by Donnette Mickelson
The Cookbook Club recently reviewed “Taste of Home Copycat Favorites” by Taste of Home Books. We sampled several recipes:
Cheesecake Factory Pasta Da Vinci Chicken
Outback Steakhouse Mini Mac and Cheese Bites
Houlihan’s Stuffed Mushrooms
Olive Garden Five-Cheese Ziti Al Forno
Applebee’s Quesadilla Burger
Homemade Oreo Cookies
Starbucks Pink Drink
Starbucks Heavenly Orange Cranberry Bars
Krispy Kreme Doughnuts
Cracker Barrel Meatloaf
KFC Moist Chocolate Cake
When evaluating a cookbook, we look for easy-to-follow directions, simple ingredients, and tasty results. Color photographs, a variety of courses, and good organization are always a bonus. “Copycat Favorites” was a winner.
Every recipe was easy to make, used simple ingredients, and turned out delicious. Color photographs enhanced the overall appeal of the book and helped with recipe selection. The one caveat was the inferior index. Many of the recipes have “copycat” in their name, which made it difficult to locate individual recipes. Also, if you wanted to find “chicken” dishes there was not a separate entry for recipes with chicken. But overall, it was fun to try new recipes and flavors.
The Oreo cookie recipe was very easy. The filling could be used with other cookies, crackers, or desserts.
Oreo Cookie Filling
⅔ cup shortening
⅓ cup butter
1 ¼ tsp vanilla
2 ¼ powdered sugar
⅓ cup marshmallow cream
Beat shortening, butter, and vanilla until blended. Gradually add sugar and marshmallow cream until smooth. Spread on cookies.
We have read other Taste of Home cookbooks and all have been great books to use. “Copycat Favorites” is available at the Ridgeland Area Library for anyone who wants to try these recipes for themselves.
About the Cookbook Club
The Cookbook Club meets on the last Tuesday of the month at 6 p.m. at the Ridgeland Community Center. Everyone is welcome. We ask that you prepare one recipe to share, and we do not judge “flops.” We want an honest representation of recipes and the book as a whole.
Our book for March is “Dinner in One: Exceptional & Easy One-Pan Meals: A Cookbook” by Melissa Clark. Check out a copy at the library and join us on March 26.
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