THE BEST, CRISPIEST TOPPING from Chew Out Loud

This crisp topping recipe comes from Chew Out Loud. I'm reviewing the topping only, not the peach filling recipe, as I made apple crisp to go with it. Like the name says, it's very crispy, which is how I prefer a crumb topping. It's made with equal parts flour and oats, and equal parts brown and white sugar. I did use half the amount of nuts. I didn't add spices to the topping.

I grade this an A+.

HERSHEY'S OLD FASHIONED CAKE from Hershey's

This comes from Hershey's. I made half and got ten cupcakes. It tastes basically like boxed Devil's Food Cake, so I'm real happy with it. I did use 1/4 c. of cocoa powder, not 1/3 c., not weighed out, and I doubled the vanilla. I made my own vanilla buttercream frosting for it. The cake is made with water though I wonder how it would do with milk, or part milk, part water. It's very moist and I'd definitely make this again. 

I grade this an A.

MASHED POTATO CAKES from Cook's Country

This recipe is from Cook's Country. These taste exactly like what they are...mashed potatoes seasoned with cheese, salt, pepper, and chives ( I used white onion). They were an awful lot of work and I wouldn't make them again despite them tasting good. The full recipe, which I made, makes a lot so you may want to make half.

I grade these an A in flavor.

CHOCOHOLIC MUFFINS from Once Upon a Chef

This recipe is from Once Upon a Chef. It uses buttermilk (I made homemade w/vinegar), all brown sugar, and melted butter. I made half the recipe, filling the muffin cups 2/3 of the way, and got ten. They baked in 12-13 minutes on 375 degrees F. I didn't bake them at a real high temperature then turn it down like the recipe stated. They're very good and cake-like. They have a finer crumb than any chocolate muffin I've ever made before. I do think they need less cocoa powder, so I'll use less next time, not 1/3 c. like I used this time. I think for half the recipe I'll use only three tablespoons. They need more salt too though I did add extra. 

I grade these an A- because of too much cocoa.

Edit: I made half a batch again using all vegetable oil, no butter, an extra 1/8 t. salt and just 3 tablespoons of cocoa powder and they turned out great. Those I grade an A+.

APPLE CRISP from Cooking Classy

This comes from Cooking Classy. I unintentionally used a lot more apples so I needed a larger baking dish, 13" x 9". I didn't increase the filling ingredients (sugar, flour) at all and it was perfectly fine. I omitted both lemon juice and vanilla extract from the filling. My dish baked in 50 minutes. Slicing the apples very thin is key to them cooking fully. The topping was good too. I'd maybe use less sugar in the topping next time. Using equal parts flour and sugar isn't a good ratio, IMO.

I grade this an A.

ALFREDO SAUCE from Cooking Classy

This recipe is from Cooking Classy. It turned out great. I used store brand parmesan cheese and it was good. I did use a little garlic powder instead of fresh garlic because I'm not too fond of garlic in any form. I used a little onion powder too, and fresh cracked black pepper and a small pinch of salt. I do think the one tablespoon of flour was unnecessary because the cheese thickens up the sauce a lot. To the finished sauce I added broccoli florets that I cooked in the pasta water along with linguine, half a pound, and I used the breast meat from a store-bought rotisserie chicken.

I grade this an A.

ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES by Hershey's

This recipe came from Hershey's. These are the best homemade brownies that I've ever made. They're incredibly moist. I love the texture and appearance and they look better in person than they do in my photo. I made half in a 7" square pan that was lined with foil and sprayed with nonstick cooking spray. If you use an 8" pan for half the recipe, yours will cook in slightly less time than mine did and will be thinner, and these are already thin in a 7" pan. They baked in 37 minutes. I doubled the vanilla to one teaspoon and tripled the salt to 3/8 teaspoon and I think it needs more, probably 1/2 t. total. I didn't make the frosting for this but will next time, only using half the amount of cocoa, two tablespoons, not four.

My frosting recipe is: 1 c. powdered sugar (I didn't weigh the sugar), 1 T. unsweetened cocoa powder (Dutch process cocoa is best), 2 T. butter/margarine/spread, 2 T. milk, scant 1/2 t. pure vanilla extract. In microwavabel bowl melt together butter and milk. Stir in cocoa powder, pressing out all lumps with back of spoon. Add vanilla. Pour mixture into bowl containing powdered sugar, stirring until well incorporated. Pour over cooled brownies. Top with nuts if desired.

I grade these an A++.

Edit- I made these again 11/2020 and I made chocolate frosting for them. See photo below. 

Edit- I made these yet again 12/2020 and I used just 1/4 c. cocoa powder, which is 2 T. less than called for, I didn't weight it, and used equal parts melted butter and vegetable oil. They were too moist so just stick with all butter.

ANDREA BEMIS'S MINT CHOCOLATE CHIP COOKIES

I made these cookies, without the mint, more than a year before I made them a second time. The second time I actually weighed out the flour and got better results than the previous time (the dough didn't spread out properly the first time, likely from too much flour), and still left out the mint. I got the recipe from Williams-Sonoma, but it's also posted on Food52, with a different photo of the cookies. These are very good with a good flavor on the edges. I used 1 1/4 c. semisweet chocolate chips, not 1/2 c. like the recipe stated, and got 31 one tablespoon dough balls. Mine baked in 9 minutes and the dough was at room temperature for 30 minutes before baking.

I grade these an A.

EASY CHICKEN PARMESAN WRAPS from Two Healthy Kitchens

This recipe is from Two Healthy Kitchens. I made half using one large boneless skinless chicken breast and instead of using flatbread and making these into Taco Bell Crunchwrap-type wraps I used crepes (half of this recipe) and made them into enchiladas. I used Monterey Jack cheese instead of an Italian blend, since I already had it on hand. I added a little onion and garlic powder to the filling. Half the recipe yielded three 6" enchiladas. They baked in 23 minutes on 400 degrees F. They're very good but too salty from the cheese. This tastes just like chicken lasagna. If you make enchiladas, leave the cheese out of the enchiladas and just use it on top. I used this exact marinara from Walmart, pureed in the food processor to make smooth.

I grade these an A.

PAN FRIED CHICKEN CROQUETTES from AllRecipes

This recipe is from All Recipes. I've made them four times. The last two times I made half and got three large patties. I use one large boneless, skinless chicken breast, baked then shredded and chopped finely. I use unseasoned bread crumbs, not seasoned, and I use onion powder, not minced onion. I don't use cayenne powder. I use slightly less bread crumbs in the mixture than called for. I form the patties before I chill the mixture, not after, then chill until I'm ready to fry them. These are fully cooked except for the egg. I think they take about seven minutes per side to fry. I use a mixture of vegetable/canola oil and Blue Bonnet. I make gravy for them using one tablespoon butter, one and a half tablespoons flour added after butter has melted, and 3/4 cup canned chicken broth, salt, pepper. It makes just enough for three.

I grade this an A+

THE BEST HOMEMADE ENCHILADA SAUCE RECIPE from Skinny Taste

This comes from Skinny Taste and is far from the best. I made half the recipe. It uses Mexican spices added to tomato sauce and chicken broth. I used regular chili powder, not Mexican hot and a lot less chipotle than called for, only a little more than 1/2 teaspoon of pured chipotle in adobe sauce, and that was pretty spicy. I made enchiladas with it using half of this crepe recipe in place of flour or corn tortillas. I made the crepes 7". I made the same filling as the one I used in the recipe on this post called Chicken Enchiladas Verdes.

I grade this an C because of the high amount of heat the recipe called for and it's salty. I don't know how anyone could handle that much heat.

PEACHES AND CREAM MUFFINS from Taste of Home

These come from Taste of Home and are nothing special. I made half the recipe and got five. I added vanilla, cinnamon, and ground toasted pecans. We could use sour cream or milk so I used sour cream. They need more salt. I baked these at a lower temperature for about 15 minutes, not 20-25 like the recipe stated. I wouldn't make these again and threw the last muffin out.

I grade them a C.

RED BEANS AND RICE II from Damn Delicious

This turned out great. It's from Damn Delicious. I didn't use green pepper because I don't like it and I used shredded chicken in place of sausage. I used homemade kidney beans instead of canned because I had some I needed to use up. I would definitely make this again. I like that this has tomato paste in the sauce and chicken broth, and like that you mash some of the beans to thicken the broth. It's pointless to me to cook onion and celery when the Cajun seasoning has all the flavoring you need in it so I'll skip that step next time.

I grade this an A.

PEANUT BUTTER BROWNIES from Betty Crocker

This comes from Betty Crocker. I left the peanut butter cups out of the batter. I made half the recipe in a 7" square pan and made chocolate frosting for it. These are very moist and chewy. I made them several times over ten years ago out out of a Gold Metal Flour cooking magazine I had.

I grade these an A.

CHOCOLATE CHIP OATMEAL COOKIES from Modern Honey

This recipe's from Modern Honey. I love the way they look and the photo's not doing them justice. You can see the ground oats in them. I made half the recipe and got 21 one tablespoon dough balls. I used a combination of mini semisweet chocolate chips and regular size chips. Nine minutes in my Breville was about right. They're very crisp on the outside and slightly chewy on the inside. I probably could have baked these fifteen-twenty seconds less. Though I'm happy with the appearance of these, the taste isn't anything special, more salt will help with that next time, and I will make them again. I'm actually thrilled with their appearance.

I grade these an A.

BEST BROWNIE RECIPE EVER from The Stay at Home Chef

This recipe's from The Stay at Home Chef. They're made with both unsweetened cocoa powder, melted milk chocolate, and contain no leavening agents. They're nothing special at all and I'm disappointed. The flavor is basic, buttery and they're dense and fudgy. I won't make them again. 

I grade them a C.

THE BEST CHEWY PEANUT BUTTER COOKIES from The Novice Chef Blog

This recipe is from The Novice Chef. It's a good basic recipe. The dough, even cold straight out of the refrigerator, spreads out nicely. My one tablespoon dough balls baked in 10.5 minutes and aren't as flat as the one on the website. The ones in my photo were baked 11 minutes and is why they're so brown. They'll only be chewy if you underbake them, which I don't. I got 29 one tablespoon dough balls. I used less vanilla and will use slightly less salt next time.

I grade these an A because they taste good, look good (I love a crackle top cookie), and spread out as they should when the dough's cold.

BEST HOT FUDGE SAUCE by The Stay at Home Chef

This comes from The Stay at Home Chef. It's made with both unsweetened cocoa powder and milk chocolate chips (but you can use any kind) and is very good. I made half and used 2% milk instead of evaporated milk since I didn't want to waste half of a can since I only needed half of it. It made exactly 2 cups. I used unsalted butter, it called for salted, and added close to 1/8 teaspoon salt for half the recipe. At room temperature this stayed thin and ran off the ice cream. It thickens slightly in the refrigerator and clings to the ice cream when poured on it without heating it first. I will make this again, definitely, but will use a little less milk and cook it a few minutes longer in hopes of it being thicker than this time.

I grade this an A- for the thin consistency.

AMISH SUGAR COOKIES from Taste of Home

These aren't good at all. They're made with equal parts butter and oil and equal parts sugar and powdered sugar. The recipe's from Taste of Home. They didn't spread much and are puffy, dry and crumbly despite my weighing the flour out. I won't make them again.

I grade them a D.

CHICKEN ENCHILADAS VERDES from Taste of Home

This recipe comes from Taste of Home. I used rotisserie chicken breast instead of turkey. I used white chicken chili spice mix instead of fajita mix. Because store bought mixes are full of herbs and spices I omitted the basil, oregano, cumin, and cooked onion. It would have been overkill to add more spices to this. Instead of using canned diced tomatoes, since I don't like tomatoes I used a little bit of picante sauce and water to moisten the chicken. I made 1/3 of the sauce mix using one can of green enchilada sauce and 1/3 of a can of condensed cream of chicken soup. I used leftover crepes that I had in the freezer instead of tortillas. I trimmed them down to almost 7". I used mozzarella cheese in this.

I grade these an A.

CHOCOLATE PUDDING CAKE II from AllRecipes

This is your typical chocolate pudding cake and the recipe is from All Recipes. You have an eggless chocolate cake batter that you pour a mixture of sugar, cocoa, and hot water over once it's in the baking dish. I used a 1.5 quart dish. The cake bakes normally and the sauce that you poured on top ends up on the bottom and thickens slightly, making a "pudding." I followed the instructions for the cake but for the pudding I only used half the amount of brown sugar and half the amount of cocoa because it made no sense to use the full amount called for. Even with me using just half the amount of cocoa and sugar it was still too much cocoa for that amount of sugar and was slightly bitter before baking but after it baked, it seemed alright. The cake itself had a good flavor along the edges.

I grade this an A because of the changes I made.