Weekend Reviews (8/26-29)

[MISSINDI]

Haven't seen my favorite thread pop up yet this morning, so here goes:

Swedish Pancakes - Allrecipes. Excellent and easy to make. Very similar to crepes in their texture, style. Would be delicious with a little Nutella. Definite repeater.

Puff Pancakes - Allrecipes. Another good one and dirt simple to make. Would be great with some sauteed apples over the top.

Roasted Olives - Tyler Florence. Very flavorful without being overpowering.

European Chocolate Truffle Tart with Chocolate Ganache - CLBB Fancyn - an OMG recipe. Very, very rich and dangerous to have in the house. I've given away four big slices so far to save me from myself. :D

[swquilts]

Good Morning all!

I only cooked Sunday dinner over the weekend.....

Chile Rubbed Flatiron Steaks w/Chipotle Red Pepper Sauce - Weber's Real Grilling Veryyyy good. I used a chile blend called Fort Worth Light from Pendreys. Sauce has a nice hint of smoke flavor. I hope the leftovers are just as good.

Grilled Spice-Rubbed Vidalia Onions - Flay's Grilling for LifeThese were very good also, but WAY too hot for us. The recipe calls for 1 tsp of cayenne and I even cut that back. DH said make this again, but leave out the cayenne since the rub has sooo many other flavors working. The rub smelled awesome!

[bobmark226]

I spent most of the weekend in end-of-season Corn Heaven and now hope I never have to shuck another ear. :) Only one new recipe for corn and an improv....

Roast Chicken with Orange & Lemon (F&W Annual 2005) - yet another very good roast chicken from this annual, this time stuffed with a half orange and half lemon, garlic, fresh rosemary and thyme, then roasted at a high temperature. Wonderful subtle flavors run though the bird. A definite repeater.

Creamy Corn (R. Ray - FTV) - She's right to give this a "yummo!" Four shucked ears combined with red pepper, scallion, celery, fresh thyme, and finished off with some half & half. The whole potful didn't last long.

Hudson Valley Frittata (bobmark226) - with all that lovely corn and a ton of cheap golden squash from a local farmers' market, I threw them together with a can of green chilis and Monterey Jack for a delicious frittata, even better cold than hot!

Bob

[Sookie]

I made two recipes from Fresh Every Day.
Roasted Acorn Squash Salad with Warm Goat Cheese Rounds This was really delicious. I made the Balsamic Vinaigrette they suggested with it. Everyone loved this. The other from this book is
Fall Off the Bone Baby Back Ribs These were very good also. I used TJ's KS Barbecue Sauce because I didn't have time to make my own, but that stuff was delicious. Both of the above receipes are going into my permanent file.

I also made the Cookie of the Month from Living - an issue that's about 2 months old Lemon Meringue Bars. These are fantastic. Lemon Meringue Pie with half the fuss and my kids devoured the entire pan so fast. These are so different, yet so basic, I can't believe I've never seen them anywhere before. Would make a great dessert to take to a get-together, but might be a little fragile.

[at828]

I also made the Cookie of the Month from Living - an issue that's about 2 months old Lemon Meringue Bars. These are fantastic. Lemon Meringue Pie with half the fuss and my kids devoured the entire pan so fast. These are so different, yet so basic, I can't believe I've never seen them anywhere before. Would make a great dessert to take to a get-together, but might be a little fragile.

Sookie, could you post this, please?
Thanks!

[Apricot]

I finally got around to making the pot roast that's been posted on this board-ranch, italian dressings and brown gravy with 1/2 c of water. It was very good. I used 6 lbs of roast (shared w/ a friend who recently had a baby) and it was very good. I didn't find it as salty as I thought it would've been. Easy, flavorful and definitely a repeater for our family.

I also made a hearty chicken and noodles recipe from stephskitchen.com and it was also very good. Warm, soothing and very toddler friendly. It was a creamier, chunkier version of my favorite chicken noodle soup.

And my stand-by recipe for bulgogi went over well with my in-laws Sunday. 3 T soy sauce, 3 T sugar, 1 T rice wine (not vinegar), 1 T minced garlic, 1 T sesame oil (dark, asian variety), 1 T green onions, chopped, a little black pepper Mix together and pour over 1 lb of thinly sliced beef. Let stand 20 min. I stir fry this with sliced onions, green onions and mushrooms (sliced). I served it with Korean spinach salad, and a soup.

[Kristal]

Here's what I made over the weekend.

Heirloom Tomato Salsa Fresh Every Day Beautiful and delicious. The recipe makes a ton, but I'm sure we'll eat every last bite. I just love heirloom tomatoes!

Cheddar-Stuffed Poblano Chilies with Grilled Corn and Tomato Salad A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen This was also very good, but would have been better served as an appetizer than an entree. I believe the recipe states it can serve 2-4, but the two of us ate every single chile and were still starving afterwards! We did go running right before, but I can't imagine anyone would be full eating a roasted chile filled with less than 1 oz of cheese for dinner. I think the chilies should be bulked up with some black beans or rice or something. The tomato and corn salad was delicious, and did fill us up a little bit more than the chilies.

Congo Squares Williams-Sonoma: Chocolate These are butterscotch-flavored brownies, sprinkled with chopped pecans and chocolate chips. Tasty, and very easy to make. I've been baking a lot (for me!) because I need to use up some of the nuts and chocolate I have in my pantry.

[greysangel]

Fall off the bone Ribs - Excellent and my advice is MAKE THE BBQ SAUCE :D It is totally worth it...the sauce is delicious and totally complements the beer infused ribs.

Class
Grissini with Parmesan and Smoked Paprika
Onion Rye Loaf
Foccaccia with olives, rosemary and feta
Foccaccia with balsamic onions, romano/parmesan and sun dried tomatoes.

[Sookie]

Sookie, could you post this, please?
Thanks!
Here you go. They aren't low fat, but they are a nice treat.
Lemon Meringue Bars
Makes 12

2 sticks unsalted butter, softened
1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons confectioner's sugar
2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon freshly grated lemon zest
1/4 teaspoon coarse salt
6 large eggs plus 4 large egg whites
2 1/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
3/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Make crust:
Put butter, flour, confectioner's sugar, 2 teaspoons lemon zest, and the salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment. Mix on medium speed until well blended.

Transfer mixture to a 9 x 13 rimmed baking sheet. Press batter evenly into baking sheet. Chill in freezer 10 minutes. Bake until golden, 20 to 22 minutes. Let cool completely on wire rack.

Make filling:
Whisk together whole eggs, 1 3/4 cups plus 2 tablespoons granulated sugar, the lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons lemon zest. Pour over crust. Bake until filling is set, 18 to 20 minutes. Let cool completely on a wire rack. Keep oven at 350 degrees.

Make meringue topping:
Put egg whites and 1/2 cup granulated sugar in the clean bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment. Beat on medium-high speed until stiff peaks form.

Using an offset spatula or the back of a spoon, spread meringue over filling, swirling to create soft peaks. Bake until meringue begins to brown, 8 to 10 minutes. Let cool completely. Cut into bars. Bars can be refrigerated in an airtight container, up to 1 day.

Note: They won't last THAT long!

[Kismet]

Wow - I made the same things as everyone else this weekend! :)

Like Kristal, I tried the Cheddar-Stuffed Poblano Chilies with Grilled Corn and Tomato Salad from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. We had a big lunch, so I thought that the portions were fine for a light dinner. I really enjoyed the combo of smoky and bright flavors from the salad with the slightly spicy chiles. I'll make this again!

I also made the Fall Off the Bone Baby Back Ribs from Fresh Every Day. I had some chipotle-maple sauce already in my pantry, so I didn't make it from scratch. I loved these ribs! So tender from the slow oven cooking, and very flavorful from the sauce. Easy to put together, too! Another repeater!

My great intentions for a couple of other recipes were thwarted by the beautiful weather and lots of errands to do. I'll have to try to sneak them in later this week. :)

[susan_foster]

3 recipes this weekend - no main dishes, surprisingly!

Friday night I made Old-Fashioned Baked Rice Pudding from 1,001 Low-Fat Vegetarian recipes (part of my challenge for that book). It was good, and I definitely could see myself repeating it, because it works well as a breakfast, and I always have the ingredients on hand. Just a simple recipe, but feels like a treat to eat in the morning, and has some calcium as a bonus. Serving size seemed small - I halved the recipe and it served 3, but next time I'll just split into two.

Saturday night I did JK's Favorite Chocolate Chip Cookies from Small Batch Baking. Definitely not my favorite cookies - too buttery. So buttery that they felt greasy.

Sunday night was a side dish, for a change - Greek-Style Green Beans (not sure on the exact name), from 1,001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes. Not a knock-your-socks off recipe, but very simple, and I liked the flavors. What can I say - I'm a tomato girl! It's the first time I worked with fresh green beans, and I never realized how different they could be from canned!

Susan

[Kristal]

Wow - I made the same things as everyone else this weekend! :)

Like Kristal, I tried the Cheddar-Stuffed Poblano Chilies with Grilled Corn and Tomato Salad from A Year in a Vegetarian Kitchen. We had a big lunch, so I thought that the portions were fine for a light dinner. I really enjoyed the combo of smoky and bright flavors from the salad with the slightly spicy chiles. I'll make this again!



OMG, how funny!! I always knew we had similar tastes! :D (And I guess DH and I have big appetites. :o )

[AvrilH]

Dry rub chicken with honey-BBQ sauce (BB) - Yes! I did it. I successfully grilled a whole chicken (well, two actually). This was a delicious chicken (couldn't keep myself from eating some of the skin) even though I mistakenly used chili powder for paprika in the rub :rolleyes: . I didn't much care for the BBQ sauce.

Alton's french toast This was so good. I had three slices and finished off the plate of one son. I followed his method, but not ingredients. I'm not about to start buying cream just to put in a Sunday brunch!

No baking this weekend: dh took my out Friday night, bought a small cake at a farmer's market on Sat, and went out for ice cream to mark the last summer weekend before school last night.

[Kismet]

(And I guess DH and I have big appetites. :o )

Nah, I would have totally agreed with you about the dish not being very filling, but we weren't terribly hungry as we had eaten at Chipotle for lunch. :) :eek: :D

[MISSINDI]

Fall off the bone Ribs - Excellent and my advice is MAKE THE BBQ SAUCE :D It is totally worth it...the sauce is delicious and totally complements the beer infused ribs.

JeAnne, are these the ones from Fresh Every Day? I keep seeing reviews for them - might have to break down and make them. ;)

[greysangel]

yes..those are the ones. I thought you had made them already?!? I actually thought you had posted the original recipe :D

[lex]

Susan(swquilts),
could you post your grilled spiced rubbed vidalia onions recipe...sound good and we like spicy and cayenne pepper...?

thanks

[swquilts]

Lex, here it is...it's on the What's Cooking This Week thread.

Grilled Spice-Rubbed Vidalia Onions
Bobby Flay's Grilling for Life

These tasty onion rings never hit the deep fryer - they get their flavor and crust from the spice mix and a turn on the grill. I like these guys even better than the old beer battered ones.

Serves: 6

2 TB paprika
1 TB ancho chile powder
2 tsp groun cumin
2 tsp ground coriander
2 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1 tsp cayenne (I cut this back to about 3/4 tsp, still too hot )
1 tsp dry mustard
1 tsp dried oregano
4 Vidalia Onions, cut into 1/4" slices (I cut them to 1/2 and they were fine)
1/4 cup canola oil (I used cooking spray)

1. Heat grill to med high heat. Whisk together all of the rub ingredients in a small bowl.
2. Brush both sides of the onion slices with the oil. Rub one side with the rub and place rub side down on the grill. Grill until golden brown and a crust has formed, 2 to 3 min. Turn the onions over and continue grilling until just cooked through, 2 to 3 min longer. Serve hot or at room temp.

My notes: We really liked these, but they were a bit hot for us. I only did one onion since there was just the 2 of us. The leftover rub we're going to use on some chicken wings at the racetrack this coming weekend! I'll make these again, but cut way down on the cayenne.

[aprilbride]

Could someone post the "Fall Off the Bone Baby Back Ribs" recipe?

Thanks so much!!

[1MegMeg]

We had my parents over for dinner on Saturday to smoke some salmon (among other things). :) Here are some of the new things I made this weekend:

Halibut Ceviche (gourmetsleuth.com) - We recently went fishing in Alaska and caught tons of Halibut. The halibut was processed and flash frozen the day we caught it so I figured it would be good to use for the ceviche. I guess my assumption was correct because my parents and DH and I loved the ceviche. It was delicious and easy!

Pike Place Market Salad (CL 06/05) - Left out the walnuts because my Mom doesn't do nuts, but otherwise this salad was really good! The dressing (in the recipe) definitely made the salad and complimented the flavors of the blue cheese and berries.

Smoked Salmon Spread (recipezaar) - Was a little too overzealous with the amount of salmon that we smoked so we ended up with more than plenty leftover. Found a delicious smoked salmon spread recipe on Recipezaar and gave it a go. DH has been raving non-stop. :)

[klrickrode]

I only made 1 new recipe this weekend, but it was a definite winner!

Crab Cake Burgers - Eating Well (June/July) I made these for dinner last night using fresh crabmeat found near the seafood counter at the grocery store. They were great! I highly recommend these burgers for a nice change in your typical burger. :)

Caramelized Onion Chicken - CL I made this Friday night for dinner - a favorite in our family!

[cniles]

yes..those are the ones. I thought you had made them already?!? I actually thought you had posted the original recipe :D

Nope, that was me! :D And I agree JeAnne, I loved the BBQ sauce!!

aprilbride, here is the link to the review... http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=77560

I made a couple of things this weekend..

Mixed Bean-Cherry Tomato Salad with Basil Vinaigrette - CL 9/05 Very good, although a bit heavy on the balsamatic vinegar.. may reduce it next time.

Chefzhat's Farmer Tomato Pie - CLBB Debie... OMG this was delicious!!! A definate keeper

[Kristal]

Could someone post the "Fall Off the Bone Baby Back Ribs" recipe?

Thanks so much!!

Hi there. Here's a link (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=77560) to the thread where it was originally posted, along with some reviews. :)

[Kristal]

Ooops, Charisse beat me to it! ;)

[cniles]

Hi Kristal! :D

[Kristal]

Hi Charisse! :D

(Ok, now back to your regularly scheduled thread. :p )

[zackaboo]

I tried several new things this weekend but the standouts to me were Banana Bread Biscotti from One Smart Cookie (smelled heavenly when they were baking) and Guacamole with Roasted Corn from Moosewood Restaurant Low-fat Favorites (kindly shared with me by NewMrsG ;) ).

[dgeevanson]

Does anyone have this recipe already typed in? I guess I missed this one. Thanks Darla

[MISSINDI]

yes..those are the ones. I thought you had made them already?!? I actually thought you had posted the original recipe :D

LOL - nope on both counts. But this week! I HAVE made the Quincy Jones Fall-off-the-Bone Ribs posted by JABelt (good) and Brazilian Spare Ribs (I think I posted it here, definitely on my blog) - excellent. Too many rib recipes ... too little time. ;)

[bobmark226]

Does anyone have this recipe already typed in? I guess I missed this one. Thanks Darla


LOL, no, it was my own creation; just two ears of corn scraped with one med. squash, quartered and sliced about a half inch, both sauteed until tender, about seven minutes, then 8 eggs (4, really, and one cup egg beaters) with 1/4 cup jack and a can of green chilis, s & p to taste. Cook over low heat until set, 7-8 minutes, put another 1/4 jack on top and broil til top is set and nicely browned.

Sorry for the confusion.

Bob, ye old frittata maker

[pilgrim719]

I tried several new things this weekend but the standouts to me were Banana Bread Biscotti from One Smart Cookie (smelled heavenly when they were baking)

Yay, someone else to give me reviews from this cookbook so I know what to try!! :D Those sound delicious! I made some banana biscotti once and loved them, so I'll have to make these, too. Thanks!

As for me this weekend...

No-Cook Barbecue Chicken Salad, CLBB MiMo -- Very quick, easy, and tasty! Only change was to use frozen corn and leftover grilled chicken breast instead of rotisserie chicken.

Multigrain Pancakes, CL 3/97 -- Certainly tastes like whole grain pancakes, so be expecting that if you try these. Don't get me wrong, they're good, but they have a definite healthy taste to them. Great light, fluffy texture! Not too sweet so they offset maple syrup nicely.

Favorite Mini Kisses Cookies, Favorite Brand Name Monster Cookies -- Yum! Great buttery/brown sugar-y flavor! Nice and thick with a chewy center and crispy edges! I chilled the dough, so that may have affected the thickness. I also added some salt -- what kind of CCC recipe calls for NO salt??

Oh, and I repeated 2 recipes for my dad who was visiting -- Chili Con Carne Burgers and The Farm of Beverly Hills Brownies -- and he loved them both!! :D

Kari

[dgeevanson]

Thanks Bob - that sounds like a wonderful last minute supper. Gotta love the fresh corn and veges that are on right now. Darla

[Dee_Lish]

Could someone please provide a link or share the recipe for the Heirloom Tomato Salsa? I've seen glowing reviews on this and other threads, but can't for the life of me find the recipe by searching. Thanks so very much. Vicki

[SueK]

Could someone please provide a link or share the recipe for the Heirloom Tomato Salsa? I've seen glowing reviews on this and other threads, but can't for the life of me find the recipe by searching. Thanks so very much. Vicki
Here's the thread with the recipe and reviews. I remembered Charisse had started the thread, which is probably the only reason I found it using the search. ;) Anyway, I've made it and loved it. Enjoy!

http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=76176

[Dee_Lish]

Thanks, SueK!! I'm going to have to purchase that cookbook, it sounds like a winner, as does the salsa. Vicki

[newbabygirl#2]

I actually went to Foster's for lunch today (my first time there) and the food was great. They had both of her cookbooks on sale, but not discounted so I didn't buy the Fresh Every Day :( . I tasted the corn, mozzarella and avocado salad that everyone's been raving about -- it definitely lived up to its billing.

Anyway, here's to my first entry into the weekend reviews thread!

Balsamic Roasted Vegetables over Couscous with Pinenuts and Goat Cheese -- this was my own creation and why did I wait so long to make it? The vegetables were so sweet from being roasted and the toasted pinenuts added a nice crunch. Tried salting the eggplant first and it worked out very well. Repeater.

Chili-Cheese Black Bean Enchiladas -- CL. Saw this on the homepage a few weeks ago and since I LOVE LOVE enchiladas, decided to try it. It went together very quickly, though I subbed ground beef for the soy crumbles. It made more than the recipe stated so I used 2 pans and froze one. DH and I thought it was pretty good but it wasn't a WOW recipe. I did like using cream cheese to make the beef/bean mixture creamier.

Zucchini Oven Chips -- CL. I may be the last person to try these but they were great. I made them as written and they crisped up nicely. I may fool around with them next time and use egg white and panko. Really good.

[tholbrook]

Fresh Mozzarella Watermelon Salad with Basil (CLBB, bobmark226) (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=77279) Really quick and easy – I’ve been trying a number of watermelon salads and this is one of my favorites so far.

Garden Muffins (CLBB, Canice) (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=78062) I posted a review already but to summarize: yummy! We ate the last of them today. Nice change of pace from plain ol’ bread.

Pizza Olympia (CL August 2005) (http://food.cookinglight.com/cooking/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=1087065) A really simple pizza recipe, but it was good. Not wow, but I’d make it again. I thawed out my own pizza dough instead of using the focaccia.

Caramelized Onion Dip (CL March 2004) (http://food.cookinglight.com/cooking/display/recipefinder.dyn?action=displayRecipe&recipe_id=592344) We really enjoyed this! DH has been asking me to make him some kind of dip for veggies, and I wanted to make something nicer than sour cream and dry soup mix. The only change for next time: more caramelized onions.

Lavender Blueberry Brownies (healinglifestyles.com) (http://www.healinglifestyles.com/articles/2004/7/cooking_with_herbs_text.htm) I loved the combination of flavors, especially since I love the taste/aroma of lavender. The texture isn’t the best I’ve ever had in a brownie but these weren’t intended to be totally decadent either. However, I think I undercooked mine - which may have been a good thing - because while they are fairly dense and fudge-y, I suspect that if I had cooked them properly, they would have been on the cake-y side. The recipe called for 1/6 cup (about 2½ tablespoons) of dried lavender… I used only about a tablespoon – and that was plenty - since I didn’t want it to taste like eating perfume.

[SweetSueDonym]

I only made one new recipe this weekend, despite lots of cooking.

Blueberry Crumble Pie, from Lobster Rolls & Blueberry Pie: Summers on a Maine Coast. As a new Mainer, I figured I needed a standby blueberry pie to use up my bounty of fresh wild blueberries. I think I've found it. Yum!!!

[shoezoo]

Kristal or Kismet, could you please post the recipe for the stuffed poblano chilies. Thanks. I'd also love the see the recipe for the Pike place salad. Thanks for all the great reviews.

[zackaboo]

Yay, someone else to give me reviews from this cookbook so I know what to try!! :D Those sound delicious! I made some banana biscotti once and loved them, so I'll have to make these, too. Thanks!



Hey Kari...It is thanks to you that I bought this cookbook and I am so glad that I did! I really like the looks of it. Plus I found it on ebay for a steal. I plan to try some more things over Labor Day weekend so I will share my results. :)

By the way, I did the chocolate chip version of the banana bread biscotti and eliminated the nuts for what it is worth...

[LLR]

I only made one new recipe this weekend, despite lots of cooking.

Blueberry Crumble Pie, from Lobster Rolls & Blueberry Pie: Summers on a Maine Coast. As a new Mainer, I figured I needed a standby blueberry pie to use up my bounty of fresh wild blueberries. I think I've found it. Yum!!!


Could you post this recipe? I love blueberry anything and I have some blueberries to use up for this upcoming holiday weekend. :D

[veschke]

This weekend I made two things that I thought were really good:

Bistro Chicken, from CL (heaven knows how old the clipping is). It uses chicken leg quarters, which makes me happy, because whole chickens are a good value but I seldom want to roast one. It's just a simple herb rub under the skin, then a nice long bake, but it turns out way better than any similar recipes I've tried before. I might make it for family this weekend.

Blueberry tea cake (via Baking by Flavor). I had some blueberries that weren't going to last too much longer. This is an "OMG." Just astonishingly tender, not too sweet, just enough spice. With two sticks of butter, four eggs, and a cup of sour cream, it had better be good. <g>

[Kingwell]

So I just posted this whole long review on the wrong thread...I mean it's no biggie, but that is in fact, an older thread, while this one actually refers to the weekend when I did the cooking.

The other thread is here. (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=78164&page=2&pp=30)

[bobmark226]

The other thread is here. (http://community.cookinglight.com/showthread.php?t=78164&page=2&pp=30)

For future reference, one of the new features on these boards is the small number towards the upper right hand corner of each post. If you click on that number (56 in your case), it will give you the specific URL of that post only and lead your fellow posters directly to it!

I'm just mentioning this because it's one of the things I like best about this set-up.

Thanks for the reviews, too!

Bob