VALENE Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1) - Allrecipes.com (107534)

Shrimp Francesca

Reviewed: Jan. 5, 2012

This was good but for me, not as amazing as the other reviewers made it out to be. I guess there's some ease in assembling it in a baking dish, but I think I would rather saute all the ingredients. I did not use as much butter as it called for and I'm sure that affected it but I just don't think we need to have a whole stick of butter in one dinner! The bread crumbs didn't seem to add anything at all. Loved the artichokes and my family liked it but I think there are better ways to put this dish together.

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Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

Reviewed: Jan. 4, 2012

This was good but I didn't think it was anything spectacular. The spice mixture didn't jump out at me but I enjoyed the limey taste. I did add some chopped jalapenos and finished with some tequila. The rest of the family enjoyed.

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Pecan Pie V

Reviewed: Dec. 28, 2011

I soooo wanted to like this better than my traditional pie but unfortunately, I didn't.

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Spinach Brownies

Reviewed: Nov. 22, 2011

This is a terrific base recipe. I used a frozen pack of spinach that I cooked and squeezed out. Added some roasted red peppers and feta cheese. Also added some pepper flakes and garlic powder. Only used 3 tbsp of butter and glad I did because it would have been way too greasy otherwise. Melted butter and then added minced onion to that. Next time, I will add artichokes. The only thing that surprised me was how thin they came out. Don't know if this was a function of how I cooked them or not. Still delicious!

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Jamie's Minestrone

Reviewed: Nov. 15, 2011

This was great. Took some advice from others - used all chicken broth but had to add some water as it did get too thick. Used large can of crushed tomatoes instead of sauce. Added red wine, some red pepper for zing and about half a lemon to brighten it up. Waited to add the beans until the end so not too mushy. Great basic recipe.

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Asparagus with Lime and Ginger

Reviewed: Oct. 10, 2011

This was really good. I roasted the asparagus but that takes some more oil so the end result was a little more oil than I normally like so next time I will steam them.

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Kale and Chickpea Soup

Reviewed: Oct. 2, 2011

This was pretty good and loved the fact that it was so healthy. Something seemed to be lacking in the flavor department so I may need to experiment with some spices. Depending on the chorizo used, I may also add some tabasco.

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Linguine with Seafood and Sundried Tomatoes

Reviewed: Sep. 28, 2011

I hesitate to review this because I didn't make it exactly the way stated in the recipe due to ingredients I had on hand. That being said, I would imagine it to be a good, basic recipe but nothing that would be extraordinary. Used fresh lemon basil in place of the zest and that gave it a fresh flavor but I can see it being brighter with the zest. I'll try it again the right way and leave a final review.

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Pleasant Pork Chops

Reviewed: Sep. 26, 2011

This was a nice change to the usual chops - nothing out of this world but a good, solid, comfort food meal. Followed the suggestions of others and used wine and broth. Cooked for about 30 minutes and will probably increase it next time. Served with hot, buttered linguini.

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Banana Crumb Muffins

Reviewed: Sep. 14, 2011

Added vanilla and some cinnamon. Forgot to add nuts but will do that next time. Very moist and not too bananey. Also, don't usually have time to make the topping so just sprinkle with some cinnamon sugar.

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Mmm-Mmm Better Brownies

Reviewed: Sep. 10, 2011

I was disappointed with these. I found them to be a bit bland and the texture wasn't quite brownie-like.

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Blue Cheese Potato Salad

Reviewed: Aug. 14, 2011

This was delicious. I used white wine vinegar as that was what I had, added a little tabasco to the oil/vinegar mix. I didn't have any scallions so I just added a little dried onion for flavor. I adjusted liquid amounts to the amount of potato I had so it wasn't dry at all. Everyone loves that it's mayo free!

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Mango Chicken Bake

Reviewed: Aug. 4, 2011

This was delicious as is but with a few tweaks could be a 5 star recipe. The flavor and texture were very comforting but I would have like a greater punch of flavor so next time I will up the amount of curry paste and vinegar I put in. I would also mix the curry paste mixture into the rice before I put the chicken in - very hard to distribute the flavors afterwards. I was surprised that the mango wasn't as mangoey as I thought it would be but instead mellowed out and combined with the rice to be like a sticky rice. Maybe jarred mango would actually be better to maintain the flavor. Thank you for a great recipe!

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Greek Tzatziki

Reviewed: Jul. 10, 2011

I strained the yogurt and cucumber (after I squeezed it) but only for about 30 minutes because I was short on time. Really needs to sit in the fridge for about an hour or so. Didn't add the lemon zest and it was still great.

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Creamy Rice Pudding

Reviewed: Jul. 6, 2011

Hmmm, based on the other great reviews, maybe I did something wrong. This was not creamy at all, I may have cooked it too long or used too much rice. I'll have to try it again.

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Mango Blueberry Muffins With Coconut Streusel

Reviewed: Jul. 2, 2011

This was the second time I made them and I remembered that the first time it didn't have enough mango flavor. So, I added another half cup of mango with it's juice and decreased the blueberries. We're not big fans of coconut so I left it out. A nice change of pace from our usual muffins. I like them but my family isn't gaga over them.

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Greek Garbanzo Bean Salad

Reviewed: Jun. 6, 2011

Wow! I have been making this recipe for years and can't believe I've never rated it. It is fantastic as is and is open to all kinds of adjustments depending on ingredients on hand. More cheese is always better.

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Ginger Chili Citrus Salmon

Reviewed: May 14, 2011

This was so yummy! It looked to be a lot of marinade so I just scaled down the amount of ingredients. I also felt that much sugar was unnecessary after the honey so I just sprinkled a little on. Roasted at 400 in the oven, boiled the marinade and used as a sauce. Next time I might try baking it in the marinade. Sprinkled fresh cilantro on at the end. Delicious!

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Banana Oat Muffins

Reviewed: Apr. 10, 2011

These were pretty good - I make a similar one with blueberries from this site. I used half wheat flour, split the white sugar with some brown but may switch to all brown next time. I also added some yogurt and a little less milk. And of course, to make it less healthy...some chocolate chips.

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Mediterranean Puff Pastry Chicken

Reviewed: Apr. 7, 2011

The flavors in this were amazing. Couldn't find sun dried tomatoes so I used sun dried tomato pesto and omitted the regular pesto. This actually was a good move as some of my kids wouldn't have liked the chunks of tomato and it was very flavorful. I used chicken tenderloins so they cooked pretty fast. It would be nice to find a better way to wrap them, I sealed quite a bit and they still opened and leaked so the bottoms were soggy. I also think you could use crescent dough to make this but I'm sure it wouldn't be as good (but it would be cheaper!). I also think we prefer lots of smaller ones as opposed to several big ones. Thanks for an amazing recipe!

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4 users found this review helpful