working azmom of 2 Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1)

Bear's Picnic Veggie Dip

Reviewed: Feb. 5, 2012

I only had 9 oz of spinach so that is what I used. I had to doctor it up with 1/4 tsp each of onion and garlic powder. I also added 1/2 tsp of seasoned pepper. Everyone loved it but I know it would have been bland without the spice additions.

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Slow Cooker Oats

Reviewed: Jan. 30, 2012

I omitted the sugar, raisins and butter. I increased the apple to 2 medium gala apples and cooked on low overnight. Luckily I used some non-stick spray, otherwise it would have been awful to get out of the crockpot! Next time I will cook everything on low--it was awful trying to scrape everything out while it was hot. Great for weekday breakfasts--thanks!

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Spaghetti Squash I

Reviewed: Jan. 26, 2012

My squash took nearly 40 minutes to cook. I should have known this recipe would scream of basil from the 2tbsp it calls for. The basil completely overwhelmed the dish--I couldn't taste the feta or anything else. If I make it again, I would omit the basil completely and up the garlic. Kids still don't like squash!

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Ricotta Eggplant Rolls

Reviewed: Jan. 22, 2012

This was SO GOOD!!!!!!!!!! I used 3 medium sized eggplant with the stated amount of everything else (bread crumbs, eggs, and filling). I cheated and used 2 28 oz cans of Garlic & Herb prepared pasta sauce. If you don't want your cheese to ooze out the sides then leave the mozzarella out of the ricotta mixture and sprinkle it over the top of the eggplant rolls. I added more garlic and onion powder to my ricotta, just because. It was phenomenal!!! Thanks!

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Hot Chili Dip

Reviewed: Jan. 15, 2012

It was hit or miss at the party I took it to. Those who don't like olives wouldn't go near it. If I make it again the olives stay out. I used hot salsa and 1 can each hot chili and mild chili. I used a 16 oz jar of processed cheese and 26 oz of salsa as those are the sizes out here and I didn't figure those ounces would completely ruin a dish. Thanks!

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Slow-Cooked Meat Loaf

Reviewed: Jan. 12, 2012

The family was evenly divided on this recipe. Half liked it, half didn't. I didn't do the carrots or potatoes as none of us like the taste of the veggies cooked in the beef fat. There was something 'off' in the flavor, but I can't tell what it was. I will use my regular meatloaf recipe...two snaps up for the crockpot method though. I liked coming home to dinner being nearly done--it smelled wonderful! I took a different recipe's advice of using tinfoil as a holder. Take three equal lengths of tinfoil and place them in a star pattern. Place the molded meatloaf in the middle of the star and lift up the ends over the top of the meatloaf. Lift the entire package, place in the crock pot and then roll the foil down enough close the lid and set to low. When ready to serve, just pull up the foil all at once and the meatloaf lifts out without falling apart.

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Mini Cheesecakes

Reviewed: Jan. 12, 2012

These were very nice! I crunched up my vanilla wafers to make sure there was a good bottom everywhere, not just in certain places. I also did two toppings: cherry and chocolate. I melted some chocolate chips with a little bit of shortening and let it cool to room temp. Once the cheesecake cooled down and sank a little I filled the indentation with chocolate to the top. Those were a HUGE HIT! I made 48 of these and we didn't have ONE LEFT. That says something! Thanks!

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Cream Cheese Frosting II

Reviewed: Jan. 9, 2012

I increased my confectioners sugar to 4 cups as I needed it to keep its piped shape on the cupcakes I made.

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Mexican Pizza I

Reviewed: Jan. 5, 2012

Very nice for a 'quick' meal! I also oven 'fried' my tortillas at 375 for 15 minutes. I made a 'double stack' by spreading the beans on one tortilla then putting meat and cheese on it. I put a second tortilla on top, then covered it with more cheese and green onion. They went back in the oven until the cheese was melted. The kids gobbled them up! I omitted the green chiles, avocado, and olives as I didn't have them on hand. Kids loved dunking the wedges in a mixture of sour cream and salsa. Thanks!!!

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Chicken Primavera with Pasta

Reviewed: Dec. 19, 2011

This is definitely kid friendly and adaptable to whatever you have. Personally, I didn't really enjoy it, even after ramping up the seasonings to include fresh onion and garlic in the 'sauce'. The texture itself screams 'MELTED CREAM CHEESE' which doesn't appeal to this mommy. The kids each had seconds--in a pinch this is useful but won't be in our regular rotation of dishes. I used frozen broccoli as our vegetable and farfalle pasta instead of fettuccine.

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French Herb Bread

Reviewed: Dec. 18, 2011

The filling was nice, but it needed a LOT more garlic. The texture of the bread itself was nice, but I actually prefer the texture of a different Cinnamon Raisin bread on Allrecipes.com. I will use the filling (with more garlic) and the other recipe next time.

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Easy Chicken and Pasta

Reviewed: Nov. 14, 2011

Decent weeknight dish. I added a bunch of garlic and onion powders and it was still bland. I used Cream of Chicken soup on accident, but I don't think it would have made a difference. Great for a pinch, but even my easy going eaters weren't impressed.

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Chocolate Cherry Cake I

Reviewed: Nov. 13, 2011

This was divine! I followed others suggestions in adding vanilla and almond extracts. I also halved the sugar and used powdered sugar. My six year old and I made this together and got rave reviews. We frosted the cake then put it in the fridge overnight. It was absolute divinity, thanks! EDIT: I made this cake again for a birthday party. To keep the cherries from settling on the bottom I added 1/2 cup of the cake mix to the cherries in a separate bowl. Added the eggs to the remaining cake mix, roughly mixed, then added the cherry mixture and mixed until barely combined but not enough to break up the cherries too bad. I also added 1 tsp of almond extract. I baked for 18 minutes in muffin cups and frosted with Cream Cheese Frosting II from this recipe. It was the TALK of the office!

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Chocomint Toddy

Reviewed: Nov. 10, 2011

Delicious! I used chocolate almond milk with some extra hershey's syrup (I'm lactose intolerant). The coffee liqueur helps cut down on the sweetness of the peppermint and the cocoa. Fabulous! Thanks!

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Nachos Grande

Reviewed: Nov. 9, 2011

Kids thoroughly enjoyed it, but stated as written it fed four. The adults weren't as impressed as it had the overwhelming taste of canned soup that even salsa couldn't hide. BUT, for a kid friendly weeknight meal this definitely hit the spot! For us adults I added Frank's Red Hot and sour cream as sides.

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World's Best Pumpkin Pie

Reviewed: Nov. 1, 2011

It needed more spice! I'm lactose intolerant, so I liked that I could substitute lactose free milk and enjoy it instead of being sick or skipping over it. To ensure it 'set' (I used homemade pumpkin puree) I added a heaping tablespoon of cornstarch to the eggs before I added them in. I made a mousse and didn't use a pie crust. I also used 1/2 cup white sugar and 1/4 cup of brown sugar.

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Pina Colada Bread

Reviewed: Oct. 31, 2011

I did not care for this bread. It isn't sweet, it doesn't taste like coconut OR pineapple, much less pina colada. I also did not care for the consistency.

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Acorn Squash Butter

Reviewed: Oct. 24, 2011

There is NO getting around the fact that this is squash! LOL! It was a nice change from apple butter and mine baked up nicely and was extremely smooth. I omitted the clove as I didn't have any and substituted spiced apple cider for the apple juice. I made 1/3 of the recipe and needed a bit more than 4 oz of liquid, but no big deal. It would be fantastic on pumpkin bread. Thanks!

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Chef John's Baked Acorn Squash

Reviewed: Oct. 18, 2011

For those who love the taste of squash, this recipe is definitely for you! This recipe is for the squash lover at heart, and those who are looking for something really sugar sweet and coated will not find happiness here. All of us at the house decided this isn't the recipe for us as we prefer more...spice and less in your face squash flavor. The glaze was fantastic, but there simply wasn't enough to go around for us to enjoy our squash with. We're headed back to nutmeg, agave, cinnamon and vanilla. I halved the recipe and omitted the cayenne as the kids don't do spicy.

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Shepherd's Pie III

Reviewed: Oct. 17, 2011

I added some butter and garlic powder to the potoates. I used all ground beef and added some balsamic vinegar to the beef mixture as it seemed to be lacking in flavor. I added a ton of spices to the meat mixture as well. I used an entire can of broth as there wasn't a lot of liquid. Used a mixture of frozen carrots, corn and beans. Kids enjoyed it, hubby loved it.

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