I needed a quick dish for a potluck using foods that I had on hand, so I used this recipe as a springboard and happily give it 5 stars for flexibility! I used a can of wax beans and a total of 3 cups of various frozen veggies -- corn, peas, and a "fiesta" mix that had broccoli, carrots, red peppers, green beans, kidney beans, white beans, and garbanzos. Had to substitute cream of mushroom soup, forgot to include any onion, only had sharp yellow cheddar on hand, and used 1/2 cup of Miracle Whip Free instead of a whole cup of mayo. Didn't have any crackers, but I had a honey wheat bagel, so I put it through the food processor and tossed the crumbs with 2 T of melted butter, 1 teaspoon of dried basil, and a scant teaspoon of garlic powder. Baked it in a 2 qt. casserole dish for about 45 minutes. It was a tasty, filling sidedish for a group meal that otherwise had no vegetables, so it was sort of a happy accident in every way! I don't think there's any way to mess this one up!

I wanted a simple tomato soup recipe, but I think this one was a bit too simple. I thought it just tasted like hot tomato juice. I only used half the sugar and added a half teaspoon of dried basil but still felt it was uninteresting. If I use the base recipe again I think I would use a more flavorful juice like spicy V-8 or some other veggie blend.

My hummus has always been a favorite among my social circle (I can skip the party and no one cares as long as I send my hummus in my place) but I've been frustrated by both the cost and the staleness of the tahini that my grocery store carries. This tahini-free recipe seemed like the perfect solution ... but oh, I really missed the sesame flavor! I took one reviewer's advice and substituted sesame oil (which isn't exactly cheap either) but a tablespoon wasn't enough flavor. I wasn't content with it until I put in 2 or 3 tablespoons of tahini. Ahhhhh .... just right!

After reading all the reviews I decided to try this recipe with just one small change, using a teaspoon each of orange and lemon zest. Oh, and the ricotta cheese I had on hand was low-fat. I must say I was surprised by the results. With the cinnamon, vanilla, and coarser ricotta texture, it reminded me more of a dense rice pudding or bread pudding than cheesecake. I liked it, though! I served it to guests with the question, "What does it need for a topping?" and someone made the excellent suggestion of drizzling just a little melted white chocolate and a spoonful of whole cranberry sauce over each piece. Mmmmm, that sounds really yummy -- or better yet, lingonberries! Anyway, I know I'll enjoy making this cheesecake and continuing to experiment with possible toppings.

I had an acorn squash on hand that I was afraid would go bad if I didn't get it used up, so I decided to give this recipe a try on a chilly autumn afternoon. Unfortunately I didn't have any chicken broth, and I did have some half & half that also needed to be used up, so I replaced the broth with a cup of half & half and a cup of water with a cube of veggie bouillon. I liked the combination of spices (curry is a wonderful touch!) but my end product surprised me with its sweetness. I think it definitely needed the chicken broth! I pureed it right in the pot with a stick blender, and that worked fine. I did use the bacon garnish but didn't feel it fit very well with the other flavors. I would probably skip it in the future. I might make this again under the same "what can I do with an acorn squash?" circumstances, but I'm actually more inclined to try tossing some buttered breadcrumbs with the same spice mix, onion, and celery and baking it in the acorn squash halves.

There are plenty of recipes for oven omelets full of veggies and meat, but I was looking for a very simple protein dish so that the fresh fruit and cranberry scones I served wouldn't have to compete with a riot of flavors. This recipe was perfect. The only changes I made were to skip the melted butter and just grease the baking dish with a tablespoon of butter, and I reduced the remaining recipe by half for an 8" square baking dish. The Jack cheese is essential to the flavor. I made it once with mozzarella and found that it was a bit too bland; but either Jack or Swiss gives it a nice more-than-just-eggs kick. It makes a pretty dish and slices very neatly. I will make it often.

I've stuffed squash with sausage & rice for years, but needed a lighter side dish for an autumn meal. This was just the ticket! The only change I made was to put a little water in the baking dish to help hydrate the squash as it baked, and I was pleased with the tender texture when it was done. Very tasty, and a nice way to add a little fruit to a meal -- and guess what, it's just as good with pears as with apples!

I don't have a lot of experience with asparagus (not good experience anyway!) so I was happy to find these basic instructions. I never would have supposed it would steam this fast. No more overcooked asparagus! (Is there anything more disgusting??)

I served this salad for a scrapbook retreat, and the women gave it a unanimous 5-star rating. The only change I made was substituting walnuts for the cashews just because that's what I had on hand, and for the amount of lettuce I had I only needed half of the dressing (and that was PLENTY). Very, very tasty, and a nice way to add some fruit to a meal even in winter. Thanks so much, Nora!

I'm not fond of breaded meats, but I knew this would present well for a women's dinner I was serving. I made it exactly by the recipe except I had an extra breast so I needed a little extra olive oil; but the breading amount was just right for a light coating. Very flavorful and tender! Will definitely fall back on this recipe whenever chicken breasts are on sale!

WOW! This is the best flavored pork I have ever made. It got RAVE reviews from friends and family. I made it in the crockpot with a butt roast, and because I had no apple jelly on hand, I threw in a jar of my mom's homemade peach preserves instead. It turned out fabulous. Unfortunately I got the bright idea of cooking brown rice in the sauce and that absolutely didn't work -- the rice would not take up any moisture no matter how long I cooked it, and I ended up sadly discarding the whole mess -- so we didn't even have any sauce for the meat and it was still remarkable. Can't wait to make this again!

Made this recipe as given except I used half whole wheat flour. I was satisfied with the outcome but next time I will probably mix fresh pressed garlic into the butter instead of using garlic powder. It was easy to make and turned out a very basic, very adequate bread with a nice texture. No raves but no complaints either. I can see why others are using it as a pizza crust recipe.

Wow, this is a yummy combination of flavors! I made minor changes: I always substitute whole wheat pastry flour for white, and because I had no sour cream on hand, I used plain yogurt. I also followed the lead of other reviewers and and used almond extract instead of vanilla. I baked it in a shallow loaf pan. It came out just great, with the texture of muffins and the appearance of coffee cake. The small amount of glaze was just right, although I think it would have been fine without it. I served it to guests this morning and they said it was their favorite part of the meal.

I've always been disappointed in the "flat" flavor when I've attempted potato soup in the past, but thyme and rosemary are a wonderful, savory combination that earns 5 stars for this recipe. I had a lot of potatoes and some ham on hand, so I cooked up 5 lbs. of cubed potatoes, 1/2 pound of chopped baby carrots, and a pound of cubed ham in 4 cups of chicken broth and 4 cups of water. (I think celery would be a good addition too but I forgot.) I put the seasonings in the broth so that the potatoes would absorb them from the get-go, increasing the amounts to 1 tsp. each of black pepper and rosemary, 2 tsp. of thyme. (I left out the salt, assuming that the ham and broth would be salty enough.) I made the white sauce without increasing the onion but did saute it with 2 cloves of garlic, and I used 2 cups of milk to stretch it a little farther. (I think I'll use 2 cans of evaporated milk in the future.) It made a nice big pot of soup that I will divide and freeze, but the first bowl was my lunch today with some cornbread on the side. I'm lovin' it!

I made this as an accompaniment to a pork loin roast, so I left out the eggs and stirred some of the roast drippings into the rice just before serving. It was very tasty and very filling. I made soup from the leftovers.

I've always winged it when making egg salad so can never be sure how it will turn out. Decided I needed to be more consistent, so I chose this recipe as a a touchstone. It's perfect. I find that I like adding a couple tablespoons of sweet relish but otherwise I don't usually change anything (unless I don't have green onions on hand, in which case I finely mince a couple tablespoons of yellow onion). Very good served in pita pockets with lettuce.

I usually find tuna salad incredibly bland so I was intrigued by this recipe. I would never have thought to put cranberries with tuna, but it's great! Like other reviewers, I chose to throw in some sliced almonds, and I stuffed it into pita pockets between 2 leaves of lettuce. It made tuna salad seem like something special.

Very yummy! I increased the baking powder to 2 tsp., decreased the cinnamon to just 1 tsp., added a scant tsp. of salt, used whole wheat pastry flour, and diced fresh strawberries. Turned out great! With less cinnamon the subtle flavors of the strawberries and bananas come through nicely. Made 18 muffins, just a little larger than standard. This one's a keeper!

A nice combination of flavors! I left out the onion (too many people are picky about onions) and croutons (didn't have any), and I used half raspberries and half blueberries. I also used mixed baby greens instead of all spinach. Next time I would be a little more cautious about dumping all the dressing into the bowl at once -- I hadn't measure the greens and it was really more dressing than I normally like. Nice flavor, though, and no one else complained. This is definitely a keeper during berry season!

This is a perfect "springboard" recipe -- a basic foundation to which I can add whatever I have available for a particular meal. I've made it twice now, once with bacon (my favorite) and once with sliced turkey sausage links (a bit bland). I add: 1/4 cup each diced red and green peppers and a couple of garlic cloves (all of which I saute with the onions in the bacon drippings), a small chopped tomato, some fresh parsley, and a few dashes of tabasco. I leave out the melted butter, and in contrast to a previous reviewer, I reduce the amount of cheese to a modest sprinkling on top to cut down on fat. In a square 9x9 baking dish, I had to cook it about 45 minutes. Good stuff!