Pizza

So my friend is known for her yummy homemade pizza and she shared her recipe with me, and even taught me a few tricks of the trade. We have started a new tradition of pizza and movie night on fridays and the kids are loving it!

I think thus far topping wise my favorite is the veggie loaded pizzas, peppers, onions, tomatoes, olives, mushrooms, you name it we throw it on. SO good! The kids like the basic ham and pineapple, but soon we will try a bbq chicken one

too!

The secret honestly is the oven temp. High and fast, seems to do the trick. Here is the recipe I use:

Pizza

Dough

Dissolve 1 tsp sugar in 1 cup warm water and 1 T yeast. Wait for it to bubble (I do it in the blender). Add 1 t sale, 1 T oil, 2 1/2 cups flour. It always takes more flour. Let it mix and add more flour until it pulls away from the sides and 'cleans' the sides off. You can't really over knead the dough. It can be sticky. Put it on a floured surface and let rise for 10 to 15 minutes. Punch it, roll out to fit pan. I grease my pans and dust them with cornmeal. Roll the edges of the pizza up to form the crust. (She said they have even rolled cheese into the crust to make it a cheese filled one. Yum.

Sauce for one pizza

1 small can tomato sauce

1 t Italian seasonings

1/2 t garlic salt (I use garlic powder and add a bit of salt separately)

1/2 t oregano

I also add some ground pepper. A few grinds of it.

Then you just add sauce cheese and toppings. We bake pizza at a high temp. 480 for 12 to 14 minutes.

Fondue Recipes

Just putting these all in one place:


Mojo Fondue Broth
Ingredients:     5¼ c. vegetable or chicken bouillon
2 Tbsp. cumin
2 Tbsp. jerk seasoning (I haven’t ever used this)
2 Tbsp. black pepper, cracked
¼ c. orange juice, fresh-squeezed
2 Tbsp. lime juice, fresh-squeezed
1 Tbsp. garlic, minced
¼ c. cilantro, chopped

Preparation:     Combine ingredients in saucepan. On stovetop, bring to boil. Transfer to fondue pot with alternative heat source.

Green Goddess Dip
This is the cream cheese dip. It is good on the veggies and chicken
Makes 12 servings

Preparation time: 10 minutes, plus

1 to 2 hours to cool

Cooking time: 2-4 minutes

8    ounces cream cheese, cut into slices

1/2    cup milk

1/4    cup sour cream

2    tablespoons finely chopped onion

2    tablespoons finely chopped parsley

2    tablespoons finely sliced chives

In a microwave-safe container, microwave cream cheese and milk for 2 to 4 minutes, whisking after each minute, until cream cheese melts and mixture is smooth. Stir in sour cream, onion, parsley and chives. Refrigerate until cold.




Pepperjack Cheese Fondue

1-2 cups chicken broth
1 lb Pepperjack cheese (shredded or cubed)
2 tbs Flour
1 tbs Lemon Juice

Shred or cube the cheese.  Shake cheese in a bag w/flour to coat.  Heat broth in fondue pot until almost boiling and add lemon juice and cheese, stirring as cheese melts.  Add more broth to desired thickness.  Keep heat just hot enough to keep cheese melted, but be careful not to overheat too much past the melting point or the cheese will become clumped and separated.



Strawberry Fondue:

2 10 oz packages frozen sliced strawberries, thawed, juice reserved

1 tablespoon cornstarch

2 tablespoons sugar

Reserve 3/4 cup juice from strawberries. Set strawberries aside. Pour juice into Fondue Pot. Combine cornstarch and sugar. Add to juice in Fondue pot.

Turn temp. dial to 200 F. Cook, stirring constantly until thickened. Stir in strawberries. Reduce heat to warm.

Serve with fruit pieces or angel food cake. Yield 1 3/4 cups.

Oriental Ramen Broccoli Cole Slaw

This recipe is sort of a spin on the traditional oriental salad we all remember. I love it though. I am a fan of anything with broccoli slaw, and of course edamame!

2 (3 ounce) packages beef-flavor ramen noodles

2 (8 1/2 ounce) packages broccoli coleslaw mix

1 cup toasted slivered almonds

1 cup sunflower seeds

1/2 bunch green onion, chopped

1 cup edamame

1/4 cup brown sugar

1/3 cup oil

1/3 cup apple cider vinegar

Before opening noodles, crush into 1 inch pieces. Open packages and keep one flavor packet. Toast almonds and noodles in 2 tablespoons of oil, make sure not to burn. Let cool. Mix broccoli slaw, with noodles, almonds, sunflower kernels, green onions, and edamame.

In a separate bowl combine sugar, oil, vinegar, and flavor packet from noodles. Pour over slaw, cover and chill up to 24 hours. Toss before serving.

Olive Garden Pasta Fagioli Soup

I made this for dinner last night. It was very yummy!

Ingredients

• 2 lbs. ground beef
• 1 onion, chopped
• 3 carrots, shredded
• 1 c. celery, chopped
• 2 (28 oz.) cans diced tomatoes, undrained
• 1 (16 oz.) can red kidney beans, drained
• 1 (16 oz.) can white kidney beans, drained
• 4 cups beef stock
• 3 tsp. oregano
• 2 tsp. pepper
• 5 tsp. parsley
• 1 tsp. tabasco sauce
• 1 (20 oz.) jar Prego traditional spaghetti sauce
• 8 oz. pasta (I like using ditali pasta)

Instructions

• Brown ground beef in large skillet. Drain fat. Add beef and all ingredients except the pasta into a large crock pot. Cook on low for 7-8 hours or high for 4-5 hours.
• Before serving, cook pasta according to package directions. Drain and add to soup.

You could also cook it in a large pot on the stove top. It would need to be a LARGE pot or a LARGE crock pot. This makes like 12 servings; it is A LOT of soup. I was able to feed my neighbors, our family and I even sent some home for Keaton and Emilie. I still had left overs! Super yummy though!

Recipe and picture from here.http://www.favfamilyrecipes.com/2012/08/olive-garden-pasta-e-fagioli-soup.html 

Red Enchilada Sauce

This came from a website that had absolutely no photos on it whatsoever, so it wouldn't let me pin it.  That's why I am putting it right here, right now.  Pinterest and this blog are the only way I know how to keep track of recipes.

Super easy quick ench sauce made with stuff I always have on hand.  I made it tonight when I discovered I was out I was out of ench sauce at a crucial dinner-making moment.  Took all of 3 minutes.  Made about 2 cans worth.  And it was yummy.  No more canned stuff for me.  

Red Enchilada Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons vegetable oil
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 2 tablespoons chili powder
• 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
• 1 8 ounce can tomato sauce
• 2 cups water
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

1. Heat oil in large 2 quart saucepan; stir in flour and chili powder; cook for one minute.

2. Add remaining ingredients and bring to a boil and simmer for about 10 minutes. 

| corn salad |

So last year my sister made this yummy corn salad. I have been thinking about it ever since, and finally got the recipe from her. It's super yummy...and perfect for a summer bbq. I think this recipe could easily be tweaked lot of ways to make it different, or even healthier. If you want it a bit healthier just swap out the mayo with plain yogurt or greek yogurt. I thought about adding in green onions, or adding a green pepper too.


2-3 cans corn—drained (I used steam crisp white shoepeg corn, its a bit more expensive, but is a really good quality canned corn)
1 Cup mayo
1 Red Pepper chopped
1/2 Red Onion chopped
1 cup Shredded Cheese
1 bag Chili Cheese Fritos

Mix all ingredients together in a large bowl. Chill in fridge for an hour or two to let flavors meld together. If serving later, keeps chips out and mix in just before serving so that they don't go mushy.

Fruit Salsa & Cinnamon Tortilla Chips

I made this last night to take to a game night with friends. So delicious and if you were to use whole wheat tortillas for the chips pretty dang healthy! I found it on Our Best Bites. I actually made it over a year ago for a cooking group that I was in. I kept remembering it being so hard to make and so I haven't made it since. I think because it was combined with a bunch of other time consuming recipes that is what made it hard. Because it is a really simple recipe.

For a more detailed explanation on different ways that you can make this delicious dish go here.

Basically you pick whatever fruit you want. I try to pick fruits that are different colors (and on sale). I made this last night with strawberries, kiwi, mandarin oranges & blueberries.  You can use raspberries, blackberries, mangos, honeydew, pineapple, etc. You get the idea.

Simply, chop all the fruit up into small pieces (this is a little tedious) you could use a food processor if you wanted. But you don't want the fruit mushy.  Place the chopped fruit in a bowl and add a little sweetener. By a little I mean a little.  I used about a teaspoon, if that, of honey.

You could use agave, brown sugar, powdered sugar etc. There are lots of ideas on the website.

Refrigerate and serve with the cinnamon tortilla chips.

Our Best Bites Cinnamon Tortilla Chips:

Take 6 inch flour (or whole wheat) tortillas
Spray with cooking spray or baste with a little melted butter
Sprinkle with cinnamon & sugar
Cut into triangles with a pizza cutter (each tortilla makes 8 chips)
Bake at 350 for 10-12 minutes
Let cool

This could be an appetizer or a dessert. It really is that yummy. When the cookies ran out at game night the cinnamon chips are what the kids went for instead. They loved them. 

Slow Cooker Pork Chops

I bought some pork chops on sale the other day and was looking for a way other than Shake'n Bake to cook them. 

I came across this recipe and my family loved it! They were really delicious pork chops. I served them with mashed potatoes and peas. They would be yummy with roasted potatoes or fresh green beans or asparagus too.

A lot of the slow cooker recipes I looked at had a lot of prep work prior to getting the pork chops into the crock pot. That isn't why I use my crock pot. I use it for ease and convenience. This recipe was very easy to throw together and I had all the ingredients on hand making it also very convenient.

1/4 cup olive oil
1 cup chicken broth ( I did two cups)
2 cloves garlic minced
1 TBSP paprika
1 TBSP garlic powder (I didn't use an entire TBSP. It seemed to already have enough garlic for me)
1 TBSP poultry seasoning (I didn't have any of this, nor am I 100% sure what it is, so I omitted it and they still tasted great)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
Salt & Pepper to taste

In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil, chicken broth, garlic, paprika, garlic powder, poultry seasoning, oregano, and basil. Pour into the slow cooker. Cut small slits in each pork chop with the tip of a knife, and season lightly with salt and pepper. Place pork chops into the slow cooker, cover, and cook on High for 4 hours. Baste periodically with the sauce.

I found this recipe here on All Recipes.com

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken

Baked Sweet and Sour Chicken Recipe:

Ingredients:

Chicken:

3-4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/2 cup cornstarch
3 eggs, beaten
1/4 cup canola oil

Sweet and Sour Sauce:
1 cup granulated sugar
4 tablespoons ketchup
1/4 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
1 teaspoon garlic salt

Directions:
Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  Cut chicken breasts into bite-sized pieces and season with salt and pepper.  Place cornstarch and beaten eggs in separate bowls.  Dip chicken into cornstarch then coat in egg mixture.  Heat canola oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat and cook chicken until browned.  Place the chicken in a 9 x 13 greased baking dish.  In a medium sized mixing bowl, whisk together sugar, ketchup, vinegars, soy sauce and garlic salt.  Pour over chicken and bake for one hour.

Recipe and picture from HERE

Mexican Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa

 Another good one!  This recipe is vegetarian, but I added ground beef to it.  It would be good either way. 

 

Mexican Stuffed Peppers with Quinoa

 

Ingredients

• 4 bell peppers (any color), sliced in half stem-to-tip, seeds removed
• 1c quinoa, uncooked
• ½ medium onion, diced
• 1 (15oz) can black beans, drained and rinsed
• 1 roma tomato, seeded and diced
• 1 (4oz) can diced green chiles (don’t drain)
• ¼c cilantro, minced
• ¼tsp salt
• ¼tsp pepper
• olive oil, if desired
• ½c Monterrey Jack, grated
• ½c cheddar cheese, grated
• 1 recipe red enchilada sauce (or 1 (28oz) can)

Instructions

1. Add quinoa and onion to a large saucepan with 2 cups of water and a pinch of salt. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Boil 5 minutes, cover, turn off heat and let steam 15 minutes. Fluff with a fork.
2. In the meantime, microwave pepper halves 2-3 minutes to soften slightly. (Prepared this way, the peppers should come out crisp-tender. If you want them crisper, you can omit this step.)
3. Pour quinoa/onion mixture into a mixing bowl. Stir in black beans, tomato, green chiles and their juices, cilantro, ¼ tsp salt, and ¼ tsp pepper. If the mixture seems to dry, drizzle in a bit of olive oil (I didn’t need any).
4. Pour enchilada sauce into a 9×13″ baking dish. Divide filling among peppers. Nestle stuffed peppers into the enchilada sauce. Sprinkle with cheeses.
5. Cover the pan with foil and bake at 375 degrees 25-30 minutes. Remove foil and cook about 5 minutes longer. Serve peppers drizzled with enchilada sauce.

Recipe and picture from HERE