Culinary Goods

This desperately needed flavor, so once I added a few things, it was much better. After the additions, it got a 7 and the recipe came from cooking classy.com. 10 oz smoked bacon (about 9 - 10 slices), diced in small pieces 1 1/2 cups chopped yellow onions (1 medium) 1 1/2 cups chopped carrots (about 3 large) 1 1/2 cups chopped celery (about 3 stalks) 3 cloves garlic, minced (1 Tbsp) 5 1/2 cups low-sodium chicken broth 2 1/2 Tbsp tomato paste 1 1/2 tsp sugar I left this out 2 tsp chopped fresh thyme (optional) I used dried 3 (15 oz) cans navy beans, drained and rinsed Salt and freshly ground black pepper 1 1/4 cups (5 oz) shredded mozzarella or string cheese Chopped fresh parsley, for serving (optional) 1/2 tsp. dry mustard 1 tsp. dried rosemary Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.cookingclassy.com/bean-bacon-soup /

These were pretty good and get a 7. They were really dense because they had a lot of fat in them, so I don't know that I would make them again, but they were still pretty good. The recipe came from bakeorbreak.com. FOR THE BROWNIES: 1 cup unsalted butter (plus more for preparing pan) 3 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 1 cup granulated sugar I used 3/4 C. 1/2 cup cocoa powder 1/2 cup mascarpone cheese, softened 3 large eggs, at room temperature 2 teaspoons vanilla extract 1/2 cup all-purpose flour 1/4 teaspoon salt FOR THE GANACHE: 6 ounces semisweet chocolate, finely chopped 6 tablespoons heavy cream 3 tablespoons unsalted butter Here's the link to the instructions:  http://www.bakeorbreak.com/2008/01/chocolate-mascarpone-brownies/

I really liked this and give it a 7.5. I didn't bread the chicken before-hand, and just threw it into the crock pot with everything else. Also, I left the red chili peppers out of this, which (as Jared pointed out) means I can't call it Kung "Pao" Chicken, since it doesn't have any "pow" to it. This does still have red pepper flakes, though, so it does have just a bit of heat to it. The recipe came from therecipecritic.com. Ingredients ⅔ cup cornstarch or arrowroot powder ¼ tsp black pepper 1¼ lbs boneless, skinless chicken breasts (about 2 pieces), cut into bite-sized chunks 1 tablespoon avocado oil or olive oil **4 - 6 dried red chili peppers (to taste) found in Asian supermarkets or the International section of a large chain grocery store - see NOTE I left these out ⅔ cup roasted cashews (or roasted peanuts) I left these out simply because I don't like cashews  1 red bell pepper, chopped into bite-sized pieces 1 medium zucchini, ch