Recipe Reviews! Week 4

My cooking this week had some struggles, and it wasn't always the fault of the recipes. I'll expound on that throughout the recipe reviews.

This week's recipes included...

Linda W's Stir-Fry

I remember having this as a kid, but haven't had it in ages! I was excited to make it, hoping for a really good stir-fry. I did deviate from the
recipe, and my rule, and added carrots, yellow bell pepper, and onion.

The Honest Review: Jason really liked it. I was disappointed in it not tasting as good as I remembered, and thought maybe adding the vegetables changed the flavor a little bit. Little Pumpkin ate it just fine. I personally wasn't interested in making this recipe again, but Jason seemed to really like it. This recipe will be staying in our collection at this time.

Alterations: I think I will let Jason make this recipe next time, and he can add his flair of tossing extra seasonings, spices, and sauces to it and we can re-evaluate. If anyone has any recommendations, I'd love to hear them!

Roasted Rosemary Pork Loin

This recipe comes from my sister, and I was pretty sure I knew what the reviews were going to be. Jason does not like mustard, and anytime a recipe calls for mustard in any form (even dry mustard powder), he leaves it out. In the past, I have been asked to refrain from using mustard on roasts. I followed the recipe, and did not mention that there was mustard in it.

The Honest Review: It was DELICIOUS! When I asked Jason the next day for his thoughts, he said it was so good! It was very tender, very moist, and the flavor was superb! We all loved it! I did tell him that there was mustard on it, and he was a bit surprised, but he didn't say to never use mustard again. This recipe will be staying in our collection.

The lima beans pictured here.....they were a massive failure. I was trying to make lima beans like Aunt Punk's, though I was going off of memory for the "recipe," and I ended up throwing these out. I don't know what I did wrong, or if it was the brand that I bought, but PLEASE, someone tell me how to make Aunt Punk's lima beans, and what brand to buy!!

Garlic Parmesan Potato Wedges

These two recipes are almost exactly the same. Jason made the online recipe last year, and I remembered having potato wedges as a kid. So I combined the recipes, taking the average of the differing amounts. These potatoes are pictured above with the Roasted Rosemary Pork Loin.

The Honest Review: We really like these potatoes! The flavor is perfect, I think. My only complaint was that they weren't crisp, but that could be due to using too small of a cookie sheet and they were overlapping each other a lot. This recipe will be staying in our collection at this time.

Alterations: Use a larger cookie sheet to spread out in a single layer. I did notice that the online recipe says to toss the potatoes in the cheese and parsley after baking; I didn't do that this time- I just tossed everything prior to baking. I may try that method next time.

Maria's Chicken

I remember making this a few years ago, but couldn't remember how well we liked it. Again, it took mustard which is traditionally against Jason's food practices.

The Honest Review: It was good, but so-so; the flavor seemed to be lacking something. Jason instantly knew there was mustard on it. The crust didn't get crispy, and was kind of soggy. I did notice that the mustard/butter mixture instantly jelled when I dipped the chicken in it (it wasn't frozen, just refrigerated), so I kind of had to spread it on. And I ran out of that mixture and had to make more. So maybe that is why it wasn't crispy- too much butter in the pan. I think this recipe is tossed from our collection.

Before I toss it, since it's my sisters recipe, I'd like to hear if it's supposed to be a crispy crust, or if it's traditionally non-crispy.

Brisket with Best Ever Barbeque Sauce

I got this recipe when I lived in Montana from Mary Z. I have been wanting to make this for a long time, but have never gotten brisket to do so. I was sooo excited when I saw beef brisket on sale for a good price in the sale papers, and went to the store specifically for it. Unfortunately, I missed the part about it being "Corned Beef Brisket." How I missed that, I'll never know; it's pretty obvious, especially with St. Patrick's day coming up. When I opened it up and realized it was corned beef, I Googled if I could somehow still use it for this recipe, and I read somewhere to soak it in ice water for 8+ hours, changing the water every 2 hours. So that's what I did. And I proceeded to make the recipe.

The Honest Review: It wasn't a complete failure, but it was extremely salty! And I don't think we got an honest taste of what this recipe is supposed to be like. We did eat it, although Jason made mashed potatoes to go with it to try and help combat the salty issue. It wasn't bad, but it wasn't amazing, that's for sure! I will be holding on to this recipe to try again, with a REGULAR beef brisket!

Banana Nut Oatmeal Cookies with Quick Lemon Icing

This is another recipe I found when I lived in Montana, and I remember making them once. I couldn't remember if they were good or not. I usually don't put nuts in things because I've never been the biggest fan of them in baking. But, I decided to try it this time.

The Honest Review: The picture doesn't do them justice; they are soooo good! We all loved them! We tried them with, and without, the Quick Lemon Icing, and they are good both ways; the icing just adds a little "pop" to the cookie. Jason said they taste like banana bread in cookie. And the nuts go very well in this recipe! They are a fairly moist cookie, so I foresee them molding within a day or so if not refrigerated. This recipe is staying in our collection.

Alterations: Only make 1/4 batch of the Quick Lemon Icing; the full recipe makes way more than needed for one batch of cookies.

I hope you enjoyed this weeks recipe trials. Please do let me know what brand of lima beans you like, and how you fix them. We like lima beans; I just don't know how to make them, I guess. Thanks!