Those Internet recipe reviews........LOL

15 years ago

I often get recipes off the Internet, and I look for one that have lots of stars in their reviews. I don't know why I do that, because so many of the positive reviews are written by people who made so many changes to the original recipe that the review ends up being useless.

Consider this 5-star review of a recipe for bran muffins--regular old plain (but yummy) bran muffins. I'm shaking my head. :-)

I omitted the sugar and the raisins to form a batter that I could then half. One for a savory and one for a banana chocolate chip nut muffin. For the savory I added finely chopped boiled brocoli 1 1/2 cups, added 1/4 cup dried onion flakes, finely chopped sun dried tomatoes, 1 tbsp feta cheese, 1 tbsp romano, 4 tbsp shredded cheddar, and oregano. This is now one of my favorite breakfasts on the go. For the sweet I added 1 mashed banana 1/4 cup dark mini chocolate chips, 2 tbsp maple syrup, 1/2 cup combined chopped walnuts, almonds and sunflower seeds.

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Comments (12)

jannie
15 years ago
I know what you mean. Now, did the Five Stars refer to the original recipe or the two modifications above? I read a lot of internet recipes. For example, this year I found a recipe for Christmas cookies that called for mace (which I do have on hand). Yet one of the reviews said "Omit the mace because I hate the taste." Hmmm...
lydia1959
15 years ago
I always look for the highest ratings too when choosing a recipe. The review you posted made me lol, but usually the people that change things in the recipe are the ones that give it a bad rating.
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alisande
Original Author
15 years ago
Sometimes people report changes that sound good to me, and in that case I'll make the recipe with those changes. But I don't see myself ever putting broccoli in my bran muffins. :-)
houstonmom_gw
15 years ago
That drives me and my DH nuts! You cannot rate a recipe 5 stars when, in fact, the recipe has been altered drastically.

We have gotten to the point where we pay attention to the 1 star ratings! They're helpful, too.
User
15 years ago
That is funny! When the 'reviewer' got done with the recipe, it didn't even resemble the original. I don't mind when someone posts a recipe review and says 'oh by the way, I added a little cinnamon, which added some extra flavor'. But when they make wholesale changes it then becomes a different recipe altogether.
soxxxx
15 years ago
I only believe the ratings that changed absolutely nothing.
tobygirl
15 years ago
How about the people who give a recipe five stars, after having never even tried it, but they "just know it will be delicious!"
User
15 years ago
Lol! This is the way I cook. My best recipes are the ones I modified from someone else.
alisande
Original Author
15 years ago
Tobygirl, I haven't seen that (yet) in recipe reviews, but I've seen it on Amazon. What are these people thinking??

The other kind of Amazon reviewers that drive me nuts are the ones who give a poor rating to a product because it didn't arrive by a certain date, or because they made a mistake and ordered the wrong thing, or because of something that had nothing to do with the quality and usability of the product. My "favorite" was someone who ordered a lens that didn't fit his camera. It wasn't made for his camera, and he admitted that, but he still gave it only a 1-star rating because he couldn't use it.
oldgardener_2009
15 years ago
I dislike that too...if you're rating the recipe, rate the original recipe and don't change it! Makes it all pointless. LOL
nelles_gw
15 years ago
Oh, Tobygirl, I am so GLAD to see you here. I wanted to thank you for a snickerdoodle recipe that you posted on the recipe exchange forum back in 2008. I found it last week, made the cookies, and received RAVE reviews! I'm a miserable cook, but your recipe seemed easy even to me. It will be my go-to cookie recipe forever.

Here's the link. Tobygirl's recipe is the seventh post.

Thanks again,
Ellen

Here is a link that might be useful: Tobygirl's snickerdoodles
nelles_gw
15 years ago
Bump

Those Internet recipe reviews........LOL

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Comments (12)

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