Pineapple Chicken and Potatoes

From Slow Cooker Magic in Minutes



Ingredients:
flour
salt
nutmeg
cinnamon
onion powder
pepper
chicken breasts
potatoes
cream of chicken soup
pineapple juice
brown sugar

Comments:
I left out a couple things (mushrooms, orange peel) and swapped the sweet potatoes for regular potatoes. It turned out alright although I think maybe 8 hours would have been plenty. Adam didn't dig the potatoes and even the chicken wasn't really his thing. It was ok for me but I don't know that it's a keeper either. And I'm not really sure why it's called "Pineapple chicken" when it's just the juice and you can't even taste it anyway. Oh well...

BBQ Pork (Non)Sandwiches

From Slow Cooker Magic in Minutes



Ingredients:
boneless pork roast
beef broth
Worcestershire sauce
hot sauce (used some cayenne pepper instead)
ketchup
molasses (used honey)
mustard

Comments:
With relatively few substitutions for ingredients I don't have because I would use them so rarely it doesn't make sense to have them, this turned out quite nicely. It definitely has a tang to it. And I forgot to get rolls so we just ate it by itself instead of in sandwich form. I blame this on the list of ingredients. Rolls aren't listed and that's how I make my shopping list. Nevermind the name of the recipe is "sandwiches." Whoops.

Moo-Less Chocolate Pie

From Alton Brown via foodnetwork.com



Ingredients:
chocolate chips
coffee liqueur (Left out)
vanilla
silken tofu
honey
chocolate wafer crust

Comments:
I was interested in this recipe because it's pretty much a chocolate mousse pie made with tofu, thereby eliminating any dairy side effects. It took some effort to find the tofu. But we did it. It also took some effort to make the pie filling. We didn't have any coffee liqueur and I debated subbing some Godiva for it but ultimately just left it out. The vanilla made the chocolate seize up almost instantly and the tofu/chocolate mixture was too think for the blender. We had to thin it out a bit with some water to avoid burning up the blender's motor. It set up fine and tastes good. I might go with milk chocolate rather than semi-sweet chips if I attempt this again. It's very rich and it's almost required that it's cut with some whipped cream to eat. Heh.

Spaghetti with Asparagus, Mozzarella, and Bacon

From Giada De Laurentiis via foodnetwork.com



Ingredients:
asparagus
spaghetti
EVOO
garlic
salt & pepper
proscuitto (I used bacon)
mozzarella cheese
basil

Comments:
This recipe seems very similar to the gnocchi one we tried a while back. This one was pretty basic and although the cheese kind of clumped up and made it hard to eat without making a mess, it was still pretty good. Next time maybe I'd go for shredded mozzarella or some parmesan instead.

Lamb Pitas

From Everyday With Rachael Ray June/July 2008



Ingredients:
Onion
ground lamb
oregano
salt & pepper
pitas

Comments:
If you look at the original recipe you'll see I changed a bunch of stuff (as in it's original name is Spicy Beef Pitas.) I just kind of used the original and inspiration. I swapped out the beef for lamb since I had it anyway from a different recipe I didn't make and it was more pita-ish. I left out the bell pepper, chiles, and cumin since we don't like them. I also omitted the yogurt topping since Adam doesn't like that. So, what we ended up with was pitas with lamb and onion. A little bland so maybe next time I'll try and add more spice somehow.

Southwestern Chili-Mac Salad

From Everyday With Rachael Ray June/July 2008



Ingredients:
lime juice
EVOO
salt & pepper
corn
pasta
onion
chili powder
ground beef
kidney beans
tomatoes
shredded cheddar cheese

Comments:
I altered this recipe a bit. I left out the cilantro since it's gross. I also used frozen corn rather than fresh corn off the cob. I used a white onion, all finely diced and cooked since I don't particularly like raw onion. I also seeded and diced the tomato rather than putting whole wedges in. It turned out great. Lots of flavors, textures, and color. It probably tastes pretty good cold but I haven't found that out yet. Adam tried it and declared it was "not his cup of tea." Oh well. Can't win them all.

Turkey Parm Meatballs

From Everyday With Rachael Ray June/July 2008



Ingredients:
ground turkey
parmesan cheese
bread crumbs
egg
tomato paste
garlic
parsley
basil
salt & pepper
mozzarella

Comments:
There's this great recipe for stuffed meatballs and this recipe is similar to that. I cooked the meatballs up in a skillet rather than grilling them. Things went well, I didn't set off smoke alarms, and they stayed together relatively well. I'm not sure how "chicken parmesan"-like they really are, but they still tasted good.

Bacon Quiche

From Taste of Home June/July 2008 (recipe isn't on their site)



Ingredients:
pie crust
scallions
butter
eggs
heavy whipping cream
apple juice
bacon
salt & pepper
shredded cheese (I used cheddar)

Comments:
I thought this was a good change up from the usual strudel I make every once in a while. It's pretty easy and very tasty. I had to cook it for a bit longer than the recipe said but I think that might be because I used a frozen pie crust while the recipe calls for a refrigerated one. Eh.

Turkey-Tortilla Casserole

From Everyday with Rachael Ray May 2008



Ingredients:
limes
turkey breast cutlets (I used ground turkey)
onion
chiles (left out)
diced tomatoes
tortilla chips
chicken broth
shredded cheese
sour cream (omitted)

Comments:
I don't think my swapping ground turkey for the the cutlets really made a difference in the overall taste of the dish. It just seemed like an easier method than what the recipe called for. I think I skimped a bit on the chicken stock as it came out a little dry. Still pretty yummy. And even Adam, who's wary of anything with the word "casserole" in its name, deemed it edible.