FOREWORD

by Mindy Kaling

I wish I was a hot mess. Looking back on my twenties^* you probably could’ve described me as an “anxious mess,” a “workaholic mess,” or maybe just a plain “mess mess.” Unfortunately, I lacked the sexy confidence it would have taken to qualify me as a hot one. So when Miranda and Gabi gave me their book, I was so excited. Reading it felt so aspirational. If I can’t be a hot mess, at least I want to learn all the secrets of two bona fide ones (who also happen to be adorable and chic and blond).

And who wouldn’t be excited to tear into Hot Mess Kitchen? This book is awesome. I came for the recipes and stayed for the funny, personal writing. How could you not love a book with recipes like “Fuck It, Let’s Just Get Stoned Nachos” and “All My Friends Are Married Mud Pie”? Surely there is not one among you who has not felt both sentiments. You could buy this book and enjoy it without ever taking out your oven mitts.

But not me! I take my foreword-writing seriously, and I wanted to test out some recipes. A word about me: When it comes to cooking, I am really basic. I like things really obvious and hard to mess up. The extent of my cooking in my twenties was a piece of steak flattened into submission on my George Foreman Grill, then covered in Tabasco sauce. So I was a little worried about testing these out. The great news? They’re legit and they’re easy AF (am I using that acronym right? I’m old). My personal favorites were “Schadenfreude Sundae” and the “Netflix and Chili Con Carne.” If you think it sounds a little sad that I made a batch of delicious chili and ate it while watching Narcos alone on my sofa, then you don’t know just how good that recipe is. I feel sad for you.

This is a great gift for your young, coolest friends and an even better gift for yourself. I can’t wait for you to get your copy and promptly cover it in food stains, as I did. Joyfully.