Queezle_Sister's Profile

From: Salt Lake City, UT USA

Joined: March 29th, 2010

About me: I enjoy cooking, and my favorite internet COOKING community is the one here at cookbooker. If you want to connect about my other non-academic passion, you can find me as QueezleWeaver on Ravelry, and mostly Warped Weavers. But I've miss you cookbooker, and so here I am again, and happy to contribute.

Favorite cookbook: Savory Way

Favorite recipe: roasted anything (most recently grapes)

Stuffed Zucchini with spiced beef or lamb from Zaitoun

When it is zucchini time, it can be difficult to find something interesting. But this was both different and a total delight! Zucchini are scraped out and roasted. The "meat" from within the zucchini... read more >

recipe reviews (1403)
book reviews (39)
useful review votes (961)

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Queezle_Sister's Reviews

36 recipe(s) reviewed. Showing 1 to 36Sort by: Title | Date | Rating

The Olive and the Caper: Adventures in Greek Cooking

By Susanna Hoffman
Workman Publishing Company - 2004

Hard to add much to the previous reviews. This sauce is amazing. Light and lemony, and easy to prepare. I served this with the stuffed grape leaves. A 1/2 batch was perfect for us, with a full recipe of the grape leaves.

The cook is offered a selection of different stocks to use, and I prepared lobster stock (close to fish), using "better than bullion" instant stock. It gave a good depth to the lemony flavor.

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My DH prepared this dish, and we really liked it. It makes for a great lunch. The black eyed peas cook quickly, even at our altitude. Just 20 minutes of simmer. I thought that the salad was a little bland. It probably needs a bit more dressing - more vinegar or a squeeze of lemon. It also could use more salt and pepper. We used regular hot-house tomatoes, and like southerncooker, didn't both to peel or seed.

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This was a decent pilaf. It was prepared in the usual way - minced onion was sautéed in a bit of olive oil, the bulgur sautéed along with the onion, and then stock was added (I used "better than bullion" turkey). It cooked up quickly (the 20 minute cook time was pretty good; mine was stuck to the bottom of the pan but I blame my stove). It was a mild side dish, and a good accompaniment to sesame chicken (this cookbook).

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Shredded carrots, thinly sliced fennel, and dry figs make up the bulk of this salad. It is dressed simply - with just lemon juice - and is to be accompanied with slices of preserved lemon.

I prepared the preserved lemon as instructed in this book. They were not as nasty as the ones I've purchased, but still not great.

I really liked the fig-carrot combination. But probably this won't be prepared again.

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This is a great appetizer. The chickpea tahini combination is hummus - but in this recipe its a bit different. There is very little olive oil (making it sort of light calorie-wise), and its flavored with garlic, cumin, and ground coriander seeds.

We served this with pita wedges.

Note that I used a can of chickpeas. I looked on the internet to find the right conversion - how much canned chickpeas is equivalent to 1C dry. Sites ranged from 2C to 4C - so I settled on 3C. The can gave me 1.5C, so I halved the recipe. Its so delicious, though, that I wish I had made the full batch.

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My DH prepared this lovely chicken dish. We used 4 lbs of hind quarters, and it was definitely enough for 6 - and probably 8 - people. This dish simmers on the stove in an amazing juice that includes red wine, tomatoes (we used ones from the garden and canned last summer), brandy, coffee (!), honey, cloves, bay leaves, cinnamon, and at the end, it was garnished with watercress. My DH thought the cinnamon was too strong. While I could notice the cinnamon, it didn't seem like too much for me.

The suggested bread is definitely something to remember. This sauce is so amazing, you will want to include every bit.

I should note that the bitter watercress flavor was an excellent counterpoint to the rich sauce.

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This syrup, made with coffee, water, sugar, and honey, turned out so surprising. Our house generally loves all things coffee, but the addition of honey, and all the sugar, ended up making it more caramel-flavored - or something - but not a distinct coffee flavor. We loved it, even the one person who doesn't care for coffee.

My one quibble is that you are instructed to make this syrup, and when its cold, pour it on the cool cake. I cooked mine to the syrup they suggested, but it was very hard when cooled. I ended up mixing in a bit more coffee, and warming it up slightly, so it would pour.

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A very simple soup, but I ran into some problems here.

You start with an excellent chicken broth (I used the broth recipe in the book, which includes a bit of tarragon), and you add some rice and cook till its done. One then whisks up some eggs till frothy, then adds lemon juice to the eggs. The next step is to whisk 1c of the hot broth into the egg/lemon mix, and then put the egg/lemon/broth mix into the big pot of broth. The cook is advised to turn off the heat and NOT do any additional cooking.

I am skeptical that my soup came out as suggested. The entire texture was like a yellowish buttermilk - was this what we were going for? I had expected it to be more like an egg-drop soup, with threads of cooked egg, and I wish the author had told me what to expect. Because I'm at about 5000 ft, my boiling temperature is lower, and I wondered if the eggs simply didn't cook.

My husband loved it, and I agree - a rich-tasting broth with a delicate flavor. But my kids - usually adventurous eaters - wouldn't eat more than a couple spoons full. They claimed that it felt like they were eating melted butter.

Looking at pictures of this soup on the internet, maybe mine turned out just right? I hope my review won't discourage anyone from making this -- and please comment if you know the expected final texture!

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An excellent, rich, and slightly exotic flavored bread -- this one is a winner.

The dough came together nicely, and all the times (rising, etc) seemed accurate. I was unable to find Mahlepi, although my DH has now pointed out that we have a Mediterranean store on the opposite side of town, so I might repeat if I find it. I added a bit more mastic than called for because that was what I ended up with after grinding a large nugget. The loaves rose more than I had expected, and you will see that they cooked together (photo 3), but easily separated out of the oven.

I braided one load, and my 14 yr old daughter the other, and I bet you cannot tell them apart. I didn't bother with the egg wash (substituted milk) or the almonds, its quite yummy just the way it is. Very nice sliced, lightly toasted, with a cup of coffee on an easter morning.

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This was a pretty basic omelet - cooked in olive oil. I added chopped fresh basil to mine (it was one of several suggested fresh herbs). It was a bit more peppery than what I would normally do, but the instructions worked fine.

It doesn't appear that "greek" unless you followed some of the alternatives suggested in the back. But I wasn't in the mood for feta for breakfast. If you didn't know how to make an omelet, these instructions would work just fine.

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A most excellent Greek salad!

This salad includes a green pepper, cucumber, tomatoes, olives, red onion, feta, and some optional ingredients - capers, etc. Although I do not care for green peppers, in this particular salad they were perfect. As this is not the season for tomato excellence, I used fewer than called for in the recipe. My family all loved it and said they would eat it every day if they could.

The instructions suggest addition of a much larger amount of olive oil than I would usually use (1/3C), but I stuck to the recipe. A good tossing in a large bowl meant that everything was well covered, but it didn't seem oily at all. After the oil, one adds some lemon juice and oregano.

This is a strong recommend, and its also the time to break out that really excellent olive oil that you might reserve for special occasions.

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Light and delicate meatballs with a really big flavor. I prepared these with about 6 oz of ground lamb left over from preparing these dolmades. I scaled the recipe down, and got about 17 small meatballs.

What gives these such an amazing flavor? I'm not sure, maybe the lamb, maybe the spices, but clearly there is a synergy between the ingredients that leads to something that is much bigger than the sum of its parts.

The details: it is suggested that the cook roll the meatballs in very finely chopped nuts, and then flour. Being a lazy person, I persuaded myself that almond meal represents the finest of chopped nuts, so I rolled them first in almond meal and then in flour. It seemed to work, but wasn't particularly beautiful.

This is a recipe that I will save, treasure, and make again.

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We really enjoyed this baked pasta dish. It uses ziti that has been cooked, and layers it with the Quick Fresh Tomato Sauce and the Saltsa Besamel. Some eggs help it to hold together, and a layer of orange zest adds a surprising touch. In fact, that orange zest helped this dish to not be just another baked pasta, but instead it gave it a much fresher and lighter feeling.

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Complex flavor and an unusual look with flecks of green, this recipe is truly a keeper.

I'm not a huge fan of olives, and as a result, most tapenades are just too much for me. This one, though, has as many capers as it does olives. It also has anchovy fillets (I used the suggested salt-packed, rinsing and deboning it according to instruction in Zuni Cafe Cookbook), fresh basil, olive oil, and lemon juice. There is so much going on in this simple topping, the olives are there but not the dominant note.

I prepared this tapenade as a mix-in for this pea soup. We also tasted it on crackers. Delicious!

This was easy to prepare. I used the chopper attachment for my immersion blender (made a 1/2 batch).

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This Ouzo-Lemon syrup is intended for the top of this yogurt cake. It is prepared by mixing Ouzo, lemon juice, water, sugar, and lemon zest. Just as the instructions state, it thickens up and makes a beautiful syrup.

We do not have Ouzo and so substituted the similar Pernod. I am not a fan of anise-flavored items (with the exception of biscotti), and so was worried that I wouldn't like this. To my surprise, the anise flavor was wonderful, even my kids enjoyed this cake.

I think it would be easy to vary this syrup. I could imagine amaretto or cointreau substituting for Ouzo. Very delightful.

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This is a simple recipe, and it yields crisp crunchy onions with a strong sour flavor. I prepared this to go along with this pea soup. It added a wonderful crunch to the soup, and an acid flavor, which enhanced the somewhat bland peas. I think these will be amazing on sandwiches, too.

I used my mandolin to slice the onion very thinly. Worked great but caused massive numbers of tears.

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I did not make my own preserved lemons for the Moroccan cooking challenge, and so was glad to get a new chance with this challenge.

Here the lemons are quartered, salted, and lemon juice is added. They are kept at room temperature for the first couple days (and shaken regularly), then transferred to the refrigerator.

I have only found one recipe to use these lemons in this cookbook!

These are just what you expect - salty and a bit weird.

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This is a zesty tomato sauce that we prepared so we could then make the Neoclassic Vegetarian Pastitsio. We couldn't find good fresh tomatoes, and so substituted some canned organic diced tomatoes from our local Italian shop. My son prepared the Pastitsio, and wanted his own signature for the sauce (in the spirit of the side bar), and so substituted siracha for the suggested chile pepper. That little bit of zip was a great addition.

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edited to raise to a "5" -- this pudding is even better cold - excellent texture and flavor.

This creamy rice pudding is relatively quick to put together, and it is delicious. I used the full amount of milk called for (6C for 3/4C rice), and am pleased by the lovely custard that resulted. You cook the rice, milk, sugar, and flavorings (I used nutmeg, mastic, and yellow raisins). After the rice is cooked, you mix in egg yolks (3), and whisk it over heat until its cooked. It took more like 5 minutes to thicken to my taste, but it came out with the perfect creamy texture.

I was a bit heavy-handed with the mastic, and there is a definite resin-like flavor. But it goes well with the rest of the ingredients. In fact, my 17-yr old son who typically does not care for rice pudding is actually enthusiastic about this one.

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This white sauce is very basic. It includes some butter (but just 3T for 2C sauce) and flour. You prepare a roux, and then mix in milk and salt. It is then cooked until "creamy and thick". Afterwards, a bit of nutmeg is grated on top.

While this did come together quickly, I was wishing for instructions for what "thick and creamy" really means. Its used as a sauce, and so I made it pretty thick, figuring I can thin it if required.

Note that I followed the stovetop instructions instead of the microwave instructions.

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These Croquettes are based on this split pea soup. To the cold soup, one adds shallots, mint, tomato, and other ingredients. They are mixed, formed into patties, and fried. My kids, especially the 17-yr-old who dislikes soup, enjoyed these and ate all that I prepared (sorry chickens, no leftovers for you).

As the cook, though, this dish suffered from somewhat vague instructions in the soup. With the soup, I wasn't sure the texture we were trying to achieve. With these croquettes, you are supposed to be able to form patties with just 1/2C flour to 2C soup and 1 egg. It took more than 1C of flour for mine to form anything solid enough for patties, and I eventually just used my cookie scoop to transfer from bowl to frying pan.

If I prepare these again, I will increase the spice by a fairly large margin.

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I love sesame flavor, and so I took Tignor's review into consideration, and tackled this recipe. I cut down on the amount of clove, and I allowed it to cook for an extra 5 minutes (watching that old toothpick carefully). And, when I applied the sesame icing, I didn't just let it pool in the middle, but instead largely applied it to the edge of the cake. Finally, I garnished it with a combination of regular and black sesame seeds.

This was a very moist cake, and it had an unusual flavor. My DH ate at least three servings, he loved it (and disagrees with my rating, he would give it a 5). The rest of us did feel that it had a Greek feel to it, but were not totally thrilled.

I agree with @tignor that the clove amount is excessive, but using 1/2 the amount was good. Another big problem is the amount of bread crumbs. A volume measurement of breadcrumbs is so dependent on how fine they are. I have only panko, which I think were too coarse. I did really smash it down into the measuring cup, and added a bit extra. But perhaps with a truly fine crumb size, it would have baked up better.

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Moist chicken with a slightly exotic sesame flavor.

I followed my sister's advice, and used a bigger pan (I used an oblong dutch oven). I also brushed on the oil-lemon-salt mixture, and then sprinkled on the sesame seeds. It worked well to distribute the seeds.

After 55 minutes, I opened the dutch oven and measured the internal temperature. It was perfect - 160 - 170˚F - very slight pink which disappeared as it finished roasted (uncovered) and then rested.

The juice from the pan is converted to a sauce by removing the fat and whisking in tahini and capers. The cook is instructed to pour it over the chicken. I felt this ruined the look of the bird (compare the two photos). The sauce is a good addition to the bird, so don't skip it, but consider serving it on the side.

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Delicious pilaf with lots of spinach. However, I was unable to fit the called-for 3 lbs of spinach into my pot. I had a 2.5 lb bag, and still used only about 3/4 of it. I used a large dutch oven, sautéed the onion and rice as directed, and then added the spinach and water. I kept adding more spinach as it started to cook down, trying to fit it all in. The unintended consequence is that I lost a lot of water (steam), and so needed to add more water and cook it about 7 minutes longer than directed.

But I will say it was better than expected, and the lemon zest among the other final herbs really elevated this dish.

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Main dish or appetizer - you may choose. This is an unusual presentation of winter squash. It is coarsely grated (easily done with a food processor), mixed with sautéed onions, various spices, eggs, and put between an upper and lower crust of phyllo dough. A bit of feta (just a sprinkling) is added just below the upper crust. I am always nervous about phyllo but found a type that claimed to be "easy" -- it was a bit thicker and held together well. I used olive oil rather than butter, and the top crust was beautifully browned when it was done.

By this time of the year, after harvesting nearly 50 lbs of winter squash, my kids are tired of it. This recipe used different spices (the cardamom was spectacular, but I did double it), and its special presentation was a very welcome change.

This was the first recipe that caught my eye in this book. I'm so glad that I finally found the time to prepare it. Its long baking time (1.5h) and somewhat involved preparation makes it better for a weekend.

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This recipe produces a lovely-looking dish. The big full cauliflower head looks impressive. I've been interested in full-cauliflower head dishes, and can compare it to this roasted whole head cauliflower.
In this dish, the cauliflower is steamed, and it worked quite well in that the entire head cooked at about the same rate. Do note, you need a large-sized steamer.

Why only the "3" rating? I found the Nutmeg Besamel sauce to be a bit too boring -- cauliflower perhaps needs something a bit stronger. I did put a layer of good Parmesan Cheese (instead of the greek cheese called for) but that wasn't enough to elevate it. And don't forget to add another squeeze of lemon. I also don't love the texture of steamed cauliflower.

At the end, I kept thinking about how much more I like a simple roasted cauliflower (such as this or this).

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The stand-out part of this recipe is the sauce in which the beans cook. Its composed of shallots, tomatoes, garlic, fennel seed, and white wine. This sauce cooks down, and gives the tender beans a nice acidic note.

Unfortunately the acid in the sauce is not kind to the beans, turning them the olive-green color of pheophytin (chlorophyll that has lost its magnesium). My picture was taken about 5 minutes before they were supposed to be done cooking, and I should have stopped it then.

When discussing the dish, I said the beans were over-cooked, but my DH said no, they were cooked, just not al dente. I did enjoy them, but its not likely to replace my usual roasting.

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Fabulous chicken with an amazing stuffing.

The stuffing includes nuts (pine, almond), spices (cinnamon, nutmeg, alspice), parsley, rice, onion, and currents. I followed the instructions except that I discovered we had no white long-grain rice. I substituted brown short-grain rice (its what we had), and it wasn't quite cooked at the end. I think though, that had I used white rice, it would have been perfect.

I also modified my cooking method, using the spatch-cocked chicken described here on Serious Eats. I piled the stuffing in a baking pan, placed the chicken on top. The result was amazing - thighs cooked perfectly, as well as moist and perfectly cooked breasts. The skin was crunchy and delicious.

I will try this recipe again with wite rice. Very wonderful combination of flavors.

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Wonderful flavor and boy did this ever make my kitchen smell terrific.

This was my first time stuffing grape leaves. The filling comes together quickly (I used the suggested apricots, soaked in retsina, and lamb), and I was pleasantly surprised at how easy it was to wrap the grape leaves.

Finding a pan where I could weigh down the stuffed leaves was a bit of a challenge, but after an hour the rice was cooked and the filling was amazing.

I have to say that the grape leaves were tough, and I mostly unwrapped mine, ate the filling, and tossed the leaves. Any advice out there for getting tender leaves?

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A rich thick custard with lemon and a slight mastic flavor.
This recipe calls for 8 egg yolks, and suggests that it will take 20 - 25 minutes to thicken. I must have been too timid with the heat, because mine took more than an hour to thicken. It didn't ever get really thick - it was a pourable texture - but very delicious. Lemony with a hint of the wild outdoors (from the mastic).

After cooking the custard, you are instructed to add 2T lemon juice. I also added the zest.

Mastic is called for - 1T (half my little jar) - tied up in cheese cloth. You add it for the beginning heating of the milk (to dissolve the sugar), and then after the custard is cooked, you are instructed to return the cheesecloth bag as it cools. After it was served, I removed the bag and opened it up -- half the mastic remained undissolved. I would recommend keeping the cheesecloth bag in the entire time it cooks so it all becomes used. This stuff is expensive!

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An unusual dish composed of carp eggs (tarama), potato, lemon juice, and olive oil. Be forwarned that this recipe makes a big beige pile of dip. It is very salty (from the fish eggs), but if you can get past that, the flavor is quite nice. The final presentation, with cilantro and olives, was also quite nice.

Most of us were not thrilled by this, but my 17 yr old son (who loves Greek food, enjoyed it so much that he also used it to make a breakfast sandwich!

The tarama that I could find at my various Italian and middle-eastern stores were all about 10 oz. This recipe only requires 4 oz. I wish a smaller jar had been available!

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We loved this cake! It contains very little flour, and instead the body is largely composed of chopped walnuts and the crumb of your choice. Like Peckish sister, I used Panko. This mixture also contains separated eggs, with the whites beaten and folded in. I was quite skeptical, it looked different from almost every cake I've ever prepared, but my worries were unfounded.

Like PS, the most difficult part, we found, was waiting. First you wait for the cake to cool, then you slice and apply syrup. Then you wait for the syrup to penetrate - over night. I will confess to snitching a small piece for breakfast, and it went very well with a cup of strong coffee.

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This is a simple 3-ingredient recipe. So simple, and yet it was the perfect addition to these croquettes.

I have to admit to an eye-roll when preparing this condiment, and nearly skipped it. I mean, how good can a bit of wilted parsley really be? The red wine vinegar, though, elevated the parsley, and the salt brought much-needed salt to the croquettes. My parsley did NOT wilt, though, yet that was no problem. I would guess that the alternative cilantro would wilt very quickly. The slow wilting of parlsey means you don't really need to wait until the very last minute before preparing this add on.

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This is a very basic, very simple soup. However, paired with the suggested toppings elevates it substantially. Alone, the soup would be just a "3". We paired it with the pickled onions and the tapenade.

Do beware that the recipe takes at least 2 hrs. If you are like me, and read just the beginning, you might delude yourself into thinking its a simple 1 hour cook. When I realized my miscalculation, I moved it to the pressure cooker, 10 minutes high, fast release, and then carried out the second 45 minutes of reducing the broth. I wish the author had described how thick it should be - it seemed a bit thin to me.

I was happy to eat this and to remember how much I enjoy split peas.

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This simple cake is simply delicious. The cake itself is straight forward - creamed butter and sugar, four eggs (separated), 1C yogurt, flour, baking powder, and lemon zest. The egg whites are beating to stiff peaks and folded in at the end. The instructions call for coarsely chopped lemon zest. I don't like biting into big pieces of lemon peel, and so I used the larger of my two microplane graters. This bakes in a 10-inch springform pan, and is to be inverted onto a plate, and then saturated with this delightful syrup.

I do not own a large cake plate, so just used the bottom of the springform pan (no cake inversion). This was a mistake! The syrup doesn't soak into the top crust as it would have through the cake's bottom. I added a bunch of holes (fork), which helped. This was an unusual and delicious cake!

This cake tasted better the second day -- the syrup had permeated deeper and mellowed. I also served it with whipped cream - mascarpone, which was an excellent counterpoint to the cake's sour-sweet flavor.

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This is a light lemony soup. Barley is precooked, and then mixed with broth (I used fish), herbs (dill, cilantro, and thyme), and brought to a boil. Once its hot, you whisk in yogurt and lemon juice.

The flavor is pretty good - very lemony - next time I'd use a bit less.

The down-side of this soup is that the yogurt-lemon ingredients did not mix in very well. In fact, it would separate as soon as you stopped stirring.

I thought it tasted pretty good, but 14-yr-old daughter didn't like it at all.

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