hipcook's Reviews
260 recipes reviewed. Showing 51 to 100Sort by: Book Title | Date | Rating 
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Cook's Illustrated
(Nov/Dec, 2004)
A pretty nice, basic technique for brining and roasting turkey. After a couple of years of trying to infuse the turkey with various flavors of fruits, spices, and bacon, a straightforward turkey-tasting-turkey was a nice return to roots.
I do think they estimate too little time for cooking the bird, or they assume it's a lot closer to room temp than mine was when it went in the oven. The important thing to remember is, brining is designed to make the bird tolerant of being "overcooked".
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Fagor Pressure Cookers
By Fagor America, Inc
Fagor America, Inc - 2000
Another revelation from the pressure cooker manual. A quick recipe that turns out tender beef and fully-flavored sauce. Since cooking this one, I've tried a couple of "quick stroganoff" recipes - and all were more work than this way.
Also the recipe that taught me to watch the heat in a pressure cooker like a hawk. The first time I tried this recipe, I scorched the beef a bit but chose not to wash out the pot. Wrong choice. The bitter flavor of burnt meat smoke was infused into every tender bite. Since then, I've been careful that any error gets completely washed out of the pot before the recipe continues.
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I'm Just Here for More Food: Food x Mixing + Heat = Baking
By Alton Brown
Stewart, Tabori & Chang - 2004
This recipe makes high, light pancakes still rich with the flavors of egg and dairy. Plus, I've noticed that most recipes call for less buttermilk than I buy... so either this is a great way to use up the extra buttermilk, or a good reason to make one of those other recipes.
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Website: The Food Network
I think of gnocchi as a rich, hearty dish, and this is one. But with the fresh flavors of lemon and thyme, it's also light and fresh. I don't quite get how that's possible, other than with a fabulous balance of kinds of flavors. It's very important to give the dish a few minutes at the end to "allow flavors to blend" - this is a dish that actually improved markedly over a couple of minutes, basically as the lemon got less aggressive.
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Website: The Food Network
More of a technique than a "recipe", really, but I have to admit that I would have tried to split the trout into 2 fillets if not for this recipe telling me to pan-fry it whole. I suspect that frying both sides with their skin keeps the meat moist and avoids sticking to the pan.
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The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern: Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
By Matt Lee, Ted Lee
Clarkson Potter - 2009
I only made the mushroom chutney; the chops look like a pretty basic preparation so there seems like no reason to doubt it. I really enjoyed the chutney, although I find the prunes are really the dominant flavor, with the earthiness of the mushrooms a distant second. It would be an excellent compliment for pork or chicken (or maybe even fish) - unfortunately, I served it with beef, and the flavors seemed to fight. I'm wondering if cutting the prunes way, way back would let the mushrooms and beef pairing work better.
One warning - the recipe says to use a 12" skillet, and I tried this in my 10", and just barely did everything fit. I also needed to cook it a lot longer than the recipe says to get the sauce to reduce. Seriously, use a 12" or bigger pan.
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Website: The Food Network
I'm in favor of anything that makes me break out the pressure cooker. This is a pretty quick approach to the classic dish, although I suspect getting the dumplings the right size is just a matter of repetition.
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Chesapeake Bay Cooking
By John Shields
Broadway - 1998
A nice take on crab salad - mild and not too mayonnaise-y. The addition of diced hard-boiled eggs is interesting. The filling repurposes nicely - we served it as a dip with slices of baguette, and then again as a topping for a cheese omelet.
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The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern: Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
By Matt Lee, Ted Lee
Clarkson Potter - 2009
A light and spongy cake, still very moist, and packed with vanilla flavor. A phenomenal base for almost any kind of dessert sauce you could imagine putting on it. The only problem is that a dessert this small and light is either for the end of a big meal... or you want to eat all 8 of them yourself.
(Also, the Lee Brothers' nonstick pans must work better than mine - I didn't grease the pan and they stuck monstrously.)
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I don't think my attempt went quite right, but I'm giving this a good rating for promise. I initially thought the sauce was a little too minty - 8 springs of mint, at least from my garden, is powerful. But it's a pleasantly delicate sauce, not heavy like it looks.
I've found that steelhead trout can almost always stand in for salmon, so that's what I used for this recipe. It didn't quite work, and I don't know if that's because of the fish itself, or because I didn't char the skin hard enough, or what. It was good - what's wrong with a recipe that boils down to "salt, pepper, broil" - but not great. But I'm going to cheat my rating up because maybe that's cook's error.
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Website: The Food Network
A nice approach to comfort food. Hearty and rich, but simple and appropriate for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Saves well.
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Website: New York Times - Dining and Wine
www.nytimes.com/pages/dining/index.html
My wife and I had the same reaction to this burger - it's a kick-ass mini-meatloaf. It's heady with parsley, capers, and onion, and had a great burger char on the outside. The recommendation to use a coarse grind for burger meat is a good one - it makes the meat distinctly more beefy, although I feel like I lost some classic American "burger-ness". I found it could do with a little more salt and spice - but a squeeze of lemon juice and a shot of hot sauce definitely makes it a recipe to return to.
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Website: The Food Network
A terrific cabbage treatment, easy to whip together and finding the balance between bringing out the sweetness of the vegetable without turning it into mush. However, I do think Alton's definition of a "small" head of cabbage must be smaller than mine... I sometimes end up feeling the cabbage didn't get enough dressing.
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Website: Superspark
Nice recipe for a corn cake that's hearty and rich, but also light. A drizzle of maple syrup really brings out the vanilla flavor. I like to drop in some cooked corn niblets for an extra sweetness and texture.
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Chesapeake Bay Cooking
By John Shields
Broadway - 1998
A relatively simple and very rich recipe for oyster stew; it's our family "go-to" recipe. Feeds a crowd - I frequently find myself scaling it down. I need to remember to use a light hand with the cayenne pepper; its lingering heat becomes overpowering easily.
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Fagor Pressure Cookers
By Fagor America, Inc
Fagor America, Inc - 2000
I've been reluctant to try the "roasts" in the pressure cooker cookbook - but since my favorite pork roast recipe is really a braise, I thought this one was worth a shot.
And it's well worth it. The pork came out perfectly moist and tender. The herbs added intense and complimentary flavor. I used small sweet potatoes, which came out pretty mushy but were still a hit.
If I have a quibble with the recipe, it's that it makes a very small amount of very tasty gravy (which ended up as sauce on the potatoes). I'm wondering if upping the liquid would make enough sauce for the meat.
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New English Kitchen: Changing the Way You Shop, Cook and Eat
By Rose Prince
Fourth Estate Ltd - 2005
Prince calls this "in the French style", meaning roasted on a bed of vegetables which are then incorporated into the sauce. I found it very pleasant; the flavors are subtle and compliment the lamb nicely, and the meat was tender and juicy.
I suppose the style I'm more familiar with - crusted with assertive rosemary, garlic, and salt - must be the "American" style, but I do enjoy this continental take.
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Very nice way to use up the end of a roast, sweet and savory. It's easy enough to be a weeknight dinner, especially if you let the food processor handle the chopping and mincing. I think I went too heavy on the mashed potatoes, but it was awfully good... maybe it's served differently in the UK than in the US.
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The Commander's Palace New Orleans Cookbook
By Ella Brennan, Dick Brennan
Clarkson Potter - 1984
I didn't follow the recipe exactly, substituting about a pound of smoked Polish sausage, a pound of gator, and a pound of crawfish tails, for the 4 and a half pounds of meat otherwise called for. (I also used 1/3rd of the hot sauce, so my 3 year old would eat it.) I think it did miss the flavor of the ham, frankly. But the sauce is excellent, hearty and heady with herbs and spice. Definitely will keep experimenting with this as a base.
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Original Thai Cookbook
By Jennifer Brennan
Perigee Trade - 1984
A delicious and complex treatment for pork. The mix of salt, sweet, and the acrid funkiness of fish sauce calls barbecue to mind. Brennan says this is the "Thai equivalent of ham" and I can easily see making a big roast of this and spreading it out over multiple dishes. (However, I used it as a treatment for pork chops, and while I'm afraid they came out a bit dry, they weren't at all tough and the flavor was delightful.)
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Website: The Food Network
Simple, inexpensive comfort food. Make it with your favorite sausages - our experience is that generally high quality is more important than the flavors of "Italian" sausage. I do wish it made a little more sauce, and I find it usually needs salt (though that may reflect the sausages we use).
Presumably, this is the same recipe as the one in the Nigella Bites cookbook.
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Moosewood Cookbook
By Mollie Katzen
Ten Speed Press - 1992
It was only recently that I tasted borscht for the first time, and I knew I had to learn how to make it. It's fantastic comfort food; satisfying and rich, with balanced sweetness from the beets.
This recipe has the added benefit of being dead easy to make, especially if you let the food processor do the chopping like I did. (Like Queezle_Sister, I found some of the beet and carrot pieces too big at the end of cooking, so I hit it with the immersion blender to break them down a bit.)
I'll add a serving suggestion: horseradish. It adds a pleasant note of heat and a touch of acid to the soup. And don't forget a loaf of black bread.
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The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern: Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
By Matt Lee, Ted Lee
Clarkson Potter - 2009
It's not really fair to make a dish like this right after 4 inches of snow falls. Satisfying but light, we had fun imagining what cook-out food it might go with. (We're thinking grilled chicken or shrimp.) It's light and cool, but with pleasant acidity and a hit of herbs. It worked just fine as a way to use up some leftover rice and an open can of chopped tomatoes. I'm looking forward to making it with fresh ingredients this summer.
Now all I have to do is get to the thaw.
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Website: The Food Network
Short review: classic comfort food, with absolutely picture-perfect mashed potatoes. I think this has just become my go-to method for mashing potatoes.
Snark review: the recipe is basically melted butter and milk with enough potato, cabbage, and pork to hold it together. Clearly, that's a 5-star recipe.
Quote of the night: me: "I'd like to try it with ham; I think the bacon is taking over." Wife: "And what's wrong with that?"
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Website: About.com: Thai Food
Very nice satay marinade. I was making this for a child's birthday party, so I used approximately 7 tablespoons of brown sugar to balance the mild heat (the recipe calls for 5-6, which would have been fine for the adults). It was a big hit.
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Website: The Food Network
Interesting take on cole slaw, with cauliflower playing the part of cabbage, and a flavor profile that's close to tabbouleh with its mint and parsley. I suspect it's a little overly salty, although that diminishes as the vegetables purge and the salt works its way more evenly through the dish.
It is important to break the cauliflower into reasonably small florets - I didn't, and ended up with slices of cauliflower which were a little bigger than I wanted. They broke up by hand easily enough, but it was a step I wouldn't have needed if I'd done a better job of coring and breaking up.
I also substituted pecans for pine nuts, because, frankly, I'm not crazy about pine nuts. My wife pointed out that almonds would fit the dish better, and she's right.
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Fagor Pressure Cookers
By Fagor America, Inc
Fagor America, Inc - 2000
A very nice take on the French classic. I used a round steak instead of stew meat, which broke down into a tender stew. The sauce is luscious and rich (probably because it's finished with a half-stick of butter...)
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Website: The Food Network
Everybody likes bacon on top of meatloaf, right? Well, why not put it inside instead of on top? And what goes on ground beef but mustard and ketchup - so the traditional meatloaf glaze gets a tangy kick. The cheese part can probably be completely customized to your taste; what was in my fridge was feta and mozzarella instead of cheddar, so that's what I used and it came out fine. (I actually suspect the recipe might call for more cheddar than I'd enjoy, but the point is, I'd be willing to try it and find out.)
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Website: The Minimalist (Mark Bittman)
topics.nytimes.com/top/features/diningandwine/columns/the_minimalist/index.html
"Loosely based on gumbo" is right - this stew cries out to be served over rice. It's hearty and succulent, although my first attempt was too salty. (Depending on how salty your bacon is, use a light touch in salting the cooking vegetables.) I also omitted the chiles when browning the meat, which was probably a mistake - a touch of hot sauce at the table woke it up a bit.
I do feel like there's an herbal note missing from this stew - perhaps because I'm mentally comparing it with gumbo. Thyme or a bay leaf, perhaps?
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Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook
By Beth Hensperger
Harvard Common Press - 2004
A rich and satisfying casserole, appropriate for a main course but I can see it working very well as a vegetable for a pot luck. (It would be a nice side dish at home, too, but the recipe makes an epic amount of food.)
I substituted a roasted red pepper for some of the roasted green peppers called for, and I think it made the dish much more visually appealing. Using 2 cups of shredded cheddar was fine, but I think a mix of cheddar, Monterrey jack, and mozzarella would be nicer next time.
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A very nice soup, rich but not at all heavy. The herbs and spices layer nicely with the flavor of the meat. Slices of lime for garnish adds a wonderful brightness. Use the best chicken broth you can.
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I adore paprikash - stewed chicken in a rich and creamy sauce spiced with paprika. This slow-cooker approach is a winner. I used 2 chicken leg quarters instead of the poussins called for, and it worked just fine. The meat was tender, almost falling off the bone, and the sauce was pleasant.
Looking at my previous favorite recipe (from the Frugal Gourmet: Immigrant Ancestors book), I think I'd increase the shallots in this recipe next time. I also got a reminder that this is a dish where you should use the freshest paprika you can find - I used the end of a can of indeterminate age and it was a little lacking in flavor. (The amount called for - 3 teaspoons - looks right; I'm sure this was about my spice cabinet.)
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Website: Epicurious
Coming up to Thanksgiving with a small number of sweet potatoes and one butternut squash in the house, this recipe was a great find. The squash adds an interesting texture to the smooth sweet potatoes, but the flavors are completely complimentary.
I'd disagree that this is a "lightly spiced" dish. It's very pleasant, but the spices of nutmeg, cinnamon, allspice, and ginger are pronounced. I enjoyed the zing it brought to the table (and it's certainly not hot or unbalanced), but it's not subtle.
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Fagor Pressure Cookers
By Fagor America, Inc
Fagor America, Inc - 2000
Another winner for the pressure cooker! Admittedly, I was on a "cleanout the freezer" binge and used nearly double the meat called for. It turned out a luxurious stock, with a fraction of the time and energy used on the stovetop.
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Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook
By Beth Hensperger
Harvard Common Press - 2004
My stock pot may never be used for making stock again, between this recipe and the ones in the Fagor pressure cooker manual. Why spend all that time and energy on the stovetop?
The long simmer produces a beautifully clear amber stock. There's also very little liquid lost in the slow cooker - unlike to stovetop or pressure cooker, the yield is darn near the amount of water you add. The recipe is chock-full of onion, leek, and carrot, and the stock has a strong vegetal sweetness. (If you prefer meatier stocks, you might cut these back a hair.)
I do have a quibble - my printing says to cover the turkey carcass with "4 inches" of water. I just can't see how that's possible in my (large) slow cooker for any turkey worthy of the name. Admittedly, today I'm making stock from the remains of Birdzilla, and I just barely got it into the pot. Extrapolating out to a more moderate-sized turkey, I still think it's a misprint.
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Website: Pioneer Woman Cooks
This may be my new go-to potato preparation. In fairness, I cheated quite a bit - using larger gold potatoes instead of new potatoes, and then (inspired by a different page on Pioneer Woman Cooks) microwaving them instead of boiling them. The end result was an amazing cross of creamy and crusty potato - almost like the top of a shepherd's pie. Obviously, your mileage will vary with a waxier or less cooked potato; probably a minute less in the microwave would have been closer to the recipe. Still, high marks for introducing me to a revelatory technique.
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Website: The Food Network
This was a hit in my house, and the recipe is drop-dead easy. I'm trying to figure out what the right fixings are for a salmon burger - the dill mayonnaise is good, but I suspect something with more brightness like a lemon-butter sauce would be better.
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Website: 101 Cookbooks
An excellent soup. The ginger and sweet potato add a subtle depth without overwhelming the character of the greens.
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With pork, tomato, wine, onions, and bell pepper, I was expecting a rather straightforward "pot roast" flavor for this stew. The addition of orange peel, however, brightens the whole dish. It's a dominant flavor, but it compliments the pork and onions without slipping over to the candy-like flavors of a fruit glaze. Definitely will make again.
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I'm Just Here for More Food: Food x Mixing + Heat = Baking
By Alton Brown
Stewart, Tabori & Chang - 2004
This is the recipe from the While Lily flour bag, and it's darn near bulletproof. Why would you bother with anything else?
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Website: Cooks Illustrated
I was impressed with how high these pancakes were. Admittedly, I like my pancake batter a little stiff, but this batter hit a sweet spot of being workable and still substantial. The flavor is creamy and sweet, if a bit plain. The method of putting the batter on the griddle and then adding berries is the only way to go.
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Essential Pepin: More Than 700 All-Time Favorites from My Life in Food
By Jacques Pepin
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt - 2011
Straightforward to be sure, but a satisfying base for plenty of experiments. Alone, they'd work as a side dish. Pepin himself suggests that you could add sausage and chicken and call it cassoulet. Americans might be thinking of white bean chili. My wife added a quart of chicken stock and turned it to soup. I'm sure we'll be returning to this versatile base.
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The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern: Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
By Matt Lee, Ted Lee
Clarkson Potter - 2009
A very pleasant fry-up of eggs, onions, and tortilla chips. The technique of adding the eggs to the hot onions (and then topping with cheese) makes this a very forgiving recipe.
A few notes - I like the serving suggestion that migas could be served with a bowl of greens, but "atop a bed of greens" didn't work for me. (The greens overwhelm the eggs.) A cup of chili would also be very nice, as they serve it at the Texas Chili Parlor in Austin. Actually, I bet there's a lot of leftovers which would pair up well with migas for breakfast the next day.
Think of the balance of onions, eggs, and tortillas as a guideline, not a rule. We found 6 medium eggs to 3 tortillas to be about right, but the "medium" onion was too much (for me, by a little, for my wife, by a lot). The recipe calls for 8 large eggs, so that's no surprise.
Making your own tortilla chips is cheaper than buying them, and what's more, now I have tortillas to cook with, not a pound bag of chips to snack on without thinking. That said, using store-bought chips won't hurt anything and will save time.
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Website: Saveur Website
Jacques Pepin's lobster roll recipe. It's quite basic - lobster in a butter-lemon sauce - but there's nothing wrong with that! (Unless you're looking for a mayonnaise sauce.)
Do search out split-top New England hot dog rolls! While a regular hot dog bun will work OK, it will also lose structural integrity quickly. Or, just admit to yourself that your hands are getting buttery, and enjoy it.
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BakeWise: The Hows and Whys of Successful Baking with Over 200 Magnificent Recipes
By Shirley O. Corriher
Scribner - 2008
Shirley does it again! The texture on this gingerbread cake is about as perfect as I can imagine - moist and springy, chewy without being tough. It's dead easy and quick to make. Spice-wise, it is indeed "serious stuff" - my 5-year-old finds it "funny tasting." I was using blackstrap molasses and I'm glad I ran a little short; I think that flavor might have gotten excessive for my taste.
I'm tempted to play with sauce or icing options on this one, but the right play might be to stay simple and go with whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.
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Not Your Mother's Slow Cooker Cookbook
By Beth Hensperger
Harvard Common Press - 2004
It took me a while to figure this recipe out, but finally, it hit me. It's the flavor profile of orange beef, but with tender braised pork shoulder instead of often-tough fried round steak. Now that I know what it is, I'm sure I'll be returning to the recipe. The orange flavor fades as a leftover; I don't think adding marmalade to the original would work well but a little hit while reheating might be nice.
The snap peas and red peppers are a nice nod to the Chinese restaurants of my youth, but broccoli would go well too.
If you want it "glazed", you'll probably have to flip the meat midway through cooking. Like many crock pot recipes, it's clear which side was in the liquid and which was above.
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Mastering The Art of French Cooking, Volume One (1) (Vol 1)
By Julia Child, Louisette Bertholle, Simone Beck, Sidonie Coryn
Alfred A. Knopf - 2001
I was familiar with the technique of browning pork chops and then reducing heat and braising. But I hadn't thought to use a low oven for that step, and it had never occurred to me to let the liquid be butter. A good, simple treatment, rich but not a lot of work.
I skipped the sauce, but it turns out cloves of garlic braised in butter are also a good thing...
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The Lee Bros. Simple Fresh Southern: Knockout Dishes with Down-Home Flavor
By Matt Lee, Ted Lee
Clarkson Potter - 2009
Light and refreshing, and easy to boot. The milk and mint flavor suggests a faint drizzle of chocolate sauce. Ours were silky almost to the point of lacking structural integrity, and took more than the stated 1.5 hours to set up; I suspect the answer in both cases is that our ramekins are deeper than they are wide. A different shape might set up firmer (or I might use the whole packet of gelatin powder next time).
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Imagine the end of a summer meal in the south. You want just a little something for dessert, something comforting, reminding you of home, but nothing too heavy. Something you could savor slowly on the porch swing, maybe with a beer or cocktail.
That's what the Lee brothers have cooked up with this frozen rice pudding pop. It's a novelty act, with a texture that's not quite popsicle, not quite ice cream, and certainly no longer pudding. Eventually you realize how the cold is muting the flavors... on the 2nd or 3rd pop. But what the heck - it's hot out, and you have a treat simultaneously refreshing and satisfying.
One tip - this recipe claims to make six 4-ounce pops. I made twelve 2-ounce pops, and easily had enough for another 6. If you don't tell anyone about this and stash the leftovers in the fridge, you can have sweet cool rice porridge for breakfast.
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Website: The Food Network
A recipe for the creole staple, pickled pork is an excellent addition of meat, heat, and acidity for dishes like red beans and rice. This is a quick brine to put together, and then a long pickle in the fridge. It also makes enough that you will probably use only part of the recipe, and freeze the rest... leading, in my house, to a happy discovery some months later as you dig around looking for something else.
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