October Reviews #2

[ElinorC]

So far I've made:

Creamy 4 Cheese macaroni
This has long been a favorite recipe and will be repeated again and again ....

Spinach Ravioli With Tomato Sauce
This took a lot of effort and was very bland. The wonton raviolis were very doughy and tasteless. Definitely not a repeater.

Winter Squash Stew With Pinto Beans and Corn
This had a lot of interesting ingredients but after it was cooked it had very little taste. The only thing that was good was the chipotle chili that I used in lieu of the dried New Mexico chili which I wasn't familiar with.

Sausage Soup With Spinach and Wild Rice
This was very good and will be a definite repeater. The seasoning was very good and the wild rice and spinach were a good combination. It will join the other good soup recipes from CL. It's easier if you cook the wild rice ahead of time.

Wild Rice Sweet Potato Salad with Pears.
This was okay but was hard to figure out what would go with it. I had it with pork tenderloin but it was so different that it didn't fit somehow. I don't think I'll repeat it.

Spanish-style Salad
The salad ingredients were good but the dressing was a little tart for our tastes. Not a repeater for us.

I'm looking forward to the Pasta e Fagioli and the Chicken Breasts with Wild Rice and Fig Pilaf. Has anyone tried it?

[Natasha]

Elinor,
Thanks for your comments on the salads, both of which I have been meaning to try, and on the ravioli. I guess I ll pass on this ravioli recipe for the moment!
Another vote for the Spanish Toast! A real no-brainer and a delicious one at that. I am still planning to try that wild rice-mushroom dish and the banana-coconut-apple crisp. On another note, I tried the bread pudding from the September issue - it was okay, but not exciting. There are many better recipes out there, IMHO.

[Kristilyn1]

I too, can't wait to try the pasta e fagioli. Love to hear when someone makes it as I am considering serving it at a party this weekend.

I made the cranberry orange apple crisp and give a very hearty thumbs DOWN. Though the orange juice and apple tasted great raw--the finished product just tasted wrong somehow. Some marriages are not meant to be. I served it to my sister, brother in law and husband and nobody wanted to finish their portion. Oh well.

kristi

[ElinorC]

I tried the Pasta Fagioli and it was really disappointing. It was very bland and even the turkey Italian sausage was tasteless with all of the beans and pasta. Usually it carries the dish but not this time.

[Natasha]

The Wild Rice and Mushroom Pilaf was somewhat time-consuming, but delicious. (Most of the time, though, is just spent simmering the rice.) I would make it again for a kind of special dinner (or where I have quite a bit of time to wait for it to simmer). I may also try adding some tofu (and maybe increase the broth to compensate) in an effort to make a fairly filling meal out of it. Though I could eat it as a meal as is!

[bijoux22]

I made the butternut squash souffle tonight. It was a great side for pan seared salmon and swiss chard. The souffle did not get as puffy as I thought it would, but we all had seconds. I will make it again.

[RunnerKim]

My husband made an arugula salad from the October issue last night. I can't for the life of me recall the exact name - something with Arugula, Wild Rice and Sauteed apples.

I was rather leery of this salad but had put it on the menu because we had some arugula I wanted to use up. I can't comment on whether it was easy to make as my husband was chef as I was too tired (and not inspired by the recipe) to make dinner. It was very good and unusual and we'll repeat it on occaison. It had arugula, chicken, red grapes, wild rice and blue cheese. The dressing had lemon juice, white wine vinegar, olive oil and dijon mustard among other things. Topped with sauteed granny smith apple wedges. Wonderful complement of flavors and suprisingly filling.

I heated some Crusty Flaxseed Rolls I had in the freezer (recipe is from a Flax article several issues back) - they went very well.

A surprised thumbs up on this meal.

Kim

[andi]

The Four Cheese Macaroni was delicious and at least one kid devoured it. I also made the apple torte with a slight variation (see the apple recipe thread) It was also wonderful AND won first place at an annual Fall dinner party!
I've got everything to make the Parmesean chicken on the cover but our store is out of sun-dried tomatoes yet again. Guess I'll make it without.
I wonder if you made the Spinach Ravioli with pre-packaged ravioli if it would taste any better?

[CHRIST1NE]

I made the Quick Mozzarella Chicken tonight. (I was going to make the cover one, but didn't have all the ingrediants). The "quick" one was actually pretty good and super easy to make. I would change a few things though 1) I wouldn't put the mozzarella cheese on until you have about 8 minutes left or so. My cheese was definately well done following their directions and 2) I may skip the 2 minutes on each side on the stove. My skillet doesn't go in the oven so why dirty any more dishes than I have to. My husband said "good grub babe" which means it's a keeper for us http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif

[Danielle]

I'm disappointed to hear that the Pasta Fagiloi got a thumbs-down. I'm making it for dinner tonight. Anyone else try this dish, or have suggestions as to how it needs to be improved?

[Kristilyn1]

well, I made it and cheated.....I did slightly less beans and used regular hot italian sausage and liberally sprinkled in red pepper flakes and found it delicious!!! I served it to guests and everyone enjoyed it. Alas, no longer light--but good.

Kristi

[LynnSC]

I also made the apple torte. I also substituted low fat cream cheese for the fat free. I got rave reviews from everyone that ate it. It is a definite repeater for us.

I made the Healthy Picadillo. I served it over rice as I did not know how to bake plantains. Can anyone enlighten me on that?Anyway, the Picadillo was delicious. Everyone loved it! I will make it again.

[This message has been edited by LynnSC (edited 10-03-2000).]

[PrincessT]

I made the Apple Torte and it is great! I substituted lowfat cream cheese for fat free. I've gotten great compliments from that!

[Peggy]

So far I have only made two dishes from the October issue.

Roasted Pepper Pesto-Tomato Pizza - We thought this was excellent. It was very easy and flavorful My husband said this was the best homemade pizza I have ever made!

Pasta e Fagioli - I must disagree with the negative comments posted on this recipe. We really liked it. However, I did make some changes because of the previous posts. Like Kristi, I only used one can of beans and I also used regular Italian sausage, not the turkey variety. It was plenty spicy and delicious. Maybe that is what made the difference.

I must try the Chicken, Arugula, and Wild Rice Salad with Sauteed Apples. That sounds SO interesting....

Peggy

[Beth H]

I made the Penne with Mint and Ricotta cheese last night -- from the 30 minutes or less section. Definitely took less than 30 minutes and was really delicious. I added a bit more pepper than the recipe called for. Definitely a repeater.

[shoefling]

I made the Pasta e Fagioli this weekend and must put in a thumbs up for it. After reading other responses I also changed the recipe a bit, only one can of beans and regular hot italian sausage. My husband thought that it tasted kind of pizza like, but he gave it a thumbs up. I also made the blue ribbon apple pie that someone posted on a different thread. I only used one type of apples and they got a little mushy, but the flavor was excellent. I will probably thy this again. By the way, it was my first attemt at a pie as far as making the crust and everything. I thought that it was pretty easy. Has anyone else made anything lately from the Oct issue?

[Marcie]

Tonight we made the Sausage Soup with Spinach and Wild Rice, and the Colorful Vegetable Medley. Both were excellent. The soup was great as Elinor described above, and the veggie medley was a good way to enjoy beets. I didn't think I was a beet fan, but this recipe showed them to their advantage. The aioli that goes with the veggie medley was tasty but not much more exciting than a good ranch dressing, so I might not bother with it next time.

[BernK]

You are all making me very jealous. I still have not received my October issue. It will probalbly be like Augusts edition, I received that the day before my September issue, which arrived the first week of September.