ruth3ch's Reviews
11 recipes reviewed. Showing 1 to 11Sort by: Book Title 
| Date | Rating | Recipe Title
2nd Avenue Deli Cookbook: Recipes and Memories from Abe Lebewohl's Legendary Kitchen
By Sharon Lebewohl, Rena Bulkin, Jack Lebewohl
Villard - 1999
This is a great Turkey recipe although I never follow it to the letter. I also never make the stuffing.
I use the 5 tablespoons each of onion powder, garlic powder and paprika( no, this is not a typo!), which I mix together in advance. If you are using a salted, kosher type turkey, omit the salt in the recipe. I rub this dry rub on the turkey and roast it, breast side down for the first hour*, then remove turkey from oven, turn it over and add 2 inches of cold water to the pan. Continue to roast the turkey, breast side up for the remainder of the cooking time. Baste occasionally- cook until done. It makes a well seasoned, delicious roast turkey.
* If you cook the turkey breast side down for much longer than one hour, the turkey might be too hot to flip over.
useful (3)
We really liked these baked meatballs. If you use kosher ( salted) chopped meat, omit the salt. Meatballs have a strong onion flavor- so you won't like these if you dislike onions.
To shape the meatballs, I pat the mixture into a 9x13 inch pan. Then I score the meat into squares- I make a lot more than the 18 meatballs specified by the recipe. Then I form each square into a round by rolling it around in my hands and then I put the meatball back into the same pan. (Do this until all the squares are formed into meatballs..) Bake as directed. Nice with rice, noodles or mashed potatoes.
I serve the meatballs as a main dish- but they could be an appetizer too.
useful (3)
Baking: From My Home to Yours
By Dorie Greenspan
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt - 2006
I really liked these hearty, healthy muffins.
I always push my baking powder and baking soda through a tea strainer to get out any lumps before using in any recipe ( I've been" burned" before with bitter lumps!) and I am sure that I did it with this recipe too. And, I probably substituted one tsp vinegar in a cup of low fat milk (and let it stand about 5 minutes) for the buttermilk. If my memory is correct, I think I only used prunes, as the recipe suggests, once and used either dried apricots or craisins ( dried cranberries) the second time. Either way, the muffins were very good.
These are a hearty muffin, not a dessert type muffin.
I have made this recipe at least twice, which means it is a keeper for me.
useful (3)
The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook
By Ina Garten, Martha Stewart
Clarkson Potter - 1999
This is an excellent vegetarian split pea soup, when made with a non meat, vegetarian soup base instead of the chicken stock.
I usually make only half of the recipe and use a one pound bag of split peas( instead of 2) and halve all the other ingredients as well. I am a sloppy cook so I don't saute the vegetables separately but add the onions, garlic etc to the pot after the peas have cooked a while. I find the seasoning of this soup to be very good-the black pepper, coarse salt and oregano plus the vegetables, all add a great flavor. For the non meat soup base I use OSEM Chicken Soup Base ,but I am sure there are others to choose from ,too. I usually use 2 level Tablespoons of this soup base ( for half the recipe!) added to the water instead of the real chicken broth or just plain water.
If you are watching your salt intake, You can add less salt- especially if you use a salty soup base, like Osem. I highly recommend this soup!
useful (5)
Barefoot Contessa Parties! Ideas and Recipes for Easy Parties That Are Really Fun
By Ina Garten
Clarkson Potter - 2001
These are our favorite lemon bars. There is plenty of lemon flavor and the filling layer is nice and thick. Really delicious and they freeze well too(without the confectioners sugar on top because that might turn sticky).
Experience has shown me that I may need as much as 6-7 lemons for 1 cup lemon juice as needed in the recipe-so I now have a note next to the recipe to have 8 lemons in the house, just to be safe, before I begin. Grate the 2 Tablespoons of lemon zest before you juice the lemons. Some people may prefer to use organic lemons, since you will be using the zest (peel) too. I have also written a note to myself not to make these bars unless I will be in the house for 2 hours or so-actual work time is about 1 hour with zesting the lemons etc but then there is baking time too!
useful (2)
Chocolate from the Cake Mix Doctor
By Anne Byrn
Workman Publishing Company - 2001
We love these raspberry brownies. They are rich, delicious and do not taste like they came from a mix- but rather like they came from a fancy bakery..I use about 1/2 a 12 oz jar of seedless raspberry jam, instead of just 1/2 a cup,and I use 1/2 cup of chocolate chips- not 1/4 of a cup.
One person in my family does not like nuts- so I either leave those out or decorate the top of the frosted brownies with pecan halves so that my daughter who does not like nuts can just pull the nut off before she eats it.
I always frost the brownies with the Fluffy Chocolate Frosting on page 408 of this same book.
Easy and worth making!
useful (2)
CUPCAKES
By Ceri Hadda
Simon & Schuster - 1995
This is an excellent chocolate flavored frosting. I use regular- not Dutch- cocoa, and I follow the method as written- mix confectioners sugar and cocoa, then add milk and vanilla. Lastly, you add unsalted butter and mix until creamy. I do sometimes add a tablespoon of boiling water at the end (not in recipe) if frosting is too dry and not creamy enough.
I usually make this recipe non dairy and use coffee rich- a non dairy creamer and margarine instead of the milk and butter. You could also use prepared strong liquid coffee and substitute that for the milk, for a mocha flavor. Anyway, it is a really good frosting and it does generously cover the twelve cupcakes that the recipe claims it does. This is so much better than those ready to spread frostings on the supermarket shelf- and it is pretty easy, so it is worth making!
useful (0)
How to Bake: Complete Guide to Perfect Cakes, Cookies, Pies, Tarts, Breads, Pizzas, Muffins,
By Nick Malgieri
William Morrow Cookbooks - 1995
I have made these scones at least 3 times. However, I did make several changes. First, I baked the scones at 400F, not 450F, because I was scared that they would burn at 450F. They were fully baked in about 10-15 minutes- the recommended time in the recipe. I also used 3/4 cup of regular, whole milk, not 1/2 cup as the recipe indicates- they did need the extra liquid. I omitted the salt to make the scones lower in sodium but increased the butter to 6 tablespoons total( from 5 tablespoons) just to make the measurement easier.
One time i used dried cranberries and twice I used dried bing cherries- both were great. Today, instead of the lemon peel, I used a tsp of almond extract and topped the scones with untoasted, sliced almonds and then sprinkled the tops with sugar ( if you sprinkle the tops with sugar first and then top with almonds, the almonds will not stick.). Anyway, the flavor of the scones is very, very good...
By the way,as always, I push the baking powder through a tea strainer before adding the baking powder to the recipe to get out any lumps, and I just stir the dry ingredients together.
useful (1)
In a Persian Kitchen: Favorite Recipes from the Near East
By Maideh Mazda
Tuttle Publishing - 1989
I am a very sloppy cook and I look for shortcuts. I totally reworked this soup.I browned the ground beef with the onion. I added the 1/4 tsp cinnamon and pepper and cut down on the salt, because I try to cook "lower in sodium".
I then added 6 cups water, not 8, 1/2 cup raw rice, a 10 oz package frozen chopped spinach, some fresh parsley -less than a full cup, and omitted the green onions because I did not have any-( but you could add more regular onion if you like too). I added 1 cup pomegranate juice and 1/3 cup sugar, and cooked everything together until the rice and spinach were both fully cooked. ( Stir occasionally so rice does not stick to the bottom of pot and burn).Then I added the tablespoon of dried mint and another 1/4 tsp each cinnamon and pepper. It's a good quick and easy healthy soup- but it does not even hint of the lovely pink color that the author mentions! ( Years ago I remember reading that if you don't have pomegranate juice, cranberry juice might make an OK substitute. I didn't try it though.) It is a very exotic tasting soup, and we did like it a lot. I've made it now several times.
useful (2)
Kosher by Design Short on Time: Fabulous Food Faster
By Susie Fishbein
Mesorah Publications Ltd. - 2006
I am giving these cheesecake bars on a shortbread crust a 5 star rating because the final product is delicious and if well wrapped, freeze well. ( Beware: you might find yourself eating the leftovers straight from the freezer!)
I found that when I made the bars,I needed to use a full 2 cups of flour,(not 1 3/4 cup) in the shortbread crust because otherwise the amount of crust made was too scant to completely cover the bottom of the 9x13" pan. I don't think I changed any other ingredient in the shortbread crust recipe except perhaps I had to use a little more ice water to bind the dough. Also be sure to use real butter- the butter flavor is prominent so don't substitute margarine!.
The cheesecake filling was delicious and no changes were made.
I served these cut into squares- not triangles just because it was easier!
On a different note,I have a big problem with every time estimate given in this cookbook. This recipe is supposed to take 10 minutes to prepare according to this book. My rule of thumb for every recipe in this book is that each recipe can be prepared in under 1 hour. I cannot make this recipe in 10 minutes-30 to 40 minutes without cleanup is more realistic. And I am actually pretty adept in the kitchen- but I just don't have a maid!
useful (2)
A Passion for Baking: Bake to celebrate, Bake to nourish, Bake for fun
By Marcy Goldman
Oxmoor House - 2007
The strawberry and cream cookies were absolutely delicious and they tasted like they came from a very expensive bakery. I used white chocolate chips for the chopped white chocolate chunks and I bought the dried strawberries from NUTS ONLINE.
I made this recipe a while ago for a party. I don't remember if the baking time was really 40-50 minutes. So if you do make this recipe- check on them earlier. (The recipe contains no eggs so there is no health danger if you under bake them slightly.) I need to order more dried strawberries so I can make these again soon. Delicious!
useful (3)