This was outstanding! I was so excited to see this recipe on here, because I’m crazy about quince. The first time I tried them, I thought, “Where has this fruit been all my life?!” I think I added too much water, though, during the quince cooking stage. Next time I’ll add a couple of cups to start with, and add more if needed. From 4½ pounds of whole quince, I got more than 5 lbs of quince puree! Like I said: too much water. It took a long time to cook down. I spread it into a pan and left it in a 100 degree F oven overnight (we have a “bread proof” cycle that was perfect for this). Wonderful! As good as the membrillo we had in Portugual. Perfect with crusty bread and slices of manchego cheese. It made a ton, so I'm giving away slabs as gifts to a select few!

I can't believe I never reviewed this--it's one of my go-to quick dinners. It's a delicious, savory, simple dish. I brown the breadcrumbs in olive oil and set them aside; then I warm the anchovies and garlic and some red pepper flakes in olive oil. I save about a half cup of the pasta-cooking water and add that to the anchovy mixture, toss that with the pasta, then mix in the breadcrumbs and top with cheese.

I loved this recipe. Seattle has great bakeries so I almost never bake my own bread, but if I lived in the middle of nowhere, this might be the recipe I'd use for everyday bread. It had a wonderful spongy texture, mild flavor, and chewy crust. I made the starter the night before, made the dough, and then—because I didn't have time to bake that night—I shaped the loaves and let them rest overnight in the refrigerator and baked them the next morning. The loaves got very slightly overproofed, but it was worth it for the convenience factor. I used whole wheat pastry flour, which is all I had at home, and the result was an almost-white bread that would be great for sandwiches (our bread got eaten too fast to try it with anything fancier than butter); it kept well overnight, too. The dough was very wet, but I just kind of kept kneading it in a mixing bowl, which was more of a flopping-the-dough-around action than kneading...but by the time I was ready to shape the loaves, the dough had tightened up nicely. I baked one round loaf and one in a loaf pan; I used a baking stone and covered the loaves with cast iron Le Crueset-type pans to trap the steam and give them a thick crackling crust. Wonderful!

This is a good, classic angel food cake recipe. I had leftover egg whites and creme Anglaise from making a big birthday cake, so I used them up in this light-tasting dessert. My only change was the baking method & temp: I don't really understand the reason for the cold oven. From what I was taught, you want to quickly set the cake's structure and not lose the air you so carefully beat into the batter. I baked the cake in a preheated 350 degree oven and started testing the cake for doneness at about 45 mins.

I really liked this recipe for a classic yellow cake. I let my ingredients come up to room temperature before I started mixing. Next time, I might add an additional egg yolk just for a deeper yellow color. I used two 8-inch cake pans, so I needed to increase the baking time since I had more batter per pan. I started testing the cakes at 25 minutes, and they took about 35-40 minutes. The cake wasn't too dry for me, but next time I may use a soaking syrup for just a little added moistness.

This is my favorite type of frosting. I usually make it using an Italian meringue (cooking the sugar syrup and adding it to the whipped egg whites), but the Swiss meringue method in this recipe worked well. I made a half-batch of the recipe and made it into a chocolate buttercream: I melted 2 oz. of chopped unsweetened chocolate in the microwave and let it cool. Once the buttercream was mixed according to the directions, I blended in the cool melted chocolate and a third of a cup of sifted cocoa powder. One half batch was just enough to fill and frost an 8-inch layer cake, if you're careful with it.

I've had my eye on this recipe for a couple of years now, and finally got around to making it. The flavor is great—I'd never baked with mahleb before. I didn't like working with the dough, though. I found it to be greasy and sticky, almost like braiding cookie dough. I think that the next time I make this recipe (and I do plan to make it again) I'll try bread flour instead of all-purpose and use the method for mixing brioche: letting the dough mix and the gluten structure form before adding room temperature butter, a tablespoon or so at a time, until fully incorporated.

Honestly, I'm not much of a fan of this recipe. I wanted to make it as written in order to review it...but as soon as I saw that the recipe called for 4 eggs, I thought, "Uh-oh. These are gonna be puffy." Sure enough, the result is puffy, cakey cookies that don't keep their sharp edges (and yes, I refrigerated the dough after the cookies were rolled out and cut, didn't over-cream the butter, etc.). I think rolled cookies should have a crisper butter-cookie texture. The flavor was too mild and eggy as well. If I made this recipe again, I'd use just two eggs plus one egg yolk, and double the amount of vanilla extract.

These were delicious—but you have to change the preparation method. Meatballs will never get nice and brown cooking in a liquid; they'll just turn gray. You need to brown them separately. I cut about half an onion in a fine dice for the meatballs, the rest in thin slices. Use cayenne pepper, not what Americans call chili powder: that's a Mexican spice blend that'll change the flavor. I added a clove of minced garlic and a bit of minced ginger to the meat mixture as well, and salt. I only used a ¼ tsp. of cloves, because they're so strong, but I probably could've gone with the full amount. For the sauce, I caramelized the onions; added the garlic, ginger, and spices and stirred for a minute or two. Then I added 2 c. water and the lentils (I used chana dal, but red lentils would cook faster). I didn't add the yogurt until the end, because I didn't want it to curdle; and don't add salt until the end of the cooking time, either. Cover and simmer until lentils are tender; add the half cup of water if you need it (I didn't). Meanwhile, shape the meatballs. Heat a tablespoon or so of oil in a skillet, and brown the meatballs on all sides. Set aside. When lentils are tender, stir in salt to taste and whisk in the yogurt. Don't let the yogurt boil, or it will curdle. (Full-fat yogurt works best.) Add meatballs just to warm them. I served this with brown rice, topped with chopped cilantro (aka fresh coriander), with naan on the side. For me, total prep/cooking time was about 1.5 hrs.

Pastitsio is one of my favorite baked pasta dishes. My husband made this recipe for us a couple of months ago. It's not my favorite version; I found the cream sauce way too starchy and pasty. I also thought tossing the pasta with butter & parmesan made it a little too heavy and rich-tasting. I prefer making a cream sauce using feta cheese, and tossing half the pasta with that; toss the remaining pasta with the meat sauce (like another poster, I also recommend using ground lamb or half lamb, half beef). Layer the cheese-sauced pasta in the bottom of the baking dish, top with the meat sauce layer, and spread the remaining cream sauce on top. Sprinkle with more crumbled feta and bake. [The version I like courtesy of the Gourmet cookbook].

Dragée nuts are one of my favorite candies to make. This is a great method for hazelnuts and macadamias, too. I’ve used a recipe just like this, but with only half the cinnamon and using blanched almonds. Cook until the nuts are dry and covered with a bumpy whitish sugar coating. When they're cool, toss them with warm melted bittersweet chocolate and then into a bowl of unsweetened cocoa powder. They should have a hard sugar coating topped with a hint of chocolate and cocoa. (I wear latex gloves when working with chocolate; you can change gloves anytime your hands get chocolatey or sticky.)

I really liked this. The flavors are subtle; nothing really leaps out and grabs you. It's just a very nice lamb stew that's great served over mashed potatoes or pasta.

Well...I can't really rate this accurately, since I only really tried the glaze. I just couldn't justify using that much pricey pomegranate juice in the brine. I ended up making a brine using two cups of kosher salt in 8 quarts of water. (I used two cups of boiling water to dissolve the salt and about a quarter of a cup of pomegranate molasses, for some sweetness; then added the remaining cold water.) I made an herb butter using the dried herbs and rubbed it under the turkey's skin and on the outside of the bird as well. I made the glaze as directed, but brushed it on the turkey a couple of times when it was nearly done roasting (at about 150 degrees). The downside of this was, the sugary drippings burned, so I didn't use the pan drippings in my gravy. The plus side was a gorgeously sticky caramelized exterior, with a sweet-tart flavor. All in all, very festive.

This was great. I did change the preparation method, however: I tossed all of the vegetable cubes in olive oil and roasted them for about half an hour while I reduced the apple cider & wine. I added the cider-wine glaze to the pans and roasted an additional 15 minutes or so, until the glaze caramelized and any extra liquid had evaporated. I didn't use the butter, since I'd used olive oil for roasting. It looks like a ton when you're making it, but I think the number of servings is pretty accurate.

Fantastic recipe: great combo of salty/bitter/sweet flavors and crunchy, chewy textures. How could this not be good, with butter and bacon and pine nuts? I may try again sauteeing in olive oil & omitting the butter and bacon. It won't be the same, but at least we can eat it more often.

I love yeasted coffee cakes. I made this in late summer with fresh plums on top. This is a great recipe, but is not for the impatient baker or for the faint of heart: there are a lot of steps involved, including making the caramel. I made a wet caramel instead of dry, because I like controlling how dark it becomes--and I added a splash of Kirsch because I like liqueurs with fruit. I used butter for the shortening, and only used half the dough because I had a smaller springform pan I wanted to use. It was still too much dough for the pan--my fault--and I baked it on a baking sheet because I had a hunch the topping would bubble over, which it did. Lastly: I prepared the cake the night before and let it rest overnight in the fridge before taking it out and letting it rise a little before baking. Very impressive for brunch. I'm going to try it again with the rest of the dough using apples and a splash of Calvados in the caramel.

As a cheese fiend and dairy lover, I don't normally make vegan desserts unless it's a special request. This one is so beautiful, it's hard for anyone to resist. Nice job. (I did use butter instead of margarine in the crust, and added cocoa powder, a pinch of salt and about a tablespoon of confectioners'sugar when grinding the almonds.) I used almond milk instead of soy and almond oil instead of sunflower seed. Served it with warm chocolate ganache.

I don't really understand the "bland" comments. I think salt, pepper and a little fat (olive oil, butter) are all you need: chicken should taste like chicken, zucchini like zucchini. Hey, I'm all for bold flavors and spicy foods, but sometimes simple equals better. Treat your ingredients with care; don't overcook your chicken; season it well, and you have a fabulous meal.

As a friend said, "I don't know if I'm sold on favas. All that work, and you just end up with a bunch of lima beans!" I bought fava beans at the farmers' market, and this was a delicious way to eat them...but they are a lot of work to prepare. I like all kinds of risotto. I'd make this again with limas and a handful of fresh herbs: Italian parsley, mint, and basil.

This was an easy and delicious summer dinner; we just melted the cheese under the broiler, so the polenta stayed crispy under the marinara sauce.