• DKennedy on July 20, 2022

  I am a huge Vivian Howard fan. I devoured her first book and have watched the episodes of her PBS series multiple times. I was anxious to acquire this book, but so har have not been tempted by it. The pre-made condiment element, intended to help home cooks whip things up effortlessly, makes it a far less approachable book for me. Pity, b/cuz I know how great her recipes are from past experience.

• nicolepellegrini on January 10, 2021

  Got this book as part of a quarterly cookbook club - otherwise I doubt it would have been a title I picked on my own. It's one of those books where all the recipes rely on having pre-made some master condiment/sauce/element - so it's not good for last-minute recipe inspiration. Also probably better suited for restaurants/large families if you don't want to keep eating things with the same flavor profile for weeks/days on end. Will have to see how I feel about this one in a few months, there aren't a ton of recipes jumping out at me as the kind of dishes I like to prepare (Southern food isn't high on my list of favorites) except for some of the vegetable sides - and maybe for party entertaining once that's possible again. (Also: the over-saturated photography wasn't super appealing to me. Neither were all the "glam shots" of Vivian, but I was never a fan of "A Chef's Life" so I may be biased.)

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Little green dress

  • southerncooker on October 26, 2020

    So good. We are not big mint fans so I used basil instead off my plant. Already used in three recipes and more coming up.

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    Lots of flavorful ingredients in this condiment but it's an ensemble performance - none of them put on a solo act here so I'd encourage people to give it a try even if you're not sure of any particular item. Once it's in your fridge, it's so easy to add a punch to lots of dishes.

  • Rinshin on November 07, 2020

    Amazing taste, but wow this took bit of an effort. But then I had to go to the backyard and cut and stem mint and and parsley. Followed this recipe completely and I would recommend getting out a mini food processor as the author suggests because it takes effort and time using full food processor like I did. I bought the olives recommended for this recipe and my olives were not pitted so it was a chore removing the pits. If they sell pitted Castelvetrano Olives, definitely get that. This lasts 1 month in the fridge. Very excited to use this sauce in the recommended recipes.

  • Plumberful on December 13, 2020

    Very flavorful! I found it easy enough to make in my regular food processor and it is so satisfying to have a bowl of this in the fridge. Can’t wait to use it!

  • inflytur on February 06, 2021

    I swapped preserved lemon for lemon zest and reduced the amount of salt. Excellent. After living with Little Green Dress for a week, I find it a bit too acidic. Next time I will reduce the lemon juice.

  • allisonsemele on March 09, 2021

    Made this over the weekend, summoning my mini food processor from retirement. This is really good! It took about an hour for me to make, but a lot of that was sorting through sad winter herbs. I've used this on eggs, crackers with goat cheese, avocado toast, in quesadillas, and the naked burgers. Will definitely make again. Editing this note to say that this recipe definitely mellows--the day I made it, I thought the pickled shallot flavor was too loud, but everything blended together after a day or so in the fridge. Will make it again as written.

  • jimandtammyfaye on March 14, 2021

    The idea behind the recipe is excellent, but I will continue tweaking the recipe toward the flavors my family likes. I subbed basil for mint but followed the rest of the recipe. I liked the briney quality of capers and olives. The sauce reminds me of a chimichurri sauce but with different flavors. I will explore using a loved chimichurri recipe in the different ways Howard used LGD- a great flavor bomb to have on hand!

  • averythingcooks on June 26, 2021

    Just packaged up my 1/2 recipe of this stuff & am excited to start using it. I did not use anchovies & had to buy a small jar of something called "Tuscan style olives" which seem to work. BUT - I got very involved with the herbs (including using a mix of mint, basil & oregano in place of just mint) and then somehow realized at the end (recall - I made a 1/2 recipe) that I actually used the full amount of parsley & then the same 1 cup measure of my herb mix. I somehow still got the expected 1 cup yield & just added a extra little layer of the oil to ensure the greens were covered. It is VERY tasty :)

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    This is delicious. Made a full batch exactly as directed and anticipate it being gone well before its one-month lifespan is up.

  • ellwell on December 28, 2022

    I made this to give small amounts as gifts. Not sure how I feel about it. We tried it on eggs this morning and it is too acidic and pungent for the morning. it would probably be better on meat. If anyone has found a wonderful application for it, please post!

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 26, 2023

    A very nice blast of acid, salt and herb. Probably good on most anything

  • lholtzman on January 13, 2024

    Easy to halve

• Jammy eggs dressed in green

  • southerncooker on October 27, 2020

    Middles didn't get jammy after following directions, so after I put on LGD I microwaved abt 25 seconds and it was perfect.

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    Love that this made my eggs taste very fancy with almost no effort. 6.5 minutes is exactly the way I do my soft-boiled eggs but I agree with the previous poster that they are a little more runny than jammy.

  • inflytur on February 06, 2021

    Little Green Dress does complement eggs well. I took this recipe to the next logical step and added LDG to egg salad which was delicious.

  • allisonsemele on March 09, 2021

    I agree with the other two posters who said that 6.5 min leaves you with a more runny than jammy egg, but I prefer them this way.

• Gas station biscuits

  • southerncooker on October 26, 2020

    Pretty good.

  • Jviney on November 18, 2020

    These were really good. The tops of my biscuits slid off during baking, and maybe I would try baking them a little closer together next time. My husband doesn’t love the flavors of LGD, so I made a couple without it and they were very good also.

• Deep Run summer in a bowl

  • southerncooker on October 26, 2020

    I could eat a gallon of this. It's fabulous.

  • SheilaS on July 28, 2021

    I really like all the components of this dish - fresh, buttered corn, sweet/tangy tomatoes and cucumbers lightly pickled with Little Green Dress - but on a hot day, I didn't really care for it as a hot dish. Assuming perfect summer produce is available, I'd prefer to have a platter of room temp sliced tomatoes topped with chilled LGD cukes with ears of sweet corn on the cob on the side. That said, cooking the tomatoes down and seasoning with sugar, salt and sherry vinegar would certainly perk up less than perfect specimens.

  • Skamper on May 20, 2022

    Good. I didn't bother with layering and just mixed it all together in the bowl. Leftovers held up well.

• LGD goes ranch

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    This dressing/dip is WAY more delicious than anything that comes out of a packet of dried ingredients and assuming you've got the Little Green Dress prepped, it's just as easy. Excellent.

  • Jviney on November 21, 2020

    I made this with the last of my LGD and can’t stop eating it with Club crackers. It’s really delicious.

  • Plumberful on January 08, 2021

    Very good dressing or dip. We liked it a lot on a fresh green salad with lots of crunchy veg.

  • jimandtammyfaye on March 14, 2021

    What a great idea! Even though the flavor combination wasn't my preference, as I noted in my review of Little Green Dress, I will explore different flavors to be part of my LGD. LGD "Chimichurri style" will be the next thing I try adding to a creamy ranch base. Ratio of LGD to creamy ingredients is perfect.

  • allisonsemele on June 05, 2021

    Very tasty and a bit addicting. I made a half recipe and thought it made a ton for two—will happily be eating the leftovers for days.

  • averythingcooks on August 06, 2021

    Another fan of this idea here. I agree that a 1/2 recipe does make a lot! I did not have buttermilk on hand but my homemade yogurt does have a tangy taste so I used it thinned with a little 2% milk. We used this dressing with crispy lettuce, celery and red onion. Lovely.

• Naked burgers with a cheese toupee & spinach crown

  • southerncooker on October 27, 2020

    I used the ground beef and cremini mushroom options. Made half recipe for daughter and I. We enjoyed them.

  • SheilaS on November 24, 2020

    These are pork burgers, distinctively seasoned with cumin, topped with Swiss cheese, charred red onion and spinach that's sautéed in olive oil and butter with garlic, mushrooms and mixed with a scoop of LGD before it goes on the burger. The recipe makes 8 oz burgers and serves them on a plate. I went with 4 oz and put mine on a bun. I forgot to buy mushrooms so I melted a slice of the double-mushroom butter from Six Seasons into the pan with the garlic before wilting the greens. I subbed arugula for spinach as it needed to be used. I really enjoyed this. Loved the charred onion. The combination of LDG and butter is just as green vegetable-friendly here as in the asparagus recipe. The cumin in the burger was interesting and made me think these would be good made with lamb. Vivian suggests turkey or beef as alternative meats.

  • allisonsemele on March 09, 2021

    Made a half recipe to make four smaller burgers, but other than that as written. The burger is very cumin-forward, which I liked but my husband was a little less fond of. Very tasty and a one-pan meal. Liked the onions. Next time will serve with a bun. Used the leftover burger patty, spinach, and mushrooms as the filling for a quesadilla the next day and that was good too.

  • Nkrieda78 on June 30, 2021

    Made these with turkey, my husband and I both thought they had way too much cumin. Otherwise, not bad, but not over the top amazing either. I had an 8 oz pack of mushrooms and used them all, I also cooked them for much longer than 2 min. A mushroom cooked for 2 min will not reach its flavor potential.

  • Skamper on May 20, 2022

    M especially liked these. Made a half batch with ground turkey and provolone.

• Asparagus bathed in green butter

  • allisonsemele on March 10, 2021

    So quick and simple--the little green dress butter goes incredibly well asparagus, and I can't wait to try it with other vegetables. Served this with some mushroom-stuffed ravioli, and it all went fantastically well together.

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    Love, love the green butter. It's delicious on the asparagus and other vegetables, too. I made up extra of the compound butter to keep in my freezer so I can easily slice off a pat to use. I've even slathered some on my toast. I put a jammy egg on top of the asparagus to make a meal.

  • Apepin on April 18, 2022

    This is s nice change from roasted asparagus, very fresh tasting.

• Cherry tomato baked feta... surprise!

  • southerncooker on November 02, 2020

    The surprise is it's served over fish. It was really good.

  • SheilaS on November 12, 2020

    Vivian serves this over swordfish but the header notes suggest toast, grits, puréed cauliflower, couscous, fish or chicken as good partners. I chose polenta and roasted cauliflower. Coming out of the oven, this smelled amazing and it was all I could do to avoid eating it all with just some crusty bread. Another case where a scoop of LGD adds a ton of flavor without having to assemble a dozen separate ingredients. Excellent! Edited to add that I've made this several more times & served over pasta, over shrimp and on its own with crusty bread.

  • allisonsemele on April 02, 2021

    Served this as a dip with crusty bread and it was fantastic. Skipped the fish. Will definitely make again.

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 28, 2023

    I served over salmon. The salmon was unnecessary. This would be incredible on pasta or grits. Or honestly, just as a dip.

  • lholtzman on January 13, 2024

    I used way less salt than was called for. 1/4 tsp Diamond Kosher in the “surprise” is plenty. I probably used about 1.5 tsp of Diamond Kosher salt on the fish. The first time I made this I used the amount she recommended and it was way too salty. This time it was salted just right. I loved the method for cooking the fish. It was perfectly cooked at three minutes on the stovetop and 6 minutes in the oven. I used halibut filets that were about 1” thick.

• Tuna salad snack crackers

  • southerncooker on October 26, 2020

    Delicious. I used multigrain wasa crackers.

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    I loved the complex flavors the Little Green Dress provides here. Once that's made, there's no need to chop anything except celery and you get tons of punchy flavor. Per the recipe, I put this on Wasa crackers with sliced avocado but it could easily be scooped into an avocado or tomato or just served as a salad on a plate.

  • Plumberful on January 08, 2021

    I dearly love good tuna salad with just mayo as the binder, so I was skeptical, but wow is this good! Way better than simply mayo. Great on the Wasa crackers.

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    Made as directed with the exception of using Meyer lemon instead of regular. This will be my new go-to tuna salad. The LGD added such bright flavor, and even though I am usually lukewarm on celery with tuna, I loved the crunch of it with the crisp breads.

  • lholtzman on January 18, 2024

    I’ve made this with tuna and sardines. It is a delicious recipe with either. I made an open face sandwich instead of the crackers.

• Roast chicken toast

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    The very idea of roasting chicken on a bread "pillow" with the intention of consuming the dripping laden bread seemed extremely naughty but the flavors are excellent. The warm chicken picked up the herb flavors nicely but I found the slab-o-toast awkward to eat as it was VERY crunchy on the bottom. 50 minutes in a 400°F oven will do that but my choice of bread could have contributed, too.

  • lizbot2000 on July 12, 2021

    To be honest I just used regular old sliced sourdough sandwich bread (the medium-nice kind that's pretty firm). It looked super gross and mushy but it turned out it was mushy on one side and crisp on the other, and when I put the bread back in the oven after taking the chicken off it became a weird perfect toast (that still looked gross but tasted awesome!). I tore it up and made basically a bread salad with the arugula, LGD, and chicken. It was great!

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 27, 2023

    I got spooked by how weird the top the toast looked. I put it under the broiler. Completely unnecessary. This was delicious, barring my misstep.

• Mussels work

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    If you've got Little Green Dress in the fridge, this only takes a couple of minutes to throw together and it's delicious. Vivian right about having plenty of crusty bread to sop up the juices. So good!

• R-rated onions

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    I didn't need Vivian to tell me how to caramelize onions but I love her ideas for using them so I had to do it. My yield from ~ 4 lbs of yellow onions was 1.5 cups.

  • southerncooker on November 08, 2020

    Good method for caramelizing onions. I got about a cup and half from 4 pounds of onions.

  • Rinshin on November 09, 2020

    Since I was using medium sized onions, my yield was also 1 1/2 C and like SheilaS, I did not need Vivian’s instructions, but some uses are new to me like in beans and in hummus. I always have caramelized onion in the freezer for using in sauces, burgers and and for no. 1 use, in Japanese style curries. It is indispensable.

  • averythingcooks on June 22, 2021

    Like other commenters, I have made long & slow caramelized onions before BUT I did like how she described the actual stages (from raw to "wilted then sweaty then soft" and only then onto the colouring stages). I went with around 3 lbs of onions (which, when sliced. looked like a mountain :) in my larger Dutch oven and I am freezing them in 1/4 cup portions....I got roughly 1 1/4 cups when it was all done. The next step is playing with her recipes that use them.

  • lholtzman on May 17, 2024

    The technique for making these is great. Using the lid keeps them from burning and sticking. Use ski goggles to keep eyes from crying.

• Pinch me, Frenchie

  • SheilaS on November 18, 2020

    Per the suggestion in book, I made these in muffin tins instead of a bundt pan. Half of the dough was the right amount for 12 standard-sized muffins. I found the dough wet, sticky and difficult to work with. I ended up adding a lot more flour to get something I could handle. In the oven, butter bubbled up and over the edges of the muffin tin so best to set it on a baking sheet. Very tasty result but very annoying dough!

  • averythingcooks on September 10, 2021

    I had a tube of biscuit dough to use up (given as a substitute for the home made dough) and so made these in a muffin tin. The dough is very easy to work with & I cut each biscuit into 1/4's as instructed using 4 dough balls per bun. For the cheese I had to sub a mix of gruyere & asiago for the Fontina. These were very tasty little buns that pretty much look exactly like SheilaS's pic... and thanks for the tip re: using a baking sheet underneath the pan :)

• Sloppy Joe shirred eggs with spinach

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    I made some tofu/mushroom chorizo and subbed that in for the ground turkey. I love the way the eggs are set in little spinach nests floating in the "meat" sauce. Delicious!

• Upstairs party dip

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    In my book, this is titled People Pleaser Party Dip. Either way, it's a delicious dip. A little on the sweet side for my taste but it did grow on me. Next time, I might try sherry vinegar instead of balsamic as I do in another onion dip. I recommend running a knife through the onions to avoid a stringy dip...unless that's what you like!

  • southerncooker on November 08, 2020

    Not our favorite onion dip but it was ok. Wasn't fond of the cream cheese addition. Should have chopped up the caramelized onions a bit. Also the name in the book is People Pleaser party dip.

• Tomato "pie" for dough dummies

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    I love the tomato pie from DRR but these individual tomato slices are a great substitution. Make sure not to crumble the crackers too finely. You want them to add some texture not turn into a cheesy paste.

  • southerncooker on November 08, 2020

    Son and I love tomato pie and always enjoy trying new versions. This one was delicious. We also enjoyed the one from Deep Run Roots.

  • averythingcooks on June 23, 2021

    Well...these are just delicious! I had 1 good sized tomato so made 1/2 the topping for 3 slices. I sprinkled on good sized chunks of the crackers (thank you SheilaS for the tip re big pieces - and your pic is beautiful!) before I realized I was supposed to fold them in...and I would do it my way again. I have made lots of full on tomato tarts (I’m not really a “dough dummy” :) but I will for sure make these again....and again...

• Cheaters only BBQ

  • averythingcooks on June 23, 2021

    I made this with a 3.3 lb bone-in shoulder and we were pretty pleased with the results. 1 tbsp of cayenne results in a pretty hot dish (for us anyways) and I was glad I used my smoked sweet paprika (and not the hot one). The cook time was pretty close and I did add some beef broth to the liquid to loosen it up at the end. We happily have leftovers for the freezer (sandwiches, tacos etc) and I can see making this again.

• Here's to eggplant

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    I subbed zucchini instead of eggplant. The recipe makes a chunky vinaigrette with caramelized onions, kalamata olives, feta, garlic, fresh herbs, lemon zest & juice. This results in a brown-ish sludge that you are instructed to spread on a plate and top with the grilled eggplant. The nicely styled photo instead shows the individual ingredients attractively scattered over the eggplant. Whatever, it tasted good and I'm looking forward to trying the vinaigrette with other things as Vivian suggests.

  • allisonsemele on July 06, 2021

    I also subbed zucchini instead of eggplant, as eggplant isn't in season here just yet. The vinaigrette is pretty intensely flavored, and I liked it best left thick and served in small quantities. This was great as an appetizer: cracker + piece of grilled zucchini + little bit of dressing. Would try again with actual eggplant.

• Steaks dripping in blue cheese-onion butter

  • SheilaS on March 30, 2021

    I substituted big portobello mushrooms for the steak and it was great. The blue cheese-onion butter is delicious stuff!

  • averythingcooks on July 17, 2021

    This is the 3rd recipe I’ve made using my stash of “R-rated onions” and oh yes - this decadent butter is delicious. We had it over thinly sliced steak & baked potatoes...so good :)

• Anchovy gateway spaghetti

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    I don't need a gateway to anchovies but I had a small jar of them in the fridge with a significant layer of anchovy sludge in the bottom and figured this would be a good use. Love the garlic bread crumbs and the flavors. The savory anchovy nicely balances the sweet onions. There could be vegetables like sautéed bitter greens or roasted Brussels sprouts but it's very nice as is.

  • lholtzman on May 17, 2024

    I used crushed up packaged croutons to save time (also, my store was out of panko bread crumbs). They had the crunch and garlicky flavor. I also replaced Rosemary with oregano as I grow it fresh.

• Once-a-week roasted chicken with sweet onion cauliflower puree

  • pattyatbryce on May 17, 2021

    The cauliflower is awesome! Even my cauliflower-averse husband loved it.

  • SheilaS on July 10, 2021

    This is method makes a nice dinner with little effort and the unassuming looking beige-ish cauliflower purée is actually very special. Light and silky but with tons of rich flavor from the caramelized onions and chicken drippings.

• Can-do kraut

  • southerncooker on November 08, 2020

    I made mine in a crock. After fermenting for a week I transfered to jars and put in fridge. Tasted good. Can't wait to try it in some of the recipes and on its own.

  • SheilaS on November 12, 2020

    Using only one head of cabbage makes this a very accessible sauerkraut recipe for someone like me who is a newbie to kraut making. Citing a weight for the cabbage might be helpful. Mine weighed about 2 lbs and almost all of it fit into a 1 qt jar vs the 2 qts cited in the recipe. Per the recipe, I let it ferment for 2 weeks. I'm not an expert but it tastes very salty and a bit pickle-y. The texture is not as crisp as fresh cabbage but not mushy. So far, I've only used it in the Breakfast of Compromisers omelet and I liked it a lot.

  • Running_with_Wools on June 19, 2022

    Very good and really easy. I see myself making this for the rest of my life.

  • lholtzman on December 02, 2024

    This is so easy, but takes time to ferment. I really prefer the 2 week kraut, even though it’s hard to wait.

• Picklesicles

  • SheilaS on April 05, 2021

    Holy moly, are these every salt bombs! Maybe my brine was more concentrated than Vivian's? I certainly wasn't able to ladle off lots of it from the top and had to save what I drained for other recipes.

• Breakfast of compromisers

  • southerncooker on November 12, 2020

    I used some of the Can-do kraut in this. After I started making it I realized I only had one slice of Swiss cheese so I used a little shredded mozzarella and provolone I had. It was surprisingly good.

  • SheilaS on November 12, 2020

    This is a Swiss cheese & kraut omelet with a sprinkle of poppy seeds. I used 2 eggs instead of 3 and Jarlesberg instead of Swiss. Reading the recipe, I thought there should be some shreds of pastrami or something in there but like southerncooker, I found it surprisingly tasty as is.

  • Plumberful on January 04, 2021

    I already have home-fermented sauerkraut that I’ve canned, so I love Vivian’s creative ideas for using kraut. Who thinks about sauerkraut in an omelet? And yet, this is delicious! I used 4 eggs, making it a good size for 2, gruyere, and some Trader Joe’s “Everything but the Bagel Sesame” seasoning sprinkled on top. My sauerkraut has caraway seeds and like Sheila S., I found myself thinking about corned beef or pastrami layered in this!

  • allisonsemele on March 09, 2021

    This sounded interesting, but it didn't work for me--I think I didn't like the poppy. I did like the swiss cheese and kraut together, but maybe not with eggs.

  • lholtzman on March 12, 2025

    I didn’t like this very much. I felt like there were too many poppyseeds and it was a bit watery.

• Avocado toast on Coronation Day

  • SheilaS on November 13, 2020

    This is pan-fried toast topped with avocado (prettily sliced and fanned in the book photo, scooped out of the shell and mashed in mine) and a small pile-o-kraut. I thought this would be lacking compared to kimichi-avocado toast, but it was quite good. Because I liked the combo of cheese & kraut in the kraut omelet from this book, I shaved a little Jarlesberg to melt on to the toast before I mushed on the avocado. Perhaps not necessary, but I thought it was a good addition.

  • lholtzman on December 02, 2024

    Good flavor, but I find the avocado fanned is too heavy for the bread. I prefer to mash. I think the lemon/lime juice could be optional.

• Krautcakes with fried apples & Dijon

  • SheilaS on November 13, 2020

    These would make a great side for grilled sausages or roast pork or chicken. I wish I'd spread them out more to get more lacy, crispy bits but they were still very good. If you use a 1/4 cup measure for these, you'll probably end up with 8 rather than the 6 that the recipe indicates.

• Bloody & pickled Marys

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    This came out way too salty for me to enjoy.

  • lholtzman on December 02, 2024

    This Bloody Mary was quite tasty. I used V-8 instead of tomato juice because I had it on hand.

• Macaroni hot dish

  • SheilaS on April 05, 2021

    I made this without the ground beef and upped the broccoli a bit. I cooked 6 oz pasta to get 3 cups, I think the 4 oz specified in the book is low. The kraut was an interesting pickle-y addition to a broccoli mac & cheese casserole. Macaroni hot dish isn't something I care for so while it was interesting, I won't repeat it.

  • lholtzman on December 02, 2024

    Pure cold weather comfort food. I used vegetarian “ground beef” and it was delicious.

  • Lisentric on September 28, 2025

    This was an interesting dish to try, but not a favorite. It was a bit salty, I would cut down on some of the salt next time.

• Hippie burritos

  • SheilaS on July 10, 2021

    I wasn't sure about this but ended up enjoying them. The "salsa" made from sauerkraut, diced apple, onion, parsley, mint, lemon, hot sauce and honey is quite a nice little condiment that I'm making note of to try with other things.

  • lholtzman on May 22, 2025

    This was a good, protein packed burrito. I used smoked tofu to make vegetarian. Trader Joe’s has steamed lentils in the refrigerator section that are very good if you don’t want to make your own.

• Sweet potato, kraut, & bacon chowder

  • SheilaS on November 18, 2020

    Great soup! Due to the kraut, it was a bit salty for my taste so I'll watch that next time. It looked really good before I puréed it so next time, I might cut the potatoes smaller and run a knife over the kraut and skip the blender part for some or all of the soup.

  • meggan on December 12, 2020

    I actually only had 1 sweet potato and no leeks so I just used mostly potatoes and an onion. I thought the sauerkraut ( I used a nice store-bought) made it interesting.

  • clkandel on July 25, 2021

    Simple to make. I really cut back on the cream and upped the milk (1%) to make the total volume. I used the kraut I had on hand, so no cucumber in mine. Good flavor, very creamy and thick, although I didn't think the flavor was "clam" like.

• Beets meet reuben

  • SheilaS on March 21, 2021

    Roasted beets get sliced, lightly marinated and served with a Russian-ish dressing that includes Can-Do Kraut. Rye bread croutons add texture and the Reuben connection. Not the prettiest dish I've made but I loved the flavors and textures.

• Red weapons

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    I liked these overall but felt that the ginger dramatically impacted their versatility. Would make again, but would omit the ginger and halve the sugar.

  • Soulkitchenjen on March 02, 2023

    These are absolutely delicious. Not too spicy for the 5 jalapeños. Might try halved cherry tomatoes next time, as the quartered Romas are a bit unwieldy.

• Where's my medal grits & chicken

  • Plumberful on January 03, 2021

    This dish is very, very good! The grits cooked perfectly and were so flavorful and rich-tasting. The chicken stays crispy on top and all of the flavors are nicely balanced. A definite winner in our household.

  • clkandel on March 14, 2021

    This is very good, although a little plain tasting. Definitely recommend adding the sauce. We didn't have the Herbdacious sauce made, but did have Green Peruvian Dipping sauce on hand so used that - really made the flavors pop. Grits cook perfectly using this method.

  • allisonsemele on March 26, 2021

    Delicious and pretty decadent tasting from the chicken juices. I added dollops of the optional herbdacious at the end, and I think the dish really does benefit from something green tasting. I served with louisiana hot sauce too.

  • Dannausc on April 23, 2022

    Quite good. We both liked it a lot. Quick and easy.

• Does not disappoint breakfast casserole

  • SheilaS on November 02, 2020

    Aside from the crispy bits on top, I'm not a huge fan of the breakfast casserole but this is a good one and the Red Weapons add a great vinegary punch. I'll add them to the egg mixture next time I make a frittata. In fact, I'd switch out the bread for potatoes and turn this into a frittata. I also liked the cheese cut into 1/4" dice rather than shredded. I made a half-batch baked in an 8-inch pan and baked ~ 45 min instead of a full hour.

  • Plumberful on December 03, 2020

    This was simply delicious! Certainly lived up to its name. I made a full recipe in a well-seasoned, 12-inch cast iron skillet, which was perfect. I will use Vivian’s method of cubing the cheese in other similar dishes. This was even more delicious on the second day!

  • Dannausc on April 23, 2022

    Fairly quick and easy. I used spicy Italian sausage in place of the breakfast sausage, as I’m not a huge fan of breakfast sausage. Quite good. Definitely worth a repeat.

• Red devils

  • SheilaS on November 18, 2020

    Like the deviled eggs in Deep Run Roots, these use both butter and mayo so they are too rich for me. I also wanted to add more acid (there's no mustard or vinegar, save for the Red Weapons liquid) but the yolk filling was already pretty soft so my options were limited. Maybe I should have drained the chopped Red Weapons better? Glad I tried them but won't repeat.

  • allisonsemele on April 03, 2021

    I skipped the butter and thought these were plenty rich without it. Used the dregs of my red weapons so it was mostly peppers. Would make it this way again.

  • Plumberful on June 12, 2021

    These were a big fail for me. I followed the recipe, as written, and the filling was way too soft. It also lacked acidic punch, so I added a good bit of dry mustard and topped each finished egg with a RW jalapeño and a sprinkle of Aleppo pepper. I won’t make these again, as written.

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    I used the yolks from 10 eggs rather than 8, and my filling was more stable than others have reported. Really like the texture, though I would have preferred them a touch less sweet. Also worth noting, the Red Weapons recipe has you mince rather than julienne the ginger, so I’m not sure where the julienned Red Weapon ginger garnish came from.

• Do try this at home

  • SheilaS on November 24, 2020

    Made this with fresh black cod from the farmers market and served with homemade whole grain crackers. It was delicious and I'd certainly make it again.

• Sunday sauce over roasted broccoli

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    First fail from this book. The sweet, gingery Red Weapon-based sauce was a very odd pairing with Italian sausage and Parmesan. Plus, the ratio of meat to sauce and the texture of the blended sauce itself combined to give the impression of eating a hot smoothie with bits of meat throughout. Would not make again.

  • Dannausc on April 23, 2022

    Fairly quick and easy. Pretty decent.

• Feisty creamycado

  • allisonsemele on March 26, 2021

    A thicker version of this was utterly fantastic as a topping/dip for quesadillas.

• Pink & dreamy

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    Made the feta variation. Really enjoyed it - like a sophisticated, interesting twist on French dressing.

• Relish me this

  • rglo820 on January 09, 2022

    I used snap peas and red onion, which I charred in a cast iron pan rather than grill them. I liked the Red Weapon flavors here but I think I would have been happy with half the amount of everything beyond the charred veggies to make for more of a dressing than a marinade. Leftovers were very good over mixed greens with crumbled feta.

• K&W made me do it

  • allisonsemele on August 01, 2021

    This came out pretty moist—reminded me of cornbread dressing more than cornbread, but I like dressing. I enjoyed it. Spicier than most of the recipes using red weapons.

• Autumn's crunch factor slaw

  • SheilaS on March 10, 2021

    The Cosmic Crisp apple I used was quite sweet so I reduced the sugar to 1/4 the amount specified. Unless I was using a super-tart apple, I'd leave it out entirely. After tasting, I doubled the amount of pickled ginger and preserved orange rind. I skipped the salt and added some of the orange pulp, chopped up, and a few drops of the brine to taste. I liked this a lot. Should be good with other vegetables like kohlrabi, jicama, radish, carrot, etc.

  • Emily Hope on January 06, 2021

    I have mixed feelings about this slaw--I like that it is inventive and isn't the typical combo of slaw ingredients, and it is juicy and fresh-tasting (it skews sweet but not in a cloying way). However, the combo of raw beets, raw sweet potatoes, and pickled ginger gave it an undeniably earthy undertone--so much so that C, who is more tolerant of dirt-flavored foods like beets than I am, mentioned it. I think if I made it again I might omit the beets and/or the sweet potatoes (perhaps swapping for a more savory veg like tokyo turnips or cabbage), and possible swap the pickled ginger for (a smaller amount of) fresh. Used pickled lemons rather than oranges because that's what we had on hand, but I don't think that substantially changed the nature of the dish.

• New Leaf pilaf

  • SheilaS on March 10, 2021

    I used Rancho Gordo midnight black beans instead of the canned beans specified so I had to cook them first but once the beans are ready, this is super easy. I liked drizzling a bit of olive oil around the edge of the pan plus a few minutes on the stovetop to crisp up the rice on the bottom. Will certainly make again.

• Margaritas with salt inside

  • SheilaS on February 01, 2021

    I'm not a fan of salt on my margarita glasses but this version that incorporates the salty, funky preserved limes into a syrup to sweeten the drink was great. Also not fan of blanco tequila so I made one with reposado tequila and one with mezcal. I liked both but give the edge to the mezcal version.

• Collards break character

  • SheilaS on February 08, 2021

    More of a collard/coconut soup than a bowl o'greens. Could easily be a main with some shrimp added at the end. Excellent flavor but has the potential to be a salt bomb. I used Mae Ploy green curry paste, which @ 610 mg sodium/2 t, ends up to be 930 mg sodium/serving and that's before we even get to the salt-preserved lemons! I rinsed thoroughly and only used the pulp from 2 quarters, holding the rest of the pulp back to add if needed. NOT! Vivian calls for another 1t salt that I also skipped. The collards get a quick sauté/wilt with seasonings and two 5-min simmer periods, less than my usual. They have a bit of a chew to them but I really liked them. My recommendations are to check the salt level of your green curry paste, consider backing off on the amount of preserved lemon, definitely reserve the pulp and only add it at the end if you want more salt. The flavors are really wonderful but use caution if salt is something you are sensitive to.

• My citrus shrine

  • SheilaS on February 01, 2021

    I used 2 small Oro Blanco grapefruits, 2 large Cara Cara oranges, 1 blood orange, 2 Meyer Lemons, 4 tangerines and a bunch of small Bearss limes in a 2.5 liter jar. Next time, I will not combine them as it's annoying to fish through the jar for the type of citrus you want. I cut the fruit all the way through in quarters. Sixths or eighths for the bigger fruit. Basically, the size of pieces that I tend to use at one time. In my experience, it's necessary to "burp" the jar every day or so in the beginning, especially when sweeter fruits like oranges are in the mix.

• Fish in a bag

  • SheilaS on March 15, 2021

    This is an oven-baked fish in parchment paper with spinach and quinoa to make it a complete meal in a bag. The tahini sauce that looks completely smooth in the book photo (and was, going into the oven) is rather more baked and slightly broken here but still delicious. Honey makes the sauce a little on the sweet side. I figured the salmon I used would be able to handle the sweetness but would dial it back with a more delicate fish. Likewise, 12 min at 500°F, in my oven was a bit much and I'll likely lower the temp a bit next time but the parchment keeps things moist so it was still good.

  • lholtzman on August 16, 2025

    This was very good, but doesn’t look very pretty. The tahini sauce is amazing. I halved the amount of fish I used, but made the full amount of quinoa-spinach-preserved lemon and the full amount of dressing. I thought it was an excellent salad without the fish for lunch the next day.

• Herbdacious

  • SheilaS on November 11, 2020

    This is very reminiscent of a pesto except that instead of basil as the primary note with a bite of fresh garlic, this one uses a lot of mellow, slow roasted garlic and a mix of fresh herbs with lemon juice and zest to brighten it up. In addition to the basil and parsley, I used a mix of mint, cilantro and dill. Should be fun to play with the mix of herbs to vary the flavor. The first thing I used this in was mixed with mayo on a BLP (bacon, lettuce & peach) sandwich that Vivian mentions on the "No Brainer" page of ideas for this item. Delicious!

  • lholtzman on July 26, 2024

    I love brightness of this recipe. It’s like pesto, but nut free, so that’s nice.

  • averythingcooks on June 29, 2022

    My herb garden is already overflowing so this was an easy choice. I used dill as the 3rd herb and a 1st taste confirms that is bursting with fresh & bright flavours. It is being frozen in 1 tbsp portions and like all the "flavour hero" recipes (her words - not mine :) in this book, the fun comes when you start to use your creations. I have lots of ideas for this stuff.

• This is 40 fettuccine

  • SheilaS on November 15, 2020

    This was a nice pasta dish but, in my book, it's only worth frying things if they are going to end up crispy and that's not the case here. Half of the "golden brown" fried zucchini goes in the blender with the Herbdacious where it dulls both the color and flavor of that brilliant green sauce. The other half of the fried zucchini gets tossed in at the end. 1/4" slices of zucchini fried to golden brown are pretty soft so there's not much textural contrast with the pasta. I love the Herbdacious and think its a perfect for a veggie pasta dish but I'll try steaming a mix of colorful veg and adding a squeeze of lemon juice to accent the bright flavors.

  • Soulkitchenjen on March 01, 2023

    This is good. Not revolutionary, but very good. I’m sure I’ll be back in August when I have more zucchini than reasonable use for.

  • lholtzman on July 26, 2024

    Very good, but a bit oily. I might try to use less oil to fry the zucchini in the future. It takes time to fry the zucchini, but once finished, the dish comes together quickly. This was enjoyed by adults, a 6 y/o, and a 1 y/o.

• Caesar me convinced

  • SheilaS on November 16, 2020

    Great Caesar-style dressing, flavored with Herbdacious. I made a half batch of the dressing. My Herbdacious is more of a paste, not really something that can be "drizzled slowly" into the processor but I did my best to spoon in little dabs and it worked fine. For the croutons, I followed one of of the "No Brainer" notes and tossed torn bread with a bit of Herbdacious before toasting them. Very flavorful, not heavy or oily as some croutons can be. Vivian says the dressing is best the day it's made but I found it acceptable on the 2nd day, when I made a version of the salad with grilled romaine.

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 28, 2023

    Absolutely delicious

  • allisonsemele on March 23, 2021

    A creamy Caesar dressing with great flavor, and so quick to make if you have the Herdacious sitting around. I second the recommendation below to add Herbdacious-coated croutons. I made a half batch, which was enough for at least three large salads.

• Tomato gravy to me

  • SheilaS on November 25, 2020

    This is a tomato/onion gravy that features Herbdacious p 206. All those herbs add a lot of flavor to something that's otherwise pretty quick and simple. The combination of brown caramelized onion, red burst tomatoes and bright green Herbdacious make a color like baby poop but it tastes just fine. I served this over white grits cooked per Vivian's Foolproof Grits recipe in Deep Run Roots. Delicious!

• Squash in its raw wonder

  • SheilaS on July 10, 2021

    This is a bright, fresh-tasting salad that works on its own, as a side or as a fresh pickle on sandwiches or the like. I didn't find that the olives added much and would prefer the crunch of toasted nuts.

• Party in a can

  • SheilaS on January 24, 2021

    I made this bean dip substituting Rancho Gordo Vallarta beans for the canned ones and reducing the olive by half. It seemed like a bunch of disparate ingredients that I wouldn't think to combine but the flavor was great and really came together the next day, as Vivian says. Since writing the above, I've made most of the variations except for the one with Sweet Potential and enjoyed them. Since quantities aren't given, you need to play around to suit your taste, but I figure that's part of the fun.

• Rock me don't shake me lemon pie

  • SheilaS on March 15, 2021

    This is a mixed-citrus, chess-style pie that uses the salt-preserved citrus rind that Vivian calls "Citrus Shrine" p 140. Fresh orange and lemon juice add brightness to the mellow, slightly savory flavors of the preserved rind. The header notes tip us off that this is not a super tart & tangy lemon pie but it's also not overly sweet like some lemon desserts - we're supposed to be rocked but not shaken. I made a half recipe in a six-inch pie pan. The blind bake time/temp given was insufficient for me to get the bottom crust cooked. The photo in the book shows tons of thick chunks of rind on top while the directions say to cut it very thin and fold it into the custard so mine doesn't have the caramelized bits on top but still tasted good. I think this is best after sitting a bit to let the flavors of the rind diffuse into the custard.

• Community organizer

  • SheilaS on January 18, 2021

    Peeling 20 tomatoes then dicing them, along with 8 bell peppers, 3 onions and slicing 10 cloves of garlic felt like a lot of chopping but I think it will be worthwhile. At first taste, I thought it might be too sweet but so far, I've enjoyed it with both eggs and beans and it's going to be a great addition to my pantry.

  • southerncooker on January 01, 2021

    My store was out of dark brown sugar so I used light brown. I ended up 3 pints. It smelled delicious when cooking.

  • Lnbrittain on November 26, 2025

    This was too sweet for me. I’d use it with the sugar cut down.

  • lholtzman on November 15, 2025

    Making this is a project for sure. Cutting the vegetables alone takes an hour. Once vegetables are ready, it’s mostly hands off. Set aside an afternoon, but it’s worth it.

  • averythingcooks on June 28, 2021

    I cut this 1/2 (yield = around 2 pints) and I prepped the tomatoes on one day then finished everything the next day. It waited in the fridge for another day and then a quick taste while "packaging" it up confirms it - it is lovely :) I am pretty sure I did not dice things small enough and so before putting it in jars, I gave it around 5 or 6 bursts with the immersion blender. This is full of all the flavours I love and I'm very excited to start using it!

• OG peas (or beans)

  • southerncooker on January 01, 2021

    I used Black Eyed Peas. I love tomatoes in BEP so though would be perfect. It was good but little sweet. I think if I'd added more tomatoes in the peas after cooking to tone the sweetness down a bit I'd have liked even better.

  • SheilaS on January 18, 2021

    I made this with Rancho Gordo black eyed peas and was impressed at how much flavor the Community Organizer added since it was just stirred in near the very end of the cooking time. I'll be using it in lots of beans.

• Bake beans again

  • SheilaS on January 24, 2021

    With the Community Organizer already made and some cooked Rancho Gordo Yellow Eye beans on hand, this was super easy to toss together and bake. Very flavorful. Since baked in individual serving sizes, I probably should have baked them for less time or used more of the bean cooking liquid for a more saucy result. I'll watch out for that next time. Between the diced country ham, the beans and CO, I'd say the serving size is very generous.

  • averythingcooks on September 12, 2021

    I used a 19 oz can of navy beans for a 1/2 recipe & used bacon cooked a little more than she actually called for. So....bean liquid freaks me out a bit so I used chicken broth at the beginning & added it again during the bake (perhaps I disrupted the crust she talks about but really - we were pretty happy with the end result). This is a great use of Community Organizer but because I know we like a bit of heat to offset the sweet of any baked bean recipe, I did add some chipotle chili powder. With CO on hand, I would definitely make this again.

• Broccoli soup for cheese lovers

  • averythingcooks on April 08, 2022

    I made a 1/2 recipe of this using the last of my community organizer from the freezer and an aged cheddar. It is really tasty and T loved it but because the CO brings so much flavour, it took him awhile to actually identify it clearly as broccoli soup. But the key is….I would repeat this for sure with community organizer on hand.

  • lholtzman on November 18, 2025

    This is my favorite broccoli cheese soup. It is incredibly fast and easy, yet so flavorful. Don’t worry if the milk curdles during the initial boil, it will get blended in.

• Nacho normal

  • lholtzman on November 15, 2025

    I was the only one who liked this in my family, but I really, really liked it. My 8 year old ate it begrudgingly, but my 2 year old refused. I think they’ll come around at some point, or maybe I’ll make some tweaks like keeping the cauliflower slightly bigger (I riced it) or use a different type of bean (I used black beans). The toppings are so healthy and the flavor is amazing.

  • SheilaS on February 20, 2021

    Never thought of nachos as a meal but with the spinach, cauliflower and beans - it works. A half batch on a quarter sheet pan was absolutely a full meal for 2. Next time, I'll add something pickle-y like pickled jalapeños. Like most things I've made with Community Organizer, there's a sweetness that surprises me but wins me over in the end.

• Fast road to fancy

  • SheilaS on March 24, 2021

    As noted by Plumberful, this is indeed quick to make, assuming you've got Community Organizer at the ready, and very tasty, too. I served it over orzo. My Castelvetrano olives had pits so I had to butcher them to get the pits out. Just as well since it was nice to get a bit of olive in every bite. I think any type of olive would have been fine, as would any salty, tangy thing like capers. I'd make this again.

  • Plumberful on December 22, 2020

    Made this today with a jar of Community Organizer that I canned in November. Once you have C.O. on hand, this recipe is simple and delicious. I would add a bit more acid than the recipe calls for; next time I’ll include some good capers. We liked this very much!

• Egg in a cup in a microwave

  • Plumberful on January 02, 2021

    Made this for breakfast today, but instead of the microwave, I used vintage porcelain egg coddlers. The addition of the C.O. flavor hero was wonderful in cheesy, creamy, coddled eggs.

  • lholtzman on November 18, 2025

    This would be a great breakfast to make in the microwave at work. Definitely easy to make vegetarian by leaving out the bacon. In my opinion, this serves 1 person, definitely not 4.

  • SheilaS on January 18, 2021

    Flavorwise, I loved this. Community Organizer is clearly a great companion for eggs and I look forward to trying it in other dishes. My microwave is pretty feeble so it took more than 2 minutes and was tedious to take it out and stir every 30 sec. I could have scrambled this in a pan in half the time.

  • southerncooker on January 02, 2021

    This was delicious. I used turkey bacon crumbles instead of a crumbled cooked bacon strip.

• Barbecue potatoes

  • SheilaS on March 28, 2021

    The potatoes get par-boiled, smashed, roasted then tossed with puréed Community Organizer and back into the oven. I suspect my potatoes were bigger than Vivian's and I smashed them enough that they fell apart when I tossed them with the CO but they tasted good. The salty feta is a nice contrast to the sweetness of CO.

  • averythingcooks on September 02, 2021

    I used fingerlings from the garden and after parboiling, I used Fine Cooking's smashing technique (using clean dishtowels) which worked better than the flat glass I usually use. These steps were done earlier in the day which sped up dinner prep later. We LOVED the taste of these guys crisped in the community organizer. A repeat for sure.

• Lasagna primavera

  • lholtzman on December 12, 2025

    Amazing. One of the best lasagna recipes. I served for a vegetarian Thanksgiving and we all enjoyed it.

• Fancy as a clam

  • allisonsemele on July 30, 2021

    Very, very good and comes together extremely quickly. Did not add any additional salt, as the clams contributed plenty. I would start with half the herbdacious and add to taste next time.

• Meatloaf's big makeover

  • averythingcooks on January 09, 2023

    We have a gold standard meatloaf but I came here with herbdacious in the freezer & fridge jars to use up. I scaled it back to 1/3 for 2 individual loaves and added chopped capers to replace the olives. The meat was tender & flavourful and the sauce really is a step up from the usual ketchup based glazes. It probably won't become my new go-to but we both liked it and I can certainly see making it again.

• Chicken salad worth discussion

  • allisonsemele on March 31, 2021

    A very light and refreshing chicken salad. Was great over lightly dressed greens.

  • SheilaS on July 13, 2021

    This recipe tosses the cooked chicken breast chunks with lemon juice and black pepper, a nice trick for adding flavor before adding the mellow Herbdacious which makes friends with the pickled vegetables in a way that pesto wouldn't do as nicely. If you've got a bunch of pickled stuff on hand, this recipe could certainly accommodate to what's available. I ate this as a salad and I very much enjoyed it but it would be a great sandwich filling as well.

• Herbdacious chef's mix

  • SheilaS on January 18, 2021

    Nice variation on the classic snack mix. I had to make some ingredient subs based on what I had on hand - pretzels instead of bagel chips and other crackers instead of Saltines - but it still came out fine so I think this is very flexible.

  • Soulkitchenjen on February 26, 2023

    Very good. Made as directed. I used mixed nuts as the nut choice. Does require more time than stated. At least another 5 minutes.

• Juicy & bright citrus salad

  • SheilaS on March 15, 2021

    I used a mix of pink grapefruit, blood and navel oranges with some kumquats thrown in for fun. I wasn't sure how a roasted garlic-based herb pesto was going to work as the main ingredient in a dressing for a citrus salad but Vivian did not steer me wrong. It works very well. I will repeat this one for sure.

• Quirky furki

  • SheilaS on March 18, 2021

    I made a half-batch and used bonito flakes instead of dried shrimp. Per Vivian's suggestion, I kept some with bigger chunks and ground the rest more finely which smelled amazing from the toasted sesame seeds getting broken up. Putting salt & vinegar potato chips in here is pretty genius as they really add a punch of flavor.

  • southerncooker on November 08, 2020

    I used bonito flakes and nori. I tried some sprinkled in ramen soup and it was delicious.

  • bching on May 06, 2021

    Very delicious and versatile. I used bonito. The potato chips are the stroke of genius in this recipe.

  • Dannausc on February 07, 2021

    The nori burnt in the oven after a few minutes. Fairly quick and easy. Good accent flavor.

• Gingered cabbage in a quirky cream

  • Dannausc on February 07, 2021

    Quite easy once the quirky furki is made. I liked it quite a bit, but my wife didn’t care for it.

  • bching on May 06, 2021

    This made a great informal cool-night dinner. Be careful not to use too much cabbage. A small Iowa cabbage must be bigger than a Deep Run, NC cabbage because it took me much longer to cook than her directions said. Even so, I'll be making it again. We both loved it.

• Scrambled eggs with tomatoes & more

  • southerncooker on March 06, 2021

    This one uses the quirky furki hero and it was very good. I'd make again.

  • lholtzman on March 20, 2025

    Delicious and super easy. Great weeknight dinner and kid friendly. Any furikake will do, no need to use the quirky furki.

  • SheilaS on March 18, 2021

    Very good. I loved the crunch that the quirky furki adds to this dish.

• Fried dollar bills

  • southerncooker on November 14, 2020

    Collard green chips sprinkled with salt and Quirky Furki. Crispy, crunchy, and delicious. Even hubby liked them. Collards from Tumbling Shoals Farm share.

• Inspiration strikes party rolls

  • southerncooker on November 18, 2020

    Where to begin -- I enjoy banana and bologna sandwiches with a glass of milk. Pretty weird right? So I thought I'd give this a try since I had some Quirky Furki left. The pickled pineapple that goes on these rolls tasted pretty good to me but husband, son, and daughter said not. I used beef bologna since that's what we eat. The Quirky Furki didn't go well with other ingredients in my opinion. To be fair we're not big Kings Hawaiian Rolls fans. These may be for someone but not for this family.

  • SheilaS on March 24, 2021

    These little rolls use Quirky Furki in a buttery topping with mustard. I used Black Forest Ham instead of bologna and Fontina instead of Provolone but otherwise followed the recipe. Fresh pineapple gets cut into very thin slices and marinated in rice vinegar so they're almost more like a pickle than a hunk of fruit. I'll be stealing that idea for sure. These are surprisingly good but the butter certainly results in a greasy finger situation so be prepared with wipes or napkins!

• Meat on a stick is a sure thing

  • mjes on September 13, 2021

    The marinade for the meat works nicely but I was not sold on the potato chips in the Quirky Furki.

• Please forgive me steamed rice

  • SheilaS on March 24, 2021

    This recipe adds finely ground Quirky Furki to the rice during the cooking time vs sprinkling furikake over already cooked rice, as one would usually do. Turns out, this is actually quite a nice way of making a quick seasoned rice. The flavors are much more embedded in the rice, rather than sprinkled here and there so it's more subtle and different. Nice trick.

• Roasted butternut squash with miso mayo and quirky furki

  • southerncooker on December 07, 2020

    This uses the quirky Furki hero. It was pretty good but a bit on the salty side. I did accidentally mix the QF in with mayo mixture. I sprinkled a little more QF at end so that might have caused the saltiness.

  • Dannausc on February 07, 2021

    Quite easy. It was good but nothing special.

• V's nuts

  • Dannausc on February 07, 2021

    I used walnuts instead of pecans. Super easy other than whisking the egg whites. Good, tasty.

  • lholtzman on October 28, 2023

    I find 2 tsp of cayenne pepper waaaay to spicy. I’d reduce to 1/4 tsp in the future.

  • SheilaS on January 18, 2021

    Sweet-spicy nuts have always been a flavor hero of mine to garnish soups, salads, vegetables and desserts. Homemade taste better and are much more economical than the expensive packets in the stores. I made a batch with some beautiful Georgia pecans I received as a Christmas gift and they are delicious. I'm looking forward to trying them some of Vivian's recipes ...if I can stop snacking on them!

• V's roasted-banana nut bread

  • SheilaS on February 08, 2021

    I made a half recipe and baked it in 2 small loaf pans. I liked the flavor added by the spices and orange zest and the sweet/spicy coating on the pecans adds interest. The texture is moist but not heavy, more like a banana cake to me.

  • lholtzman on May 11, 2026

    I didn’t find this recipe any more special than other banana bread recipes. It’s a bit more work too.

  • Dannausc on February 07, 2021

    This is the first banana bread I’ve made that involved roasting the bananas first. Actually it’s the first recipe I think I’ve ever made that involved roasting bananas. I don’t think it really added much to the overall flavor. It was a good banana bread but not better than any other decent banana bread.

• Kim's invention ice cream

  • SheilaS on July 14, 2021

    I don't have an ice cream maker so I modified this recipe, skipping the egg yolks, to make popsicles. I didn't really get the point of making crispy, crunching spiced nuts and then soaking them in milk and cream and I can't guarantee that this is the best use of them but I can report that the flavor they impart is absolutely delicious so if you've got an ice cream maker, consider this a very positive recommendation for the flavor of this recipe.

• Little bit scrappy, little bit rock 'n' roll... parfait

  • SheilaS on April 26, 2021

    V's Nuts were an excellent addition to this fruit/yogurt/cereal breakfast bowl. I used Grape-Nuts as the cereal and strawberries as the fruit. Once I blitzed the full-fat Greek yogurt with the ripe banana, orange zest and juice, it was about the consistency of a smoothie, not something layer-able. I ended up straining the mixture and putting it in the iSi whip to make a yogurt foam. Fun, but next time I'll just put sliced banana in with the other fruit and skip the blender.

• Very versatile smear of stuff

  • SheilaS on July 13, 2021

    This is a really good sun-dried tomato pesto that freezes well. Not sure the spiced nuts add anything you wouldn't get from plain toasted nuts but it's still delicious.

• Lunch-at-my-desk quinoa salad

  • lholtzman on October 28, 2023

    Cooked 1 cup dry quinoa to get 3 cups. Cooked in low sodium vegetable broth with 1/2 tsp kosher salt. Used 1 tsp Morton’s kosher salt in salad recipe instead of 2 tsps.

• But-a-nut soup

  • SheilaS on February 07, 2021

    Really good. As Vivian suggests in the header notes, the garnish is what makes the But-A-Nut soup special. It's in the V's Nuts chapter so those chopped, spiced pecans play a role, but only a supporting one, I think. The garnish starts out by cooking sliced leeks in butter until it browns, then adding apple cider vinegar and maple syrup which turns them into a sweet, buttery, lightly pickled thing. That gets mixed with sliced fresh apple and the nuts to become the garnish so you've got tons of different flavors and textures in the mix.

• Strong smoothie game

  • lholtzman on January 07, 2025

    This was great. I actually used leftover homemade cranberry sauce (the type with whole cranberries) as the sweet potential. Great way to get calcium, protein, and veggies in my little ones.

• Wrapmagic

  • SheilaS on July 13, 2021

    I'm not usually a fan of wraps but this grilled version was very good.

• Hot side of salmon

  • SheilaS on March 26, 2021

    I used pineapple & lime Sweet Potential and grilled a salmon filet rather than a whole side. Green onions aren't mentioned but appear in the book photo and were a nice addition. This was quite good. The glaze is vinegar-y enough to serve as a vinaigrette for the greens. I added a serving of rice although this would be fine on its own as a salad. Be warned that with the addition of the soy sauce, the glaze will be darker than what appears in the book photo. Still tastes great so don't leave it out!

• A hero is born / back-pocket pan sauce

  • SheilaS on March 25, 2021

    This recipe is written for pork tenderloin but I'd use it for any meat or poultry that would work with a fruity sauce. I used the kumquat version of Sweet Potential. Instead of pork tenderloin, as in the recipe, I had some boneless pork loin chops so I cooked them sous vide and seared them off to get some brown stuff going for the sauce. Chicken, duck, venison, etc. should all work.

• I wish I was a cheese baller

  • SheilaS on March 28, 2021

    This is not a cheese ball but a baked cheese spread that includes some fruit preserves. It's luxurious and delicious. I used Whole Fig and Lemon Preserves from Deep Run Roots. They were thicker than the syrup that Vivian describes for Sweet Potential so I added water and simmered for a while to get them back to that consistency. I tested freezing the mix before baking in 2.5 oz and 4 oz portions and it's easy to take one out of the freezer, pop it into a ramekin and bake it for a quick treat for 1 or 2 people.

• Watermelon mint gimlet

  • SheilaS on March 25, 2021

    Loved this cocktail. I dialed the syrup back to 1/2 oz. The watermelon Sweet Potential cubes used as a garnish are like crisp little candies. Previously, I made a Blackberry mint gimlet using syrup from a batch of Blackberry Sweet Potential and it was also delicious. I tried a kumquat version but the flavor didn't really stand out and it just tasted like a lime mint gimlet

• Cherry boulevardier

  • SheilaS on March 28, 2021

    I've made this with the syrup from both blackberry and fig preserves. Both were very good. 1/4 to 1/2 oz of syrup is my preference, a full ounce was too sweet for me.

• Strawberry daquiri

  • SheilaS on March 28, 2021

    I made this with the syrup from pineapple Sweet Potential and Plantation pineapple rum and it's absolutely excellent. 1/2 oz of syrup was plenty sweet for me.