The Ultimate Baking Bucket List
The things everyone should bake before they die
Page 183 Originally posted 6/1/2020 The Kalamata olives have a distinctive flavor that not everyone likes, but they certainly put the “Greek” in this pasta salad. Fun fact: olives are in fact a fruit, and Kalamata olives are incredibly bitter before they are processed. It makes you wonder who picked one of these way back […]
Page 255 Originally posted 5/31/2020 This has an interesting flavor that reminds me of SOMETHING but I can’t put my finger on it. It’s a decent meal but plan ahead if you are going to make it, there are several stages and the pastry has to thaw as well. It has a lot of onion […]
Page 90 Originally posted 5/31/2020 This is a waste of ingredients and time. It has a chemical flavor and aftertaste that is very unappealing.
Page 61 Originally posted 5/30/2020 Used in French Toast I started off at 4.9 and asked myself, “what would I change to make it a 5?” I couldn’t think of a single thing, so bumped it up to a perfect score. It’s a little (actually, mine was pretty thick) slice (literally) of heaven. Both Mark […]
Page 87 Originally posted 5/31/2020 Uses Cinnamon Swirl Bread (optional) I left the vanilla out of the picture, needed that 2nd cuppa coffee, but it is in there. Overall, the ingredients are well balanced and make for a good flavor for French Toast. I have enough experience making French toast to have expectations for the […]
Page 305 Originally posted 5/30/2020 Move over, Little Debbie, momma’s got a new favorite oatmeal cream pie! We are on a roll with fabulous recipes and I am going to definitely be making these again. I absolutely ADORE oatmeal cream pies and they are at the top of my store-bought snack favorites, right up there […]
Page 145 Originally posted 5/26/2020 Made with Pesto Served with Crostini WOW! More perfect scores! Either my tastebuds are whacked out or I have hit a lucky streak. Just when the casinos are shut down and I can’t test the theory for sure! So I’m going with my gut that I am on a lucky […]
Page 221 Originally posted 5/29/2020 Uses Pesto and Pizza Dough Yeah, I left the chicken on the stove so it isn’t in the ingredients photo. And I didn’t have yellow peppers so subbed green. But the combination of the awesome pesto and the incredible butter-garlic cast iron cooked crust with the chicken, peppers, and two […]
Page 233 Originally posted 5/27/2020 Mmmmmm. If you like sweet and sour chicken you will love this dish. I messed up and did not get chicken thighs, which would be excellent and cheaper, but breast meat works as well. It is a sheet pan meal, which keeps the dirty dish count down, and since you […]
Page 49 Originally posted 5/26/2020 Originally posted with Pesto Buratta with Roasted Tomatoes Served with Pesto WOW! More perfect scores! Either my tastebuds are whacked out or I have hit a lucky streak. Just when the casinos are shut down and I can’t test the theory for sure! So I’m going with my gut that […]
Page 37 Originally posted 5/26/2020 Originally posted with Pesto Buratta with Roasted Tomatoes Served with Crostini Used in Basil Pesto Chicken Pizza WOW! More perfect scores! Either my tastebuds are whacked out or I have hit a lucky streak. Just when the casinos are shut down and I can’t test the theory for sure! So […]
Page 303 Originally posted 5/25/2020 And….. we have another perfect score! Perfection. It’s simple to make, tastes DIVINE, and has a velvety smooth texture. The hardest part was juicing the limes and you can get actual key lime juice in a bottle if you want to avoid that step. The “double crust” of cinnamon Graham’s […]
Page 243 Originally posted 5/24/2020 I made a half batch and it is plenty for the 2 of us. It’s got the expected ricotta filling, twist is it also has cream cheese in that layer which works well. Side bar – debate on whether cottage cheese instead of ricotta is acceptable rages in some circles. […]
Page 125 Originally posted 5/24/2020 I don’t like poppy seeds, generally speaking. And as peviously mentioned I am not a big salad eater. And now I am having my second salad in a week. Not a record, but definitely noteworthy. I have recently read about “massaging” kale and it truly makes a difference. This was […]
Page 293 Originally posted 5/24/2020 Nailed it! OMG! This is too funny. Just look at the final result and have as good a laugh as I did. The only thing I can think of that I did wrong was not beating the eggs and sugar long enough. The cake is so dense it is downright […]
Page 59 Originally posted 5/23/2020 With pan-drippings gravy – 4.7 stars It’s a cheddar-bacon biscuit with 2 kinds of cheddar… and almost a pound of butter! And it uses buttermilk which was inadvertently left out of the picture. So it’s a cheddar-bacon-buttermilk biscuit. You know before you bite into this whether or not you are […]
Page 215 Originally posted 5/21/2020 It’s Italian night in our house! I subbed rotisserie chicken for grilled because I had meetings until 6pm so opted for precooked chicken to get dinner on the table by 7. Not disappointed with the chicken. The pasta “sauce” is basically nonexistent, with the cheese and pepper being the only […]
Page 219 Originally posted 5/21/2020 Uses Pizza Dough Bias alert – you could not get below a 4.5 on this one with me because this is my absolute favorite flavor combo on … the … planet. That said, 1/4 cup olive oil is a bit much. The dough is, as always, awesome and has some […]
Page 167 Originally posted 5/20/2020 You know what would bump this up to a solid 4.8? More cheese and more herbs. And maybe pouring the pan juices into a bowl to dip into or pour it onto the taters. They are pretty easy to make, look really neat, and taste pretty good – a winning […]
Page 123 Originally posted 5/27/2020 I don’t eat a lot of salad for the simple reason that lettuce has almost no flavor. To make it fun to eat you have to add a ton of stuff to it and usually add a calorie-laden dressing from a bottle. Not so with this one. Lots of fresh […]
Page 129 Originally posted 5/19/2020 Here is another one where Mark Wilson and I disagree on how good it is. He gives this a 4.8 and I can only give it a 3. For starters, there is too much cumin in it. I like cumin but this needed about half what the recipes calls for. […]
Page 113 Originally posted 5/17/2020 We had a pretty wide range of opinions on this one. Mark gave it the lowest review and Andrew gave it the highest, mostly due to the addition of cheese and spiced croutons (which are not called for in the recipe so his vote can’t actually count). I give it […]
Page 261 Originally posted 5/28/2020 Anything over a 2 is a really good score for seafood from me. But then what isn’t made delicious with butter, wine, and garlic? I have to admit that shrimp is my second least detested fishy food (crappie cooked by Mary Davis is my favorite fish, by far). But if […]
Page Originally posted 5/17/2020 I love quiche. And I love mushrooms sautéed in butter. And I love cheese. So here is a good combo to start the day that brings them all together. The bit of a disappointment was the lemon zest. It was just a bit out of place and kept this dish from […]
Originally posted 5/16/2020 One month in, 45 recipes down. That leaves 105 still to go. Between the organizing I did during cookbook 1 and doing the new year organization challenge, my kitchen is prepared to handle just about anything thrown at it. Brick panini? No problem. Cast iron pizza stone? Piece of cake. I either […]
Page Originally posted 5/15/2020 Served with Pretzels. Okay, this pretty much only works with the salty pretzels, but it works fairly well. It isn’t the movie theater processed cheese goo you may be used to, which is a good thing in my book. But stand alone as a dip it isn’t anything to rave about. […]
Page 55 Originally posted 5/15/2020 Served with Cheese Dip. These are pretty easy to make and are fantastic! Chewy on the outside, soft on the inside. I love these! The bread section is my favorite one so far. I am dying to get to the braided loaf. Note to self … put the boiling water […]
Page Originally posted 5/15/2020 So this one is a definite … no. Texture is weird. Taste is unpleasant – I blame the black beans. There is not enough cheddar to make this better. Save yourself the trouble and pass on this one.
Page Originally posted 5/13/2020 Okay, so I have been really afraid to try this. You hear so many horror stories about fallen soufflés. So getting not 1 but 8 of them out of the oven, in all their risen glory, is a major accomplishment! These are not too sweet and are a creamy, dreamy chocolate […]
Page 102 Originally posted 5/9/2020 The flavor is good, but the outer edge of the cup has a really leathery texture. And I did not overcook them as the center was perfect. Mark Wilson didn’t mind that at all and loved the flavor, so take from that what you will … mostly that I am […]
Page 229 Originally posted 5/8/2020 I LOVE this version of the classic chicken parm! I was skeptical of using cracker crumbs and NOT using mozzarella, but it really works. About the only thing keeping it from being a solid 5 is the texture of the cheese topping. It’s really good, but just a tiny bit […]
Page 307 Originally posted 5/6/2020 Chocolate. Espresso. What’s not to love? It’s flourless, so it is super dense. You can’t tell where the ganache ends and the “cake” begins. That’s a feature, not a bug! This one is so rich you can only eat a tiny piece before the roof of your mouth starts tingling, […]
Page 205 Originally posted 5/4/2020 With gravy – 4.0 stars What this recipe gets right: cooked low and slow. Nothing transforms less-than-tender cuts of meat into fall apart succulent roast like a long hot bath in broth. My first roast back in the 80s was a disaster because I did not do that and I […]
Page 25 Used in Strawberry Pie and Lemon Pie I love this graham cracker crust recipe! It is the same one used in book 1 and it is still just as good. I often battle the crust for cheesecakes and no-bake pies that use a graham cracker crust – it crumbles when you cut and […]
Page 297 Originally posted 5/4/2020 Uses Graham Cracker Crust This is really good tasting but the consistency is not a pie so much as a pudding. And it isn’t just me and my preparation. Take a look at the picture in the book! I saw that and thought, “wow, were they short of time and […]
Page 90 Originally posted 5/3/2020 Served with Waffles. Man, she likes her salt. I think this would be a solid 4.5 without the sea salt. You are working your way through a wonderful waffle (her recipe, but I used buttermilk this morning) and you hit a big ole grain of sea salt. Now, if this […]
Page 309 Originally posted 5/2/2020 Uses Tart Shell Yes, I am having dessert for breakfast. We live in uncertain times! I made this yesterday and finished assembling it last night while waiting for various stages of the disastrous chicken asparagus slop to finish. The shell is awesome! The filling is pretty good, too. I love […]
Page 27 Originally posted 5/2/2020 Used in Lemon Lavender Tart Yes, I am having dessert for breakfast. We live in uncertain times! I made this yesterday and finished assembling it last night while waiting for various stages of the disastrous chicken asparagus slop to finish. The shell is awesome! The filling is pretty good, too. […]
Page 73 Originally posted 5/10/2020 Aaaaaand we have our first perfect score! Its Mother’s Day at the Wilson Hobbit House where we are having these gems as Second Breakfast. They are moist but airy, sweet with a touch of tart from the lemon. And they are not that hard to make. So, yeah, they are […]
Page 203 Originally posted 5/1/2020 Wow. I have a sink FULL of dishes, it took 2 hours to make, and THIS is the result?! Come on! First off, you have to cut it with a steak knife even after you get it on your plate because of the asparagus spears. Then the asparagus pears cause […]
