Recipe Reviews: Company Food Part II

I realize that I haven't posted the sequel to my "Loads of Company" post, but I wanted to go ahead and share the recipes that we tried while Shaun, Tiffany, and Gale were visiting the very next week. We also re-made some of the recipes that we had tried, and really liked, the week prior when my folks were here. So the quantity of recipes may be a bit smaller this week. The new recipes our guests willingly prepared, and ate, with us included....

Monkey Bread

Since we tended to stay up way too late playing board games (and going to bed as mortal enemies as a result), mornings were a bit rough sometimes.
I had passed this recipe many times while perusing Jason's cookbook and knew this quick, easy recipe for Monkey Bread was there. I grabbed the pop-can biscuits on my way home one evening and decided to make them for breakfast one morning. (My experience with Monkey Bread is everything made from scratch.) When I got out the recipe, I realized I didn't get enough cans of biscuits. So, I ended up making 2/3 of a recipe! Jason told me many times that this is what he remembers having for breakfast every time he stayed with his grandparents as a kid. It is quite a nostalgic recipe for him, I believe.

The Honest Review: Jason was quite excited for this recipe, as this is REAL Monkey Bread (to him), and thoroughly enjoyed it. It was good, it was super sticky, and sweet. The bread part was very light and fluffy, and I could tell it was biscuit texture and not a bread texture. After turning it out, it did seem to sink. I wondered if that was because the biscuit dough structure is weaker than bread dough, so it couldn't hold up the weight of the stacked dough balls. It did take longer to bake than the recipe said, but who knows if that was the oven's fault, or the recipe's. This recipe was quick and easy, and a nice sweet breakfast snack. This recipe is staying in our collection.

Shrimp Summer Rolls with Dipping Sauce

This recipe comes out of my Betty Crocker recipe book, and was one that Jason picked out. I actually worked the evening that this meal was prepared and served. Jason, Shaun, and Tiffany shared cooking duties and pulled off this recipe. We have not worked with rice paper wrappers before, so it was a bit of a learning experience. We also couldn't find rice vermicelli noodles, so we used regular wide rice noodles.

The Honest Review: These appetizers (for which they are typically used) make a nice, cool, light meal. And, they are quite yummy. Or, maybe I should say that the dipping sauce is yummy! Little Pumpkin even ate the fillings (not so much the rice wrapper), but I can't remember if she also partook of the dipping sauce. These are a bit...tedious, maybe, to put together until you figure out how to best work with the rice paper wrappers. While I would recommend everyone to try this recipe, if you have food texture issues than the rice wrappers may not work for you. But, I think you could eat the filling separate with the dipping sauce as more of a dressing! This recipe is staying in our collection.

Pad Thai with Shrimp

Pad Thai is one of our favorite foods, especially at a really good Thai restaurant. It is literally the only thing Jason orders whenever we go out for Thai food. And, he doesn't share his Pad Thai willingly if I have chosen to "step out of my box" and try something new on the menu! I was pretty excited to find this recipe in my Betty Crocker recipe book, and even more excited to know that we typically have most all of the ingredients on hand. Except for the fresh bean sprouts, which we have had a hard time locating this summer, and the fresh cilantro. I believe Jason and Tiffany put this dish together on another night that I was working.

The Honest Review: We LOVE Pad Thai!!!! Especially shrimp Pad Thai! We have actually made this recipe multiple times and have tried it with chicken; we didn't think it was quite as good with chicken. We haven't tried it with pork, yet. This specific making of the Pad Thai turned out a bit on the spicy side, but it was still so delicious! I am pretty sure that Little Pumpkin ate this meal very willingly, also. One thing I have learned in making this recipe is that the longer you let the red pepper liquid mixture set, the spicier the dish will be! I made it in Steamboat one time and prepared the liquid mixture first, then did all the rest of the food prep. That was one spicy Shrimp Pad Thai meal!!! It was still really good, but everyone sweated through the meal, for sure! I would highly recommend giving this recipe a try, and if you don't like spicy, cut back on the red pepper, and mix up that liquid mixture right before you need to put it in the noodles. This recipe is staying in our collection.

I feel like we had to have made more food than this during the week that Shaun, Tiffany, and Gale were here, but I don't have any photographic record of any other new recipes. I know that we did repeat a few recipes from the week prior, such as the Peach Flambe. Outside of that, I can't remember! I have to admit, I have not been doing a very good job of writing down, and keeping track of, the recipes I'm making. I have taken photos, so that is what I've been using as my memory!! I need to do a better job!

Since I don't feel like this post is complete without a dessert recipe, I'll add this one even though I didn't make it while our guests were here.

Banana-Chocolate Chip Biscotti

I had never made biscotti before, and the biscotti I have purchased has always been rock-hard. Almost like you're going to break your teeth trying to eat it. But, my sister, Miriam, has made biscotti and I had the privilege of eating her recipe at another sister's bridal shower. I remember it being delicious, and not quite as rock-hard as the store-bought. Since I had some bananas that needed used, Little Pumpkin and I decided to make this for a treat one week.

(I forgot to try and take an artsy photo of the final product, so you get the candid snap-shot!)

The Honest Review: They were tasty!! As in, very yummy! At least, Little Pumpkin and I thought so. I never got a clear answer from Jason on these, but I do know he partook of the biscotti more than once! I purposely did not do the second bake for quite as long as the recipe said, as I didn't want the biscotti to be rock-hard. And, depending on the thickness I managed to cut them, the thicker ones were a bit softer, and the thinner ones a bit harder. Either way, they were very good! I really liked them, and would recommend this recipe. And I don't recall them being that difficult to make. This recipe is staying in our collection.

Well, there you have it! The final collection of recipes that we had while our company was here, plus a bonus dessert recipe! Which recipe would you try?