michelle j. Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1) - Allrecipes.com (10331762)

Sesame Pasta Chicken Salad

Reviewed: Nov. 22, 2011

This was great! I think it would taste excellent with tofu as a vegetarian alternative (just make sure you wrap up the tofu in a towel, put it between two dishes, with something heavy on top, to drain out excess water). Minor changes- I sauteed the chicken with garlic powder, onion powder, and black pepper. I added extra garlic powder and onion powder to the salad later (I felt they added good extra flavor). I lowered the sugar in half (just trying to make it more healthy, didn't miss the extra sugar at all.... ). Added the sesame seeds in raw/plain (in other words, did not need to use the vegetable oil to toast them.... again, did not miss the extra oil/toasting). I'll make this one again- it was tasty and with modifications, pretty healthy!

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1 user found this review helpful

Patty's Tofu Burgers

Reviewed: Nov. 17, 2011

This is a good recipe, and I'll give it 5 stars because we like it, it's healthy, and I'll make it again. I did have to make changes though- I didn't have red curry powder, so I used curry powder plus some red chile paste instead. I added extra garlic, garlic powder and onion powder, and some black pepper. i think this is a bit bland in flavor, but with additional seasonings, it's a great recipe. And it sure is a lot healthier than the tofu burgers that are at the store. I may add some shredded carrot to this next time, I think it would work out pretty well. Oh- and VERY important-- you MUST drain your tofu ahead of time. I wrap it up in a clean kitchen towel, then place it between two plates, and put something heavy on top. Let it sit for 25-20 minutes, to squeeze that water out. Also... make sure you use QUICK COOK oats--- not the 5 minute cook oats. The quick cook (i.e. cooks in 1 minute), has no problem in getting the batter to stick together. That being said, this is a nice recipe for healthy homemade tofu burgers... just add extra spices and try some different things. We added a bit of hot sauce, when eating, and it tasted great that way! Another one to try, is a little bit of cheese (maybe some pepper jack?).

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5 users found this review helpful

Mom's Macaroni and Cheese

Reviewed: Nov. 16, 2011

This was very good. Changes I made-- I felt 1.5 cups was a bit small, I scaled it to 8 services, so that I used 2 cups of macaroni, and it was perfect sizing for my corningware casserole dish. Omitted pepper. Added 1 tsp of dry Mustard Powder. Used extra cheese (lots of sharp cheddar, and 3 slices of American). Baked it COVERED for 20 minutes at 350 degrees, and it was hot & moist (not dry). When it was done, I topped it off with some extra cheddar cheese, and stirred, before service. I followed other reviewers tips on sauce-- adding warmed (not scalded) milk slowly, stirring constantly while making sauce. It was delicious and definitely quite a bit tastier than boxed macaroni & cheese

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3 users found this review helpful

Pollo Fajitas

Reviewed: Oct. 7, 2011

this was a good recipes. We used extra garlic, since we like garlic a lot. Served it with beans and rice, inside burrito skins and it was tasty.

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1 user found this review helpful

Sweet Potato, Carrot, Apple, and Red Lentil Soup

Reviewed: Oct. 5, 2011

This was an amazing soup--- my husband and I think it was one of the best soups we've ever tasted! Changes--- for health reasons, I did NOT use butter-- i used 1 TBSP of canola oil to sautee the veggies. I halved the salt (used 1/2 tsp). Used 2 cans chicken broth, plus water to get the liquid level to 4 cups (I did not have vegetable broth on-hand). We'll do this recipe regularly, since it was so healthy & delicious!!!! 5+ stars from me!

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3 users found this review helpful

Maple Salmon

Reviewed: Apr. 12, 2011

This was delicious and super easy to make. I agree with other reviews, modify your cooking time depending on how think your salmon is. Mine was fairly small & think, so i cooked for 15 minutes at 425 degrees, and it was perfectly done, yet moist. I did marinate for the full 30 minutes too, as recommended, and I think this helps with good flavor I didn't want the salmon to be too sweet, so I Halved the maple syrup. It was PLENTY sweet, and I appreciate that we are eating less sugar. I omitted the salt, and used low sodium soy sauce. Again, this was a health choice, and it did not taste as if it needed more salt. I added a little bit of fresh grated ginger (i highly recommend it, tastes quite nice). Served this with home made fried rice (used brown rice and steamed mixed veggies, friend it up with canola oil & onions). Delicious & healthy meal, thank you for the recipe!

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3 users found this review helpful

Chicken Satay

Reviewed: Mar. 31, 2011

This was good, but not quite the Thai taste that I was hoping for. Maybe more peanut butter needed, as was suggested by reviewers? Not sure I'll try this again, but certainly was good enough to try to make & eat up for a dinner.

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4 users found this review helpful

Orange Beef-Style Tofu Stir-Fry

Reviewed: Feb. 2, 2011

I was not impressed by this recipe. We both felt it was a bit too hot, and I felt it was too much orange taste (my husband did not mind the orange taste, but felt it was also too spicy). I will not be making this one again.

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4 users found this review helpful

Black Bean Vegetable Soup

Reviewed: Jan. 14, 2011

Delicious. I made several changes, but I rate this a 5 for a starter. I added more spice than called for, and also added garlic & onion powder. I added zucchini, and used frozen corn instead of canned. Diced can tomatoes instead of stewed (that's what I had in my pantry). chicken broth instead of vegetable broth (again, that's what I had on hand). I had no trouble with it being too soupy, actually it was very stew-like, but I think that's because I added a lot of extra veggies. Based on a similar recipe for lentils, that I made (flavors were similar), I added LEMON JUICE and chopped CILANTRO. I *highly* recommend these two flavors as adding something exceptional to the taste. Try it, I promise you won't be sorry!!!

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2 users found this review helpful

Vegetarian Stuffed Peppers

Reviewed: Dec. 3, 2010

This was delicious w/ a very unique flavo!. Some changesI made: I made more Worcester sauce/sherry/soy sauce than called for in the recipe. Also I splashed some worc sauce/sherry/soy sauce in the fully mixed stuffing, to make it more flavorful & help keep the green pepper moist. I didn't have pecans, so i used walnuts. After I filled the peppers, I rubbed the outside of the pepper with a little olive oil, and dabbed some on the top of the stuffing, figured it might help keep the pepper & stuffing from drying out too much. Oh, and I microwaved for 4 minutes (not 6), as I didn't want the peppers to get overcooked/limpy. I agree with the reviews who said that the tomato sauce should be skipped. It didn't taste bad, it's just that the stuffing tastes so good by itself, that the tomato sauce detracts/masks the yummy flavors inside the green pepper. Next time i will not bother to make the sauce at all. Although I might add an extra little sprinkling of cheese (either Parmesan or Mozzerella) on top next time, and see how that tastes. Somehow, I ended up with not enough stuffing to fill all the peppers? Maybe my peppers were too large. I also had to figure out something to do with the extra tofu (which by the way, I pressed for a half an hour to get excess water out) since my tofu package was larger than what was called for. All in all, a recipe that I will definitely make again, and the best tasting stuffed pepper recipe that i have ever eaten. Thanks for the recipe!

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6 users found this review helpful

Spinach Lentil Soup

Reviewed: Oct. 27, 2010

this was very good, though I *did* make changes. I used a mix of vegetable broth & water. I added cumin, chili powder, garlic powder, and fresh garlic too. At the end, i added fresh cilantro & lemon juice (1 Tbsp) along with the spinach, and served with a dollap of plain yogurt, on top of basmatic rice. It was healthy & very tasty.

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1 user found this review helpful

Honey-Ginger Grilled Salmon

Reviewed: Aug. 27, 2010

This is an excellent marinade, which I think would taste good on chicken or beef, as well as salmon. I ended up using a red onion instead of green onion (didn't have green onion on hand). I added some fresh garlic and fresh ginger, I think this is important actually. And then I marinated for a few hours in a dish (turning salmon around once, so that all parts got some marinating time). And as for flavor, I think it is VERY important to take the leftover marinade and boil/reduce it in a small pan, and put the marinade on as a sauce on top of the salmon when eating. The marinade is very very flavorful, and you need to eat it on top as a sauce, to really taste it well on the salmon. I will definitely be doing this more often. Oh, and I used a boneless fillet of salmon, grilling 10 minutes (5 minutes per side) on medium/high heat. Delicious, thank you for the recipe!

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23 users found this review helpful

Sesame Green Beans

Reviewed: Aug. 27, 2010

This was good, for a side dish. I admit, I felt it tasted a little bland, as written, and I ended up adding garlic powder and onion powder. I felt the additions gave it more flavor. I will use this one again, and rate it 5 for a fine base recipe.

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2 users found this review helpful

Sweet and Spicy Stir Fry with Chicken and Broccoli

Reviewed: Aug. 13, 2010

I thought this was tasty, but I give it a 4 (wish I could give it a 4.5) because it was soooo spicy, even though I had carefully halved the amount of red pepper and black pepper. Also, it needed some sugar to have a sweet taste, I added a few TBSP of brown sugar. End result was for us was a tasty dish that was a bit on the hot side for us. i will make this one again, but reduce further the amount of heat in the dish, likely I will cut down on some Chili Paste. Oh, and I added some extra veggies (sugar peas & diced carrots) and they are welcome additions of flavor

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1 user found this review helpful

Tofu Salad

Reviewed: Jul. 29, 2010

This was delicious, and I will make it again. Important to note, is that I pressed the tofu between a towel to get excess water off (for about 30 minutes).... it helps the tofu absorb more flavor. Also important, is that I doubled the sauce, because otherwise there simply is NOT enough sauce for the salad. I didn't have peanuts, I used chopped cashews. Next time, I might try to reduce the amount of sesame oil a little, for health reasons. Overall, a yummy recipe that deserves 5 stars for taste.

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4 users found this review helpful

Chinese Chicken Salad III

Reviewed: Jul. 21, 2010

This was great! I used tofu instead of chicken (pressed the tofu for 30 minutes, and marinated it in the sauce for a bit). Did NOT make the wontons, in interest of time, it was great w/o the wontons. Also, I halved the sesame oil (make it healthier). I added fresh bell peppers, purple cabbage, one orange (diced into smaller bites). I used the juice that came out of the orange in the dressing. Also, squeezed the juice of one lime into the salad, hubby and I noticed that both the orange and the lime, added excellent flavor to the salad, and would NOT forget to put that into the salad in the future. We also felt that the salad would taste great with some nuts (maybe cashews) on top, we'll definitely add that, the next time. Definitely a salad worth making again!

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7 users found this review helpful

Chicken Fiesta Salad

Reviewed: Jul. 15, 2010

This was tasty, and easy to make. A nice variation on salad, for those summer days. I diced the chicken in fajita seasoning and fresh garlic, and sprinkled onion powder & a little salt & pepper. I put this in one bowl. I put the bean & corn & salsa mix in a separate bowl. And the salad went in its own bowl. This way, people could make their own salad the way they wanted. For the salad--- I added cilantro, a small avocado, used a small red onion (not white onion), and added diced green bell pepper... they were all welcome flavors to the salad. I also had plain lowfat yogurt and shredded sharp cheddar cheese available, to "top" the salad with. I feel the yogurt & cheese also added good flavor to the salad. I think next time, I may use a little less onion, and just use some frozen corn (I didn't think it needed a full can of corn). Overall, a very nice dish and I'm sure I'll make it again!

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4 users found this review helpful

Asian Chicken Salad

Reviewed: Jul. 14, 2010

This was very good, as a starter recipe. But, I *did* make a lot of changes, for it to suit our taste. I give it a 5, because the final product was very tasty, and we will definitely be making this one regularly. Dressing: I added all the sesame oil (mandatory for flavor, I feel). I added only HALF of the vegetable oil called for in the recipe. When I tasted the dressing later, it tasted way too heavy on the oil. I added extra rice vinegar and soy sauce... in particular the additional rice vinegar dramatically improved the dressing. I would say that it is a good idea to cut way down on the vegetable oil, it tastes better and is healthier with less oil. Chicken: I sauteed it, and sprinkled garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Salad: I used darker lettuce (romaine & green leaf) since it's healthier than iceberg. I did NOT use any rice noodles--- the salad tasted great without it, and the noodles are unhealthy because they're fried & time-consuming to make. Instead for texture, I added sliced almonds & cashews. I added extra veggies to our salad-- diced carrot, purple cabbage, some green bell pepper, a can of mandarin oranges, and cilantro. I believe the addition of all the flavors, greatly enhanced the taste. Next time, I will try the other reviewers' suggestion of doubling the dressing, and using some of it to marinate the chicken, that sounds tasty.

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3 users found this review helpful

Balsamic-Glazed Salmon Fillets

Reviewed: Jul. 2, 2010

Followed it pretty much exactly, but I didn't have fresh oregano (so had to used dried oregano).

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1 user found this review helpful

Summer Salad with Cumin-Crusted Salmon

Reviewed: Apr. 12, 2010

This was excellent, as well as very healthy! I cut the olive oil in half, it doesn't need so much oil. Also, I added a little garlic powder, to the salmon seasonings. And since my orange was on the smaller side (i did a 2 serving recipe), I added the whole orange. Other than that, I followed it to a tee. Thanks for the recipe!

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1 user found this review helpful