SUE1956 Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1) - Allrecipes.com (18743123)

Simple Spinach Lasagna

Reviewed: Mar. 20, 2012

There are a few things with this recipe that I thought needed changing, so I just couldn't see giving this 5 stars like so many others did. First, the recipe doesn't state to "squeeze dry" the spinach, which I did, but others might not know to do so. As I was making the sauce, it just seemed as if it needed more flavor, so I doubled the onion, spices and garlic, and it was better. I used the cottage cheese as stated, which I felt was fine. However, here's where I think the recipe could be improved: Since it said to assemble this in a lasagna pan, I did just that, but then it takes much more than only 8 ounces of lasagna noodles! I used up almost an entire 13 oz. box, making this probably drier than it should've been. Next time, I will definitely use a 9x13" pan and go with the 8 oz. of noodles. Also, since it states to finish the layering with the sauce being the last layer, that's what I did, but as it bakes, the spinach in the sauce takes on this gross grayish-black color, making it pretty unappealing. Maybe a top layer of parmesan cheese would help the appearance. Anyway, I had to make WAY too many changes to rate this 5 stars.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
2 users found this review helpful

White Chili with Ground Turkey

Reviewed: Jan. 27, 2012

I totally agree with the previous reviewer. I only gave it 3 stars because the flavor was so good--I wanted to give it 1 star because I was so disappointed that the end result was not a chili but a SOUP. Way too much broth.....!! I ended up throwing another can of beans in and mixed 3 T. flour in to thicken it somewhat, but I was fighting a losing battle. There was just too much liquid ~ I would've had to add about a cup of flour or cornstarch, and I didn't want to do that. I will make it again, but I'll cut the broth in half.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

Onion Cheese Biscuits

Reviewed: Jan. 27, 2012

I always find it a lttle funny when reviewers always feel like they have to change up a recipe before they even know if it's any good as written. Well, this one is PERFECT as written! I'm sure garlic would be a fine addition to these, but if you want garlic biscuits, then make another recipe like the Cheddar Bay biscuit recipe on this site. These have a subtle, just-enough onion flavor that's not overpowering. Great and easy recipe--thank you!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
6 users found this review helpful

Peanut Butter Vegetable Chicken Soup

Reviewed: Jan. 22, 2012

Sorry, but as written I didn't think this soup had much flavor. It tasted more like something you'd get in a hospital--healthy, but with no seasoning. Following other reviewers suggestions definitely helped though, since I thought this recipe had potential. I started with lower salt chicken broth, but then added 1/2 tsp salt, 1/4 tsp pepper, 3/4 tsp cumin, 1/2 tsp curry powder, 1/4 tsp. ground coriander and 1/4 tsp. crushed red pepper. It now has a wonderful, slightly spicy depth of flavor that lingers on your palate a bit. NOW it's deserving of 5 stars.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Sesame Pasta Chicken Salad

Reviewed: Apr. 27, 2011

I thought the flavor was fine, but as other reviewers suggested, the addition of snow peas, water chestnuts, etc. would definitely help out an otherwise pretty plain looking pasta salad. The problem I had with it that no one else commented on is that because the dressing is a liquid base and not creamy, it doesn't stick to the pasta at all. When I was done mixing it, the dressing immediately just kind of sank to the bottom of the bowl. I think the recipe is certainly worth playing around with; I think I'll trying heating the dressing ingredients on the stove and add just a bit of cornstarch to thicken it up so that it stays on the bow tie pasta. I'm giving some to my husband in his lunch tomorrow for work, and I've already warned him to make sure he stirs it before he eats it, because all the dressing will be in the bottom of the container.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
8 users found this review helpful

Almond-Raspberry Meringue Bars

Reviewed: Mar. 11, 2011

OK, these aren't even out of the oven yet, but just a word of warning to bakers out there that are going to try this recipe: Use the Meringue II recipe on this website and not the meringue instructions that come with this recipe ~ they DON'T work!! I wasted 3 egg whites and 1/2 cup of sugar...down the drain. It never set up even stiff peaks. The Meringue II recipe started forming nice peaks almost immediately, so I knew it would be right. It looked ok when I put it in the oven; let's hope it tastes good, 'cause right now I'm kind of ticked; I don't like wasting time or money, and tonight I did both.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

Spicy-Sweet Chicken Black Bean Salad

Reviewed: Sep. 8, 2010

This was fantastic! Great summer recipe--will definitely add this to my regulars. The combination of flavors is delicious and addicting!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Winter Fruit Salad with Lemon Poppyseed Dressing

Reviewed: Mar. 13, 2010

I served this salad with our uncle's 96th birthday dinner, and everyone loved it! It reminded me more of spring than of winter--the fresh tart/sweet flavors of the lemon juice/sugar mixture on the crisp greens woke my taste buds up and put them in a happy mood for the rest of the dinner! If you don't have a pear, just put in extra apple; and instead of just the dried cranberries, I used a dried berry mix consisting of cranberries, cherries and blueberries, which were great. I will definitely be using this as one of my main salad recipes, and I would imagine this will taste awesome on a hot summer day on our screened porch in August.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
3 users found this review helpful

Curried Quinoa

Reviewed: Feb. 19, 2010

Sorry, but after trying other quinoa recipes, we just weren't fans of this one. First of all, it makes enough for 3-4 people as a side dish, instead of 2 as stated. Our main problem was that it had a slightly burned flavor, and that, combined with the overpowering chile powder drowned out the great curry taste that we expected. I'm not sure why it tasted burned; I think it might have something to do with the fact that it was "toasted" for 5 minutes (which I've never had to do in other quinoa recipes). I won't be making this again.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
2 users found this review helpful

German Chocolate Bars

Reviewed: Aug. 30, 2009

Sorry, but these were so sweet. To say they're "rich" is an understatement. I love German Chocolate cake, but the flavors in these are so concentrated that they just taste like 100% sugar. In addition, the recipe says to refrigerate them for 4 hours before cutting them. When I did that, it was like trying to cut through hard cement! We ate about 3 of them.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

French Onion Soup I

Reviewed: Apr. 8, 2009

Sorry, but as french onion soup goes, we thought this was really flavorless. I think the 2 1/2 cups of water in the ingredients ruins it; there was no explosion on our taste buds of onion, rich beef broth or even a hint of wine. Also, the swiss cheese didn't have the cheese flavor I'm used to in restaurants, and I see that in other french onion soup recipes on this site additional cheeses such as parmesan and provolone are called for. This was pretty much of a letdown for our tastebuds, unfortunately.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Brown Sugar Smokies

Reviewed: Jan. 27, 2009

These sounded so good, but for people that like their bacon actually COOKED and CRISP instead of white and rubbery, this isn't the recipe for you. However, I will try it again, but I'm going to experiment with frying the bacon till it's partially done and still maneuverable, let it cool slightly, and then wrap it around the smokie. Since I had to keep it in the oven for so long to cook the bacon (which never did get really cooked through), I ended up with a bunch of hard, crispy burnt brown sugar on the bottom of each appetizer. Not too appetizing!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

Three Cheese Garlic Scalloped Potatoes

Reviewed: Jan. 3, 2009

I made this just as written, except I upped the garlic to 4 cloves and minced it instead of sliced it, and it was delicious! Next time, I may try to get rid of some fat in this recipe and try 1/2 and 1/2 or some skim milk in place of some of the heavy cream. The crusty parmesan on top really makes this dish!!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Chicken Piccata II

Reviewed: Dec. 29, 2008

Flavor was ok, but we were turned off by how mushy the coating was after simmering in the covered pan for 20 minutes. If I try this again, I think I would simmer the coated chicken in the butter by itself for about 15 minutes on low heat, and then stir in the sauce (of which I doubled and was glad that I did) only for the purpose of glazing it for a minute or two. In addition, the mushy coating falls off very easily and doesn't stick to the chicken.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Chocolate Chip Cheese Ball

Reviewed: Dec. 27, 2008

Sorry to only give this 3 stars, but I think it confused my guests. I served this at one Christmas party (as an appetizer) a couple of days before Christmas and NO ONE touched it. I guess they were going after my more traditional, savory tasting appetizers. I thought I would try to serve it again (since it was untouched) at my Christmas dinner. One person out of 7 tried it and did not go back for seconds. Sooooo....I don't know, I can't explain it...I tried it and it tasted good, and it looked ok, I just didn't have much success with it. I explained to people that it tasted to me a bit like chocolate chip cheesecake (which I thought would get them to try it since they could get a good feeling for what flavor they were going to be tasting), but they all gravitated to my cajun meatballs, the bacon-wrapped smokies, the spinach dip, etc. I'm not sure if I'll ever try this again.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

Louisiana Sweet Potato Pancakes

Reviewed: Nov. 15, 2008

If Fall could have a flavor, this would be it! I added 1/4 c. brown sugar, which was plenty, 1/2 tsp. cinnamon, 1/2 tsp. vanilla, and then 1 T. ground flaxseed (just because flaxseed is supposed to be so healthy for you and you can add it to recipes and not even tell it's in there)Make sure when they're cooking that you flatten out the batter (it's rather thick) so that the middle of the pancake gets cooked. Very, very good-thanks for sharing!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful

Best Ever Meatloaf II

Reviewed: Nov. 13, 2008

It always amazes me how many people on this site change up the recipes before trying it the original way the first time and then wonder why they don't turn out as they had hoped! As written, the recipe is very good and flavorful. However, next time I think I will add an egg or two with the hopes of binding it all together a bit more since mine pretty much fell apart when I tried to serve it, even after leaving it sit out for 10 minutes to "set". I added a couple of tablespoons of salsa to the top during the last 15 minutes of cooking, and it added a nice zip to it (it's not necessary, it's just that I grew up with my mom's meatloaf always having ketchup on the top of it, so I guess it's just something I'm prone to do with all my meatloaf recipes) I would recommend this recipe; the only reason I didn't give it 5 stars is because it didn't hold together when I tried to cut into it.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
13 users found this review helpful

Mexican Bean Salad

Reviewed: Sep. 20, 2008

This is a very good and nutritious recipe, however, I would recommend to anyone making it for the first time to add less red wine vinegar; I think the dressing has the potential to be great, but to me, all I really tasted was the vinegar. Since this is a "mexican" salad, I guess I would've liked to taste more of the cumin/chili pepper flavor. I definitely will be making this again, though I will be cutting back on the "tanginess" factor.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
1 user found this review helpful

Awesome Sausage, Apple and Cranberry Stuffing

Reviewed: Sep. 1, 2008

I made this in a casserole dish because I didn't make a whole turkey to accompany it, just turkey tenderloins, and I've always been skittish about the bacteria hazards of putting the stuffing inside the bird anyway. The flavor was very good;I wouldn't change a thing as far as spices go. However, it didn't hold together the way my other stuffing recipes have in the past. When I dished it out onto the plate, every single little piece separated, which made it difficult to actually get a complete forkful. Maybe more broth would be the answer if cooking it outside of the turkey? I'm not sure I'm going to bother to find out...There's a Slow Cooker Stuffing recipe on this website that I've been using for several years that's just as tasty, less work and foolproof.

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
2 users found this review helpful

Zucchini Brownies

Reviewed: Aug. 31, 2008

This is a wonderfully moist and flavorful brownie recipe. It seems I can never keep my brownies moist past the first 24 hours, but we're at the end of the 2nd day after I made them, and they're just as moist as when they came out of the oven. I like to test people when they're eating them to see if they can guess the "secret ingredient" of zucchini! This is a great recipe that I will be sure to use especially in the summer when our local farmstand is loaded down with zucchini. Thanks!

Was this review helpful? [ YES ]
0 users found this review helpful