Marcia_Marcia_Marcia Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1)

Crab Quiche I

Reviewed: Apr. 27, 2011

Incorporated the review suggestions (hot sauce, garlic, Old Bay, 3 eggs), used great quality crab, made the crust from scratch but still was the biggest loser at our Easter brunch. Little to no takers and no one finished their piece if they did. I didn't like it either, it just didn't seem like the best choice for lovely fresh crab.

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4 users found this review helpful

Kalua Pig in a Slow Cooker

Reviewed: Feb. 13, 2011

Note to self: Remake recipe. Intriguing recipe because of how simple it was! Do not use table salt or kosher salt, large crystal salt is very important so recipe doesn't come out over salted, I used some grey salt that I buy from the bulk bins at the healthfood store, (very inexpensive way to buy spices!) Do not be tempted to use even one crystal more salt than the recipe calls for!!! I know it's hard to believe this recipe will work with only three ingredients but it does! I trimmed excess fat off the pork before putting in on High for 8 hours. Great advice from others about putting the juices (there will be a lot of juice!) in the freezer while you shred the meat and removing the excess fat that way once it starts to solidify. Add the defatted juices back to the meat and mix well.

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7 users found this review helpful

Greek Chicken Burgers with Feta

Reviewed: Jan. 19, 2011

Really disappointed in these dry/tasteless ground chicken burgers after all the good reviews. Made as written but to no avail. I topped with leftover homemade tzatziki sauce (from the chicken gyro souvlaki pita recipe on this site REALLY good, try it), red onions, tomato and lettuce in hopes of salvaging but it just had no taste at all. Only advice I can give if you do want to make this is to make sure and use one pound of chicken and do make 5 burgers. Bigger is NOT better with this recipe, the seasonings are so subtle that you need the less meat to more seasoning ratio. Also, the egg addition makes the mixture very ooey, gooey. Folding in the feta is a little weird b/c it's so wet, but by the third burger you'll be a pro at the insert/fold-over/pat into burger shape. I won't remake, but a lot of folks on here will so if it interests you try it.

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4 users found this review helpful

Lime Chicken with Cilantro Cream Sauce and Roasted Zucchini

Reviewed: Jan. 1, 2011

I love cilantro and lime but not in this recipe. The lime marinade and the lime cream sauce are overwhelming. Too many green onions in the sauce. The zucchini is boring.

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4 users found this review helpful

Asparagus Parmesan

Reviewed: Dec. 25, 2010

Very good with the addition of minced garlic and sliced onions. I used bacon grease instead of butter to add flavor.

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2 users found this review helpful

Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon

Reviewed: Oct. 27, 2010

This was fantastic and I don't know why! Just basic ingredients came together in a delicious way. Although I liked the idea of wilting the spinach in the colander by draining the pasta over it, in theory, it wasn't a good idea. I used my biggest colander and it wasn't big enough for the pasta and the full bag of Fresh Express fresh spinach. The pasta sat on top (I used linguine, btw, it's heft held up well with this dish) and crushed the spinach and I had trouble separating it from itself once it was wilted. That's my only complaint. I'll just toss it on the tomato mixture and cover for a minute next time to wilt it though. NOTES to me: Used 2 cans petite diced tomatoes, sauted chopped onions with the garlic, added Italian seasoning and/or oregano, added 1/3 cup skim milk. Keeper file.

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3 users found this review helpful

Penne Pasta with Spinach and Bacon

Reviewed: Oct. 27, 2010

This was fantastic and I don't know why! Just basic ingredients came together in a delicious way. Although I liked the idea of wilting the spinach in the colander by draining the pasta over it, in theory, it wasn't a good idea. I used my biggest colander and it wasn't big enough for the pasta and the full bag of Fresh Express fresh spinach. The pasta sat on top (I used linguine, btw, it's heft held up well with this dish) and crushed the spinach and I had trouble separating it from itself once it was wilted. That's my only complaint. I'll just toss it on the tomato mixture and cover for a minute next time to wilt it though. NOTES to me: Used 2 cans petite diced tomatoes, sauted chopped onions with the garlic, added Italian seasoning and/or oregano, added 1/3 cup skim milk. Keeper file.

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6 users found this review helpful

Triple Decker Grilled Shrimp BLT with Avocado and Chipotle Mayo

Reviewed: Oct. 25, 2010

My grocery store didn't have any chipotles so I had to make do with that new Kraft Chipotle mayo. Sandwich was very good, it's a BLT with shrimp added. Super-messy to eat and keep together in sandwich form but everyone enjoyed it.

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23 users found this review helpful

World's Best Potato Salad

Reviewed: Aug. 29, 2010

I found this recipe distinctly AVERAGE. I had really high hopes based on the reviews and the fact that it included the homemade dressing. Considering the dressing ingredients included things like 1/2 C sugar, butter, 2 eggs, etc PLUS the mayo I feel like it adds an unnecessary load of calories for no good payback. It was on the sweet side, which I really didn't like also. I'd prefer to use my bad calories in a way that I'll enjoy them, this tasted like normal potato salad with a sweet aftertaste. Won't remake.

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2 users found this review helpful

Angela's Awesome Enchiladas

Reviewed: Jul. 11, 2010

Salty due to use of lots of processed items from cans and packages.

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2 users found this review helpful

Cajun Spicy Potato Wedges

Reviewed: May 13, 2010

There was nothing exceptional or delicious about the spices on these potatoes. They definitely needed salt, the flavor was flat. And just on the random chance that someone with clear braces and/or "braces chains" reads this: the turmeric will badly and permanently STAIN them. (Ditto curry, fellow braces wearers).

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2 users found this review helpful

Fried Rice with Cilantro

Reviewed: Apr. 19, 2010

Made with shrimp. Used 4 chops of cilantro. Used wok oil instead of adding separate garlic. Followed suggestions of 2 T wok oil and 1 T of sesame oil instead of 4 T veg oil. Added one beaten egg when I added the rice. Kids approved for keeper file.

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2 users found this review helpful

Pollo Mediterranean

Reviewed: Mar. 2, 2010

So, so, so BLAND! I followed the recipe exactly and served over farfelle. I was expecting something delicious after the great reviews and my taste buds fell asleep instead of celebrating as they led me to believe they would. I can't imagine why anyone would rave over this dish.

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2 users found this review helpful

Texas Ranch Potato Salad

Reviewed: Jan. 6, 2010

Some flavors do not belong together, even though they are great individually. Ranch and potato salad do not happy marriage make.

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3 users found this review helpful

Baked Asparagus with Balsamic Butter Sauce

Reviewed: Mar. 12, 2009

I really liked the flavor of this sauce. I followed the advice of other reviewers and 1)cooked in toaster oven, 2) 1 teaspoon of soy sauce, 3) 1 tablespoon of balsamic vinegar, and 4) most importantly BROWNED the butter (it adds maybe 90 seconds more to your cooking time, but it is the "make or break" ingredient in this recipe.

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3 users found this review helpful

Soft Garlic Breadsticks

Reviewed: Mar. 1, 2009

I made these today, actually I made two batches because we had company, in the bread machine, no changes to OP's recipe. I did take the suggestion though of others to use the "Garlic Butter" recipe from this site to brush over the breadsticks. I was curious as to which way would taste the best so I tested all 3 versions. I would rate the garlic butter addition in this order: 1) brush over breadsticks BEFORE baking 2) brush over breadsticks AFTER baking 3) no garlic butter brushed on breadsticks Also, the dough smells extremely strongly of garlic while mixing, but this is not reflected in the taste as too much.

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7 users found this review helpful

Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake

Reviewed: Feb. 9, 2009

Very good, served it for Christmas Eve dinner. Unfortunately the dog stole most of it but I was definitely asked to remake one another time and "keep it safe".

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1 user found this review helpful

Savory Crab Stuffed Mushrooms

Reviewed: Dec. 31, 2008

After carefully reading other reviews, I followed the recommendations to perk up the flavor since the most common complaint was blandness. I used premium crab meat, used fresh breadcrumbs (one slice of bread, crusts removed equals 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs, btw), finely chopped red pepper, etc. Anyway, no matter what you do, these cannot be saved from blandness.

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3 users found this review helpful

Avocado-Lime Shrimp Salad (Ensalada de Camarones con Aguacate y Limon)

Reviewed: Dec. 4, 2008

Since I love all the individual ingredients (avocado, shrimp, pepper, tomato, CILANTRO, etc) that part was yummy. However, as much as I like a nice salad with EVOO, lime juice, salt and pepper, I found the same boring on this shrimp salad. As the submitter says in her heading, trying a favorite salad dressing might work. The base ingredients are great... finding the right dressing combination could make it a five star recipe.

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23 users found this review helpful

Lunch Box Hot Hot Dogs

Reviewed: Aug. 26, 2008

What a smart idea this is! We were able to fit three hot dogs in our average sized thermos. I preheated with boiling water as Lorrie recommended, poured it out, placed three thawed hot dogs and then poured boiling water to the top. My child said they were perfect by lunchtimes and all the kids at the table got a good laugh out of it. Now we have a bet to see how soon other kids will start bringing hotdogs for lunch!

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49 users found this review helpful