Valerie's Kitchen Recipe Reviews (Pg. 1) - Allrecipes.com (18744468)

Momma Pritchett's Grilled Pork Chops and Apple-Pear Topping

Reviewed: Apr. 18, 2012

These were a hit in my house. Love the marinade and the chops were beautiful after grilling. I did feel that the apple/pear mixture could have used some additional spice to kick up the flavor a little. Maybe a little crushed red pepper or a touch of chili powder? I skipped grilling the fruit cause I thought it would be a mess and instead transferred the grilled chops to the pan with the fruit, mixed it altogether and served.

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Linguini with Roasted Vegetables and Tomato Basil Chicken Meatballs

Reviewed: Apr. 16, 2012

These meatballs are very good. I thought the overall taste of the dish was a bit bland for my taste. Love the veggies but the sauce (or lack of) left me feeling like something was missing.

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al fresco Roasted Pepper and Asiago Chicken Sausage Frittata

Reviewed: Apr. 12, 2012

I'm rating this recipe 4 stars as written. The ratio of sausage to egg is off so if you plan to use the entire package of sausage, increase the eggs to at least 6. I also added some chopped mushrooms but followed as written otherwise. It's a great tasting frittata with the correct egg to sausage ratio!

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Butternut Squash and Turnip Soup

Reviewed: Mar. 14, 2012

I prefer straight up butternut squash soup over this but it wasn't bad. Even though I added at least an extra cup of squash, the parsnips muted it, not just in color, but in flavor too. It was quite bland and really needed the optional salt and I also added about 1/2 teaspoon curry powder to give it a flavor boost. I used my immersion blender to puree it. The recipe really should include this step. However, if you are looking for a way to use up parsnips for some reason - this would work!

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Serendipity Bread

Reviewed: Feb. 25, 2012

I LOVE this recipe and the grilling method. My mind is swirling with all the possibilities for variations. I did mine in my KitchenAid but love that it works well in the bread machine. Will do that way next time. I used my stovetop grill since I didn't want to fire up the BBQ in February. Followed as directed otherwise but added a little fresh basil. Really, really good!

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Fiber One® Chocolate-Peanut Butter Haystacks

Reviewed: Feb. 7, 2012

We thought these are just as good as the version you make using the dry chow mein noodles. I subbed milk chocolate chips and regular peanut butter because it is what I had on hand. I also mixed in about 1/2 cup unmelted butterscotch chips after combining the chocolate/peanut butter mixture with the cereal. They are delicious! A great way to sneak a little fiber into your kids goodies. One packet of the cereal measured a bit shy of the 3-3/4 cup called for. It was closer to 3-1/2 cups but it worked perfectly.

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Slow Cooker Cranberry Chicken

Reviewed: Jan. 16, 2012

I was so happy I planned to make this for tonight's dinner because I had a crazy day and this is so easy to make. Catalina dressing is very sweet so I only used half a bottle of the fat free version. I still ended up with plenty of sauce that was just sweet enough to complement the tartness of the cranberry sauce. Overall I thought it was pretty darn good considering how incredibly easy it is. Definitely make mashed potatoes or rice to serve with it. You can add in an extra piece of chicken or two since this recipe makes plenty of sauce.

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7 users found this review helpful

Frijoles II

Reviewed: Jan. 13, 2012

I believe this recipe should be edited to reflect what all the other reviewers have said and what I will repeat. Do not expect these to be ready in 6 hours if you put dry beans directly into the slow cooker without presoaking. I did the quick soak method by bringing them to a boil (uncovered) then remove from heat and let them sit, covered, for an hour. Then I went on with the recipe. Even with that, they were not ready in 6 hours. They really need to go overnight. Just start them the day before you need them, let them cook all day, then turn the slow cooker down to low and let them go overnight. They will be perfect in the morning. I did not fish the bacon out as it pretty much just melted into the bean mixture. I used my immersion blender to puree them which worked great, leaving some of the beans whole for a nice texture. Be sure to add salt or they will be tasteless. Add in a couple teaspoons while they cook and then taste and add more if needed after. Also, I scaled up to use an entire bag of beans as I didn't want to use just 1-1/2 cups.

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2 users found this review helpful

Three-Layer Chocolate Brownies

Reviewed: Jan. 10, 2012

Even though these are bit of work to make, the end result is delicious and they are very pretty when cut. I only rated 4 stars because for me, they were a bit sweet (although this was not a complaint with my kids) and I felt they were a bit too much work for a brownie or bar type of dessert.

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Curried Coconut Chicken

Reviewed: Jan. 3, 2012

Yum! This was a big hit with my kids. I added a bit of crushed red pepper since it really seemed like a dish that could use some heat - only about 1/2 teaspoon gives it a nice kick but I'm a wimp and I could totally handle it. Here's my tip for helping the mixture to cook down and thicken. Don't cover the pan while it is simmering AND simmer it longer. If you leave the lid off, it will cook down and thicken much better than if you leave the lid on. I will definitely make again!

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Original NESTLE® TOLL HOUSE® Dark Chocolate Chip Cookies

Reviewed: Dec. 22, 2011

What's not to like? This is an old classic. We love dark chocolate so the addition of the dark chocolate chips was great. I made them into bars (see instructions at bottom of recipe) and cut them very small to put on Christmas cookie trays.

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Eggnog Thumbprints

Reviewed: Dec. 2, 2011

Wow! I just tried one of these and they are amazing! I used a full teaspoon of vanilla but followed as directed otherwise. Used the end of a wooden spoon to make indentation and baked on parchment paper. The icing is lip smacking good! I used Captain Morgan which is a spiced rum and I think it worked very well here. Very festive.

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6 users found this review helpful

Asian Orange Chicken

Reviewed: Dec. 2, 2011

My boys love the orange chicken from Panda Express so when I saw this I thought I'd give it a shot. They loved it. I halved the sugar and I thought it was very sweet. This is why I rated it only 4 stars. I think with the amount of sugar called for it would be far too sweet. The other change I made was to strain the extra sauce before heating and thickening. Make sure you use a fresh orange and lemon. It was really good!

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3 users found this review helpful

Savory Chicken and Stuffing Bake

Reviewed: Nov. 16, 2011

This is such an old classic and great way to use up leftover stuffing! You just can't go wrong with it. Easy and tasty. You may need to cook longer depending on the thickness of your chicken breasts. I always cut mine in half to make for nicer serving sizes. Had to cook about 45-50 minutes total.

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Manicotti Alla Romana

Reviewed: Nov. 14, 2011

I made this tonight and it went over very well with my family. I subbed turkey italian sausage for the ground beef and since I had an open jar of alfredo sauce in the fridge, I used that instead of making the white sauce. I thought it was okay but the guys really liked it.

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Frank's® Red Hot® Buffalo Chicken Dip

Reviewed: Nov. 13, 2011

This stuff is amazing! I took it to a housewarming party last night and had so many people come up and ask for the recipe. Every last bite was eaten. I subbed ranch for the blue cheese dressing and used mozzarella. I do think it would be delicious with blue cheese but since I was taking it to a large gathering thought it would be safer to use the ranch and mozzarella to suit everyone's taste. I served it with Fritos's Scoops. If you are looking for an appetizer to serve while watching football - this is it! Look no further.

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4 users found this review helpful

Dripping Roast Beef Sandwiches with Melted Provolone

Reviewed: Nov. 7, 2011

I used an entire pound of deli roast beef so I decided to add 1 cup of beef broth to the french onion soup and Worcestershire sauce and it was wonderful! One of my son's turned his into a French dip by using the au jus for a sandwich dip. I didn't realize I was out of the jarred peppers so I sliced up a red bell pepper and a yellow onion and sauteed them in vegetable oil. It was fantastic!

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2 users found this review helpful

Pulled Chicken Crescents

Reviewed: Oct. 18, 2011

I used a can of the Big and Flaky Crescent Rolls because I knew my kids would scarf down the smaller ones and be looking for more. They turned out great. This is one of those recipes you can throw together in a flash and your kids think you're a genius! Younger kids and teenagers will love them.

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Iced Tea III

Reviewed: Oct. 9, 2011

This is a quick easy way to make a large batch of Arnold Palmer's. We are big fans around here. I think it would be better tasting with freshly made lemonade but this is a good shortcut.

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3 users found this review helpful

Crescent Pizza Pockets

Reviewed: Oct. 9, 2011

I am a little embarrassed to admit that I had some trouble with this recipe. I struggled with the fact that it says to fold the rectangles on the diagonal. Maybe I need to repeat Geometry (very likely) but I don't believe there is any way to fold a rectangle of dough on the diagonal and have it meet up. If it were a square this would work. I just folded my rectangles in half to form squares. Once I got past that everything else worked out just fine. Kids will love these! I could see adding additional ingredients and mixing it up a little.

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2 users found this review helpful