• LaPomme on April 15, 2011

  The Orzo Chicken recipe (there's a version for two, and a full-size version) is a delicious weeknight staple. I love that you don't have to brown the chicken ahead of time.

Notes about Recipes in this book

• Spinach and Parmesan slather

  • ingabritt on November 15, 2017

    A-. As good as it gets for spinach dip that does not contain artichokes. I substituted champagne vinegar for lemon juice and made just a quarter batch in a ramekin. Delicious with toasted French bread. A quarter batch is the perfect size for a 1-person snack.

• Egg and mushroom baked omelet

  • Mtbike5280 on January 27, 2026

    A pretty tasty breakfast dish. Easy to prepare, just make sure you plan for the baking time required.

• Egg, bacon, mushroom, and cheese casserole

  • Tweedles81 on December 02, 2018

    I happened to have all of the ingredients on hand. It was pretty easy to make, though took a bit more than an hour from start to finish. Although not listed, I set the stovetop to medium heat and that worked. Worried about how rich it would be, I added some fresh chopped parsley and dill before serving. I also added a bit of green hot sauce and my husband added Aleppo pepper. These made the dish look very festive. This was a very solid, hearty, and rich breakfast. This would be great to serve for a holiday brunch, especially with the above additions, as they make the dish look incredibly festive!

• Hash brown-crusted potato pie

  • hillsboroks on May 13, 2025

    I tried this recipe because I had a half bag of potatoes O’Brien hash browns thawed in my fridge to use up. The pie was delicious as well as being easy to put together. I didn’t have any ham but I had a package of prosciutto to use up so I just minced it up. I also had small pieces of Swiss and Gruyère cheese to finish off as well as four extra stalks of asparagus that got minced and tossed in too. It was really a clean out the refrigerator pie. We loved the finished pie. It was very attractive, smelled wonderful and the taste was fabulous.

• Baked cinnamon-maple French toast

  • BethNH on November 16, 2017

    I'm not sure what baked french toast is supposed to be like. I was surprised at how much the bread puffed up. The top of the bread was nice and firm while the middle was soft. I would have preferred a less soft middle but it firmed up a bit after it sat. Even if I'm not sure about the texture, the dish was delicious and I'd make it again. I halved the recipe and it made the perfect amount for three hungry people.

• Fresh strawberry-stuffed French toast casserole

  • Foodo on April 09, 2011

    There is no such recipe in this cookbook. I've searched the whole index, and the Breakfast/Brunch chapter. Nada, nothing!

  • LaPomme on July 05, 2011

    This is a variation on the Cinnamon and Apple-Stuffed French Toast Casserole on page 112.

• Puffy oven apple pancake

  • Running_with_Wools on October 23, 2023

    Unfortunately this recipe has not worked for me. It produces a pancake that is dense and eggy, not puffy at all. I made it once with gluten free flour, and a second time with wheat flour. Both times, dense and not light or fluffy.

• Chicken cacciatore on polenta

  • hillsboroks on November 07, 2019

    This dish had great flavor but the sauce turned out too watery. I actually spooned out more than a cup of liquid as I was serving it to discard. We loved having the chicken and sauce on the polenta base. It makes a great one-dish meal. I made a batch of polenta from scratch instead of buying pre-cooked polenta. I also added 1/4 cup finely minced fresh sage and rosemary and a small jar of well-drained artichokes and that really pumped up the flavor. Next time I will sauté the veggies well to take out more moisture. The recipe calls for 5 minutes of sautéing but I left them in the pan for 10 minutes and think they could have cooked even more. I may also simmer the tomato sauce for a bit to thicken it as well before combining all the ingredients. If the sauce hadn't been so watery I would have given this recipe 4.5 stars.

• Chicken breasts with wild rice and raisins

  • sarahcooks on June 21, 2013

    I've made this several times and really like it. The chicken does tend to get overdone, so keep a close eye on it, or cook it through on the stove and add it to the casserole right before serving. You can lighten it by using more milk than cream, or evaporated milk instead of cream.

• Raspberry-glazed chicken breasts

  • swiand on December 17, 2025

    Tasty dish but the teenagers thought it was not their favorite. We enjoyed the lighter fare from our heavier cold weather dinners.

• Chicken, artichoke, and mushroom casserole on polenta

  • Btonlori on June 05, 2023

    It could probably use a cup less of liquid for the kind of cornmeal I used. I had to bake it an extra 15 minutes just to reduce the amount of liquid.

• Cheesy scalloped potatoes

  • BethNH on November 16, 2017

    Easy scalloped potatoes with cheddar cheese and homemade white sauce.

• Cornbread-topped black bean casserole

  • sarahcooks on June 02, 2011

    I liked this with a few changes. I added a little chile powder to the filling, replaced the celery with corn, and topped it with some shredded cheese. Very good and healthy.

• Green bean, mushroom, and onion casserole

  • rittingerv on February 08, 2022

    Decided that the author meant to include crispy fried shallots to add to the breadcrumb topping, making this more like the classic green bean casserole.

• Orzo chicken

  • LaPomme on June 08, 2011

    Page 546. Great, easy, weeknight meal for two.

• Black bean tortilla casserole

  • LaPomme on July 26, 2011

    A solid Meatless Monday meal. This makes a lot of food, so I'll freeze a few portions for later. I added an extra 1/2 tsp. of cumin, and think that the dish might benefit from even more seasoning: chili powder or even a spoonful of the sauce from canned chipotle.

• Black bean and red pepper casserole

  • LaPomme on October 20, 2011

    Easy to put together, and very satisfying. You can make it a little more healthy (as I did) using whole wheat tortillas. I made it for Meatless Monday, and my husband didn't miss the meat.

• Fresh beet and blue cheese casserole

  • LaPomme on October 20, 2011

    I like blue cheese, but this casserole ended up tasting like a blue cheese and onion bake. Really overpowering and heavy.

• Sausage and cabbage casserole

  • AgusiaH on November 16, 2013

    I made it with sweet green cabbage (no sauerkraut), 2 types of sausages (kielbasa and frankfurters) and cured pork loin (instead of mincemeat) and a little bit more potatoes (3 layers). I cooked potatoes for 6 min before slicing and braised cabbage with sausages for 15 min. Nice winter dish.

• Garlicky bulgur, green lentil, and chickpea casserole

  • eve_kloepper on February 21, 2012

    very good, but needs additional seasoning (s&p). also, I didn't think sesame oil would be appropriate for this, so I used canola oil. thought maybe this was a misprint

• Ham and sweet onions

  • hillsboroks on April 17, 2020

    For a quarantine clean-out-the-fridge casserole this turned out to be a surprise winner with the entire family. The only substitution I had to make was to use aged Gouda and Gruyere in place of the fontina. The crushed fennel seeds and lemon zest really elevate the flavor and make it sing. With the bacon, ham, and cheeses I cut the salt back a bit and could have actually cut it in half. I would love to try it again with fontina.

• Fresh vegetables baked with rosemary and Gruyère cheese

  • hillsboroks on October 04, 2024

    This is an easy, flavorful recipe that is perfect for using up all your end-of-season garden produce. I had some garlic olive oil that I used for half of the olive oil and this gave it a little flavor bump that we liked. The best thing was that the dish only got better when reheated the following night.

• Oven-barbecued country-style ribs

  • Globegal on April 08, 2017

    These were good & certainly easy to make. Unintentionally poured more liquid smoke than a few drops, though. Used bone-in ribs. The sauce was very good with mashed potatoes, just as she recommended.

• Southwestern bean casserole with double-corn topping

  • Globegal on February 12, 2016

    Very tasty. Opened up a can of creamed-style corn by mistake. Used canned corn instead of frozen corn. Put remaining canned corn into creamed-style corn and had that as a side. Was soothing complement for the hot mixture (I just used 1/2 tsp for crushed pepper). Also used Ortega Taco seasoning. I Made with Mom 2-12-2016.

• Strawberry-rhubarb crisp

  • bching on June 26, 2015

    bland and soggy.

• Finnish salmon casserole

  • ingabritt on November 07, 2017

    A. My husband and stepson refused to even try it (they are picky and prejudiced against fish for some reason), but I loved it. I’m from Minnesota, and this reminded me of the kind of thing my dad might have made when I was growing up. I substituted a 12 oz bag of frozen hashbrowns for the potatoes, Panko for the breadcrumbs, and only used one onion because I was pushing the limits of my 2 qt dish. Delicious.

• Cabbage and mushroom gratin

  • ingabritt on November 16, 2022

    B+. Not bad. A half batch was almost too much for a 1.5 quart dish. Next time I would decrease the cream by maybe a third because it doesn’t all absorb, either in the cabbage or in the mushrooms. I made it ahead following the instructions in the recipe. Made a half batch on 11-16-22

• Feta-topped green tomatoes

  • Tweedles81 on November 27, 2019

    The flavor combinations here were good, but it took a lot longer to cook than stated. If I find myself with green tomatoes again, I am not sure I would prepare them this way, though this may be a good twist for those who already love green tomatoes.

• Ham and scalloped potatoes

  • Running_with_Wools on April 21, 2023

    I've made this quite a few times and it is delicious. I substitute leeks for the green onions, and add gruyere cheese. It is rich and comforting on a cold winter night. Great way to use up leftover ham.

• Maple baked beans

  • KCKB on January 16, 2022

    I have been on a long-running quest to find a richly- flavored baked bean recipe that doesn’t rely on bacon or ham. This one is really tasty! The maple adds a delicious dimension. I also added a couple of bay leaves.

• Spinach and Jack cheese casserole for two

  • Mtbike5280 on January 27, 2026

    I thought that the spinach dried out on this one because there was not that much moisture in the casserole. It was edible but I would not make it again.

• Steak smothered with onions and mushrooms

  • Mtbike5280 on January 27, 2026

    The steak was tender and the sauce added a lot of flavor. Easy to prepare for a tasty dinner.

• Baked spaghetti casserole

  • MaddCooker on January 07, 2026

    Easy weeknight dinner. My book does not list thyme or beef stock in the ingredients list.

• Flounder fillet casserole

  • silent_kaye on February 23, 2025

    A mild and tasty preparation. Went well with mashed potatoes and salad with honey mustard dressing.

• Parsnip and potato casserole

  • sharon_p42nrc on April 23, 2026

    Used as a base for poached eggs