MangoStine's Reviews
27 recipes reviewed. Showing 1 to 27Sort by: Book Title 
| Date | Rating | Recipe Title
The Breakfast Book
By Marion Cunningham
Gramercy - 1997
In the book it refers to these as "The last word in Nutmeg Muffins" and boy is that an apt description. I make these muffins over and over and over again. The odor is intoxicating as they are baking and as you are biting into one. The crumb is light and delicate. They freeze beautifully as well. I could wax poetic about these little beauties all day. I think it is safe to say that of all the wonderful recipes in this book, this one is my favorite, with the raw apple muffins on page 58 pulling a close second.
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Crepes: Sweet & Savory Recipes for the Home Cook (Illustrated)
By Lou Seibert Pappas, Jean-Blaise Hall
Chronicle Books - 1998
I have only made this once and my Husband has been asking for me to make it again ever since. I have to say it was really delicious. The only drawback is there was a fair amount of prep time and dirty dishes. That has been the only thing holding me back from making it again. I just remember doing a LOT of dishes. I think I am going to make this a yearly birthday dinner / special occasion type of meal. It is worth the while. I actually used chicken rather then turkey because there was no turkey in the house at the time. And I diced everything up super small, brunoise size. I would describe this as an elegant entree. Not super filling though, unless you eat several slices, otherwise you should supplement with a salad, or vegetables on the side.
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The Gourmet Cookbook: More than 1000 recipes
By Zanne Early Stewart, Ruth Reichl, John Willoughby
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt - 2006
My husband, who is not a foodie in any sense at all and could care less about food in general, refers to this as "Chicken Divine". It is that good. This is a great recipe. The chicken is so tender and flavorful, and as SuzeQP noted it is indeed very rich. It's totally worth the while to make. I make this for my husband on special occasions, and for dinner parties. It is not overly complicated to make and the leftovers reheat pretty well.
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I knew this was going to be awesome when I sampled some of the batter. It's on the sweet side, so be advised. I may bump up the amount of cranberries slightly next time to counterbalance the sweetness. But this was delicious and I will definitely be making it again and again in the future.
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This cake had a great texture and was easy to bake. I made the acommpanying citrus syrup on page 714. Cake kept well over several days and everytime I took the lid off the cake carrier I was amazed by the delicious citrusy smell wafting out. Despite all of the above however, I don't know if I will make this again. It was lacking....something, je ne sais quoi. If I ever do make it again I will probably make a citrus whipped cream frosting instead, and skip the citrus syrup, which is a bit on the sour side. However a lot of people enjoyed the sour note from the syrup on the sweet cake.
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I have made several potato gratins using various recipes, but this is hands down the BEST potato gratin recipe I have ever used. The garlicky flavor is not overpowering but still very much in the forefront, the texture is perfect. Anytime I have made this it has been quickly devoured. The recipe ratio here is just right, causing the potatoes to come out perfect everytime. It's never too greasy, or too liquidy. The only thing deviation I make is I add thyme on occasion.
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The butter flavor in these pancakes is very pronounced. Of course, seeing as how there is an ENTIRE STICK OF BUTTER in the batter that is to be expected. These pancakes are definitely rich, which is why I have only made them once and will reserve them for when I am feeling like a decadent treat.
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Easiest breakfast ever. I make it the night before then just pop it in the oven in the morning. A delicious way to use up stale bread. I love recipes that are easy to make and come out exactly as described, which is one reason this is probably my favorite cookbook.
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LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this cake!!!!!!! It is easy to make and people love it. The lemon flavor is so intense. I used my Kugelhopf pan as the recipe suggested and the cake came out looking lovely in addition to tasting great. I made this as a farewell cake for a co-worker, and everybody loved it and gobbled it right up.
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This cake tasted excellent to me. However, my husband thought the semolina created a sandy texture that slightly bothered him. This cake was supposed to be cut in half with the whipped cream and berries in between. However, it didn't rise very well for me and ended up very flat so I didn't / couldn't halve it. Instead, I put some lemon curd in the whipped cream, frosted the cake with that and sprinkled raspberries on top. This was not a very large cake at all, but man, it tasted good! My co-workers inhaled it. Next time I believe I might bake two of these and turn it into a layer cake, using the whipped cream / lemon curd frosting again of course.
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These are part of my regular rotation. There's not much to say here, I mean it's a pretty basic recipe, but oh, so good. I'm only cooking for two so I usually scale back on the amount of carrots.
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I had never made creamed spinach until I tried this recipe out in order to use up some spinach before it went bad, and I'm so glad I did. It was super fast, and super delicious.
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I made this chutney soon after reading AJ12754's review, and I'm so glad I did because it is delicious! I have been putting it on, or in, everything. It is awesome mixed in with some cheesey scambled eggs. I also had it with mushroom pizza for lunch, and am looking forward to slathering some on a grilled cheese sandwich as well. After all, the book does say it is "wonderful with cheese in every way, shape and form." I had neither eaten, nor made, Chutney prior to this and am gald to have expanded my culinary horizon. I do have to admit that I added about 1/8 teaspoon of powdered cloves that the recipe did not call for, and I omitted the 1/3 cup of dried currants, just because I am not a big fan of currants or raisins.
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This was fun and easy to make. I added dill as well as parsley to the mix just because I love dill so much. I used my oval dutch oven to fry the patties, but I think a skillet might actually have worked better. The recipe says to use a 4 quart saucepan, but again, I think a deep skillet would work best. At first I thought the patty idea was odd because I have always seen falafel in ball shape, but I found that I actually preferred eating the sandwich with the patties. It was just much neater and easier in that shape, so I will do it that way again. The falafel came out crispy on the outside, tender on the inside and nice and flavorful. I will definitely be making these again.
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Jamie at Home: Cook Your Way to the Good Life
By Jamie Oliver
Hyperion - 2008
I make this a lot in the summer time. My husband was initially not going to eat it because he was freaked out on the raw egg yolk in the carbonara sauce. But after one taster bite he got over that fear real quick. This is a tasty, easy to make dinner. There are several nice recipes in this book, but I find myself going to this recipe more often then any other.
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The Lost Art of Real Cooking: Rediscovering the Pleasures of Traditional Food One Recipe at a Time
By Ken Albala, Rosanna Nafziger
Perigee Trade - 2010
I had been trying and trying to find a pizza dough recipe that works for me, and I finally found it in this recipe. I have made this a couple of times now and it has turned out very well both times. My husband worked in a pizza joint for several years in his youth, and he was very complimentary about this dough, so it must be good. I think the success was due to the descriptiveness of this recipe, and how it encourages you to not be a recipe slave but rather to trust your instincts. I was able to get two small pizzas using the quantities advised. The crust was crispy on the outside but nice and chewy on the inside as I like it. I made a crust of medium thickness. It wasn't a deep dish, but not as thin as a NY slice either. I use a baking stone in my oven and cranked the heat as high as it would go on my range, which is 550. Also, I proofed this in the fridge.
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The Martha Stewart Living Christmas Cookbook
By Martha Stewart Living Magazine
Clarkson Potter - 2003
I love this stuff and could eat it everyday. It is sooooo delicious on toast. This is an awesome recipe, so just follow the recipe and it will all come out beautifully. One added step I do though is I whisk the egg yolks vigorously (prior to heating), until they are a nice buttery yellow color. This just seems to give it a really nice color and texture.
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These were kind of bland and not lemony enough for me. The texture was good though and they are a good vehicle for slathering with lemon curd. But the next time I make them I am going to bump up the lemon zest and add some lemon juice possibly as well.
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Please to the Table: The Russian Cookbook
By Anya von Bremzen, John Welchman
Workman Publishing Company - 1990
Came out slightly dense, but very flavorful. I will try making this again. I am sure the dense texture is my fault and not the recipe. This is the most successful bread recipe I have tried in my short bread baking career thus far. I love, love, love the caraway seed flavor.
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This recipe didn't overly thrill me. It was somewhat bland and boring. I ate it all, but it was mediocre. Maybe I did something wrong.
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Egg and Mushroom Salad,while apt, is such a boring name for this dish. It should be more like "Looks so ugly but tastes so good that I make it over and over again egg salad". Or if you want something shorter "the best egg salad you will ever eat in your life". If you really want to shorten it I suppose you could just call it "Russian Egg Salad". If you, like me, love the combination of dill and mushrooms, and are also an egg salad fan, then stop reading this and go make it. You won't regret it. It's a homely dish, looks a bit like the dog's breakfast in fact, but tastes so good I almost wish I had been born in Russia. And that's really saying something coming from a Cold War kid such as myself, who grew up programmed to despise the USSR and all things Russian. So glad the cold war is kaput, because Russian food is delightful and delicious.
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I believe I doubled the pickling liquid for this recipe because it seemed very scant for the amount of vegetables called for. I really, really loved this relish. It was totally awesome on our fresh caught trout. Super easy to make too. It would make a nice food gift for the Holidays. I always seem to enjoy the Moldavian recipes in this book, and the funny thing is I had never even heard of Moldavia until I got this book.
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Ruhlman's Twenty: 20 Techniques 100 Recipes A Cook's Manifesto
By Michael Ruhlman, Donna Turner Ruhlman
Chronicle Books - 2011
Easy and delicious.
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Splendid Soups: Recipes and Master Techniques for Making the World's Best Soups
By James Peterson
Wiley - 2000
Salting the meat is the key to this recipe. I love dry brining because it really does make the beef fork tender. This is a very easy to make and flavorful soup. Awesome comfort food for a cold winter's day.
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Vefa's Kitchen
By Vefa Alexiadou
Phaidon Press Inc. - 2009
Initially I thought this recipe sounded like a bit of a joke because it sounded so pathetically easy to make. But since I had an eggplant, a bunch of zucchini and other vegetables on hand that I had to use up I figured I'd make it, and I'm really glad I did. It has great flavor and is super healthy as well. I served it on a bed of wild rice one night and on jasmine rice the next. It was very fresh, filling and flavorful. If you are having a dinner party that includes a vegan, or a vegetarian, this would be an awesome main course for them, while used as a side dish for any carniverous guests you might have. It kept well and the leftovers were also very flavorful. I garnished this with some toasted pine nuts, fresh basil and feta cheese. I am a vegetarian and I will definitely be making this again.
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Vintage Cakes: Timeless Recipes for Cupcakes, Flips, Rolls, Layer, Angel, Bundt, Chiffon, and Icebox Cakes for Today's Sweet Tooth
By Julie Richardson
Ten Speed Press - 2012
I made the pink cake for a friend's birthday and it was a big hit. In fact, I think the chocolate sponge for this recipe is probably the best chocolate cake I have ever made, or tasted. It was so moist and had a perfect crumb. however, the raspberry butter cream frosting on this cake didn't thrill me, which is the only reason I didn't score this cake as a 5. People liked it, and the consistency came out as promised in the recipe, however there wasn't enough raspberry flavor for my taste. I even used extra raspberry puree. I really like the instructions in this book. They are very straightforward and explain the process well. I will definitely make the chocolate sponge from this recipe again, however I may try a different frosting next time. I guess I am just not a fan of butter cream frosting.
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Warm Bread and Honey Cake: Home Baking from Around the World
By Gaitri Pagrach-Chandra
Interlink Pub Group - 2013
I soaked the dried coconut in Silk Coconut milk rather then water. The texture of this cake was perfect. Light and airy yet dense and filling at the same time. And the smell of coconut was divine every time I sliced into it. It was easy to make and delicious as well so I will definitely be making this again.
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