bhnyc's Reviews
27 recipe(s) reviewed. Showing 1 to 27Sort by: Title | Date | Rating
The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
By Ina Garten, Martha Stewart
Clarkson Potter - 1999
Pan-fried onion dip : page 53
This is fabulous and truly addictive! I serve it with plenty of vegetables to balance out the richness. But it's great with potato chips too!
useful (1)
Turkey Meatloaf : page 138
This is such a good meatloaf recipe. However, as with so many of Ina's recipes, the portion suggestions are out of control! Instead of making a 5 pound meatloaf, I start out by making half of the recipe. Then I make two loaves out of that. One I usually bake right away, the other I freeze uncooked. When I want it, I just defrost, add the ketchup glaze (I add in a little hot sauce) and bake.
update:
@sturlington- when I 'halved' the eggs, I actually used one large and one extra large egg. Sorry- I should have written that. My meatloaf was really moist with this substitution.
useful (5)
Perfect Roast Chicken : page 130
This is delicious. The directions from Food Network and the cookbook are slightly different even though they cite the same recipe, so I improvised with the vegetables I added to the pan- fennel, carrot and onion. The chicken looks beautiful coming out of the oven and tastes wonderful. We carved it up before I could take a photo!
useful (1)
Sun-Dried Tomato Dip : page 54
I'm not a fan of sun-dried tomatoes in anything BUT this dip. It is so good. Like with the onion dip, I serve it with vegetables so it isn't so rich.
useful (0)
Caramelized Butternut Squash : page 151
I love this! It's great served with the Baked Ham- or really with anything on a nice fall evening.
useful (1)
Outrageous Brownies : page 172
The name really says it all- these are outrageously good! Luckily, they are rich so it's hard to overindulge. I cannot imagine cutting these into 20 brownies- that would be an incredibly large serving. I would suggest cutting them into at least 32 smallish brownies.
It is great that they can be made and refrigerated up to a week ahead of time. It was such a help to me that I could make them on a Sunday and give them away on Wednesday without worrying that they wouldn't be fresh. I did not add walnuts and they were delicious without them.
useful (5)
Chocolate Buttercream : page 196
There's not much more to say about this but YUM. However, as I wrote in my review of the cake, I prefer Beatty's Chocolate Cake (and frosting) from BC at Home.
useful (0)
Chocolate Buttercream : page 196
There's not much more to say about this but YUM. However, as I wrote in my review of the cake, I prefer Beatty's Chocolate Cake (and frosting) from BC at Home.
useful (0)
Cheddar-Dill Scones : page 218
These are so good. I have a friend who asks for them every time she comes to town. I bake them and freeze them too and they taste good. So yummy.
useful (1)
Roasted Carrots : page 149
I'm not such a fan of cooked carrots, but these are really good- especially if they don't get too soft. I serve these with the Indonesian Chicken and the Herbed Basmati Rice. It actually makes a really inexpensive dinner for guests but is easy and looks like you've spent much more time cooking than you have!
useful (0)
Roasted eggplant spread : page 41
This is really good. It is simple to make and is a crowd-pleaser. Serve with pita chips and veggies.
useful (1)
Vegetable Coleslaw : page 107
This is so easy since it gets shredded in the food processor. As with so many of Ina's recipes, it makes MUCH more than you plan for. It's nice served with fish and chicken.
useful (1)
Parker's Split Pea Soup : page 73
This is very good but it is also very thick. We served it at a Thanksgiving meal, and I could barely eat anything after it! It's a meal in itself. Would be great, not as a first course, but as the main with some crusty bread.
useful (1)
Hummus : page 46
After making this, you'll never want store-bought hummus again. It is so easy to make and tastes so fresh. I love topping it off with a swirl of olive oil and some toasted pignoli nuts.
useful (1)
Guacamole : page 50
This is a very nice standard guacamole. It's quick, easy and tastes good, though I don't love tomatoes in it.
useful (0)
Rosemary White Bean Soup : page 83
This is good and simple. I agree with the other reviewer that it makes a lot of soup. I froze it and it was fine.
useful (1)
French Potato Salad : page 96
This was good. I used it with the Nicoise salad.
useful (1)
Broccoli with Garlic : page 100
This is easy to make and tastes really good. Shocking the broccoli in ice water gives it a beautiful green color. Make sure to drain the broccoli well. The garlic takes a lot longer to cook than the recipe indicates but is so worth the time. I like to cook it really slowly so it doesn't brown too fast.
The leftover garlic oil and garlic are nice spread on bread. I served this with rosemary bread.
I do prefer this at room temperature or warm. I am not such a fan of it cold.
useful (3)
Baked Virginia Ham : page 119
My cooking club made this years ago and everyone loved it. It is so easy to make- and was the first time any of us had actually cooked a ham. No one complained that there were tons of leftovers. It was delicious in sandwiches the days after.
useful (0)
Indonesian Ginger Chicken : page 125
This is a really simple dish that requires just a few ingredients. It marinates overnight and then just bakes the day you serve it. It's good hot or at room temperature. I like serving it with the Herbed Basmati Rice from BC at Home. It's also good with the Roasted Carrots from BCC.
useful (4)
Grilled Tuna Nicoise Platter : page 140
This is my go-to Nicoise salad. It's great for a lunch party. While it takes a while to make and assemble all of the ingredients, much of it can be done ahead.
useful (0)
Parmesan Smashed Potatoes : page 158
This is very good and I like that there are chunks of potatoes in it. I do admit to lowering the fat too. It tastes just as good. It goes really well with the Turkey Meatloaf.
useful (1)
Chocolate Buttercream Cake : page 194
This is delicious but when it comes to making a chocolate cake, I always revert back to Ina's Beatty's Chocolate Cake from BC at Home.
useful (0)
Hot Chocolate : page 225
This makes a very good but very rich cup of cocoa. One cup is all it takes to get my cocoa fix.
useful (0)
Orange Yogurt : page 229
This is a nice way to jazz up plain yogurt. It's great with fresh berries and the homemade granola. I served both at a brunch and they were hits.
useful (0)
Homemade Granola : page 210
I've made this a couple of times and like it. But it is really expensive to make!
useful (1)
Maple-Oatmeal Scones : page 223
I think these are good- not great. They weren't as maple-flavored as I had hoped they would be. I brought them to a brunch and other people seemed to like them a lot, though.
useful (0)