This was great! I was making dinner for a guest (and my fiance) tonight and could not find a salad recipe I wanted to make; the ones I found were too labor-intensive - I was running errands all weeekend and didn't have oodles of time to spend in the kitchen making any of them). Since I had bought a bagged salad mix last week that I have not gotten around to using, this was perfect! I was able to use up something that would have had to been tossed otherwise AND my dinner guest LOVED this!!! Prep couldn't be easier too (I didn't even have to chop my onion!). My only regret is that I only mde half the recipe (I only had 1/2 cups worth of mayo left in the fridge) lol! :-( My only change was to add a little milk to thin to my liking (as is, this is very thick - almost too thick, IMHO). If it weren't for the thickness issue, I would have given 5 stars, but tastewise, this is certainly deserving of the most superb rating. Thanks for sharing! :-)

This was OK. I guess I am just "addicted" (and used to...) the super sugary-sweet store frosting lol! I found this to have a very buttery taste and to be only mildly sweet. My fiance thought it was very similar to bakery-made frosting (go figure!). Made a double batch, using real (unsalted) butter and Madagascar vanilla for optimal results (no cocoa for me - I wanted vanilla frosting). My Kitchen-Aid mixer made prep a breeze (I added about 1.5 T milk with great results - consistency was perfect and frosting 'set' nicely). I used almost the entire batch to frost a double-layer chocolate cake (One Bowl Chocolate Cake by shirelyo, also on this site). Note: You must DEFINITELY double this if you plan to frost a multiple layer cake or more than 12 cupcakes; as is, this is enough to frost one 9 x 13 inch cake at most!!! Although this was decent, I think I will continue my search for the "perfect" frosting. Thanks anyways!

Yummy cake! It's my fiance's Bday today. His favorite cake is chocolate with vanilla frosting, so I decided to give this recipe a try, frosting with Vanilla - Chocolate Powdered Sugar Frosting (also on this site). I've never made a cake from scratch before (not that I can't, I just don't have the time to... lol!) - this recipe proved to be INSANELY easy, quick and economical (most well-stocked pantries will have all of the ingredients on hand). It's SUPER moist, layers well (I made a two-layer cake) and has just the right amount of chocolatiness (IMHO). Although nothing can beat the convenience of a boxed mix, this is a great substitute. B. Powell's suggestion to whip up a second batch of ingredients in a Zip-lock bag for later is genius (thanks!). Next time, I think I will use a full cup of cocoa and possibly substitute 1 c. coffe for the water. I would have never guessed that this was a Hershey's recipe (and I even used Hershey's cocoa!). Great recipe, shirleyo! :-)

This was allright. It's certainly filling (and makes a TON!!!), but it's a shame that my fiance and I didn't like it enough to eat any of the leftovers. :( I found that this recipe is pretty forgiving; add anything you want to - beans, veggies, etc. I pretty much followed Gweneth's directions to the letter except for a few substitutions. I added a can of sweet corn and subbed a can of cream of chicken with herbs soup for the cream of mushroom called for (I am cleaning out my pantry to make room for all of my Christmas goodies!) and revised the amount of cheese (based on what I had available). I also shredded a Mexican-seasoned rotisserie chicken I purchased at the grocery store to speed along prep (I had little time to devote to cooking, but was craving a warm, homey meal lol!). My only other changes were to follow the directions on my box of Minute Rice (i.e. equal parts rice/water) and to mix everything together in my Corning Ware casserole dish (including half of the cheese) and then topping with the remaining cheese and baking for 25 minutes, covered / 15 minutes uncovered. Served with pickled jalapenos and tortilla chips, this was an OK meal. Thanks for sharing. :-)

Pretty good, even for someone who is NOT a wine drinker (at all!). My fiance enjoys wine very much, but never wants to drink alone. :-) Since I made a simple red pasta sauce for dinner tonight, I thought it would be a shame to not open one of our (i.e. "his") bottles of wine to serve with it. I wasn't wowed with the mix of the Chianti I used and the ginger ale, but thought it was decent (and is the only way I will drink wine from now on!). My only gripe (if you can call it that) is that my wine cubes didn't freeze well. I stuck them in the freezer at 2:30 PM this afternoon and at 7:30 PM, they were only semi-solid. My fiance said that alcohol takes a LONG time to freeze, so I guess I'll need to plan ahead next time (or keep a supply handy). I can't wait to try this with fruity wines - strawberry, peach, blackberry, etc. My local winery sells a variety of these kinds of wine. Now I have a reason to stock up! Thanks for sharing. :)

Nothing special, IMHO. I worked from home today, but didn't feel like going to the grocery store 5 minutes down the road to get the few items I needed to make chimichangas because of the terrible weather (it's snowing like CRAZY here in Chicago!!!). I had all the ingredients on hand to make Amatriciana (and was able to clean my pantry to boot!), so I decided to give this a try. My only change (based on what I had on hand) was to sub diced tomatoes for stewed. I must say, this is the simplest, easiest recipe - ever (and very economical too!). Served with crusty French bread (to sop up the sauce) and homemade wine coolers (EJRIPPY), this was certainly authentic, just not to my liking. I think I will stick with Cajun Pasta Fresca (Nicole) when I am craving a fresh tomato sauce. Thanks anyways. :-)

Yummy Verushka!!! I LOOOVED this. :-) I made a batch of cinnamon rolls (Clone of a Cinnabon by Marsha) to devour while finishing my Christmas tree decorating. This cocoa was the perfect complement! My fiance didn't care for this (thought it was too "pepperminty"), but I thought the mint flavor was spot on. This reminds me exactly of Starbuck's mint cocoa - but WAAAAY cheaper (yea!)!! I do have a couple of suggestions tho.... First, I only buy fat-free milk. Although I am sure that whole milk would produce a much richer cocoa, it is not necessary. With all of the calories one consumes during the holiday, wasting them on a full-fat version of this is not wise. :) Second, you should try to crush your peppermint candies/canes as best you can. It is not necessary to crush to "dust" form, but the degree to which it melts depends on how tiny the pieces are. And last, USE THE BEST CHOCOLATE YOU CAN FIND! I used Ghirardelli semi sweet squares (a nice reminder of my recent trip to San Fran!). Garnish with REAL whipped cream (some things you can't skimp on lol!) and a candy cane or crushed candies and ENJOY! Thanks for sharing. :)

OK folks, here's the deal. I've been eyeing this recipe for a while, but b/c of the effort involved, I was too timid to give it a try. If you use a bread machine or KitchenAid & follow other's sugg. for rising (in your fridge) overnight, these are quite easy to assemble. I pretty much followed Marsha's direct. to the ltr. - w/ a few except. 1) I subbed (unsalted) butter for marg. & used fast rise yeast (intended for bread machine use - I needed a full 1/4 oz. pkg. + a tad of another). 2) I warmed my milk in the micro. (I use my infared therm. from Sears Auto to test temp. - works like a charm!). 3) I allowed my melted butter & eggs to come to room temp. (very impt.!); for the eggs, soak in warm H2O for a few min. 4) I used the dough cycle on my BM (1.5 hr. + 10 min. to rest per recipe). I placed a (cut) roll in ea. of 6 well-greased jumbo muffin cups, covered w/ plastic wrap & let rise overnight. I placed the remaining rolls in a greased disposable pie pan, covered w/ a double-thickness of aluminum foil & froze for later. This AM, I took my rolls out of the fridge, placed them on my stove for a 1/2 hr. (while it was preheating) & then baked at 350 for 25 min. Although I like the muffin tin idea, I think I will not try this again. My rolls were a little hard on the outside (and VERY dark!). Oh well! Other than not liking the frosting (I'll keep searching...) and the muffin idea, these were EXCELLENT! I can't WAIT to thaw the ones in the freezer! Thanks for sharing. :)

This salad rocks!!! Because my fiance doesn't like fruit, I haven't had an opportunity to make this until now. :-( I bought a bag of fresh cranberries a couple of weeks ago, intending to make my "ever-famous" homemade relish for Turkey Day. At 11 PM on Wednesday night (ikes!), I didn't have the energy to stand over a hot stove to watch cranberries "pop," but was still craving something cranberry-ish, so I decided to give this a try. I made a few modifications, basically because of what I had on hand and to accommodate my diabetic friend and mother-in-law "to be." I halved (most) everything, using only 1 (12 oz.) bag of cranberries, 1/2 c. sugar substitute, a entire 20 oz. can of UNSWEETENED crushed pineapple, 1/4 c. chopped walnuts, an 8 oz. tub of light Cool-whip and 2 c. marshmallows (which is equivalent to 7 oz. worth). I also added a chopped (unpeeled) Granny Smith apple for a little crunch. In order for this to turn out with excellent results, I do have a few tips. First, FREEZE, then THAW your cranberries. They will be plumper, juicier and the brightest, most beautiful popping red color! Also, if you decide to add an apple as I did, dip the cut pieces into your pineapple juice (rather than waste it). The acidity of the juice will prevent them from browning (exactly as lemon juice would). Thanks for sharing, Micki! This was a hit with everyone and will most definitely be a repeat in my kitchen. :)

This was decent - and it's easy enough for my hectic work schedule! I leave my house at 7 AM and am rarely home until 7 PM or later. Because of this, I rely on my slow-cooker recipes a LOT!!! My fiance's dad first told me about this recipe. He makes it often for himself and my mother-in-law "to be." The only difference is that he drains the oil from his giardiniera (i.e. NOT pickled vegetables- here in Chicago, you cannot find that stuff; you can only find giardiniera mix packed in EVOO in either extra hot, hot, medium or mild heat varieties). I changed the ingredient equivalents a little bit, pretty much because of what I could find at the store. I used an entire 16 oz. jar of hot giardiniera, a 20 oz. jar of sliced pepperocini (I took other's advice to not use whole peppers), a 14.5 oz. can of beef broth and a 3.5 lb. bottom round roast (which my butcher said is the same thing as rump roast). Oh, and I added ~ 3 minced garlic cloves. Yesterday was a busy day (putting up Christmas decorations), so this no-fuss meal was perfect :-) I picked up a loaf of crusty French bread to stuff with the yummy meat mixture. Topped with melted mozzarella, these hit the spot. I still like Italian Beef Sandwiches (Dick Pierce) better, but because of the cooking method (and the need for a meat slicer - which I don't have), I don't make them often. I can see myself re-purposing leftovers to make the ever popular Chicago-style Italian beef pizza! Yum, yum!!! Thanks for sharing :-)

Very good! Everything is perfect as is (i.e. there is just enough streusel topping, despite other's advice to double it) and works very well together (i.e. crust, custard and topping). Made these to take to my future in-laws Thanksgiving dinner. Everyone liked them a LOT (except for my fiance, a confirmed pumpkin hater and his two non-dessert eating brothers :-) ). Even my parents liked these, which came as a surprise to me since they are very "traditional" folks (i.e. plain 'ol pumpkin pie eaters). Please note: To make the crust, you MUST melt your butter and THEN add it to your oat mixture. Amy doesn't specify whether or not to do this (but I know to do so from having made plenty of bar recipes before). Oh, and your streusel topping will crumble MUCH easier if you cut your (cold) butter into very tiny pieces and use a pastry blender (i.e. special kitchen gadget for this purpose) to "blend." Finally, if you have a stand mixer, let it do your work for you. I beat my egg whites to soft peaks in no time flat (which sure beats doing it by hand!!!)! All in all, this is an excellent bar recipe, but I must admit that I am a traditionalist too, and much prefer the standby pumpkin pie, at least on Tday. :-) These sure are good (even cold!) with a generous dollop of Cool-whip though.... Thanks so much for sharing!

Eh. Not good, but not horrible either. For one, the finished product was terribly unappealing.... My kraut was very, very brownish, as if I overcooked it (???) - even though I only cooked on low for 5 hours as directed. Since I had some smoked sausage in the fridge that was about to expire I decided to give this recipe a try. I "really" wanted to make kielbasa alfredo or island kielbasa (both here on Allrecipes), but my fiance didn't particularly care for either (sigh...), so we both agreed on this. I'd much rather have had plain ol' sauerkraut and sausage sans the extras (I added a good dose of honey and stone ground mustard, 1/2 T caraway seeds and half of a chopped (peeled) GrannySmith apple as others suggested) and cooking method. My only change (other than adding the extra ingredients) was to halve everything because I only had 1 lb. of sausage. My choice of beer was Budweiser (I am from St. Louis, after all!!!). Served over garlic mashed potatoes with rye bread on the side, this was a decent meal, but not one I'd repeat again. Thanks anyways :-)

Meh. I'm surprised this made it into Allrecipes' "Tried & True" Quick & Easy Favorite's cookbook (sorry!). This was quite mediocre. Just like Lampchop's Mom suggested, this is basically a "snooty" version of Chicken Helper. I was really hoping for a great tasting update of a childhood favorite (yes, I LOOOVED all the Helpers - beef, chicken tuna), but this was bland, bland, bland! I even s&p'd my chx. REALLY well, add. 1 sm. chopeed onion & 3 cloves of minced garlic. As many have advised (thanks!), I too used only 2 pans. I can't see the pt. in using 3 sparate pans PLUS a casserole dish (my gosh!) - just boil your pasta, and, while it's cooking, brown your chx./veggies 2gether, add the sauce ing., bring to a gentle boil, reduce as directed and then add the cooked pasta and voila! One thing to note: Fresh herbs can be $$$, esp. if you're on a budget (and my herb picking/garden season is long gone here in the "Windy City"). The $'s spent on fresh chives (parsley was relatively inexpensive, but chives were $1.99) was a waste when considering how much I actually used! One more thing to note: I wish I would have mix. all of my sauce ing. 2gether (in a bowl, w/ a whisk) B4 add. to the skillet. The cheese part was kinda grainy. Served w/ garlic butter crescents, this was a decent meal, but nothing to rave about. My fiance & I didn't even have 2nd's or save the leftovers :( Thx. anyways!

This was OK, but I wasn't particularly impressed (sorry!). For one, the meat was too salty. I thought about dec. the amt. of salt, but decided not to b/c the opinions on this matter were equally divided. On the contrary, my fiance thought the meat was bland and that it wasn't salty at all lol! For ease of prep. - and from an economic standpoint - this is deserving of 10 *'s, but since I am rating on taste alone, I can only award 3. I ended up purchasing an "about to exp." 3.5 lb. pork shoulder roast for under $5. I guess if you don't have the spices called for readily avail., this would be a $'s dish to prep., but since I had most of the ingredients on hand, it wasn't for me (yippie!). I ended up cutting my meat into lg. chunks (and I didn't remove the fat...) and would have seared it if I had the time (I was prep. this late last night). Oh, and I did not squeeze any of the juice from my oranges, but wish I had (at least 1) b/c the citrus flavor was nonexistent, IMHO. My only other ch. was to slow cook everything on low for 10 hrs. Note: Be sure to use kosher salt (there IS a diff. b/t iodized (table) & kosher salt). Also, even with 3.5 lb. of meat, there was barely enuf to save for BBQ sand. (darn!). Served in corn tortillas w/ all the fixins', Mexican rice & my fiance's AWESOME guac, this was a decent meal. Had it not been for the guac (which there is none left of, BTW), I would have been sorely disappointed - and HUNGRY!!! Thansks for sharing :)

Pretty good! Tonight's meal was a "German" themed one with all the fixins' - Bavarian sauerkraut, steak fries and German beer! My fiance didn't care for this at all (the sauce, that is). I liked this, but also didn't care for the sauce (but I liked it more than my fiance did...). I found the sauce to be too bland - it was very light, not typical of German foods/sauces. I also didn't care for the mushrooms (neither my fiance or I like them), but added them anyways to enhance the flavor and then picked them out. We're wierd that way... while my fiance and I both do not like mushrooms, we enjoy mushroom sauces (go figure!). I remember having schnitzel in both Germany and Austria; some served it with brown gravy and some did not (just plain). Overall, this was a nice, hearty and economical meal (pork cutlets on sale at my local grocer, pounded thin, worked well), that I will make again sans the sauce (I'll find another recipe for that). Thanks for sharing :)

Hmmmm. I know many reviewers have been quite impressed with this, but I wasn't :-( My fiance and I were invited to a friends house to watch yesterday's U of IA vs. Ohio State football game and I wanted to bring something to "munch" on. Buffalo wings are usually a good game watching food, but I don't like them. When I saw this recipe, I thought it would be perfect - and filling! I guess I just don't care for the sandwich idea.... On second thought, when I go to BWW or Hooter's, I usually don't order "plain" (boneless) wings - I go for spicy garlic, mango habanero, etc. The hot sauce taste (I used Pete's wing sauce) was overwhelming, IMHO. I was hoping to taste a bit of 'zing' from the Ranch, but it was nonexistent (there doesn't seem to be much point in adding it... perhaps adding the entire packet would do the trick???). I also think that had I had toasted my kaiser rolls so they weren't so soft (which is great for hamburgers, but not for this; it just soaded thru the bun) these would have been better???? Oh, and I topped my sandwich with blue cheese dressing, but didn't really care for that either. I'm glad I didn't go thru the trouble of making it homemade. I might make this in the future (prep couldn't be easier - and frozen chicken breasts work great in the sc!) for buffalo chicken pizza, but wouldn't again if not for that. Thanks anyways :)

Meh. This was quite mediocre (IMHO). I wanted to make something quick for lunches this past week, but had little time available to cook over the weekend. This recipe seemed to fit the bill perfectly (and it certainly did!), but unfortunately, the end result was just so-so (bummer!). For starters, once refrigerated, everything dried up (it's as if the sauce completely evaporated...). Additionally, eaten fresh, the flavors (i.e. cilantro, onion, etc.) didn't have a chance to "meld" and the sesame taste was totally overwhelming. On day 2 (and now day 3), the flavor has improved, but my pasta is dry as a bone :( I scaled this recipe to 7 servings because I only had 2 cups worth of chicken (I purchased 2 (8 oz.) bags of oven roasted chicken strips on sale at my local grocer and cut them into tiny pieces - this was WAAAAY cheaper than purchasing a rotisserie chicken or a large "chunk" from my deli counter and much quicker than cubing/shredding myself). I wish I would have made the full 10 servings worth of dressing. I believe that would have taken care of the dryness issue, at least somewhat. Served with a ciabatta roll, this makes for a filling, yet light lunch. I just don't think I like this enough to add to my regular rotation. Thanks for sharing :)

This was just so-so for me. I've never been a huge fan of egg salad, but I will eat it on occasion, hence my desire to try Wifey's recipe. The taste of this was decent, but it didn't WOW me. I love my mom's deviled eggs (a passed down recipe from my Grandma), so I tried to duplicate her recipe and Wifey's. Although my attempt did not turn out as expected, it didn't "ruin" the outcome either. My only change (to mimic my mom's recipe) was to add another t of (plain) mustard and 4 t distilled white vinegar. Oh, and I added one small rib of celery, mainly because I wanted to use it up. I've been eating this on wheat bread with a slice of Boston lettuce for lunch so far this week. It is certainly simple and satisfying but, I don't think it will be a repeat with me. I guess I don't like egg salad that much after all. Thanks for sharing :)

This was allright. Made this on a Sunday and my fiance and I finally got around to eating it one day shy of a week later! I was planning to make Hungarian Goulash II this past week (I just started a new job and don't get home until 7ish; I had planned to slow cook a warm meal during the week, but was sick with the flu so I just made this this past weekend!) and thought this would be the perfect side dish to serve with it. My fiance didn't care for this at all (he wasn't fond of the sweet taste - and whoa is this sweet!!!); I thought this was so-so - pretty mediocre, IMHO. My fiance also felt that my "attempt" to pair sauerkraut with goulash was not a good idea lol :) All in all, I am glad I gave this a try, but because my fiance and I weren't impressed, I probably won't make it again. For those of you thinking of giving this a try, my only CRITICAL suggestion is to cut down on the sugar and oil (I cut back to 1/2 cup oil, but didn't decrease the amount of sugar called for). Thanks for sharing Dixie :-)

Meh. This was just "OK." Made this for dinner tonight. I DO like Rhonda's version better than Enviro2's (Hungarian Goulash II) though.... For one, I like the fact that Rhonda's version can be prepared in the slow cooker. I also like her sauce much better (Enviro2's is very tomatoey; Rhonda's is subtly sweet). My fiance liked this more than I did. He did find the meat to be a tad bland, but enjoyed the sauce quite a bit. My only suggestion for anyone giving this a try is to season your meat (to taste) with seasoned salt (or table salt) AND pepper and brown in a skillet BEFORE adding to the slow cooker. I would have, but am battling a terrible sinus infection and just didn't feel up to it. Served over egg noodles with warm caraway rye wheat bread, creamed spinach and Sauerkraut Salad (Joan Long Dixon - also on this site), this was a decent meal. Thanks for sharing your recipe, Rhonda :)