Season's Best S/S 2014

[Shari in TX]

I've actually never started a thread on this site before, but I wanted to start a discussion about the recipes in the new SB cookbook. I hope this is the right place.

Tonight I made the Mexicali Corn Cakes to go with our chili. They weren't too hard to make, but definitely a little more work than a box of Jiffy. They look just beautiful with the red pepper, green onion, corn and cheese in them. And they made more than one batch. I doubled the recipe so I could give some to family and that made almost three full mini muffin pans.

My only complaint is the cayenne pepper. It says 1/2 tsp for one batch. I used 1/2 tsp in two batches and I still thought it was too much. Now, I'm the first to admit that I am very sensitive to spicy foods, but even my 17yo son said that he thought they were a little too spicy and he hardly ever says that. I'm sure my sister will love them -- she puts red pepper flakes on pretty much all the food I cook. But if you aren't a big fan of spicy, go easy on the cayenne.

I'm looking forward to hearing what recipes everyone is trying. I picked up cannellini beans today to try the Vegetable Ribbon "Pasta" with the zucchini ribbons soon. I hope it's good. I'm also excited to try the kale dip.

Shari in TX

 

[kam]

I am trying to decide which recipes to make for our team "taste test" meeting.

I am looking at the Asian Chicken Slaw as one option...but it calls for "broccoli slaw". What is that? How easy is it to find? For those that have seen it - do most of your stores carry it? I imagine it might be near the bagged lettuce? I never recall seeing anything like that. In the past, our stores around here have not always had ingredients I needed for some of our recipes.

THANKS!

 

[Shari in TX]

I've found Broccoli Slaw pretty easily in the produce section of Walmart. It's near the coleslaw and other cut, bagged veggies. In my store, it's in a separate section of the cold shelves from the lettuce -- maybe halfway down the aisle. It looks a lot like coleslaw only a little thicker cut.

Hope you find it and enjoy the recipe. My daughter wants me to try that one soon.

Shari in TX

 

[kam]

I've found Broccoli Slaw pretty easily in the produce section of Walmart. It's near the coleslaw and other cut, bagged veggies. In my store, it's in a separate section of the cold shelves from the lettuce -- maybe halfway down the aisle. It looks a lot like coleslaw only a little thicker cut.

Hope you find it and enjoy the recipe. My daughter wants me to try that one soon.

Shari in TX

Ahhhh...I am not a fan of coleslaw - which is probably why I have never paid ANY attention to the bagged coleslaw. But, now I know where to look!

THANKS!

 

[cindiskitchencabinet]

So far I've done the Cucumber Dill Guacamole, Veggie Ribbon Pasta, Bananas Foster and the Berry Crisp at shows. All were hits and very great show recipes! Especially love the two in the RockCrok as they show it off well (used on the stove top to start), are quick and impressive. Everyone loved the flavors and I've sold at least one or two at each show.

 

[kam]

We just had our taste-test team meeting.

I made the Asian Chicken Slaw (and easily found the Broccoli Slaw). It was very easy and really good! Have been enjoying the leftovers for lunch. I just wish the dressing didn't use the seasoning packet from the Ramen - so much sodium!. I may work on altering the dressing to be a little more healthy (for personal use)...but very happy with the recipe overall.

Others made:

Cucumber Dill Guacamole: Really good. Too much red onion for me personally, but good. Had a bit of a bite. The person who made it said she would use 3 avocados so it would make more dip so there would be more to go around at a show. (It made a small amount.)

Kale & Artichoke Dip: Very similar to a Spinach & Artichoke dip (as I would have expected it - since Kale is so close to spinach). The person who made it said the first time she made it she felt the taste of the marinated artichokes dominated it too much, so for our meeting, she rinsed them. The dip still had a lot of flavor and was good.

Mexicali Corn Cakes: Really good. Had a little bite - but not too much. The person who made these said they were really easy to make.

Chicken Caesar Salad Skillet: This was really good - but was not "Caesar" at all to me. So, while I was disappointed it did not have that "Caesar" taste, it was good otherwise.

Grilled Chicken & Pepper Sandwich: This was awesome! I was surprised at how much I liked it. Apparently, though, the bread is hard to find (at least in my area). The person went to 4 different stores and finally had to substitute something else in (didn't hear what she eventually went with). But it was rectangular and not round - which worked out better for cutting into servings in her opinion.

Vegetable Ribbon Pasta: This was good - not awesome - just good. The person making it said she never make this at a show. The spiral slice was really hard to get a long slice - plus the zucchini is not in season and they were on the small size. She also said that it used almost half her bottle of rub.

Stuffed Peanut Butter Cookie Bars: These were very decadent! They were very good. The person who made this said it was very easy (almost too easy?). It makes plenty - but as it cools the edges get a little hard.

Strawberry Cheesecake Bombe: This was also excellent! The extra shortbread cookies were forgotten - but it didn't matter - we ate it without and it was still great. There was a discussion about how expensive the shortbread cookies were and someone said they used graham crackers instead and it was fine. (Not sure if they used the graham crackers IN the recipe, though.)

Raspberry Gems: These were good! They did not make many (only 18) and someone suggested if making for a show maybe bring one batch already made and make the second batch as a demo. The person who made these used Strawberry jam instead and just used the Wilton candy melts for the white chocolate drizzle (since they had those in the house instead of buying a bag of white choc morsels).

Quick Berry Crisp: This was good - just a little tart.

Overall, everything we ate was really good!

The only other recipes I would have been interested in trying (but no one made) was the Salsa Verde Brunch Squares and the Thai Chicken Salad Cups.