Snickerdoodles and

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 12-16 minutes (cookies), 15-20 minutes (cake)

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: BraveTart Cookbook

I have actually never had Snickerdoodles before but I love cinnamon things, so I was sure I would like these. I did.

I decided to try to make the cookie version and the cake version (Snip Doodles) at the same time by using half the recipe for cookies and half for the cake. I have gotten myself in trouble before by doing this kind of thing, but I went ahead anyway.

I made the full cookie batter, weighing my mixer bowl before I started. I weighed it again with the cookie batter, and then used half of it for cookies. Then I added the milk for the cake. For the cake you are supposed to alternate adding the milk and flour to the rest of the batter, and that was impossible since the flour was already incorporated. Mixing all the milk in at the end was a little tricky because the cookie batter was already thick and I didn't want to beat it too hard. I mixed carefully until it wasn't too lumpy and hoped for the best.

It worked fine. I cooked the snip doodles in a 1/4 sheet pan. I cooked that first at 350, since the cookies needed 400° to start. I rolled the cookies in the cinnamon sugar while the cake was cooking and baked those when the cake was done.

Overall I liked the cookies better because of the more crispy edges, but the cake was nice also. I think I undercooked the cake a bit and overcooked the cookies. My cookies ended up quite crispy once they cooled and I lost the chewy center.

I would definitely make the cookies again, but will probably not do the cake. I ended up using the cake to make some cinnamon croutons which was a very good idea! I cubed the cake and cooked in some butter on the stovetop and then sprinkled with more cinnamon sugar. It is a fun topping for ice cream.

Rice and Lentils with Crispy Onions (Mujaddara)

Prep Time: 60 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A+

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 15) 
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (September 2014)

I recently tried a recipe from Food52 that everyone rated very highly for Mujaddara and I was unimpressed. I love lentils, rice and caramelized onions, but the flavor was lacking. All the spices went into the yogurt sauce, which made it gritty to me.

So I decided to finally try ATK's version which had been on my Try list for a while. It did not disappoint. This was really delicious. Yes, it is a lot more work that the Food52 recipe, but probably worth the trouble.

You have to make the crispy onions first, which involves salting and pre-cooking the onions in the microwave, rinsing to remove the salt, then drying them, before frying in a lot of oil. I almost substituted normal caramelized onions instead, but decided to try the original recipe at least once.

The crispy onions are definitely delicious, but I still might go with caramelized onions next time, which I also find delicious. I'd probably use 2 T of fat for the 2 pounds of onions and let them slowly caramelize, but finish up with some high heat to crisp them a bit in parts. It will still take a long time, but will be simpler. Also, I found the onions to be too heavy and filling for me. I actually still felt full from the fat the next morning, which is not a feeling i enjoy.

The yogurt sauce is simpler with just lemon, garlic and salt, and it was perfect. The rice and lentils were much more flavorful as the spices were added when they were cooked together (after par-cooking separately.)

Overall, this is a great recipe. I hope that I can streamline it a bit and make a little faster now that I know what I'm doing. It is very delicious.

Roasted Zucchini and Eggplant Lasagna

Prep Time: ?? 
Cool Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 45 minutes
Rest Time: 10 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

This is a pretty light lasagna. The recipe only use 8 oz of mozzarella and 3 oz of Parmesan cheese. There is no ricotta, which is kind of funny, because I planned on making it specifically to use up some ricotta I had in the refrigerator. Next time I'll look at the recipe.

Anyway, it is not too complicated. The prep involves chopping the onion and garlic, dicing the zucchini and eggplant and assembling everything. It takes time because you need to cool things before assembling. I did it while making some other food for the week, so it worked out fine.

This recipe is from the Oven Ready Casseroles where you
can make the dish the day before. I actually made a small lasagna in a loaf pan with 1 row of noodles, and a larger one in an 8x8 pan with 2 rows of noodles. I froze the larger one, which is not what the recipe calls for, but I'll try it.

I cooked the smaller lasagna the next day. You are supposed to add sauce before baking and cheese the last 10 minutes, but I did it all when I assembled it. It worked fine.

It was very good. It has a lot of vegetables if you include the tomato sauce, and a modest amount of cheese, so this really felt like decent fuel food to me. I may make it again. It is nice fall meal when I can still get good zucchini at the Farmer's Market.

Corn Chowder

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Assemble Time: 35 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (July 2011)

I've been wanting to make this for a long time. I finally remembered to do it this weekend, towards the end of corn season.

This recipe is for a "lighter" corn chowder but it still includes 1 cup of half and half, which does not seem that light to me. I decide to make it without that and just add some milk if it was needed. I ended up adding a splash of milk to thin the soup out a bit, and it worked great.

I used a little less butter and cut off some of the fat from the bacon also. So overall, my version was lightened even more. The taste was rich and delicious without the added dairy and just the fat from the bit of butter and bacon.

I did not squeeze my pulp in a towel and just used a fine mesh strainer. That worked fine and it was easy to clean.

I probably won't make this again real soon, since the corn will be gone in a few weeks, but it is a great recipe for September when the corn is good but the nights are getting cooler.

Pasta Frittata

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Rest Time: 5 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (July 2014)
Recipe Source: Amercia's Test Kitchen Season 15

This recipe is a little more work than your average, dump some left over pasta and eggs together. But the result is very good. 

In this recipe you cook angel hair pasta in the saute pan with water and olive oil. The water eventually is absorbed and evaporated, and the pasta starts to fry a bit in the oil. Then you add the other ingredients and that take a bit of effort as well to get it quite right. The end result is a very tall frittata with a lot of flavor. 

I skipped the hot peppers and used a little more cheese. I used a little less oil than the recipe called for (half in the eggs) and 1 teaspoon less in the pasta water.  You don't want to eliminate the oil from the pasta water, but I might try skipping the oil in the eggs next time altogether and see if I notice a difference. The add-ins to the recipe like the sausage and cheese are probably endless, once you get the technique down. 

Make Ahead Spicy Beef Taco Bake

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 35 minutes
Cool Time: 10 minutes

Grade: B

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book)

This was fine, and it was certainly easy. But I don't think I will make again, because making regular tacos is even easier and I think we like those better. I'm trying to be more selective in the recipes that I continue to make because I already have a lot of favorites.

Sunday Turkey Breast en Cocotte with Pan Gravy

Prep Time: 25 minutes
Cook Time: 2 hours
Gravy Time: 25 min

Grade: B+

Make Again: No


Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book)

This was good, but did not turn out as nicely as the one I made in the Slow Cooker.

The turkey was quite salty. I actually think that was the actual turkey breast and not the recipe. The gravy was delicious like last time, but the turkey tasted just a bit like deli turkey or processed turkey to me. I used a Jennie-O breast both times, and I am pretty sure they have salt water injected into them, so this one might have had too much.

If this was because of the recipe, it is because the skin is handled differently. In the slow cooker version you cut off the skin and brown it then throw it in bottom of crockpot. I suppose it is possible that having the skin on in this version caused a difference. Regardless, the skin is unappealing in this version also, even though you brown the breast first and keep the skin on. It still ends up a bit rubbery, since it is cooked in a closed pot and so doesn't get crispy.

This recipe is from the Sunday Cook recipe where you make a roast of some sort and then use the leftovers for another meal. I am freezing the leftover meat and will try one of the leftover recipes later.

There is a similar recipe in The 6 ingredient solution. The main difference is that you use Bell's Poultry seasoning and you don't use carrot and onions. I am not going to try that recipe and will just stick with the Slow Cooker version in the future.

Make Ahead Macaroni and Cheese

Prep Time: 45 minutes
Cool/Assemble Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 70 minutes (from frozen)

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book)

This recipe is from the Freezer chapter, so the cook time is from frozen. The prep time could be faster if you used two pans instead of one. If you do use one, start boiling the water before anything else. You will have time to brown the bread crumbs and do other prep while waiting.

I adjusted the quantities a bit with this recipe. Having made various Test Kitchen macaroni and cheese recipes before (here and here) I am well aware that they like casseroles to be more saucy than I do. I have had good luck cutting the sauce recipe in half and using the full amount of noodles. I was afraid to go that far this time because they say that the sauce is supposed to be very loose so it can stand up to being held in the freezer. So I did half a recipe of the sauce to 75% of the noodles. I really could have used the full 100% pasta to 50% sauce I think. Next time I will do that.

To make things more complicated, I did a 100% of the topping, even though I knew that I would have less servings. That was a good idea. I actually could have increased the bread crumb topping amount, because I would not have minded a little more coverage.

Gingersnaps

Prep Time: 17 min
Chill Time: 1 hour
Roll Time: 15 minutes
Bake Time: 27-30 minutes per sheet

Grade: B

Make Again: No

Recipe Source: America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 13)
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (November 2011)

These are a good crispy gingersnap cookie, but they have a lot of bite, so are not for everyone. I liked the flavor, but the picky eater did not. I won't make them again because I prefer chewy ginger or molasses cookies and I have good recipes for those already.

Oatmeal Muffins

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Rest Time: 20+ minutes
Cook Time: 18-22 minutes
Cool Time: 10 minutes

Grade: B+

Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source:  America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 14)
Recipe Source: Cook's Illustrated (January 2013)

I have made this recipe two times and I have not had the perfect expected results either time.

The batter is very loose and you need to let it rest so the oatmeal gets hydrated. The first time I made it I found that the topping ended up falling into the batter, so I didn't get the nice crisp topping I wanted.

This second time I watched the video again (it is still there as of today) and I noticed that Dan said the reason the batter is so runny is because the oatmeal flour (that you make yourself with a food processor) is not as fine as regular flour. So you need to rest the batter to make it thicker. That prompted me to process the oats for a longer time to make sure they were as fine as could be. I think that really helped. Even before resting, the batter was much thicker than last time.

After the 20 minute rest, the batter was even thicker. However, when I was filling the cups, by the end, the bottom of the batter seemed runnier. I think I should have given it a good stir before filling the cups. Also, I think I should have let it rest another 10 minutes or so. I still had some sinking crumb topping.

This time was not as bad as the first time, however, the tops ended up running into each other. They also started to burn a bit before he insides of the muffins were fully cooked.

The end result is quite delicious, but the process was a bit frustrating. Also, I like to make muffins for a quick breakfast/snack, but these really are little cakes with quite a bit of sugar and fat. Of course, that is why they taste so good.

Last time the frozen muffins were not as great as right out of the oven. They got just a bit gummy. I'm not sure if that will be the case this time or not.

So in the end, I'm a bit conflicted about these muffins. They are not a simple quick bread recipe, so not sure it is worth the trouble to make these when I can't get them to turn out like they should. They would be great for a brunch to share with others, but since they end up a bit ugly, it might not be my first choice.

Make Ahead Chicken Pot Pie with Savory Crumble Topping

Prep Time: 80 minutes
Cook Time: 80 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book)

This recipe is very similar, but not exactly the same as the recipe I reviewed previously from the magazine. The topping is the same, but there are some differences in the filling. I'm not sure why. Probably to allow for making two casseroles instead of one that serves 6?

There are actually two Chicken Pot pie recipes in the book. Both have the exact same filling. This one has a crumble topping and is from the Oven Ready Casserole chapter. The other one has a pie crust topping and is found in the Freezer chapter.

I decided to experiment and do both with this one. I made one casserole for cooking later that day and 3 others for freezing. (Since I'm only making this for two people, I used disposable loaf pans instead of 8x8 pans and made 4 instead of 2 casseroles.) I used the instructions from both recipes on preparing the casserole. The crumble topping worked fine in both ways as I expected. I kept the topping in a separate baggie when frozen.

This is a delicious recipe and having 3 more in the freezer to make later was great. As I've found with all of the other freezer recipes, these casseroles take a very long time to reheat, even with my smaller portions, so you do need to make sure you give it enough time.

I made the same adjustments to this recipe as I did the original from the magazine. I used less butter in the sauce, milk instead of cream and used chicken breasts instead of thighs. It still was rich and delicious. I left the crumble topping alone.

Pumpkin Cinnamon Bars

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 25-35 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: King Arthur Flour

This recipe can be made with pumpkin butter or apple butter. I had to make pumpkin butter since I only had canned pumpkin on had. That is not included in the prep time, because next time I'll probably use apple or pumpkin butter already made to keep things simple.

These were absolutely delicious. They were very moist but dense, sort of like a brownie. The flavor was great. I made these 3 months ago so I don't remember why, but I know I didn't drizzle the frosting but instead spread it over the top. Maybe because there was a lot. It was a very thin layer though, so not too much.

I probably won't make these again until next Fall, but this is a great quick bar cookie recipe. On second thought if I saw some apple or pumpkin butter at the store I would probably make them soon because I am remember now how good they were.

Best Chicken Parmesan

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Salt Time: 20 min (can overlap with prep)
Breading/Cook Time: 20 min
Broil: 2-4 minutes

Grade: A-

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source:
Cook's Illustrated (March 2013),
America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 14)

This tasted great, but was a little greasy and rich, so I probably won't make it a lot. I remember a lighter recipe from the Best Light Recipe (which I don't own anymore) but I think I probably prefer that recipe. It is not super quick, but they have streamlined the recipe some so it isn't too complicated.

Portuguese-Style Potato and Kale Soup

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 4-6 hours on low

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Slow Cooker Revolution Book

I am shocked I didn't report on this recipe last year, because I ended up making it at least 3 times last winter after I first tried it. It is one of the easier recipes from Slow Cooker Revolution and it tastes great. The onions, garlic and spices are only cooked in the microwave first making this a little bit simpler prep. Also since it uses kielbasa, that prep is easy as well. I make it with Turkey Kielbasa, since it is lighter. Of course, I use the full 13oz that comes in the package instead of the 8oz called for, so that may erase any efforts to keep this lighter.

This is a great soup though with a nice little heat to it. My picker eater doesn't like kale, so I usually spoon some out for him before I add the kale and then we re-heat his soup when ready to eat.

Make Ahead Chicken Fingers

Prep: 15 min
Wait: 20 min
Bread and Cook: 30 min

Grade: A-


Make Again: Maybe

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book)

That link is to the actual recipe, because this is one of the featured recipes on the website.

These tasted very good but maybe just a little bit greasy. Also the process of making them, although easier than regular frying, still gets a little messy.

The recipe was supposed to make 16 fingers, but I only got about 11. They were long though.

The cooked from frozen fingers were still quite good, but the last couple I had were starting to get a tiny bit dry. I may never make these again, because it isn't something I think of eating, and I don't have kids. I'm sure my nieces and nephews would like these though. I did really like cutting them up and putting them in a salad. That countered the greasiness nicely, so it is possible I will do these again.

Carrot Layer Cake

Prep Time: 18 minutes
Bake Time: 18 minutes
Cool Time: 30 minutes
Frost Time: 20 minute

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Sources: 
America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 13)
Cook's Illustrated (May 2012)

I've been wanting to try this cake for the past year and finally decided to make it for Thanksgiving. It was quite good and the only difficult part was frosting it. But overall it was fairly simple.

It is not easy to make a layer cake out of carrot cake, because the cake is so soft and moist. They solve this problem by baking the cake in a half sheet pan, so it is very big but thin, and then cutting the cake into 4 quarters making each a layer. I have a 1/4 sheet pan, so made a half recipe, which worked out very nicely.

Instead of 4 layers, I cut the cake into thirds for 3 layers. I cut the frosting recipe in half but that was a problem, because I really didn't have enough. I really had to stretch it in some spots. I knew it would be tight, because I think there is more surface area on the outside when you cut a recipe in half. (I didn't do the math, but I am pretty sure about this.) I did make it work though and honestly the frosting is very rich, so I wouldn't really want it any thicker than it ended up.

You are supposed to cover sides with chopped pecans but I am not a pecan fan, so I skipped those. It would have been nice to cover up my mistakes though!

I should point out that you need buttermilk powder for the recipe. That is to add tang without moisture. It worked really well. I do think however, my frosting could have been a tiny bit moister without problems. It probably would have made spreading it easier.

Slow-Cooker Turkey Breast with Gravy

Prep Time: 50 minutes
Cook Time: 5-6 hours
Rest Time: 20 min

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Cook's Country (December 2012)

As much as I love to cook, I have never made a Turkey before. I tried to help my mom one Thanksgiving when I was a young adult and it grossed me out so much, I became a vegetarian soon after. That lasted 7 years. I eat meat all the time now, but I still don't like dealing with things on the bone, let alone an entire bird.

I usually bring side dishes to family meals for Thanksgiving. When it is just the two of us I have done a boneless skinless turkey breast. But those never taste anything like Thanksgiving turkey to me. So this year when I saw this recipe on the America's Test Kitchen Feed, (recipe is behind the paywall now) I decided to at least try a real breast on the bone.

I wasn't sure what to expect – thinking the turkey would be steamed and I knew it wouldn't be as pretty as roasted turkey.

It was not pretty, that is true, but once carved, you only noticed that it didn't have skin. It was the most moist turkey I've ever had, and the gravy was delicious. I will definitely use this recipe again.

Part of what makes this recipe work is that you take off the skin and cook it in skillet first to render the fat and then you saute the vegetables in that fat to start your gravy. You sort of make the gravy in the beginning and cook the turkey on top of the gravy and vegetables and cooked skin. After you remove the turkey breast you strain the gravy and after some seasoning it tasted delicious.

If I had one complaint it is the gravy was a bit thin. It was pretty thick until I strained it and the thick stuff got stuck with the vegetables. I waited until the end to do that, so I didn't have time to thicken on the stove, but I will do that next time.

One breast ended up a little more cooked than the other side. I'm not sure why. It may have been leaning and touching the side of the slow cooker. It was still moist enough though and tasted good and will be used for some leftover recipes this weekend.

Wedding Soup

Prep Time: 60 minutes
Cook Time: 15 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Sources:
Cook's Illustrated (March 2012)
America's Test Kitchen TV (Season 14)

I prepped the soup in the morning and then cooked it at night with the pasta. This worked out great. I don't mind an hour of prep if I can do it earlier in the day.

The soup tasted really good. The broth was unique and flavorful. It should be since it had a lot of ingredients (fennel, ground dried mushrooms, pork, beef, and more).

The only negative to the soup is that I didn't think it was very appealing looking with the meatballs appearing a little gray to me. But that isn't something that will keep me from making this soup.

6 Ingredient Beef and Broccoli Stir-Fry

Total Time: 30 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Six-Ingredient Solution (ATK Book)

I wasn't sure if I would try this because I like the Beef and Broccoli with Oyster Sauce recipe from Cook's Illustrated and it is not too difficult to make that. But it looked good and I had the 6 ingredients (flank steak, a pepper, broccoli, oyster sauce, sesame oil and sweet chili sauce) on hand and I thought I would give it a whirl.

It turned out really good. I might even like it better than the real recipe because the sauce had a bit of sweetness to it which I really liked. The sweet chili sauce helps keep the number of ingredients down since it has sweetness, garlic and spice all in one.

It was very easy to pull together and could probably even be done quicker once I know the recipe. I had the kitchen cleaned up while making it which is a change from many stir-fry recipes where I end up feeling like I used a million dishes.

I will definitely make this again.

Mexican Lasagna

Prep Time: 30 minutes 

Cool Time: 30 minutes 

Assemble Time: 15 min 

Hold: up to 24 hours 

Cook Time: 45 min

Cool Time: 15 min 

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes 

Recipe Source: Make Ahead Cook (book) 

This is the first really new recipe that I've tried from this cookbook that I don't recognize from the magazines or tv shows. It might be featured in one of their other million cookbooks, of course. 

I don't mind that they are using old favorites, because I like what I've learned about making things ahead of time from working through this book. But, it is nice to try something completely new to me. 

This recipe was from the "Oven Ready Casseroles" chapter, which is casseroles to make the night before. I decided to do an experiment with this and make two smaller casseroles instead of one large one. I put the second one in the freezer (without the cheese on the very top). 

It was about 45 minutes total of work, and it was fairly easy work. Not much to chop and prep other than the scallions, garlic and cheese. 

It tasted very good. The inside corn tortillas did become quite mushy even though I did spray them with oil and microwave as directed. But it all tasted fine and the texture was not a problem. The ones on top got nice and crunchy. 

The frozen version was almost just as good. The top was not as pretty or crunchy, but overall it was still great and so nice to pull out of the freezer. It did take a while to cook from frozen. I cooked it like the lasagna and put in cold over, turned on to 400 and it took 70 minutes to heat through. Then I finished as directed without the foil and adding the cheese. 

This is almost a good gluten-free recipe, but it does use 3T of flour to thicken the filling. You could probably use corn starch or something else instead.