Darbie Esther

I am a working mom, wife, and volunteer my time to the Boy Scouts so my schedule is very packed. Quick, nutritious dinners are a priority for me and my family.
Mongolian Beef II
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

I've made this recipe countless times. My husband regularly asks for it. I add mushrooms and carrots to the saute and serve with fried rice. Oh yum!

Tacos in Pasta Shells
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

This is the BEST recipe for my little boy to help make and to eat. Since it's a mix of Italian and Mexican, I take softened butter, mix in chopped green onions and spread this on french bread that I then broil until golden brown and serve with the casserole. Oh yummm.

Hungarian Mushroom Soup
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

So good! I've been looking for a wonderful Hungarian Mushroom Soup recipe since having it in my favorite restaurant. I think this is better than their since I can season it to my taste. Thank you so much!

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Ham, Potato, and Cheese Soup
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

My husband and I enjoyed this for three nights - and that was after taking other people's recommendation to cut the recipe in half. I served it in bread bowls and used 3/4 of the Velveeta and one 8 oz pkg of cream cheese. With the use of leftover Thanksgiving honey-baked ham this was an awesome recipe. Thanks so much!

Turkey Pot Pie I
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

Very delicious recipe. When preparing the crust I use a small heart-shaped cookie cutter to make the vents then lay the cutouts on top of the crust, brush it all with egg white then sprinkly cracked pepper across the top for a beautiful golden brown crust. Martha Stewart would be proud.

Turkey Tetrazzini II
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

The basic recipe is a good one, but it took the suggests in other people's reviews to perfect it. For my small family, half of the recipe was plenty. I added sauteed mushrooms, onions, garlic, and red pepper flakes then only cooked it for 40 minutes. It was *almost* too dry and I knew it would be more so the next day as leftovers, so when I heated them up the following night I added a few heaping tablespoons of sour cream and mixed well. This was a perfect addition that I will do the first night next time, right before serving. Thanks to the original cook for the recipe.

Easy Fruit Dip
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

We had a "dip party" at work today, so yesterday I scanned this site for fruit dip recipes. I made this recipe, one that is exactly the same, but with orange juice instead of cherry juice, and one with sweetened condensed milk instead of the marshmallow creme and with lemon juice. By far, the cherry was the most flavorful and most attractive. The orange was a nice alternative, but the lemon left a lot to be desired. In the future, I will use the cream cheese and marshmallow creme as a base and simply try different juices. I used the actual fruits (cherries, an orange slice, and a lemon slice) to adorn the dip so that the party-goers knew what flavor they were dipping their fruits into. This is also a great recipe to have one's children help make. Oh, and warming the cream cheese and the marshmallow creme before mixing made all the difference. Enjoy!

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Strawberry Spinach Salad
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

This salad made my Easter dinner absolutely perfect! I chose to make it with apple cider vinegar and I'm so glad I did. There were NO leftovers for the next day so I used the excess dressing on a new bowl of salad that I took to work and shared with my co-workers who all wanted the recipe.

Chicken and Bacon Shish Kabobs
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

I had planned on making this for Father's Day, but after marinading just the chicken in the morning and letting it set all day in the fridge, we decided it was just too hot to bbq that evening. We thought we'd make it for dinner then the next night, but again, it was too hot. I didn't want the chicken to go bad, so I cut the bacon slices into 4ths & fried it up (the whole 1# pkg.) and began sauteeing the the chicken mixture in a huge skillet. After the chicken was no longer pink, I added the vegetables which I'd only marinaded in a separate bowl 1 hr before starting dinner. (I followed others' advice and changed the pineapple to a lg can, tripled the mushrooms, and added cherry tomatoes.) Toward the end of the cooking, I added the bacon and stirred it together. I served this over sticky white rice. I'm definitely adding this to my personal recipe book and calling it "Stir Fried Shish Kabobs".

The Best Mashed Potatoes
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

It was a good recipe, but seemed like A LOT of additional calories that didn't pay off in the flavor. It was alright, but I don't know that I would waste the cream cheese and parmesan again *just* for mashed potatoes

Pork Chops Stuffed with Smoked Gouda and Bacon
Rating: Unrated
Darbie Esther's rating

With just my husband and me for Christmas dinner this year we opted for a non-traditional menu. This pork chop recipe could not have been a better choice! We made it in the oven at 425 and just kept an eye on it, turning it once while cooking. I don't care for parsely, so we used only a pinch of dried. To accompany the main dish, we made Roasted Vegetables http://christmas.allrecipes.com/AZ/RoastedVegetables.asp and Smothered Green Beans http://sidedish.allrecipes.com/AZ/SmthrdGrnBns.asp.. Perfect dinner!

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