Homemade Ham & Pineapple Pizza

Okay, so I’m not sure if I’ve ever mentioned this on my blog, but pizza is my favorite food in the world. I don’t care if that makes me a 12 year old. I love it for many reasons, including, but not limited to:

1. It covers all four food groups.
2. It brings ham and pineapple together in my mouth.
3. It's just as good leftover as it is fresh.
4. It's covered in cheese.

I’m kind of embarrassed to admit that, until recently, I’ve never made a pizza from scratch... Unless you count pita-pizzas, in which case I’ve made hundreds!

Anyhow, I decided to rectify this blasphemous situation and so I bought myself a pizza stone, peel and assorted pizza making ingredients. I went to town on them and succeeded brilliantly. With brilliant forethought I made 2 LARGE Pizzas and therefore got to eat a whole ton of it. (Don’t worry, I worked it off at bootcamp!) Below is the recipe for homemade pizza sauce and homemade pizza dough…

 

Super Flavorful Homemade Pizza Sauce (original recipe here)

1 can tomato paste

6 oz warm water

3 tbsp Parmesan cheese

6 cloves crushed garlic

2 packets of Splenda (or a couple tsp of white sugar)

1 tsp onion powder

½ tsp oregano

½ tsp marjoram

½ tsp basil

½ tsp black pepper

¼ tsp cayenne pepper

¼ tsp dried red pepper flakes

Salt to taste

Directions

1. Combine ingredients together. Make sure to crush oregano, marjoram and basin in your band first, which releases the flavor.
2. Let pizza sauce sit for at least 30 minutes so the flavors can marry.

Easy Homemade Pizza Dough (original recipe here)

1 package active dry yeast

1 cup warm water (110 degrees F)

2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

2 tsp white sugar

Directions

1.  Dissolve yeast in a bowl with warm water. Let stand 10 minutes.
2. Combine all other ingredients and mix until a still dough has formed. Cover and let rise about 30 minutes.
3. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
4. On a floured surface, knead dough until it’s no longer sticky.
5. Use your hands to press the dough out into a circle big enough to fit your pizza stone, or use a rolling pin.
6. Top with sauce, then ham, then pineapple and then mozzarella cheese (or whatever delicious pizza toppings you like).
7. ENJOY your pizza goodness.

Spectacular Spaghetti Squash with Garlic Sausage and Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

I went through a phase of eating way too much squash and got all squashed out. I am back on the squishy squash train and have a delightful recipe to share with you!

First, some quick facts... Did you know spaghetti squash only has 31 calories and 7 grams of carbs per 100 grams? Compare that to pasta at 374 calories and 75 grams of carbs!

It's also super easy to make and doesn't have a super squashy taste to it! Forgive me for the annoyingly long name but I couldn't come up with anything shorter!  Now, here's my recipe...

Spectacular Spaghetti Squash with Garlic Sausage and Roasted Red Pepper Sauce

Ingredients
1 spaghetti squash
1 coil garlic sausage
3 cloves of garlic
1/2 white onion
1 red bell pepper
1 cup white mushrooms
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 jar roasted red pepper tomato sauce
Seasonings to taste - I used salt, pepper, oregano, basil and cayenne

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
2. Cut spaghetti squash in half lengthwise and remove seeds.
3. Place skin side up on tinfoil lined baking sheet and bake for 30-40 minutes.
4. Meanwhile in a frying pan, cook sliced sausage until nicely browned.
5. In a large pot, heat a couple tablespoons of oil and add chopped onion and garlic. 
6. Once garlic sausage is done add that to the pot as well.
7. Then add mushrooms, tomatoes and red pepper, letting them soften before adding pasta sauce.
8. Add spices in to taste.
9. When squash is done, let it cool slightly and then use a fork to scrape the squash to make the 'noodles'. You can add the pasta sauce directly to the squash for a cute presentation, or scoop it out into a bowl.
10. Top with some grated cheese and fresh basil and enjoy!

Chicken Cheese Avocado Quesadilla

My daily life revolves around food. Often, before I'm even out of bed I have a meal plan. Might sound excessive but remember that I eat the same thing for breakfast every day (banana, mixed berries, flax and almond milk protein smoothie) and I plan my lunches and a general dinner theme on Sunday. I know most people can't/won't eat the same thing for five days straight, but lucky for me I thrive on consistency. Also, I try to be conscious about not over shopping and buying more food than I need, then having to throw it away., so I don't usually have too many options!

Quesadillas are something I make all the time. Fact: quesadillas are delicious. Even when I have no groceries I still have the fixings for a dilla. All you need is cheese and tortilla- never let yourself run out of those! Sometimes I make them as simple as pesto and cheese. Often I'll use leftover fajita filling. I love a pesto cranberry chicken and Parmesan dilla. My most favourite, by far, is chicken with cheese and avocado!

Chicken Cheese Avocado Quesadilla

Ingredients
Whole wheat tortilla
Chicken
Cheese
Avocado
Salsa

Directions

1. Place wrap in a frying pan and turn stove to medium-high.
2. Chop chicken into bite sized pieces (I used teriyaki chicken -yum)
3. Sprinkle one half of tortilla with cheese, then top with chicken.
4. Cut up avocado and distribute half on top of chicken, top with more cheese.
5. Mash the remainder of the avocado and spread on empty side of tortilla.
6. Fold the tortilla over on itself and cook until edges harden, then flip to other side. This only takes a few minutes. 
7. Get your salsa out and a plate, cut the dilla into 4 pieces and enjoy!

Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes Recipe

Lately my blog has been full of potatoes and cheese. I am not ashamed of that. I had to finish off the rest of the 10 lb bag of potatoes I bought and Jess said she was thinking of making scalloped potatoes, so of course I stole her idea and viola - Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes were born.

Of course I didn't follow the recipe and used almond milk instead of cows, which always makes me nervous, but the garlic covered up any almondy taste that might've made it weird. I also used a Tex Mex cheese mix and parmesan because those are my favorite and i didn't have cheddar. The sauce got really thick and was almost gloopy. I don't really know why. I'm sure it wasn't supposed to be like that, but it baked up fine and tasted delicious. I made this the night ahead because, as per usual, I had a lot of free time on my hands. 

Cheesy Garlicky Scalloped Potatoes Recipes (here's the original recipe)
1/4 cup butter
4 tbsps flour
1 tsp kosher salt
1 tsp black pepper
3 garlic cloves
1 tsp parsley
1 1/2 cups almond milk
1/2 cup tex mex
1/2 cup parmesan
2 lbs potatoes (I used 10 small) peeled and thinly sliced
1 sweet white onion thinly sliced

1. Peel your potatoes and slice them thinly. Then do your onion. Layer half the potatoes in a SPRAYED 9x13 pan, then layer half the onions.
2. In a pot, melt your butter, then add flour, garlic, salt and pepper. Mix until smooth. 
3. Add milk in slowly, mixing continuously until all your milk is added. Bring to a boil and stir until thickened. Remove from heat and add cheese.
4. Pour half the cheese sauce over the potatoes and onions. Then do your second layer or potatoes and onions and top with the rest of the sauce.
5. Cover and bake at 350 for 50 minutes. Uncover and bake for 10-15 minutes longer. At this point add more cheese if you love cheese. 

PS  if you like this, you're probably going to love my Shepherd's Pie Recipe - read it here.

 

Homemade Potato Skins

Cheese, bacon, potato. What's not to love? Throw some green onions and a dollop of sour cream and you've got yourself a well rounded meal. Forget about the calories and just eat yourself happy!

I decided to make a double batch of potato skins because I had two dinner parties last weekend. Let me tell you, they got scarfed down in rapid succession. If I concentrate really hard I can still taste the cheesy bacony goodness.

I really don't even think this requires a recipe.. But here's a willy nilly instruction set...

Bake some russet potatoes and let them cool. Cut in half lengthwise and scoop out the middles, leaving about a 1/4 inch of potato. If you like them skinnier, scrape out more potato. Keep the skins in the fridge until you are ready to use them. If you want to make them ahead, pop them in the freezer in ziplock bags.

Preheat your oven to 400. Line a pan with tinfoil. Place the potatoes upside down, so that the skins are face up. Brush them with olive oil and sprinkle with coarse salt and pepper. Bake for about ten minutes until they are quite firm.

Take them out and flip them akin side down and sprinkle your favourite cheese in each one. Don't be skimpy, there is no such thing as too much cheese! FYI: I used a tex mex mix. Next sprinkle them with bacon. It's obviously best if you fry the bacon and crumble it up, but pre-made bacon bits will do the trick.

Put it all back in the oven for ten minutes or until the cheese is bubbly. Sprinkle them with chopped green onions and serve with sour cream or greek yogurt!

Fall is here

Fall is here and that means no more beach time, boating or bathing suits. It means a significant reduction in margarita drinking and cheese-filled smokie eating. It means jean shorts, sandals and block rockers are being put away.

The arrival of fall makes me want to type a frowny face. This feeling usually comes and goes pretty quickly, because I force myself to remember that there are a few things I actually like about fall. In case you are suffering the loss of summer as well, I will share my list and hopefully bring you back to Happy Town. No promises, but let's give'er a whirl...

• fall means new clothes. Back to School clothes, if you will. Oh.. not going back to school? Doesn't matter. Go shopping, buy new things. It's cold out for god sakes! Boots and a jacket at minimum.
• Fall means my birthday is around the corner. October 19th for those of you who haven't memorized it. Put that on your list of things to remember, along with present shopping for said birthday. Hint: shiny is good.
• fall means delicious comfort food. soups, stews, chili and things covered in cheese. *Drools*
• it means fall-inspired baking can begin. You can't even imagine how fast I typed that. I super love pumpkin in baking and apples and doughy things topped with ice cream.
• On my To-Bake list: pumpkin chocolate chip cookies and pumpkin loaves; apple tartlets (so I can perfect my tartyness); something with beets (see previous blog).; and Halloween themed something - cupcakes or cookies perhaps.
• it means thanksgiving, a day of turkey and thanks for turkey, is 8 days away. Oh yes, turkey AND time to hang with the family as well, which is, of course, my favorite part. Oh and lots of wine, which is my second favorite part.
• fall means Halloween is nearly upon us. Super excited to see my dogs dressed up like hot dogs, my new nephew dressed up as a pumpkin. Side bonus: a whole lot of mini chocolate bars. Not that I would overindulge, that would be wrong.
• fall means Christmas is almost here, which makes me giddy. *spoiler alert* I'm decorating my Christmas tree in pink this year.

Welcome, Fall! If you could please ask your friend Rain not to join us, that would be splendid.

xo Shelly.

that's me in fall. nom nom nom.

garlic & cheddar biscuits

Ingredients
1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
5 tablespoons butter
1 cup milk
1 cup shredded Cheddar cheese
1/4 cup butter, melted 1 clove garlic, minced

Alterations and substitutions:
I doubled the recipe and ended up making about 30 bisucits.
I used soy milk instead of cow's.
I added a whole whack of flaky pepper. Note: The Vetter's pepper has an amazing kick to it, I think it might be Costco pepper. I am considering 'borrowing' some for my own personal pepper stash.
I added garlic powder and garlic salt.
I added about 1/4 cup of parm cheese on a whim
Next time I bake these at my house I will substitute half the white flour for whole wheat. I am also thinking that including bacon in these would be amazing. Maybe even chives and making it like an entire meal in one small biscuit. I will scour allrecipes and see if there is anything similar.

Directions
Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C).
In a large bowl, sift together flour, salt and baking powder. Cut in butter until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Make a well in the center of flour mixture. Add the milk and cheddar cheese; stir to combine. Drop batter by spoonfuls onto an ungreased baking sheet.
Bake in preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until lightly browned. While biscuits are baking mix melted butter and minced garlic. Brush garlic butter over hot baked biscuits.

Note: Working with dough always makes me nervous. Overmixing is so easy to do and produces disasterous results that are usually unsalvageable. So I tried my best not to overmix. I think i did reasonably well. They say to put them on the baking sheet by the spoonful, but I made them into balls using my hands and patted into a reasonable shape. Some of the reviews I read said to roll out the dough and cut into rounds. I might try that next time. Perhaps add some extra baking powder to get the extra volume.

I brought these to work and they went over well. Both Kimberly and Phyllis (who are the baker's in the office) asked for the recipe. They are obviously best fresh out of the oven, but are decently edible after a brief stint in the microwave. I have a fear of butter and the things it will do to my arteries, so I almost skipped the step of brushing them with garlic butter. This would be a huge mistake, the garlic butter makes them unbelievably scrumptious.

I have frozen approximately ten of them to store in the freezer. Next visiter at the penthouse gets a sample!

Thanks again to allrecipes and those who submit and review recipes there. Scouring that sight has proven to be the highlight of my sad sad life (insert emo song here).