Toasting the almonds in the butter brought out a more pronounced almond flavor. I used far less lemon zest than the recipe called for and I was very happy with the butter to lemon ratio. This is a very nice way to add a little zip to a healthy green veggie!

I seasoned my pork chops with chipotle pepper, salt, and black pepper before browning them. Leftover homemade salsa and the black beans were stirred together and poured over the pork chops in the slow cooker and cooked on high for three hours. Seasoned with fresh cilantro as the recipe directed, we all loved this simple yet delectable meal. For those tempted to use boneless pork chops, pork cooked with the bone stays moister and the meat around the bone is a real prize.

Made with King Arthur Organic White Whole Wheat Flour, these cookies were fabulous. Even the most whole wheat phobic would never suspect that they were 100% whole wheat. I did make them slightly larger (I got 36 cookies out of this recipe) but found that they were perfect after 10 minutes in the oven. They look like they are not done, but will firm up and remain chewy and moist. I am looking forward to using other types of chips in this wonderful recipe.

This is a wonderful recipe and quick enough for a weeknight meal! I used chicken base instead of granules and added dry white wine when reducing the sauce. Served with whole wheat couscous and garlic sauteed red chard, this salmon rocked!

My family likes dark meat, so I used boneless chicken thighs and chicken soup base rather than bouillon. I did not add any extra salt since the soup base, although less salty than bouillon, still had enough sodium to flavor the soup. The stock was quite flavorful after three hours and my meat actually shredded when I tried to cut it into chunks. Next time I would add more rice because the half cup got lost in the soup a bit. Delicious!

Our meal schedules have been out of sync, so I have been trying to make some dishes that are easy to throw together and that my teen likes and can grab and heat up when she needs to. This was very easy and well received. I doubled the sauce ingredients and added about 2/3rds of a cup to the chicken mixture. I used fire roasted green chile peppers and they added a lot more flavor than regular canned chile peppers. If I was making this for myself and not the finicky child, I would have added some roasted red peppers as well. Instead of chili powder I used roughly 2 Tablespoons homemade taco seasoning from this site. I will always have these on hand in the freezer for an emergency dinner. Not gourmet, but good!

This is a good recipe. It will not set your gourmet mind atwitter, but it will make the teens in your life quite happy.

I have been using this method of hard boiling eggs for years. I only let them sit for 13 minutes in the hot water and they always turn out perfectly. I don't usually boil a dozen at a time so that may account for the difference in timing. Using this method there will be no more green ring or rubbery white.

I have made monkey bread before but have always made my own dough. I decided to make this at the last minute so I went the refrigerated biscuit dough route. It was really pretty good. I used less white sugar and less cinnamon, putting the mixture in a plastic bag and shaking the cut biscuits in it. For the sauce I used butter and only ½ cup brown sugar and 1 Tablespoon cinnamon. I was surprised how well this turned out and monkey bread is always a hit with kids and teens.

This is one fabulous cake! After looking at the photos I decided to use a Bundt pan and that was a huge mistake. The top of the cake was wonderfully crisp over a dense cake and by using a Bundt pan not only did I have trouble releasing it from the pan, I had to turn it over on to that crisp crust. Had I made it in a 9 x 13 pan as directed I would have had more of that delectable crust and no release problems. I made a caramel sauce for this and it was not needed; this cake is perfect as is.

I used low fat cream cheese and less than a half cup of mayo. Then, in a holiday stupor, I mixed in both the pecans and the raspberry preserves. I was left with not a very pretty spread but a tasty one! A night in the fridge allowed the flavors to meld beautifully. I will make this again and next time will put the preserves on top as directed.

I did cut back on the salt and found these to be very good and very easy to make. If I make them again, however, I will probably use some chicken broth rather than straight water. Considering the fact that they are not loaded with fat, this recipe is a great find!

I wanted to take a photo of this, but before I could grab my camera people were digging in. I thought I would have to just take a picture of the leftovers. Leftovers, what leftovers!? With the exception of using low fat cream cheese and fresh salsa, I made this dip exactly as written. It was a huge hit as a starter to a Mexican themed meal and I will definitely make it again.

I used olive oil instead of butter and, using my hand held stick blender, made a “cream” soup as many other reviewers did. I garnished the soup with Tillamook cheddar and green onions. Had I not been feeling so virtuous a sprinkling of bacon on top would have been my next step. I will make this again for sure!

Four cups of onion sounded over the top, so I stopped at three cups. After reading the reviews I added more chili powder. I tasted and then added more cumin. I tasted again and added chipotle pepper. I tasted yet again and added smoked paprika. Finally, I added some Penzey's chicken base and it was what I was looking for. My daughter and her friend ate this up, covered in an Italian cheese mix. Four stars as written, but as adjusted for our tastes, a five star winner. Thanks for a heatlthy, inexpensive recipe!

I used a center cut pork roast which is a little less fatty than a pork butt and not much more expensive. I cooked it 8 hours on low in the slow cooker and then shredded the meat and returned it to the cooker with barbeque sauce for another 30 minutes. I did add a bit of the cooking liquid back to the pot to keep the meat nice and moist. The success of any type of pulled pork has to do with choosing a barbeque sauce that you really like. I used Sweet Baby Ray's and my pulled pork fanatic declared it superb!

I made two loaves out of this recipe, using thawed and drained frozen peaches. The sugar crust was an added bonus!

I tend to be a purist when it comes to lobster; let's face it, it only needs a bit of butter to be perfect. I had some leftover fresh lobster, (at $4.99 a pound we bought one too many lobsters) and decided to try this recipe to serve at a meeting. I used only about half the amount of cream cheese and butter that was called for but left everything else pretty much as written. I made this a day ahead and thought that the flavor was better the second day. Very Good!

I cooked the bacon until it was almost crisp and then added the onion and mushrooms. I fear that if I had not done that the bacon would have been fatty and unappetizing. My husband thought that this was good with the puff pastry; I, on the other hand, will make this again but I will give pie crust a try and report back. Something about the puff pastry did not hit my head right.

I am a fervent lover of cinnamon, but, as written, I think that the spices would have overpowered the delicate flavor of the peaches in this pie. I used 1/4 tsp. of china cassia cinnamon, 1/8 tsp. Nutmeg, and 1/8 tsp. salt and then did a taste test and thought they were perfect, subtly enhancing the peaches. I sliced the fruit into a colander as others suggested and tossed it gently with a little over 1 Tbsp. lemon juice. I thought that the lemon juice was a brilliant touch; the peaches were a gorgeous color in the cut pie and held their texture well. I will be asked for this pie several times every peach season, I am sure.