campagnes Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1) - Allrecipes.com (18151160)

Creamy Vanilla Pudding

Reviewed: Aug. 18, 2011

What a wonderful recipe! Texturally, this is exactly what I was looking for: nice and light, not too thick or heavy. It's like a pudding/custard hybrid. I think next time I'll reduce the sugar by 2-3 tablespoons, but that's just personal preference; I don't have much of a sweet tooth. I omitted the butter at the end, used whole milk, and used only 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla. Definitely a keeper; it's in the fridge, and I'm having to force myself to stay out of it! (To those concerned about the recipe not requiring you to temper the egg: Using egg yolks to finish a dish, as this recipe does, is called a "liason." It's not a recipe flaw; it's just a different technique. Generally, in a liason, yolks are combined with cream, then added to the dish at the very end; the submitter chose to use a cornstarch slurry instead. Don't be put off by it - it works wonderfully!)

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6 users found this review helpful

Aunt Johnnie's Pound Cake

Reviewed: Aug. 16, 2011

Oh, this is FOR SURE my new go-to pound cake recipe! I've been using two recipes regularly - one which uses cream cheese, and one which uses whipping cream (both also from this site) but wanted a recipe that didn't require the extra ingredients. This is exactly what I was looking for - a little lighter, but still dense and moist. I used all butter instead of using shortening, and, per other reviewers, swapped out the almond for vanilla extract, and added a bit of salt. [After perousing other reviews, I have to add: If you're getting a batter that is at all "runny," you are doing something wrong. The batter should be extremely thick and should resemble whipped cream. Overly-soft butter will yield a softer batter and a flattened cake, as will incorrectly-measured flour and/or a butter/sugar mixture that hasn't been creamed long enough - I gave it 10 solid minutes on high speed in my stand mixer, scraping the bowl occasionally.]

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2 users found this review helpful

Scot Hibb's Killer Culinary Meal Loaf

Reviewed: Jul. 18, 2011

I make a similar meatloaf frequently, using a one-pound bag of mixed vegetables, thawed and pureed in my food processor, with two eggs. It's actually a really great way to sneak in some extra veggies, and makes for a really delicious, juicy, flavorful meatloaf. I started to make this, but halfway in, I just couldn't complete the recipe as instructed. I would suggest using only half of the vegetables in this recipe, omit the potato entirely, and omit the extra seasonings; the vegetables really add a lot of flavor to the beef, and I think the seasonings compete with it. That is a LOT of Dijon mustard, and a large amount of dried herbs, which tend to be more potent than fresh anyway. I used the meat, vegetables, eggs, a few dashes of worcestershire sauce and a bit of extra salt, but nothing else, and it was fine.

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5 users found this review helpful

Buttermilk Mango-Berry Crumb Cake

Reviewed: Jul. 13, 2011

I've had my eye on this for awhile, and finally got around to making it tonight since I had some raspberries to use up. What a lovely cake! Nice and moist, and the sweetness was just right to stand on its own or accommodate the added sweetness of a glaze (which I added, and it was YUM). I'm not a huge fan of the mango in the cake (and it might have been more helpful to specify an exact measurement of mango to use instead of just "one mango," since fruits can differ in size); everyone else loved it, so I think it's just a preference thing. I have some blueberries in the fridge, and am having to fight the urge to make a Buttermilk Blueberry Crumb Cake. :) Beautiful recipe.

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8 users found this review helpful

Texas Enchilada Sauce

Reviewed: Jul. 9, 2011

I liked the nice, thick texture the crushed tomatoes gave the sauce. But for me, the flavor just didn't hit the mark. And the nice, thick texture gave the feel that this sauce was trying to decide whether it was a texmex condiment or, like a previous reviewer said, an Italian-style tomato sauce with chili powder and cumin added. Not a winner for me.

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3 users found this review helpful

Enchilada Meatballs

Reviewed: Jul. 9, 2011

I used two other recipes from this site to make this recipe: "Golden Sweet Cornbread" (highly recommended!), and "Texas Enchilada Sauce." When I read the reviews, particularly those talking about the cornbread's sweetness coming through in the meatballs, I was concerned. But it was actually very nice: the sweetness is the perfect counterbalance to the sauce (which needed a little sugar to balance it out, but for use in this recipe, I'm glad I resisted the urge to add it). My only real complaint here is that the large amount of cornbread gives the meatballs a mushy texture. I would make them again, but definitely cut the cornbread back to between 1 cup and 1 1/2 cups.

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4 users found this review helpful

Sunshine Morning Muesli

Reviewed: Jul. 5, 2011

My rating is for the recipe as written, because it's a sound recipe that produces good results, but as a muesli lover, this recipe and I have some differences. The oats lend a milky richness to the liquid in which they're soaked; using milk actually makes this too rich for my tastes, and that's even before adding the yogurt. I go the traditional route instead: soak the oats and nuts (almonds for me, no cinnamon) in orange juice - even using water with a tablespoon of honey is delicious - and serve with fresh fruit and a dollop of yogurt. Dried fruit certainly adds to the convenience factor, but using fresh fruit instead REALLY makes this something special.

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3 users found this review helpful

Apple Lettuce Salad

Reviewed: Jul. 3, 2011

A nice salad. I was concerned about the sweetness level, so I cut the sugar back to 1 1/2 tablespoons, the apple juice to 1/4 cup, and increased the oil to 1/4 cup - it was the perfect sweetness for me. I also omitted the cinnamon and nutmeg, as I wanted a bright flavor and not a warm once. I threw in some dried cranberries and julienned carrot just for the heck of it, and it was great.

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3 users found this review helpful

Roasted New Red Potatoes

Reviewed: Jul. 3, 2011

Simple and delicious. I double the salt and pepper, and toss the finished potatoes with a little minced parsley before serving.

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4 users found this review helpful

Filet Mignon with Mushroom-Cabernet Gravy

Reviewed: Jul. 3, 2011

Made several batches of this for a dinner party tonight, and it's wonderful. My methodology was a little different than the recipe: I seared the steaks on both sides, then finished in the oven to medium. When i removed the steaks from the pan, there was lots of yummy brown fond in the bottom of the pan, which I included in the sauce (if you prepare your steaks and sauce in separate cooking vessels, your sauce will suffer for lack of yummy brown bits!). I didn't cook the steaks in the sauce - used only 1/2 cup wine and 1/2 cup stock, let it reduce by half, then removed from heat and swirled in 2 tablespoons butter at the end to give the sauce a little extra rich feel; this also allowed me to omit the cornstarch and still have a nice, rich sauce.

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11 users found this review helpful

Poppy Seed Mini Muffins

Reviewed: Jun. 7, 2011

Absolutely delicious. They're moist and fluffy, with flavor that's surprisingly borderline buttery, given the lack of butter; all that sour cream must really contribute flavor. I changed the muffins' flavor - not because the original doesn't sound delicious, only to suit what I had on hand. I omitted the poppy seeds and extracts, and added 1 cup chopped maraschino cherries, 2/3 cup chopped cocoa almonds, and 1 tsp. almond extract. I also decreased the sugar to 2/3 cup, and I think they're the perfect sweetness (I like my cake sweet and my muffins muffin-y!). I made standard-sized muffins instead of minis, and they required 17 minutes' baking time in my oven.

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4 users found this review helpful

David's Yellow Cake

Reviewed: Jun. 3, 2011

I can't tell you how many yellow cake recipes I've tried, searching for The One. All the other recipes have yielded cakes that were either cornbread-y, oily, coarse, or lacking in flavor. THIS one is the perfect yellow cake recipe. Smooth, fluffily dense texture, perfectly moist without an oily appearance, and the FLAVOR! I guess it's all the egg yolks; instead of just tasting like vanilla, this cake has a rich, rounded flavor - its own flavor. THIS is what yellow cake should be, in every way.

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10 users found this review helpful

Blackberry Bubble Ring

Reviewed: May 22, 2011

Oh, man, this is dangerous. I used Rhodes dinner rolls which, in my opinion, are the best frozen rolls out there. I opted to add a tiny bit of cream cheese (maybe a scant teaspoon) to the center of each roll with the jam. I also swapped out half of the corn syrup for pure maple syrup, and increased the butter because, well, it was the apocalypse and all. :) Absolutely delicious, and so easy. Thanks, mominml!

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8 users found this review helpful

Ham Croquettes

Reviewed: Apr. 26, 2011

Even though I was hesitant to use the amount of bread crumbs in the recipe, I went ahead, and I wish I'd gone with my gut. These were basically bread croquettes with a little ham in them. I know that a filler is necessary in a croquette, but this was just way too much. In recipes like these, I find that the cheese flavor can get lost, and this was definitely the case here, where the cheese had a lot of bread to compete with. I also didn't care for the garlic powder.

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6 users found this review helpful

Ham Salad Spread

Reviewed: Apr. 26, 2011

Excellent. Followed the recipe exactly, and the result is perfectly balanced and delicious. Surprisingly, I had to add a little salt.

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8 users found this review helpful

Macaroni and Cheese for Two

Reviewed: Mar. 6, 2011

I'm usually more a fan of creamy mac and cheese, but every now and then I get a hankering for the firm, slightly dry, baked-custard variety. This fit the bill perfectly - it was enough to satisfy my craving (over two meals) without having a whole lot left over. I took another reviewer's advice and sprinkled a little extra cheddar on top (omitting the butter), which I recommend. I also added a pinch of onion powder and a pinch of ground mustard.

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14 users found this review helpful

Peach Pie

Reviewed: Mar. 5, 2011

Really nice. Since peaches aren't in season and I was seriously craving peach pie, I used two big cans of canned peaches, rinsed and well-drained. Other than that, I followed the recipe exactly and baked it using the "Butter Flaky Pie Crust" recipe from this site. My filling set up perfectly, but when I try it with fresh peaches, I'll definitely add a little extra flour or some cornstarch, as I think it'll need it. I was worried that it might be too sweet, but it was a nice, mellow, simple sweetness. In fact, I think it would really benefit from 2-3 tsp. fresh lemon juice just to wake it up a little. This one's a keeper!

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7 users found this review helpful

Golden Sweet Cornbread

Reviewed: Mar. 1, 2011

I wish I could give this recipe something like 4 1/2 stars, because I really loved it. The sweetness was perfect (tasted the batter and it was SWEET; I was worried, but the finished bread was fantastic). It was nice and moist, and the directions and baking time were spot on. My only issue is that the bread was almost too fluffy, which resulted in it also being pretty crumbly. I'll decrease the baking powder a bit next time and see what happens. At any rate - We ate it slathered with butter and honey, and even though we had to eat it with forks because of the crumble factor, it was divine.

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7 users found this review helpful

Asian Lettuce Wraps

Reviewed: Feb. 8, 2011

Absolutely delicious. Next time, I'll probably use thinly-sliced skirt steak instead of the ground beef (personal preference), and marinate it in the soy sauce mixture before cooking. The flavor was outstanding. I'll most definitely be making these again!

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2 users found this review helpful

Cheesy Ramen Noodles

Reviewed: Feb. 8, 2011

I know it's awful, but I love this stuff. I used to eat it all the time in college, with a pat of butter added. Yay for fake-cheese-smothered MSG-sprinkled deep-fried noodles! :)

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5 users found this review helpful