Product Review: Pamela's Chocolate Brownie Mix

Recipe Title: Pamela's Irresistible Chocolate Brownies
Recipe Link: http://www.pamelasproducts.com/recipes/pamirrebrownies.html
Product Link: http://www.pamelasproducts.com/ProductsMIXES.html#CBM
Status: Vetoed
Rating: 3/10

Jen's Notes: On Easter Sunday, I decided to try out the gluten-free brownie mix that's been sitting in my pantry for a few weeks now. We were going over to my mom's for Easter lunch, and I knew there would be at least one dessert there that was just chock full of gluten. So it seemed like a good idea to have a (hopefully) tasty alternative for my husband.

The brownies were pretty simple to make. One nice thing about this mix is that there are a variety of recipes on the bag, so you should be able to make them with whatever ingredients you have on hand. There's a recipe using butter, another using only oil, etc. The cook time, however, was quite a bit longer than the 18 minutes prescribed by the recipes on the bag. Mine ended up cooking for about 30 minutes before the toothpick came out clean.

When it was all said and done, though, the flavor was just not there. The texture was grainy, but I could have lived with that if that was the only problem. The brownies also had a strange metallic aftertaste. I felt a bit like I was munching on aluminum foil. Chocolately aluminum foil, at least. According to my brutally honest little brother, this was the "worst thing you've ever made." These brownies turned out to be QUITE resistable, contrary to the recipe title. Only four of us were brave enough to try one, and none of us liked them. The other half of the brownies went into the trash.

Another complaint I had was the amount of brownies produced. This didn't end up being an issue for us, but considering that the mix was $6, I would like to get more than eight normal-sized brownies out of it. Imagine if we had actually liked them -- it wouldn't have made enough brownies to feed everyone, and our holiday crew is only 8 people (in my family, feeding everyone requires 2x per item per person).

If you are feeling creative, you might be able to make this edible by adding some sugar or honey to the mix, or maybe adding a cream cheese frosting. If you're going to use this mix, you'll need to do something to cover up that metallic flavor. As for us ... well, you know you'll be the first to know when I find some tasty brownies!

Prep Time: 5 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Start to Finish: 35 minutes

Ricotta & Pesto Meat Loaf

Recipe Title: Ricotta & Pesto Meat Loaf
Recipe Link: http://www.celiac.com/articles/859/1/Ricotta--Pesto-Meat-Loaf-Gluten-Free/Page1.html

Status: Vetoed


Jen's Notes: From the cooking side of things, this was a pretty simple recipe. I made the pesto first, using this recipe. Beat the egg in a separate bowl, then dump turkey, pesto, ricotta and egg together.

Problem #1: The mixture felt very wet to me. I've made a lot of meatloaves in my time, so I have a pretty good idea for the consistency that you need. I remedied this problem by adding about a half cup of brown rice breadcrumbs to the mixture. You could also add some gluten-free oats, if you prefer.

Problem #2: The meat mixture came out green. When you add a strong color like green to turkey (white) and ricotta (white), there's not much there to tone down the green color. Admittedly, this is just a visual complaint. But I found it a bit disconcerting to eat green meat. When I pulled it out of the oven, the green effect had toned down some but the final product was still a light green.

Problem #3: This one is the deal breaker. In spite of having ingredients like basil and ricotta, which are very flavorful ingredients, this turned out very bland. I think the parmesan/romano toned down the flavor of the basil enough that it didn't get to really stand out like it should have. You could try using a different cheese (mozzarella, maybe?) or cutting the parmesan.

However, I think this recipe has seen its last day in my kitchen. I'm all for "fixing" a recipe, but there's gotta be something worth working with in the first place. Unfortunately, I cannot say that about this recipe. Normally, we save the leftovers to eat the next day for dinner so that I don't have to cook every day. These leftovers went down the garbage disposal.

After the relative kitchen failures we've had this week, I've decided to give poor hubby's taste buds a break and make quiche for dinner tonight, so the chicken that was originally on the menu for this week is getting bumped to next week. I'm thinking of trying some GF baking this weekend, though, so be sure and check back for that.

Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
Start to Finish: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Chipotle Orange Chicken

Recipe Title: Chipotle Orange Chicken
Recipe Link: http://www.elanaspantry.com/chipotle-orange-chicken/
Status: Vetoed by hubby
Rating: 3/10

Jen's Notes: I made this recipe almost exactly as specified, except that I substituted chicken breasts for the whole chicken, and there were no chipotles because they didn't make it home from the grocery store somehow.

It was a very easy to make recipe. The marinade took maybe fifteen minutes to prepare, including chopping garlic and squeezing oranges. I let it marinade overnight, then tossed it in the oven when I got home from work. Because I used chicken breasts instead of a whole chicken, the bake time was only 30 minutes.

Unfortunately, I was very disappointed with the flavor. The orange flavor is very overpowering. None of the flavor of the garlic or the herbs de provence came through. For the same effect, I could have just marinated hte chicken breasts in orange juice. I imagine the chipotles, had they made it home from the grocery store, probably would have come through because chipotles have such strong flavor. However, I don't think I'll making this one again. Making this with a whole chicken might make a difference, but I prefer to use chicken breasts because of the fat factor. So, for me, this recipe is failed out.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 30 minutes
Start to Finish: 45 minutes