My daughter wanted an Ariel cake so I started doing a lot of reseach as I've heard all sorts of stories (horror) making a barbie cake. The best idea was saran wrapping the legs of the doll if you don't use a doll topper, and making a base for the barbie (1 or 2) 9" round cakes so that the barbie isn't too tall for the cake. I ended up using just 1 9" round for the base and Ariel was still a little too tall. I was able to pipe frosting around her waist so it wasn't a problem. I tried adding some crushed pineapples and juice to the cake mix as I normally bake my cakes this way, but it was a disaster. The taste was fantastic, but the cake was so heavy, it was splitting everywhere. So, I would follow the directions to the tee on the cake box. I did use 2 boxes. I agree with the others that the pampered chef bowl is the best. All of this work was so worth it all. I would make this again for sure!

Reviewed On: Sep. 8, 2008

Very flavorful and my husband said it definately deserved 5 stars! We try to cook as healthy as possible, so I left out the bacon as we didn't have any anyhow. I did use regular mayo but used a little less and added sour cream to it. I sauteed onions, garlic and spinach in evoo and added it to the feta cheese mixture. I did use what the others recommended with the evoo, lemon juice, and oregano. Next time I would leave out the oregano, or use a little less than the teaspoon it calls for. I made sure to baste the chicken after about 10-15 minutes just to moisten the chicken. The chicken was so moist! My 4 year old, 17 month old, hubby, and I devoured it all! We loved it!

Reviewed On: Sep. 8, 2008

We all really enjoyed this. The kids even had seconds. I usually use brown gravy from the packets, as and I didn't have any in my pantry, I tried this recipe and I was pleasantly surprised. One thing I did change up was that I added chopped/minced onions into the ground beef mixture so that the kids would eat them. They ate them up! Also, I doubled the sauce mixture and used half water and half chicken broth just to add some extra flavor. Also used a little less than half of what the beef granules calls for since others have mentioned how salty it was. We will definately make it again! Thanks :)

Reviewed On: Aug. 21, 2008