I love Pinterest. I know a lot of people who joke about pinning things they never intend to do or make or buy, but I mostly use it to organize things I actually plan on using. My “Food” board is full of recipes I’ve made, as well as ones I plan to make soon. When I make a Pinterest recipe, I leave a comment on the pin with my review. I have long thought I should share these reviews more publicly so that my friends and even complete strangers can have an idea of what recipes will be like before they try them themselves. But there are so many that it’s seemed like a daunting task. So I’m going to start posting five reviews per post from time to time. Here’s the first installment.
Doro Wat with Quick Injera
Why I tried it
I already had tried a doro wat recipe and loved it, but the idea of being able to do it in the crock pot intrigued me. Also, I was eager to try making my own injera bread, since it’s hard to come by here. I’d love to go to an Ethiopian restaurant someday, but until then, I’ll make my own at home.
Review
Very good doro wat, though rather buttery. I made my own berbere powder rather than using the garam masala called for in the recipe. Did not like the injera, and it didn’t turn out well for me at all. Too thick and pancakey. Doro Wat: A. Injera: F.
Chicken and White Bean Enchiladas with Creamy Salsa Verde
Why I tried it
We love Mexican food at my house, and I’d been looking for a creamy chicken enchilada recipe that didn’t involve cream of chicken soup.
Review
Good, but the enchilada sauce was way too much work to be worth it for me. I will just use store-bought green enchilada sauce with cream added in the future. (Oh, and I used cream instead of sour cream for personal taste reasons.) I doubled the recipe, thinking I had to in order to feed my family of five, and we ate only half. The other half is in the freezer for another day (hooray!). B.
No-Bake Chocolate Chip Granola Bars
Why I tried it
We go through a LOT of granola bars at our house. Jonathon eats them often for snacks or as part of his lunch, and I love them too. The kids eat them less often, but still often enough that buying them gets kind of expensive. I was interested in making them myself, not just because of the cost savings but also because this way I can customize them to be just what we want.
Review
Turned out yummy, but I improvised a bit, adding peanut butter, peanuts, and puffed rice. The next day, they were really dry, so I’d need to put them in some sort of airtight bag or container if I made them again. They were easy and yummy, but I haven’t made them since. Maybe because I usually don’t have crisp rice and puffed rice on hand? I also feel the need to point out that these are NOT healthy, as the blogger claims over and over. They are essentially an oatmeal cookie without the egg and with crisp rice instead of flour. However, since I am now eating wheat and dairy and peanut free because Robo is allergic to all three (!) and I’m nursing him, it might be nice to try these again with margarine instead of butter. Most to all store-bought granola bars contain wheat ingredients, and these don’t. B.
Chile Colorado Burritos
Why I tried it
Um, that gorgeous picture? That plus the text on the blog with the recipe made my mouth water.
Review
Boring. Just tasted like plain beef with enchilada sauce. Much better Mexican recipes out there. But hey, three ingredients, so if you’re into super easy and don’t care about authentic Mexican flavor, go ahead and try it. D.
Easy Slow Cooker Recipes
Why I tried it
I teach piano until 5:00 or even sometimes 5:30 a few days a week, so the idea of crockpots is very appealing to me. But most crockpot recipes don’t appeal to my picky family, so I’m constantly on the lookout for new ones.
Review
This one is harder to review because the pin links to a list of recipes on LDS Living. I have only tried two of the recipes so far, so I’ll review those. The first is the one pictured, titled Sesame Beef in the article linked. The other is the fourth one down, Greek Chicken Pita Folds.
The Sesame Beef recipe was yummy, but I definitely wouldn’t say it tasted even vaguely like the sesame beef or even beef with broccoli you’d get at a Chinese restaurant. It was just savory and tender and delicious like pot roast, except a bit different. I have since seen beef broccoli crockpot recipes all over Pinterest. It is a cool idea, if you don’t care about it tasting like a stir fry. What I don’t get is why doing this in a crock pot is easier than taking 10 minutes to actually stir fry these ingredients. But hey, I enjoyed it, and I should probably make it again soon. B.
I would recommend the pitas if you like Greek food. I did, but my family didn’t care for the vegetable combination or the yogurt sauce. I didn’t try the yogurt sauce with mine since I don’t care for yogurt, but the chicken and veggies were flavorful without it. B.
