Test Kitchen

[Iboatedhere]

I know what you mean, grisgris. I almost always use my phone so I was scrolling forever.

 

I like step by step pictures but it's a little overkill with her.

[Lisin]

I can't stand how you have to scroll through a gazillion pictures to get to the actual recipe.

 

 

I know what you mean, grisgris. I almost always use my phone so I was scrolling forever.

 

I like step by step pictures but it's a little overkill with her.

 

I just wish she'd put a link at the top of the page to just get the actual recipe, or to take you to it without the pictures or something. The pictures are nice when it's the first time you're reading a new recipe I suppose, but for something you've seen/made before (or is stupid easy "technique wise" like cake) but you just need to remind yourself whether it was 1/2 or 1/3 a cup of flour or whatever it's super annoying. 

[grisgris]

That recipe has 43 photos. Some of them showed the same thing 2-3 times. Do we really need illustrations of how to add olive oil to a pan or pasta to a pot of boiling water?

 

It seems a bit excessive, bordering on "Hey, look at me. I'm a PHOTOGRAPHER."  "Just because I can."

 

I guess that drives home the point that her blog (at least the photos), show and recipes are geared towards novice cooks.

 

But anyway, it does sound like a pretty good recipe and glad that it was tried and enjoyed!

[film noire]

But anyway, it does sound like a pretty good recipe and glad that it was tried and enjoyed!

 

I'd not use the arrowroot (gets slimy when mixed with dairy -- and the cream is enough) and I'd add the tomatoes right near the end (I hate puckery, slippery skins -- SO MUCH) but yes, I agree -- wish Drummond would rob her older blog posts of material.

[brandyelf]

This one has become a family favorite: http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/2010/05/cinnamon-baked-french-toast/

With her recipes, if you get the food network version, you avoid the pictures and commentary. The same recipe:http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/cinnamon-baked-french-toast-recipe.html

We made her Mac and cheese last night and it was wonderful. I wish she'd mentioned it was a bechamel sauce, but I'm guessing her target audience wouldn't care.

[HyeChaps]

I'm going to try roasting green beans a la Ree.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/roasted-green-beans.html

[Aquarius]

I've never tried Ree's recipe, but I frequently roast green beans.  They are delicious!  I'm sure the bacon will only help.  Enjoy!

[HyeChaps]

I usually cook them with onions, garlic, tomatoes, oregano on top of the stove.  Change of pace this Easter.  When the meat comes out of the oven to rest, the beans will go in.

[Lisin]

OK, as requested by Lura here's a list of stuff I've made with the links to the recipes on her site. Fair warning the way she does the recipes on her site can be super annoying if you already know how to do stuff and don't need step by step instructions, and another fair warning, I tend to "play with" most recipes from anywhere so if I've drastically changed something I'll tell you but in all likelyhood I've tinkered with all of them in ways I don't necessarily remember. 

 

Rosemary Skewers - Made these for a baby shower/spa day thing. I'm pretty sure the only thing we did that was truly part of the recipe was to skewer mozzerella onto rosemary because the momma to be was a vegetarian so no salami and I feel like also someone there hated artichokes? So who knows. We also made a balsamic reduction to drizzle on top... basically I looked at this and went "Cute! Lets skewer stuff on rosemary!"

 

Restaurant Style Salsa - This salsa recipe is pretty close to the salsa you get at Tex-Mex joints that are actually located in Texas. Do not confuse it with Authentic salsa, that's not what this is. This is a memory, and it is great. It's very blended, not a bit chunky, and exactly what you want if you've eaten at a "real" Tex-Mex place and miss it.

 

The Bread in His Words - This is a variation on that No Kneed Bread recipe from a million (ok 7) years ago. It's super pretty, when you bake it it kinda blooms. Also it tastes good. Not actually her recipe, but her friend Pastor Ryan...

 

No Kneed Dinner Roles - I am begged to make these every holiday. They are the best. They're a gigantic pain and take FOREVER (most of it is passive time) but they are worth it.

 

Biscuits and Gravy - This is as good a Sausage Gravy recipe as any... though when I make it I make the biscuits from scratch (Betty Crocker buttermilk biscuit recipe). 

 

The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever - AKA Texas Sheet Cake, AKA That Sheet Cake everyone brings to funerals and church pot lucks. Doesn't matter. It's a great recipe, though, I use Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder and I also sub sour cream for part of the buttermilk and then just use regular milk because I can't be bothered to actually have buttermilk on hand. Also I'm allergic to nuts so they stay out too. This is the chocolate cake recipe I use for everything requiring cake. It's so easy and so good.

 

Perfect Iced Coffee - This is a life changer. I now have a gallon of Iced Coffee in my fridge basically all spring/summer long. I use her method for making the base, but I tend to just add some water and some cream and nothing else when I drink it. The better the coffee you use the better it tastes obviously. Bustello is pretty good though. Anything will work. 

 

Brandy Snaps - These are really adorable cookies that are way too much of a pain to make, but they're so yummy. 

 

Simple Sesame Noodles - They're exactly what they sound like. Sometimes I make a batch of these on Sunday to make a fast dinner during the week where I just have to cut up chicken and and stir-fry with the noodles and some veggies.

 

Spicy Molasses Cookies - These are always in my cookie giveaway tins. They're really good.

 

Sour Cream Noodle Bake - Made this for a friend's family after she had her second kiddo... so we were dealing with a very picky 2 year old and a very picky husband. They liked it. It isn't something I'd necessarily make for myself but it freezes wonderfully and everyone seemed to like it. Kiddo asked for seconds which is high praise. I used fun spiral noodles instead of egg noodles. 

 

I think that's it! Wow... I guess I've made a lot of those recipes. 

[Lura]

Thanks a million, Lisin!  Every last one of them sounds good.  Some of her recipes remind me of my mother's, but given the fact that she uses a lot of her mother's recipes, maybe that makes sense.  I'm going to copy and paste these (along with a couple of others mentioned in this thread).  Thanks for the bother of writing about them and moving them to this thread.  Really appreciate it!

[sharinlilbit]

Sorry, I don't have links to all of these, but most are from her first cookbook, though I think they could all be found on her blog through a simple search.  I've done her lasagna, BBQ Bacon Jalapeño Poppers (huge hit with everyone), her great-grandmother Iny's Prune Cake (SO GOOD), twice baked potatoes, red velvet cake, cinnamon rolls, and her orange sweet rolls.  Oh, and the Olive Cheese Bread, which I LOVE, but I only make it once or twice a year.  I've made her pizza crust, and it's the best tasting homemade crust I've ever had.  In the winter I'm crazy for her Corn Chowder with Chilis.  I've done these Spicy Whisky BBQ Sliders for a big party, and they were all cleaned out.  Really, really love her Peach-Whisky Barbecue Chicken.  I made her Christmas Rum Cake this past Christmas, and my family practically devoured the whole thing.  

 

I'm sure there's more I've forgotten, but I've certainly cooked from her site and her books quite a bit.  I appreciate that I usually have the ingredients on hand, that they aren't outrageously expensive, and that the dishes are not too "out there."  Her style of cooking is familiar, and I like that.  

[Lisin]

I hate to put my mod hat on here, but I'm moving some posts discussing the way the show works/if PW appropriates recipes etc. into the Snark Talk thread because I'd like this thread to be just about cooking the recipes and the results. Snark is fine but it should be about actually making the recipes in this thread. Thanks! 

[savingsanta]

Credit where credit is due: I'd never encountered adding mayonnaise to a butter spread like she uses in her cheesy olive bread. When I first saw it, I found it revolting because I don't like mayonnaise. However, I usually have a jar hanging around in my fridge for the occasional potato salad or coleslaw. A few days ago, I was making garlic bread and found myself short on butter. I remembered the mayo thing and, with trepidation, added a tablespoon or so to bulk out my butter/garlic/herb spread. Sure enough, it was pretty great! The whole thing browned nicely and didn't taste like mayo at all. I have to thank her for bringing that trick to my attention, though I'll always shudder at the half-cup she uses in that olive bread recipe.

[Fostersmom]

I've used mayo to make grilled cheese before when I ran out of butter. I was grossed out when I saw Paula Deen do it, but I got desperate one day. I thought I could slightly taste it, but I also knew what I had used. For something like Ree made, there's other flavors going on and I'd think you'd probably never taste the mayo and it would melt down into the bread nicely. 

[chessiegal]

I as looking for Southern cornbread in a skillet recipes, and one of the recipes that popped up was Ree's. I figured since she would have just ripped off some standard, I'd take a look. After scrolling through the boring pictures, it finishes with "here's the recipe" which had the ingredients listed TWICE! Nice quality control Ree.

 

 

1 cup Yellow Cornmeal
    1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
    1 teaspoon Salt
    1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
    1 cup Buttermilk
    1/2 cup Milk
    1 whole Egg
    1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
    1/4 cup Shortening
    2 Tablespoons Shortening
    1 cup Yellow Cornmeal
    1/2 cup All-purpose Flour
    1 teaspoon Salt
    1 Tablespoon Baking Powder
    1 cup Buttermilk
    1/2 cup Milk
    1 whole Egg
    1/2 teaspoon Baking Soda
    1/4 cup Shortening
    2 Tablespoons Shortening

 

[anneofcleves]

Well, that's one way to double a recipe, chessiegal!  I have to say, I'm shocked - no, SHOCKED - that the cornbread recipe contained no sugar.  I honestly was expecting the addition of at least 1/2 cup.  Are you sure the recipe didn't say to slather with butterscotch chips or Reese's Pieces before baking?  Drizzle with caramel sauce?  

Edited October 29, 2015 by anneofcleves

[chessiegal]

Well, that's one way to double a recipe, chessiegal!  I have to say, I'm shocked - no, SHOCKED - that the cornbread recipe contained no sugar.  I honestly was expecting the addition of at least 1/2 cup.  Are you sure the recipe didn't say to slather with butterscotch chips or Reese's Pieces before baking?  Drizzle with caramel sauce?  

My husband is from Alabama. His mother made cornbread or biscuits every night with dinner. He HATES Northern cornbread with sugar - calls it cake. I finally got a cast iron skillet, and made a Cook's Country Southern cornbread - no sugar. It was good, but a tad dry. I was surprised, as usually they are spot on, so I was looking at other recipes. I am not a baker, so I am somewhat encouraged that it came out as well as it did. CC recipe was all cornmeal, so I'm wondering if a small amount of regular flour would help.

 

Still surprised at the sloppy editing on Ree's blog.

[anneofcleves]

Oh yes, I grew up eating southern cornbread cooked in a skillet (raised in the north by a mom with southern roots).  No sugar involved in that cornbread.  Bacon fat often was.

 

I'm just shocked that Ree Drummond would publish a recipe like that without sugar.  

[Qoass]

I just put her Dinnertime cookbook on hold at the library.  I'm #29 on the waiting list so I guess I'm not the only one who prefers her in writing.

[CalicoskiesNC]

I have made Ree's Salisbury steak 3x now and it is truly delicious. My son wants it for Christmas dinner! I said no. I make it exactly as written. The onion gravy is fantastic. This recipe is easy to make. Highly recommended.

[grisgris]

I made the mozzarella-stuffed meatloaf wrapped in bacon a few months ago. I was not happy. Except for the barbecue sauce, it was pretty flavorless. Also, the bacon didn't crisp up or even cook. It came out limp and tough and made the final product difficult to eat.

 

Not a winner in my book.

[anneofcleves]

CalicoskiesNC, I think that's adorable that your son wants it for Christmas dinner.  Maybe you can make it the day after?  It reminds me of years ago when I first made my son somebody's chicken fried steak recipe (Paula Deen's?), and he would have eaten it morning, noon, and night.  

 

gris gris, I always wondered if the way she covered up the bacon with sauce at the end would yield kind of flabby bacon.  That makes a big meatloaf - too bad it wasn't very good.

 

I actually have one to add, as well - her "Perfect Potatoes au Gratin".  I admit to being pretty hard on Ree, so I decided to give a basic recipe a try.  My honest review, was that they were OK, but generally speaking too much.  Too rich, too fatty, too much liquid, and had too much Cheddar cheese.  She's not alone in her use of heavy cream in scalloped potatoes, but I think 3 cups of heavy cream (with a cup of whole milk plus butter and two cups of cheese) is too fatty and heavy and to be a great side dish for anything.  I'll stick with my favorite and very basic recipe, which is Julia Child's Gratin Dauphinois from her Mastering the Art book which uses half the cheese (Gruyere) and whole milk.   

 

The thing that confused me the most when I made it (and made me bite my tongue and just follow it), was that she calls for a bunch of flour to thicken the sauce - essentially because she's using too much liquid.  She really could just cut down on the amount of cream/milk being used and let the starch of the russet potatoes do the work to combine with the cream and form the sauce for the potatoes.  The time to use flour as a thickening agent in a dish like this is if you're using low fat milk and/or a non-starchy potato.  But this is some of my irritation with Ree.  I don't think she really understands the basic science of cooking.

 

My review:  Something less than perfect.

[Qoass]

I checked her most recent cookbook out of the library this weekend and it took me all of an hour to go through it.  No surprise:  it's for hard-core fans only.  Lots of filler:  double page photos of horses and cows and her family plus postage stamp sized photos of every single step of every recipe which is just as irritating in book form as it is online.  There are recipes for chili cheese dogs (put hot dog in bun, top with chili and cheese) and nachos (put nachos on platter, top with cheese).  Each recipe also has suggestions for accompanying dishes and in the soup section, she kept mentioning "The Bread" so I was looking forward to a good recipe for that.  Turns out, "The Bread" consists of slicing a store-bought loaf in half, slathering each half with an entire stick of butter, then sticking it under the broiler.

 

I kid you not:

 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/the-bread/

[chessiegal]

And it remains no. 1 or 2 Best Seller in hardcover non-fiction week after week. Has me shaking my head in puzzlement.

[Lura]

This thread is right up my alley today because I've been on a search for the best cornbread recipe I could find.  I grew up on sweet cornbread, so it's what I'm used to.  My SIL always loved the recipe, too.  When she sent my mother's things to me, including her recipes, that one was missing.  I asked whether she'd seen it, and the answer was no, but I can't help wondering....  It wouldn't be the first time.  So, I'm searching for the same unique flavors and haven't found them yet.  The search goes on.  I'm turning into a cornbread taster!  :)

[anneofcleves]

I checked her most recent cookbook out of the library this weekend and it took me all of an hour to go through it.  No surprise:  it's for hard-core fans only.  Lots of filler:  double page photos of horses and cows and her family plus postage stamp sized photos of every single step of every recipe which is just as irritating in book form as it is online.  There are recipes for chili cheese dogs (put hot dog in bun, top with chili and cheese) and nachos (put nachos on platter, top with cheese).  Each recipe also has suggestions for accompanying dishes and in the soup section, she kept mentioning "The Bread" so I was looking forward to a good recipe for that.  Turns out, "The Bread" consists of slicing a store-bought loaf in half, slathering each half with an entire stick of butter, then sticking it under the broiler.

 

I kid you not:

 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/the-bread/

 

Thank you for the review, Qoass.  It actually sounds worse than I expected.  The woman needs some competition if that's a bestseller.

 

"The bread" made me laugh and laugh for real.  Was there a "The Peanut Butter Sandwich" in there?  Probably right next to Edna Mae's buttered saltines?

[grisgris]

And it remains no. 1 or 2 Best Seller in hardcover non-fiction week after week. Has me shaking my head in puzzlement.

 

This just makes me crazy. One of my downstairs neighbors works at Walmart, so I often take his uncle (other resident downstairs) to WM to hand off car keys, etc. The nephew works in the back where you pick up your online orders and that's by the book section. There is an endcap with Ree's new cookbook, so a couple of times I've browsed through it while I've been waiting.

 

Anyway, Quoass's review sums it up perfectly. (Somehow, I always end up opening to the page with the recipe where you dump about 12 cans of stuff into a pot to make soup.) My neighbor finished up his transaction and saw me looking at the book and said, "I want to get that. I really like her recipes."  I pointed out that the book I was holding had a broken spine and he wondered if Walmart would sell it to him at a discount. (I was seriously worried that it was going to end up being my Christmas present ...)

 

Just goes to show you...

Edited January 12, 2016 by grisgris

[ShellSeeker]

This thread is right up my alley today because I've been on a search for the best cornbread recipe I could find.  I grew up on sweet cornbread, so it's what I'm used to.  My SIL always loved the recipe, too.  When she sent my mother's things to me, including her recipes, that one was missing.  I asked whether she'd seen it, and the answer was no, but I can't help wondering....  It wouldn't be the first time.  So, I'm searching for the same unique flavors and haven't found them yet.  The search goes on.  I'm turning into a cornbread taster!  :)

 

Lura, I've got a sweet cornbread recipe I'll share with you! My husband is also a fan of sweet cornbread, so I found a recipe and then fiddled with the amount of sugar I used until I got it to where he liked it. If you'd like it, let me know and I'll send it to you in a PM.

[anneofcleves]

Anyway, Quoass's review sums it up perfectly. (Somehow, I always end up opening to the page with the recipe where you dump about 12 cans of stuff into a pot to make soup.) My neighbor finished up his transaction and saw me looking at the book and said, "I want to get that. I really like her recipes."  I pointed out that the book I was holding had a broken spine and he wondered if Walmart would sell it to him at a discount. (I was seriously worried that it was going to end up being my Christmas present ...)

 

Just goes to show you...

 

That's interesting about the broken spine.  I ventured over to Amazon and saw a few reviewers stating the same thing.  The Amazon reviewers for the most part love her.  Like how her blog loves her.  The few reviewers who dare to have an honest but different opinion are promptly dealt with by fans.  I especially had to laugh at the comments about the recipes being just like the kind she grew up with.  Um, honey, they pretty much are the recipes you grew up with, ripped off the backs of boxes and lifted from obscure church cookbooks.

[maggiemae]

I checked her most recent cookbook out of the library this weekend and it took me all of an hour to go through it.  No surprise:  it's for hard-core fans only.  Lots of filler:  double page photos of horses and cows and her family plus postage stamp sized photos of every single step of every recipe which is just as irritating in book form as it is online.  There are recipes for chili cheese dogs (put hot dog in bun, top with chili and cheese) and nachos (put nachos on platter, top with cheese).  Each recipe also has suggestions for accompanying dishes and in the soup section, she kept mentioning "The Bread" so I was looking forward to a good recipe for that.  Turns out, "The Bread" consists of slicing a store-bought loaf in half, slathering each half with an entire stick of butter, then sticking it under the broiler.

 

I kid you not:

 

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/the-bread/

OMG.....that is disgusting! My SMIL used to make a similar recipe with a little butter, mayo, parm, worchestershire, finely diced onion (mix) and top with paprika......and was actually good.....especially with either a simple salad or tomato soup. But with Ree's menu? Just no! LOL

[Lura]

After watching a Ree  re-run yesterday, my husband and I were inspired to have her Chicken and Dumplings for supper.  They were, in our opinion, very good.  My mother had made them two or three times during my childhood, and I had loved them, but I don't have her recipe.  Ree's dumpling tasted even better than I remember my mother's tasting. 

 

Contrary to Ree, I didn't use a whole chicken.  Both of us love white meat, so I used only white meat in mine.  The broth was rich with flavor.  When something came up that delayed our meal, we discovered that the broth had thickened to just the right gravy consistency and wasn't as runny as Ree's broth.  I would recommend, if you try it, to let the gravy cook down a while before adding the dumplings, and then allow the dumplings to cook a few minutes longer than she recommends (unless you like your chicken mixture the consistence of soup).  Contrary to thinking that the dish was ruined by the extra cooking, the delay made them better!

Edited March 10, 2016 by Lura

[anneofcleves]

I made a Ree recipe!  I know thousands of people do this regularly, but given how much smack I talk about the woman it's more of a rarity for me.  Anyway, I needed a dessert for today and one for a going away party at work.  The guest of honor loves chocolate.  Everyone loves chocolate, so I thought about the big old Texas sheet cake recipe from practically everyone's youth.  And when I googled, guess which recipe comes to the top of the list?  Yep, the neon haired one.  {heavy sigh}

 

So I figured why not?  After wading through about 500 photos of stuff being mixed together on her blog, I finally found the actual recipe.  Thank goodness she has a "print recipe" function on the site, because it's almost impossible to make a recipe looking just at her blog page, squeezed between the beauty shots and the 500 comments like "OMG!!! Ree, this is the most FANTASTIC cake EVER!!!  I'm going to make this for hubs tonight!!!  Thank you, REE!!! YOU ROCK!!!! Your cake is going to SAVE my marriage!!!! I LUVVVV YOUUUU!!!!  XOXOXO!!!!"  from her adoring fans.

 

Her recipe for "The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever" is fine.  After all, it's Texas sheet cake and has been around for decades.  I do think, though, that her recipe has waaaay too much butter added.  Almost twice the amount in both the cake and the icing in comparison to other recipes floating around.  Another comment I will make about her recipe is that it's overly complicated in terms of the steps.  Texas sheet cake is practically a one-bowl cake, or at least the ones I've made.  Hers has you boiling stuff in a pan, mixing stuff in separate bowls, and then bringing it all together as a cake batter.  It makes a supreme mess of your kitchen for such a simple cake.

 

I modified mine to use finely chopped, toasted hazelnuts and a bit of espresso powder in the icing, instead of pecans. I just like hazelnuts better.  It must have been the spirit of Ina Garten at work in me. 

 

In the end, the cake was very good. With that much butter, how could it not be?  Is it the best chocolate cake ever?  Probably not.  Honestly, I'm a pretty big fan of the humble Hershey's one-bowl chocolate layer cake recipe made with fancier cocoa.  But it's even great with Hershey's cocoa.  That is a very simple and perfect little chocolate cake in my opinion.

Edited March 27, 2016 by anneofcleves

[Qoass]

Thanks, anneofcleves.  I made that version once and a friend of mine really liked it so every once in a while I pull the recipe out, look at how much butter is in it and decide to make something else.

 

If somebody has what they feel is the best Texas sheet cake recipe, please share.

[peacheslatour]

I made a Ree recipe!  I know thousands of people do this regularly, but given how much smack I talk about the woman it's more of a rarity for me.  Anyway, I needed a dessert for today and one for a going away party at work.  The guest of honor loves chocolate.  Everyone loves chocolate, so I thought about the big old Texas sheet cake recipe from practically everyone's youth.  And when I googled, guess which recipe comes to the top of the list?  Yep, the neon haired one.  {heavy sigh}

 

So I figured why not?  After wading through about 500 photos of stuff being mixed together on her blog, I finally found the actual recipe.  Thank goodness she has a "print recipe" function on the site, because it's almost impossible to make a recipe looking just at her blog page, squeezed between the beauty shots and the 500 comments like "OMG!!! Ree, this is the most FANTASTIC cake EVER!!!  I'm going to make this for hubs tonight!!!  Thank you, REE!!! YOU ROCK!!!! Your cake is going to SAVE my marriage!!!! I LUVVVV YOUUUU!!!!  XOXOXO!!!!"  from her adoring fans.

 

Her recipe for "The Best Chocolate Sheet Cake Ever" is fine.  After all, it's Texas sheet cake and has been around for decades.  I do think, though, that her recipe has waaaay too much butter added.  Almost twice the amount in both the cake and the icing in comparison to other recipes floating around.  Another comment I will make about her recipe is that it's overly complicated in terms of the steps.  Texas sheet cake is practically a one-bowl cake, or at least the ones I've made.  Hers has you boiling stuff in a pan, mixing stuff in separate bowls, and then bringing it all together as a cake batter.  It makes a supreme mess of your kitchen for such a simple cake.

 

I modified mine to use finely chopped, toasted hazelnuts and a bit of espresso powder in the icing, instead of pecans. I just like hazelnuts better.  It must have been the spirit of Ina Garten at work in me. 

 

In the end, the cake was very good. With that much butter, how could it not be?  Is it the best chocolate cake ever?  Probably not.  Honestly, I'm a pretty big fan of the humble Hershey's one-bowl chocolate layer cake recipe made with fancier cocoa.  But it's even great with Hershey's cocoa.  That is a very simple and perfect little chocolate cake in my opinion.

Ina has a really simple one that calls for Hershey's syrup.  It's a cupcake recipe, but it works for cakes.  It's really delicious, I make it all the time.

12 Chocolate Cupcakes

 

Cream together 1 stick of butter and 1 cup of sugar

4 eggs added singly low speed

Whole can Hershey's chocolate syrup- I use the dark chocolate

1 tsp. vanilla

1 cup flour

Mix until just combined

Fill muffin paper's almost full, this batter doesn't rise much

325F for 30 min- 1 hour for cake

For the frosting I just make a ganache and add either a handful of mint chips or some instant espresso.

[Lisin]

I make "Ree's" sheet cake recipe all the time... but then I call it Ree's recipe but really I did make a lot of changes... same amount of butter, but I use Hershey's Special Dark cocoa powder which makes it taste amazing, I also use sour cream instead of buttermilk and don't use that icing recipe at all. Generally I make a boiled milk vanilla icing that is too good for words. But if I do use her icing I also use the dark cocoa powder and it turns out well enough. People go crazy for it which... I mean I guess I'm just a dessert snob but I've always thought "It's just chocolate cake... what's the big deal?" though I do think it's a nice easy recipe. I also skip some of her mixing steps because they're just not needed.

[anneofcleves]

I made Ree's Jerk Chicken today, because nothing screams Pioneer Woman more than a nice batch of smokey, jerk chicken.  Am I right, mon?  Actually, there were two reasons I made it: 1.  It looked like an actual recipe from dear Ree; and 2.  I had an extraordinarily high volume of allspice berries languishing in my cabinet and though this would be a good use.

The only variations I made to the recipe were as follows:  1. I used whole spices and ground them fresh (because I'm a spice hoarder and needed to use some up so I can buy MORE); 2. I only used one jalapeño (because grandma came for dinner and grandma is not a cowboy when it comes to "the spicy"); 3. I marinated the chicken for four hours (that worked fine, longer would be great, 30 minutes would not be acceptable); and 4. (VERY, very important) I did not follow Ree's directions AT ALL in grilling the chicken because Ree does not know how to grill chicken (as evidenced by the photo of the burned, yet most assuredly blubbery chicken in the recipe beauty shot at FN.com).  She really needs to be taken out behind the horse barn and whipped for her crimes against grilled chicken, but that's a fantasy for another day.

The verdict...excellent marinade.  No, really good.  So good that I suspect she conned some hotel chef in Boulder into sharing his recipe, or slightly modified Tyler Florence's, but it was still excellent.  There are lots of variations on jerk chicken, but this was delicious, even when made milder.  Next time, sans grandma, I will make it nice and angry with some scotch bonnet peppers.  And it bears repeating, do NOT follow her instructions for grilling.  Otherwise you might as well pour the fabulous marinade down the drain. And mourn the loss of a perfectly good chicken.

Final note.  I marinated individual pieces of chicken (one whole chicken plus six additional legs) and used the remaining to marinate peppers, onions, and portabello mushroom caps to grill for the vegetarian and the rest of us.  Delicious.

Edited May 30, 2016 by anneofcleves

[Albino]

I'm one of the few people on the planet (apparently) who actually likes PW.  Most of her food is way too rich and unhealthy to eat everyday, but I've had good luck with it.   Made these recipes over the past few months and thought I'd share.  They're fairly basic LOL...I'm not the world's best cook.

Salisbury Steak is delicious...one of my favorites. I make mashed potatoes and green beans with it.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/salisbury-steak-recipe.html

Mini-Meatball Casserole.  Disappointing...sounds like it would be good, but not worth the trouble of making all those mini meatballs.  No real flavor...very few spices involved...salt, pepper and sugar IIRC.  Meh.  Might as well just make spaghetti and meatballs.

http://thepioneerwoman.com/cooking/mini-meatball-casserole/

And last but not least...Sour Cream Noodle Bake.  Loved this.

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/sour-cream-noodle-bake0.html

Edited July 25, 2016 by Albino

[grisgris]

My mother made that last recipe quite frequent when I was growing up and I didn't like it then. It was in a 1950s or 1960s cookbook (I think Better Homes & Gardens) and she used regular white onions (as the recipe called for) instead of green onions and put a Cornflakes crumb top on it. I tried Ree's version and didn't like hers any better. I think both versions lack flavor and I absolutely hate white onions, so Mom's recipe already had one strike against it! LOL!

[Albino]

Watched an old episode where she made lemon meringue pie for Paw Paw.  Because Paw Paw loves her lemon meringue pie! 

Anyway, I was happy to see she made the lemon part from scratch, rather than using some jello + heavy cream + something canned concoction. 

My question is...my mom made the best pies ever and her lemon meringue was amazing.  But she always let the hot lemon pie cool to room temperature before putting on the meringue because the heat would make the meringue runny.  But Ree just slapped it on the minute it came out of the oven.  Is this okay to do?  I don't want my Mom rolling over in her grave if I attempt it.

I also feel like Ree's meringue and whipped cream are never stiff enough.  Her "peaks" just sort of flop over when she tests it.  Maybe it's just personal preference though.

Edited August 13, 2016 by Albino

[chessiegal]

My Mom always let the pie come to room temp or cool it before the meringue went on. She made killer lemon meringue pie and every other baked good you could think of, but couldn't cook a savory meal to save her life. I attribute it to her PA meat and potatoes upbringing.

[Albino]

Okay, thanks chessie.  I'm not crazy!

My mom was from Missouri, but she could make great dinners too.  Same meat-and-potatoes mentality which I've inherited.  When she made spaghetti the first time it was shocking!  But very good.

[peacheslatour]

I always let the lemon curd come down to room temp. I would think the meringue would wilt if you put it on while it was still hot.

[3pwood]

With all due respect to mothers everywhere, both Alton Brown & America's Test Kitchen say to spread the meringue over the hot pie.   As explained by America's Test Kitchen: 

Quote

We wanted to develop a lemon meringue pie recipe that gave us a meringue that didn’t break down and puddle on the bottom or “tear” on top. We realized that the puddling underneath the meringue was from undercooking. The beading on top of the pie was from overcooking. We discovered that if the filling was piping hot when the meringue was applied, the underside of the meringue would not undercook; if the oven temperature was relatively low, the top of the meringue wouldn’t overcook. Baking the pie in a relatively cool oven also produced the best-looking, most evenly baked meringue.

[peacheslatour]

That's interesting. Gonna have to try it, thanks 3pwood!

[Qoass]

I know this may surprise some but Consumer Reports approves  of Dree's cookware.

Edited September 22, 2016 by Qoass

[Lisin]

1 hour ago, Qoass said:

I know this may surprise some but Consumer Reports approves  of Dree's cookware.

Wow. That's actually really impressive. I mean, I'm not rushing out to buy it, but for $60 you could apparently do a lot worse! Who knew?!

[ShellSeeker]

1 hour ago, Lisin said:

Wow. That's actually really impressive. I mean, I'm not rushing out to buy it, but for $60 you could apparently do a lot worse! Who knew?!

I know! I read that too and was surprised. The article did say that it's kind of light weight, which for me is just about a deal-breaker. The more substantial stuff lasts longer and can take more of a beating. I cook almost every day, and make a lot of my own pantry stuff too. But for someone who doesn't cook that much, or as a set of cookware for someone living on their own for the first time, it would probably be fine.

[dianagerace]

Making this today: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ree-drummond/chicken-enchilasagna.html?ref=amp

The only change I plan on making is adding eggs to the ricotta (per the comments). Fingers crossed that my very very picky (haters of all things healthy) actually eat it. 

[peacheslatour]

Good luck!

[Kohola3]

Brave woman.  No way I'd touch it.