Caprese Stuffed Spaghetti Squash

Guinea Pig: Kelli

THE CLAIM

Foodgawker recently featured Cookie Monster Cooking's recipe for Caprese Stuffed Spaghetti Squash. Hearty, healthy and low carb?  Sign us up! Click the link in the photo caption for recipe and photo source.


Click here for recipe and photo source.

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Kelli gave this a try, and served this as a side dish.  It was a with the adults and kids alike, and they report it was fun to eat straight out of the shell!  However, Kelli offers the following feedback:

• This recipe calls for cannellini beans, which is a little out of place when thinking "caprese."  Kelli is going to leave them out next time.
• There was some confusion regarding the balsamic vinegar glaze.  The recipe actually links you to a different recipe on how to make balsamic vinegar glaze.  Kelli just used balsamic vinegar straight, and said it was still good.

 
Good news if you are serving a crowd - these hold their shape very well, even when cut in half.  See the picture below. 

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Kelli

 

CONCLUSION

Yum!  No worries here.  Give this recipe a try!

 

 

Oven Roasted Smoked Sausage and Potatoes

Guinea Pig: Sarah

THE CLAIM

Aaaaaaaaah, Fall.  Cooler weather means one thing in the kitchen: COMFORT FOOD.  Check out this recipe from Big Blue Binder for Oven Roasted Smoked Sausage and Potatoes.  Click the link in the photo caption for photo and recipe source.


Click here for photo and recipe source

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Sarah put this recipe to the test. The result was delicious, and could easily be served for a group.  Sarah sums it all up by saying, "This dish tastes like autumn." We envision it with more veggies and possibly even sauerkraut!  The only complaint was that she wasn't able to spread the vegetables out enough for them to brown.  Try dividing this between two baking pans or cookie sheets for even browning.

Because the original ingredient list wasn't very specific, Sarah made sure to note how much of everything she used.  See the original ingredient list in black, and Sarah's edits in blue.

• 1 package of smoked sausage [14 oz. of Eckrich smoked sausage.]
• 1 large onion, peeled and chopped [A yellow onion the size of a softball.]
• 5 large potatoes, peeled and chopped into 1/2 inch cubes [Each of her russets yielded a generous cup when cubed]
• olive oil [3 T, divided: 2 tsp. for the baking sheet & 2 T + 1 tsp. in the bowl]
• fine sea salt [1/2 tsp.]
• freshly ground black pepper [1 tsp.]
• sweet paprika [1 tsp.]
• dried thyme [1/2 tsp.]
• a handful of grated strong cheddar cheese [3/4 cup] 

Sarah also adds the following suggestions:

• In a hurry?  Try using 4 cups of hash browns (thawed), and an 8oz bag of chopped onions. 
• Mix the olive oil and the spices together before adding to the vegetables, to ensure an even coating.
• Get fancy with the cheese. How about an aged cheddar?

 

CONCLUSION

No complaints here!  Guinea Pig Squad stamp of approval!

 

 

Libby's Pumpkin Muffins

Guinea Pig: Kelsey

THE CLAIM

Need something to go with your Pumpkin Spice Lattes and Pumpkin Pie? VeryBestBaking.com offers this recipe for Pumpkin Muffins, featuring Libby's canned pumpkin puree.  Click the link in the photo caption for recipe and photo source.


Click here for Recipe and Photo Source

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Kelsey gave these a try.  She liked how simple the recipe was and how quickly it came together.  The result?  Delicious!  Approved by the whole family! 

To be clear, this isn't the pumpkin version of cornbread, to be served as a dinner side. These are desserts.  To turn this from a dessert into a show stopper, consider a cream cheese frosting!  (YUM!)

Kelsey did not that she didn't use muffin liners, and it turned out just fine.  She said her batch of muffins (traditional size) were done at exactly the 25 minute mark, and the recipe yielded 26 muffins.  She also said that she used water instead of the optional orange juice.

CONCLUSION
No complaints here!  Guinea Pig Squad stamp of approval!

Slow Cooker Pulled Pork

Guinea Pig: Jennifer

THE CLAIM

When you hear the words "pork" and "crock pot," most assume that we're talking about the variety soaked in BBQ sauce.  TidyMom offers this recipe for a more traditional Slow Cooker Pulled Pork.  See link in photo caption for recipe and photo source.  



Click here for recipe and photo source.

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Jennifer made this recipe.  Per the recipe suggestion, she substituted apple juice for hard cider.  The result?  Delicious and moist!  Just the right amount of sweetness and just a hint of "apple."  But there are some things to note:

1. Again, this is not BBQ Pork.  It's shredded pork.  Add sauce of your choice when serving.
2. 4-5 lbs of meat is a lot of meat.  Jennifer made this for two adults and a toddler.  See the picture below.  There were plenty of leftovers for shredded pork nachos. 
3. We'll say it again: 4-5 lbs of meat is a lot of meat.  You'll need more than 4-5 hours on low in a crock pot to shred this.  Aim for 7-8 hours instead.  

CONCLUSION
YUM!  Proof that pork in a crock pot doesn't need to be BBQ.

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Karen

Slow Cooker Chocolate Lava Cake

Guinea Pig: Kelli

THE CLAIM

We know that we recently featured a recipe for Molten Lava Mug Cake.  Too soon to post another?  ABSOLUTELY NOT.  Check out this video on Slow Cooker Chocolate Lava Cake, as featured by Buzzfeed's Tasty Facebook page (https://www.facebook.com/buzzfeedtasty).  Video can also be viewed in YouTube by clicking this link.

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Kelli made this recipe happen.  Her reaction? "Wow! Easy! Straight forward and good! It wasn't a true "lava" cake, but more of a pudding cake. The pudding was on the bottom. So cake on top of pudding. And it was delicious straight out of the crock pot. The cooking time was perfect."

The end result would be something similar to an 8" round cake, two inches high, and might feed 8-10 people.  Wondering what to do with the leftovers? (Or laughing at the thought of any of it being left over?)  Kelli said she left hers in the crock pot, and put the crock pot in the fridge until she was ready to serve it again.  Reheating in the crock pot caused some of the edges to burn, but you could cut around that.  Microwave works just as good.  Nothing is as good as straight out of the crock pot, but reheating works just fine.

CONCLUSION
Perfect for the choco-holic in your life!

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Kelli

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Kelli

Root-Beer-Spiked Pulled Pork

Guinea Pig: Kimberley

THE CLAIM

Want to take BBQ pork to the next level?  Community Table offers this crock pot recipe with a surprise ingredient: root beer! Click the link in the photo caption to see recipe and photo source!

Click here for recipe and photo source!

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Kimberley made this one, and she is happy that she did.  She says that the recipe is delicious, and that her family was happy to eat the copious amount of leftovers for the rest of the week!  She is sure she will make the recipe again.

Kimberly says that after 10 hours in the slow cooker, "the meat just fell off the bone and was very easy to shred."

As far as the root beer flavor, Kimberley said she didn't notice a discernible difference between this and traditional BBQ pork (except that this was REALLY GOOD BBQ pork).

CONCLUSION
A worthy rival to traditional crock pot BBQ pork!

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Kimberley

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

Guinea Pig: Karen

THE CLAIM

Facebook personality Courtney Luper shared a post earlier this month, promising low carb dieters that pizza was still on the menu.  Using cauliflower, the low carb diet's secret weapon, she claims to have found the best recipe for a low carb pizza crust.  Click the link in the photo caption for recipe and photo source.

Click here for recipe and photo source.
(This will take you to the Facebook post and may require you to log in to Facebook.) 

THE TEST
Guinea Pig Karen, lover of cauliflower and low carb dieter, gave this a try.  As a disclaimer, she used 3 full eggs (which was an alternative to 3 egg whites, per the recipe).  She ended up dividing her dough between two 9" pie pans. 

There's good news and bad news.  The good news is that it does not taste like cauliflower, especially once you add the pizza toppings. 

The bad news is that the consistency is just awful.  The recipe pointedly says that this is a "soft crust."  By soft they mean mushy, and completely unable to hold its shape. Says Guinea Pig Karen, "The crust with mushy - like something between french toast and ricotta."  And that was after 45 minutes of baking.  (The recipe doesn't specify a baking time.)  Karen was so turned off by the consistency that she could only eat a few bites. 


CONCLUSION
We're not saying that cauliflower can't be used to make pizza crust.  We're just saying this recipe isn't the one to use.  

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Karen

Photo Courtesy of Guinea Pig Karen