Kestrel's Reviews
229 recipes reviewed. Showing 101 to 150Sort by: Book Title 
| Date | Rating | Recipe Title
The Glorious Vegetables of Italy
By Domenica Marchetti, Sang An
Chronicle Books - 2013
This cake is simple to make and uses cocoa powder which are both pluses. The resulting cake is very moist and dense, almost brownie-like in texture. I substituted Greek yogurt for half the oil But otherwise followed the recipe. Used a slightly smaller cake pan and had to bake for 67 minutes convection.
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Grains for every season
By Joshua McFadden, Martha Holmberg
Artisan - 2021
Tasted good and very easy to make. Mine were not very crisp, may reduce the water next time.
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Delicious granola! I also made a half recipe since it makes a lot. In my convection oven this took about 40 minutes. Will definitely repeat this.
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I didn’t follow the recipe, just used it as a guideline. Used golden plums, yellow tomatoes, and basil with the barley, since that’s what I had from the garden. Like so many of his recipes, they can easily be adapted. I look forward to trying the recipe as written.
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Great British bake off Get baking.
Basically a scone with blueberries. I used milk instead of cream since that's what I had. Next time will add some lemon zest, more salt, and possibly some dried cranberries to amp up the flavour. Easy and quick to make.
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Website: Grow forage cook ferment
I first made these using butter for the fat and to use up my sourdough starter (unfed). I'm always looking for recipes to use up the excess starter and these are very good. The tortillas came out great; very tasty and pliable without being soggy. I made 8 tortillas instead of 6 and kept the dough in the fridge over several days and just cooked them up when needed. I've also subbed different flours such as buckwheat for some of the wheat flour. I don't buy tortillas any more, I just make these instead...
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Website: Guardian Recipes
www.guardian.co.uk/tone/recipes
This looked interesting so I decided to give it a try, never having cooked any of this author's dishes before. A quick crust is made using breadcrumbs, cheese, and seeds. It is then pre baked and a filling of leeks, herbs, tomatoes, and butternut squash is added followed by a topping of that same crumb base. I have to wonder if this recipe was properly tested due to several issues. Firstly, you could really not hope to serve this as a "slice" since it falls apart even after standing. Secondly, and more importantly, the butternut squash was not cooked even after increasing the cooking time substantially. After removing the raw squash (this took some time), the taste was pretty good, so I think the basic idea was ok, hence the 2 star review. If I made this again, I would use a regular pastry base and pre cook the squash.
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How to Cook Without a Book: Recipes and Techniques Every Cook Should Know by Heart
By Pam Anderson
Broadway - 2000
I use this a lot in summer to make quick grain salads. For example, we just made a barley and lentil salad with basil, black olives, plums, and yellow tomatoes from the garden. It's a great way to use up small amounts of various veg from our allotment. Great side with BBQ meats or as a meal on its own.
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Huckleberry: Stories, Secrets, and Recipes From Our Kitchen
By Zoe Nathan, Matt Armendariz, Laurel Almerinda, Josh Loeb
Chronicle Books - 2014
These were an epic fail for me. Completely fell apart and tasted terrible. Tried to save them but no luck and had to throw away. User error probably, but won't be trying again.
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Jamie at Home: Cook Your Way to the Good Life
By Jamie Oliver
Hyperion - 2008
I made this with my last 2 honey nut squashes (mini butternut) from the garden. It was straightforward to make and took about an hour from start to finish. The only other changes I made were to use my own roasted tomatoes for the sundried tomatoes, and to sprinkle the goat cheese on top. This is a very nice and tasty dish, it is quite filling, and would be a good choice for a vegetarian supper.
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This was fantastic! I did make some changes, using peas from my garden and no broad beans. I also subbed the pecorino with a strong cheddar and used lime juice because that's what I had. The acid at the end really did bring it all together as Jamie says. The paste tasted amazing and would be good on practically anything; fish would be wonderful I think. I made it by hand, but I would try in the food processor if I did a larger amount. Can't wait to make this again and I'd give it more than 5 stars if I could!
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Jamie's Food Revolution: Rediscover How to Cook Simple, Delicious, Affordable Meals
By Jamie Oliver
Hyperion - 2009
I agree this is a lovely dish, and it’s very adaptable. I used the jalfrezi curry paste from the author's website and changed the vegetables according to what I had. My version had carrots and potatoes from my veg garden instead of the squash and cauliflower. I added green peas at the end instead of the chickpeas, and served with rice. I had to omit the cilantro but I’m sure it would be a good addition. Will definitely repeat this.
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We love carrot salads and this is a good one. I added some shaved Brussels sprouts from the garden and added the nuts and clementine. I’m sure the feta or goat cheese would be very good in this.
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Website: JamieOliver.com
A great recipe from Mr Oliver, I use just the peas and omit the broad beans since I never have them. Great on bread as suggested but also with fish, noodles, or other cooked veg. Very easy to make and uses fresh peas from the garden.
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Website: JamieOliver.com
I didn't like this sauce much at all. The ingredients are all things we like but for us the resulting sauce was bland. I managed to rescue it by adding lots of tomato products. In future I will just make my standard sauce with a couple of carrots grated in. A nice idea but not a repeat for me.
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Jamie's 15-Minute Meals
By Jamie Oliver
Michael Joseph - 2012
I made the chicken and greens only. Chicken is flattened with salt, pepper, and rosemary then sautéed; a few rashers of bacon are then fried off to finish it. Knowing that North American chicken pieces are always larger than the UK version, I opted to slice up the chicken and stir fried the chicken and bacon together quickly. Nice combination of flavours, very simple, and the greens complemented the chicken nicely. Will make again.
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Jamie's 30-Minute Meals
By Jamie Oliver
Michael Joseph - 2010
Good and very easy to make. I’ve made it as written or with cilantro instead of parsley, both good. Beets and feta work well together. Very healthy and in regular rotation.
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Jamie's Ministry of Food: Anyone Can Learn to Cook in 24 Hours
By Jamie Oliver
Michael Joseph - 2008
This was excellent and very easy to make. Chicken breasts are lightly bashed, topped with cheese, herbs,and Parmesan and then pan fried. I made this as shown in the YouTube video using both thyme and rosemary. I would increase the herbs next time (just personal preference). The one caveat is the size of the chicken breasts; North American chicken pieces are much bigger than British so needed to be split before cooking. I served on a bed of greens, cherry tomatoes and shaved fennel fresh from the garden for a delicious meal.
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I agree this is a lovely dish, and it’s very adaptable. I used the jalfrezi curry paste from the author's website and changed the vegetables according to what I had. My version had carrots and potatoes from my veg garden instead of the squash and cauliflower. I added green peas at the end instead of the chickpeas, and served with rice. I had to omit the cilantro but I’m sure it would be a good addition. Will definitely repeat this.
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Website: King Arthur Flour
Like Jen I really enjoyed this bread. I didn't use any yeast, going with my very active starter for the rising only. I also omitted the apple, and I made it in the overnight, no knead style. Baked in my cast iron pot again in no knead style. Excellent, soft tender bread. Will freeze some to use later, and will try the grilled cheese idea too.
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The Kitchen Diaries II
By Nigel Slater
Fourth Estate - 2012
This made an amazing soup. I used my own homemade chicken stock and some rosemary instead of the thyme. Fantastic soup with simple ingredients and a definite repeat. I blended the whole pot for a smoother soup.
Recipe available online at The Guardian.
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Website: The Kitchn
Didn't like this at all. It was very sweet, and couldn't taste rhubarb at all. Additionally the colour was unappetizing (there's a picture in the post which is definitely not the curd). Won't make again and will stick to lemon and lime curd in future.
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Website: The Kitchn
These rolls are fantastic! They are very easy to make and taste great while involving a minimum of work. You can use squash for the sweet potato if desired. I place mine closer together than stated on the recipe and they come out taller and "pull apart" in style. They freeze really well. I would like to experiment with some whole grain flour added and also may adapt these to use sourdough culture.
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Website: The Kitchn
Decided to try this as store bought PB has become so expensive, and it worked very well. I used unsalted roasted peanuts, added a pinch of kosher salt, and about 1 tbsp oil. The result was very tasty; will make again.
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Website: Land O'Lakes
I like a lot of the cookie recipes on this site. These ones are good, easy to make, crispy cookies. The recipe calls for chai latte mix which I did use, but I also added more cinnamon, cardamom, allspice, etc and I'm glad I did. The chai flavour is not very strong here so it may not be a good choice for some. I will probably make again with a little more spice.
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The Lighthearted cookbook
By Anne Lindsay
Key Porter Books Limited - 1988
I always come back to this recipe when I want a tasty, easy stir fry with chicken. Works every time and tastes great.
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A great salad that is substantial enough to have as a meal. I have made it as written but here are my current changes...I use some mayo and yogurt instead of the cottage cheese and yogurt in the recipe, increase the lemon to taste, and usually use only one can of salmon. One of my favourite lunch and picnic dishes ever!
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These are super easy squares. I use half a recipe to make just a few squares at a time. They are sweet and most kids love them.
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Another really nice muffin from this book. My applesauce was sweetened so I reduced the sugar to 2 tbsp and that worked well. I used bran from the Arva flour mill in Canada which tends to be finer than store bought bran and also omitted the orange zest. Baked at 400 fan for 20 minutes.
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Very good muffins. I used cinnamon, ginger, and nutmeg as the spices, and omitted the raisins.
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A simple and tasty one pot meal. I usually use beans cooked from dry rather than canned, just personal preference.
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Made in India: Recipes from an Indian Family Kitchen
By Meera Sodha
Flatiron Books - 2015
Seeing Kaye's note reminded me that I made these a while ago, so here's my review... I made mine quite a bit smaller than suggested and I found the smaller ones easier to wrap. I'm glad I made a few test samosas since I found that they lose their crispness quite quickly. To make them for guests I froze them overnight and cooked from frozen as directed. That worked very well and everyone liked them. They are quite fiddly to make so be sure to have a good block of time available to make these. Also, the leftover filling was very good as a side dish. Next I want to try them with golden beets from the garden. Overall, a really nice recipe that I've made quite a few times.
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The Moosewood Cookbook
By Mollie Katzen
Ten Speed Press - 1977
One of my favourite ways to cook squash. I raise the oven temp to 400 to shorten the cooking time and use various types of squash such as acorn and butternut. I also score the flesh of the larger ones such as bigger butternut. I've added the optional currants/walnuts and both are good. Timing for me is usually to bake unfilled squash about 20 minutes, then filled about 15 minutes more.
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Another good way to prepare squash. I use the rice option (sometimes brown or a combo with wild rice), and I think that other grains such as quinoa or barley would probably work. Same cooking times and temps as the other stuffed squash recipes in this book; 400 for 20 min then 15 stuffed.
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My Bread: The Revolutionary No-Work, No-Knead Method
By Jim Lahey, Ron Manville, Mark Luinenburg, Rick Flaste
W.W. Norton & Co. - 2009
A good way to make olive bread. Can use less expensive olives with good results.
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This recipe uses a soaking method for the potatoes which works well; it needs to be done 90 minutes ahead. I made the recipe as written, but added some cheese to mine. As he says in the recipe, spread topping to the edge as it's likely to burn there. Mine was done in 25 minutes. Very good pizza
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Like Sturlington, this is my favourite pizza dough. Easy and works great.
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This recipe started me on no knead bread ages ago. Very easy and well explained with pictures. I make all my breads this way, (including sourdoughs).
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My Paris Kitchen: Recipes and Stories
By David Lebovitz
Ten Speed Press - 2014
Very nice and easy to make. Buckwheat crepes were made ahead, and the assembly was quick. I made mine vegetarian omitting the ham and using some pre cooked veggies from the garden with the cheese and egg topping. Next time I would fold the sides up after just a couple of minutes while they are still flexible. I used regular buckwheat and liked the taste of the crepes. Will definitely make again.
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Made the crepes without the seaweed butter. Very easy, good taste. Added 1 tbsp olive oil to the batter, made as regular crepes in the blender. These can also be made without the blender as the author states. One hour of resting the batter is enough for the water to be absorbed. The small amount of oil helps them not to stick.
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Easy to make and good. Used it on grains and lentils as well as egg dishes. I used my spice grinder to do the peppercorns and corriander seeds and put everything else in the large food processor, and that worked well. I definitely cut back a little on the salt. I didn't have hazelnuts so used cashews and almond for the nuts and sunflower for the seeds. Worked great!
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Very simple and delicious if you have good carrots. On permanent rotation.
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The New Laurel's Kitchen: A Handbook for Vegetarian Cookery and Nutrition
By Laurel Robertson, Carol Flinders, Brian Ruppenthal
Ten Speed Press - 1986
Makes a good sauce that is lower fat than your regular sauce. I add a few drops tamari and some melty cheese. Best to eat this fresh
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This is delicious, everyone seems to like it, and it’s a good way to include lentils in a meal. I always add the optional nuts (I use almonds, cashews, etc), and I also switch the raisins for other dried fruits such as cranberries or dried apricots.
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The New Vegetarian Epicure: Menus--with 325 all-new recipes--for family and friends
By Anna Thomas
Knopf - 1996
This soup was fantastic! I had a great harvest of carrots this year so I decided to make this, and it was so good and so simple to make. I made the following slight changes to the recipe; I used slightly more leek and a bit less onion than stated, and used my own light chicken stock in place of the veg broth and most of the water. After puréeing the soup, I added about half the milk and cream as it didn't seem to need that much. Could probably omit most or all of the dairy for a vegan soup if desired. Good sweet carrots are obviously a must for this. Will definitely repeat.
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Another great soup from Anna Thomas. This one is fairly labour intensive (but not difficult) involving caramelizing onions, peeling and roasting tomatoes, soaking mushrooms, and sautéing veggies. I split the work up and it made a really good soup with a great depth of flavour. As usual mine is not vegetarian since I used light homemade chicken stock. A definite repeat.
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One of my favourite soups. It’s essential to use flavourful squash, and I use light chicken stock so mine isn’t vegetarian. Other than that I often make it as written. I also do a variation with squash roasted with ginger and soy sauce. Both are delicious.
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We really enjoyed this dish as part of a vegetarian brunch. I make buckwheat crepes using my standard recipe, but followed the recipe for the filling. The contrast of the apples and onions with the buckwheat and cheese is really delicious. I often use russet apples from the farmers’ market but it’s also good with any tart apple.
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A good guideline for roasted vegetables; I usually add red onions from the garden as well as thyme and parsley. Roast at 400 F for 30 min. More if necessary but watch carefully towards the end.
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Very easy to make although a little time consuming, with a nice combination of spices. I usually serve the stew over couscous and top with sautéed onions and chard. I use Yukon gold potatoes or homegrown gardens types instead of russet. A nice vegetarian meal.
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