formulating_a_repertoire Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1)

BBQ Chicken Pizza I

Reviewed: Jan. 21, 2011

I bought uncooked whole wheat dough from the deli, froze it, and thawed it and rolled it out for this pizza. I didn't cook it ahead of time, but it didn't matter. I do suggest to everyone to HEAT YOUR PIZZA STONE if you're using one. It helps everything move faster. And keeps the dough from sticking.

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Feta Cheese and Bacon Stuffed Breasts

Reviewed: Jan. 21, 2011

Absolute winner. Ridiculously easy, and it tastes great!

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Chicken Pot Pie IX

Reviewed: Jan. 21, 2011

I love this recipe. I made about 50% more sauce and added a significant amount of white pepper to it and it was SO good. I've made it for two different groups of people and everyone LOVED it.

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The Best Thai Peanut Sauce

Reviewed: Dec. 2, 2010

I followed the basics for this recipe and was completely amazed at how much flavor came from these ingredients! I altered some of the ratios (about 1/2 the peanut butter and 2x the coconut milk that it called for) and I left out the fish sauce because I didn't have it. It was PERFECT for the thai stir fry I made. I always assumed the peanut sauces that you find in a jar were really complex, but I will NEVER buy another one after I tried this. It whips up faster than the stir fry! And that's saying something...

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Stuffed Pork Chops with Gorgonzola and Apple

Reviewed: Apr. 18, 2010

Oh my gosh this was heavenly. It was full of flavor, but not too heavy. I took the pork out a earlier than recommended because my chops were thin. They retained soo much moisture! My fiance and I are not a fan of gorgonzola, so I used feta instead. I was worried that it would be just a little OFF, but it was perfect for us! The feta doesn't melt quite as well as the gorgonzola in the sauce, so just be patient if you're using it. We were impatient, so we just settled for MOSTLY mixed. I don't know if it did anything, but I added some wine to the apples while softening. It seemed to mellow out the sweetnes of my not-so-sour apples. Anyway, EXCELLENT DISH!I will make this again.

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Lasagna Alfredo Roll Ups

Reviewed: Apr. 10, 2010

I really liked this recipe, but I just can't get over how filling it was. I know this is more personal preference, but it sank to the bottom of my stomach. I will probably make this again because the combination was great, but I cannot handle the leftovers...

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Kickin' London Broil with Bleu Cheese Butter

Reviewed: Apr. 10, 2010

The london broil is tough to cook... I'm not that great at it yet, but my fiance was the grill/broil master. It worked out. This dish was otherwise SUPER easy and realllly tasty :)

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Simple Scones

Reviewed: Jan. 24, 2010

I've seriously made this recipe like 20 times and I love them every time. I tried a bunch of different combinations, but I have two favorites that seem to be a hit with everyone. 1. Cinnamon. I really don't measure much with spices so forgive my estimates, but I use about 1/2 cup of cinnamon chips and add a 1/4tsp of nutmeg. I've also put a pinch of allspice in. That was pretty nice. I'm thinking of trying a pumpkin scone, adding a bit of canned pumpkin with all of the same spices (probably not the chips though). 2. Orange and cranberry. I changed the footnote recipe a bit to bring out more flavor. I add 1/2 cup dried cranberries (craisins) and 2 tbsp. of orange marmalade to the sour cream and egg mixture. Because the marmalade will make it sticky, I just keep extra flour out to get back to the right constistency. This is my personal favorite! The orange zest just didn't cut it for me. I'm not very good at "zesting," and when I did you could barely tell the scones had orange flavor. I'd say like 2 tbsp. of orange juice (and a bit more flour) should do the trick too.

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Fresh Tomato Salsa

Reviewed: Jan. 24, 2010

I love salsa like this, like pico de gallo style, so already you can't go wrong here. I didn't add nearly as many chiles either. One thing I always add to my tomatoes is balsamic vinegar, out of preference. I don't like the sweetness of tomatoes at all, so I've come to always pair the two. Because of that, I cut the lime juice about in half (a little over a teaspoon). With this though, it's important to have really red, juicy tomatoes, since they are very much the raw star. There's no concentrating of flavor with boiling here. Anyway, great salsa! It's fresh, beautiful in color, and super easy.

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Ginger Glazed Mahi Mahi

Reviewed: Jan. 24, 2010

I would probably rate it at 4.5, but it's purely personal tastes. The sauce for this recipe is awesome, but I'm not the biggest fan of mahi mahi. My fiance, on the other hand, loved it. I just thought there was a little too much fishiness still coming out. Honestly that could have been my bad fish-picking abilities, so hopefully I wil make this again and redeem itself. Also, it got dry on the edges pretty quickly. I think I just need some practice...

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American Lasagna

Reviewed: Jan. 24, 2010

I've been so cold lately, so I've been craving dishes like this. It was exactly what I needed! The flavor is incredible. I don't make my own sauce, so I was used to store-bought jars in my lasagna and got used to hating lasagna. If nothing else, KEEP this sauce recipe. It's simple and therefore less intimidating. I cooked my lasagna noodles way early (while initially browning the beef) and they started to get really sticky sitting out. I brushed each noodle, front and back, with some EVOO and I'm holding onto that trick FOREVER. It gave the noodles a little extra flavor and helped them retain moisture while baking. NO DRIED OUT NOODLES! That may not hold up for the leftovers I now have, but it won't break the bank if you have some olive oil sitting around. I also added 1/3 cup cooking wine, as some mentioned, to my sauce. Whatever reaction that had with the tomatoes was spot on. The sauce tasted smoother, not quite as tart. Of course, I only had white cooking wine, so I will probably aim to use a red next time. I'm sure that would match better, but I know at least that I'm keeping that trick too! Anyway, I served this to my roommates and friends and they were so complimentary. Thank you for a GREAT staple recipe!

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Chicken And Apple Curry

Reviewed: Oct. 17, 2009

I really liked the base of this recipe, but like others it wasn't QUITE the flavor I look for in Indian food. We added about a 1/2 teaspoonful each of garam masala and cumin. I also might try it with applesauce... I don't know how that will go, but it was a pain to cut the apples so small AND keep them from oxidizing before I put them in with the onion.

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Stuffed Green Peppers I

Reviewed: Oct. 17, 2009

very good! I used marinara sauce instead of tomato soup, since I wanted some flavor. I would probably try to add some minced garlic or cayenne pepper for myself, as it was just a little bland. My roommates aren't a fan of different spices and things so they LOVED them :)

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Strawberry-Mango Mesclun Salad

Reviewed: Sep. 21, 2009

I couldn't stop eating it.

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Tiramisu Layer Cake

Reviewed: Jul. 23, 2009

this was amazing. no really. i bought the pirouettes to decorate and EVERYONE just assumed i bought it. several swear words were exchanged when they found out i had done it the previous night :)

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Spicy Garlic Lime Chicken

Reviewed: Jul. 8, 2009

I was in love with this recipe. M boyfriend and I were hungry for something spicy, and this did not disappoint in the least! It was not the spice that is typically expected, but I won't be able to say enough how perfect the blend was. My dad is on a diet, so I used just the rub on his and it was still really good! Thanks for a great combination of spices that we can use with pretty much anything!

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Double Tomato Bruschetta

Reviewed: Jul. 1, 2009

we made this for a teenage group party and they couldn't stop raving about the "tomato bread!" it was fun and easy. instead of using roma tomatoes, we used grape tomatoes, since i had bought an excess. they added great flavor and color. if you're not used to broiling (like me) keep an eye on the bread slices the whole time! they can burn really quickly. thank you for a great appetizer that's both eye-catching and kid-friendly!

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