January/February Everyday Food Favorites

I posted this list of Favorites from January/February last year, but I'm posting again because I wanted to bring up again and try to remind myself to review some of these recipes in more detail this month. I'm using my favorites list to create meal plans for the month, and it is good for me to use recipes that I've already tried and are successful!

I've reviewed these recipes:

• Pork Bulgogi
• Brownie Hearts - A good choice if you would like to cut out shapes of brownies. The leftover pieces can be used to make "truffles" as well.
• Sausage and Kale Soup
• Spicy Black Bean Soup (not as good as CI's recipe, but a little simpler and still good)
• Mini Mocha Cheese Cakes - Nice for a "lighter" dessert
• Triple Chocolate Lighter Brownies - one of those "black bean" brownies (just a little) that is pretty good 

Not reviewed yet:

• Apple Pie Cake - I really need to review this recipe. It is unique and good.
• Pork and Apple Stew
• Sweet Potato Wedges - This recipe introduced a new favorite food to me. I had never liked those mushy overly-sweet holiday recipes for sweet potatoes, but made this way, I found out I loved them. I make this often all fall and winter long and have for the past 8 years.
• Valentines Day Cookies
• Pot Roast Hash - I only made this once, because I rarely make pot roast, but remembering this recipe makes me want to try it again.
• Lentil and Brown Rice Pilaf - This takes a while to carmelize the onions, but it makes very plain ingredients yummy.

Want to try still:

• Heart-Glazed Cornmeal Cookies
• Cheddar Biscuits
• Denver Omelet Cups

Cook's Illustrated Favorites - January

I started this blog to help me keep track of recipes and to organize my cooking. It has helped with that, but it could be better. Last year I did some "Favorites" posts for Everyday Food magazine which reminded me about some really good recipes. I want to keep that up and include Cook's Illustrated now because I truly forget to re-use some really great recipes.

I am hoping to ultimately have Favorites lists for every month so I can always find a tried and true favorite any time of the year. 

My Cook's Illustrated January/February Favorites 

(Note: the links are to my blog posts, not the recipes. The posts have links to the recipes (but sometimes behind a ATK paywall)

• January 1999 - Spicy Stir-Fried Green Beans and Scallions (I liked my first CI magazine so much I bought some old issues in book form. I love this quick vegetable recipe with rice.) 
• January 1999 - Cream Cheese Brownies 
• January 2001 - Crisp Think-Crust Pizza (The very first Cook's Illustrated recipe I ever tried. I still like this better than their newer thin crust pizza, from January 2011. I can get a super thin crust with this one, probably because of the overnight rise and plastic wrap roll-out.) 
• January 2002 - Soft and Chewy Molasses Spice Cookies (Yum!) 
• January 2004 - Oven Fries (Not exactly low-fat, but easier than frying and probably less fat.)
• January 2005 - Black Bean Soup (My favorite version of the soup. I need to make this again soon.) 
• January 2006 - Flaky Buttermilk Biscuits (So fun to eat with the flakes, and delicious) 
• January 2007 - French Onion and Bacon Tart (rich and delicious. I need an occasion to make this again.) 
• January 2008 - Almost No-Knead Bread (CI/ATK's take on the no-knead bread.)  
• January 2009 - Quick and Hearty Chicken Noodle Soup (The entire recipe is done in 2 hours, including the homemade stock. The trick is ground chicken.) 
• January 2009 - Chewy Chocolate Cookies (I only made once, but they were very good.) 
• January 2010 - Best Beef Stew (I have a lot of stew recipes I like, and this is one of them.) 
• January 2010 - Spaghetti with Pecorino Romano and Black Pepper 
• January 2010 - Red Beans and Rice (Very tasty, and fairly simple to make, but not quick)
• January 2011 - Nut Crusted Chicken Cutlets (This is close to becoming a staple recipe for me. I love the leftovers in a salad. The crust stays on it even after being refrigerated.) 

I also really liked but haven't blogged on 

• Twice-Baked Potatoes - January 1999
• Pasta with Sun-Dried Tomatoes, Cauliflower and Thyme-Infused Cream - January 2004 
• Hearty Lentil Soup - January 2004 
• Chocolate Sour Cream Bundt Cake - January 2004 

I was thinking about adding all the January magazine recipes from Cook's Illustrated that I still want to try, but that list is about 30 recipes long, so I will not add them here until they are tried and become favorites. I wish I could try them all this winter, but it probably won't happen. That list includes: 

• French Toast
• Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza
• Apple Turnovers
• All Beef Meatloaf 
• Gingerbread
• Crossaints (someday!!) 
• and lots more 

Summer Beef and Rice Casserole

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes

Grade: A

Make Again: Yes

Recipe Source: Everyday Food (September 2012) video at link
 
The prep time on this is based on having the sauce already made. It uses this Quick Meat Sauce which is nothing special, but fine for a "quick" sauce with meat. The nice thing about it is that it makes enough for two recipes, the original, and this one.

I had one small problem with this recipe and that was that the rice was a tiny bit crunchy still. Next time I will pour the rice in while I am heating up the sauce, so it gets a head start.

Other than that, it was delicious and very easy.  I will make again. I love meals that include the veggies in the main dish like this.

December Favorites

This is a little late since December is just about over, and of course, most of these recipes are good for the holidays. I'm not going to skip it though, since I do want to categorize all my favorites for the future.


~ Tortilla Pie (different than the veggie version with Black Beans from an earlier month) 
~ Baked Pasta and Chicken Sausage
~ Strata with Sun-Dried Tomatoes and Sausage 
~ Giant Ginger Cookies (I make them smaller)
~ Chocolate Espresso Snowcaps
~ Peppermint Bark
~ Chocolate Mint Brownies
~ Chocolate Peppermint Cake
~ Cranberry Scones (not on blog) 

Still want to try:
~ Pastistio
~ Goat Cheese Quiche with Hash-Brown Tart
~ Coconut Cookies

November Favorites

Here is a list of my favorite Everyday Food recipes from November. Some I haven't made in a while, but remember the recipes make me want to try them again. I did just do the Tomato and Sausage Risotto, and I love that one.

I really want to compile my favorites from Cook's Illustrated my month also, but that might have to wait a while.

• Bean Burritos - Good freezer food for making ahead.
• Tomato and Sausage Risotto - fairly easy and very tasty. Good comfort food that I made again this week.
• Steak and Onion Sandwich - a super easy recipe I love, but I may replace this with the lighter version I tried from ATK earlier this year.
• Baked Pasta with Spinach, Ricotta, and Prosciutto - this can get dry if you overcook. A better ricotta will help.
• Southwestern Skillet Pie - one of my most used recipes. Flexible, quick and easy.
• Chicken Posole - I haven't made this one the past few years, but I should, because it is an easy tasty soup.
• Chicken with Bell Pepper Sauce - The recipe calls for steak, but I've always made it with boneless chicken breasts which works out nicely.
• Sweet Potato Biscuits - I've never put these in the blog, but I love these biscuits and make them often. The hardest part is getting the sweet potato cooked first. It is easy, just time consuming.

Everyday Food recipes from November that I still really want to try:

• Savory Sweet Potato Souflees
• Roasted Carrots and Parsnips
• Maple Glazed Sweet Potato and Parsnips
• Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Squares
• Brussels Sprouts with Baon and Apple
• Pumpkin Spice Cake with Honey Frosting

October Favorites from Everyday Food

I could have sworn I created this post in October, but I don't see it. I did want to keep making the list of my favorite recipes for each month, so I am making sure I get this done before Fall is over.

(If I blogged on the recipe, the link takes you there first. You can still get to the recipe from Recipe Source. If I haven't blogged on it, the link takes you to the recipe.)

• Ginger Pumpkin Bread - I finished up the last of this from the freezer and wish I still had more.
• Bolognese Pie with Bicuit Topping - I thought I had added this to the blog, but I guess not. A good way to use up leftover sauce. 
• Candy Corn Sugar Cookies - I made the Chocolate version and they were even better than the original recipe. (Replace 1/4 c. of flour with cocoa.)
• Whole Wheat Pasta with Kale and Fontina
• Tortilla and Black Bean Pie - a nice recipe if you have some large tortilla leftover
• Fennel and Potato Bake - a rich and delicious side dish

October Everyday Food recipes I still want to try:

• Chicken Barley Soup
• Turkey and Stuffing Bake
• Pear Custard Pie
• Asian Style Pork and Noodles
• Glazed Chocolate Cake Recipe
• Red and Black Bean Pies 
• Manchego Crackers
• Roasted Pork Loin with Balsamic Gravy
• Applesauce Cake
• Chocolate Custard Cups

Old Favorites - Everyday Food (September 2004, 2005, 2006)

Reviewing my Old Favorites from EF last week inspired me to cook more even though I was quite busy, so I'm doing it again this week. Not sure how long I'll keep this up, but for now I'm continuing.

• Spaghetti Frittata (a new favorite that I just tried this past weekend) 
• Peanut Butter Granola Bars - I've made this recipe 100 times, but not once in 2011. I'll make again soon. My version is yummy, but I'm sure the original is good too.
• Orecchiette with Sausage and Roasted Peppers (This is similar to a Cook's Illustrated Recipe which I also really like) 
• Blackberry Cornmeal Cake - I LOVE this cake. I wish I had made it this summer.  One of my all-time favorite simple cake recipes.
• Molasses Turkey Breast with Acorn Squash

Recipes to try still:

• Tamale Pies 
• Pork Chops with White Beans
• Tortilla Soup for one 
• Sloppy Joes
• Chicken and Brown Rice
• Barley Risotto with Corn and Basil
• Molasses Sandwich Cookies
• Caramelized Apple Tart

I hope to try the ones on this list above soon. At least most of them.

Old Favorites - Everyday Food (September 2003)

I really need to get in the habit of cooking again, even when I am super busy. I find I actually eat less when I am cooking good food, because it satisfies me more. To help me get back into the mood, I'm looking at my old Everyday Food magazines for the current month (September) and reminding myself of the old recipes that I used to love and haven't cooked in a while. Many of them I've already added to the blog, but a few I haven't.

I was planning on looking at all 4 previous September Issues that I own, but just looking at year 2003 had quite a few recipes I want to use again, so I'll just do one issue at a time.

Here are some of my old Favorites. I'm linking to my blog post (if available), but you can get to the actual recipes on the Recipe source link. If I didn't blog it, I'm liking to the original recipe.

• Turkey and White Bean Chili - not the most exciting chili ever, but very quick and easy for fast Fall meal.
• Almond Fruit Bars - A good bar cookie recipe
• Grape Tart - I never blogged on this recipe, but did try it and really liked it because it is unique with an oatmeal tart crust. I should make it again sometime!
• Outrageous Chocolate Cookies - simple and delicious. I've made more than most other cookie recipes
• Beef Skewers with Peanut Dipping Sauce - I didn't put this in the blog, but I remember liking this one
• Sauteed Corn, Bacon and Scallions - I altered this recipe to include green beans and I make this a few times every summer. I have even made it once this year in my non-cooking summer. 

I also found a few recipes that I always meant to try but haven't yet:

• Ground Beef Pie
• Roasted Vegetable Soup
• Chicken Enchiladas - I love Cook's Illustrated Chicken Enchilada recipe, but this one is simpler, so I will try it for my busy times 
• Blueberry-Lemon Bundt Cake 

I don't really need to focus on desserts right now when I'm so busy and want to eat a little healthier, but I hope to try all the other recipes this month. 

I hope to get back to Cook's Illustrated Recipes when I have more time, but this should get me motivated to get cooking again.