t say I’ve given much thought to Gwyneth Paltrow in the past aside from the occasional movie, red carpet dress or snicker at her daughter’s name (Apple). But all that started to change when I read about her new cookbook, It’s All Good, on one of my favorite blogs, A Piece of Toast. Celebrating all the reasons they love Gwyneth is a fond pastime for their blog, and I have to say, I’m starting to get it. I love that she’s family-focused, seemingly very genuine and follows her heart in pursuing a variety of interests instead of pigeonholing herself or letting others do so.

True, her cookbooks have come with some criticism. The Huffington Post likened the cookbook to flipping through a  J. Crew catalogue (um, why is that ever a bad thing?). Others have made fun of some recipes’ obvious or simple nature. But you know, that’s exactly why I like it. Pouring through the pages as the type of cook who has youtube-d “how to cut broccoli” and “how to cut eggplant” in the past couple months alone, I find the way she describes the book, organizes the recipes and details them quite helpful. Does she have a “recipe” for how to hard boil an egg? Yes. But I’ve seriously had some bad egg boiling experiences in the past so I welcome the break down! She also has a great section about stocking your pantry, which taught me a lot about different types of food and their uses / combinations.

Gwyneth (after this many nights reading her book we’re on a first name basis) is…

• Inspiring me to learn more about food, nutrition and cooking.
• Inspiring me to continue living a healthy life starting with what food I put inside me.
• Inspiring me to look for more opportunities to love on people through food and hospitality.