Roasted Summer Vegetables

This recipe was very good. Fast, easy and tasty. I wanted to try this because I have never had fennel before. The fennel had a very strong licorice flavor when raw, but the roasting made it mellow and good. I would definitely make this again. I am finding that I want to add more seasoning to these recipes, because we're used to highly seasoned food in this household, (being lucky enough to have access to so many delicious seasoning options at work).

I used the leftovers from Jeffery's Roast Chicken and this recipe with some southwestern flavored seasonings to make very good fajitas.

Jeffrey's Roast Chicken

I have made Ina's " Perfect Roast Chicken " recipe from her first cookbook. She says that this recipe is very much like the original one with a few tweaks to make it even more delicious.

I got an organic free range chicken from Trader Joe's, because I figured that is what she would use. The chicken was very moist and tasty. I was unsure about roasting it at 425, usually I do 325 for roasting poultry. This temperature worked great and didn't dry out the finished product. However, I found the same issue with this recipe as the original. The flavor was too lemony. I like lemon, but this was just overpowering. The pan sauce would have been very good, except for the strong lemon flavor. I would make this recipe again, using only one lemon and putting it inside the bird. I don't keep track of how long it takes me to make a recipe, because I am very slow, especially when making something for the first time. Also this was made on Tuesday with many interruptions from a little one.

Roasted Shrimp with Feta p.146

This was excellent.  It took about 45 minutes, starting with frozen shrimp, to prepare. I easily made this after work.  It calls for wine so I measured what I needed and then my husband and I drank the rest of the wine and talked while I cooked this dish.  I felt very sophisticated drinking wine while I cooked a gourmet shrimp dish.  You could easily do some of the prep work the night before and then it should only take 20-30 minutes.  I would not change anything in this dish.  I might try making it with salmon or tilapia. The cost of this dish with the shrimp was expensive.  It cost $13 not counting the wine.  I did not use the Pernod in this dish because of the cost.  I served this with snap peas with pancetta and apple tart.
Kathy M

Snap Peas wirh Pancetta p.106

This was just okay.  It was quick and easy to make.  It only took about 15 minutes.  I served it at room temp. and I didn't really like it.  I warmed it and it was better.  I don't think I'll make it again.  I did like Ina's method of cooking the pancetta.  She had you add a T. of water to the pan that you cooked the pancetta in.  I don't know what it did but the pancetta cooked very nicely using this method.
Kathy M

Easy Cranberry & Apple Cake

This cake was very good. It was a tart dessert, but the cake batter topping was delicious. The cinnamon sugar that is sprinkled on top adds a nice flavor and crunch. We had it with Ted Drews Vanilla Frozen Custard on top. I will definitely make this again. Do use the 10 inch pie plate. I only had a 9 inch and it spilled over. I think the flavor even improves the next day.

Weeknight Bolognese

This dish was OK. I followed the recipe exactly. I tasted it before adding the final few ingredients and it tasted good. At the end you add nutmeg, basil, cream and the remaining 1/4 cup of wine, and simmer for 8-10 minutes. The recipe called for dry red wine, I used Cabernet Sauvignon. I am not a wine drinker, so perhaps a better choice of wine or a longer simmer after the final addition would have made for a better tasting dish. I asked my husband his opinion, and he said he wouldn't ask me to make it again, because the wine flavor was overpowering. So I guess this makes 3 out of over 100 of Ina's recipes that I wouldn't repeat, at least not without adjusting the type or amount of wine.,

Green Salad Vinaigrette

I have been a fan of Ina Garten's recipes for many years. I use all of her cookbooks and of the many recipes I have tried there have only been two that I wouldn't repeat.

The Green Salad Vinaigrette was good. I have learned to use 1/2 of the amount of salt that Ina uses and it is just right for us. I used a spring mix for the greens and it was good with the lemon

vinaigrette. The only change I would make the next time is to add a teaspoon of honey to cut the tartness of the lemon.