My family loves pizza. I like to load mine up with fresh vegetables, my husband and my son like meat on their pizza and my daughter keeps it simple - cheese only. Normally, I am strictly opposed to making a different meal for each member of the family. I make an exception when it comes to pizza though. We all like to express our creativity and customize our own pizza. Tonight's dinner started out with a trip to the supermarket. I purchased pizza sauce and pesto sauce to make preparations easier. I also bought a zucchini, a Roma tomato and a red bell pepper that looked particularly fresh. I made a quick stop by the bakery to pick up some flat breads. I also picked up some shredded mozzarella cheese and turkey pepperoni before checking out and heading home with my bag of goodies. Grilled Flat Bread Pizzas Veggie Pizza 2 Tablespoons olive oil 1/2 zucchini, diced 1/2 red bell pepper, diced 1 Roma tomato, diced 2 Tablespoons light mayonnaise 1 Tablespoon prepared pesto 2 teaspoons fresh basil, minced 2 flat breads 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese 2 Tablespoons Parmesan cheese
These flat bread pizzas were really good and they were really easy to make. I let them get a little too brown on the bottom so I recommend watching them really carefully while they are on the grill - they cook quickly. (I think I got a little carried away with my photography and I left them on the grill a little too long.) This recipe is definitely a keeper.
Ciao!
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When my husband and I first got married, I was not a very good cook. Not because I lacked culinary skills, mostly because I lacked the time to devote to grocery shopping or preparing decent meals. I was teaching a full day Kindergarten class and my husband had his own full time job in the military. All of my free time seemed to be consumed with creating bulletin boards, writing lesson plans and conferencing with parents. I have so much respect for teachers and the hard work and dedication that it takes to be a teacher. My husband was very patient and he never complained about the dinners that were thrown together with very little thought or planning. They were less than gourmet - except when we had guests for dinner. That's when I broke out the "company food". With a little extra planning and preparation, I could pull off an extravagant meal with all trimmings. Now, after 18 years of marriage, I think I have finally figured out how to plan and prepare delicious meals in spite of my busy life. It makes me laugh to think back at how "busy" we thought we were when it was just the two of us. Two teenagers and two careers later, I had no idea what it meant to be truly busy. As busy as my life seems now, I know that there are a lot of you who have a whole lot more "on their plate" than I do. Hang in there and "give thanks in all circumstances." 1 Thessalonians 5:18 I want to share one of my favorite "make ahead" recipes with you so that you can create a delicious meal for your family - even on a busy night. I used to reserve these pecan and bourbon stuffed pork chops for "company food" but I have learned that we can have them anytime by preparing them up to 2 days in advance. This is also a great meal to serve at a dinner party because the chops can be prepared ahead of time so you're not scrambling to cook or clean up just before your guests arrive. I also delivered this fully cooked meal along with heating instructions to a family from the church that needed "easy to reheat meals." Stuffed Pork Chops 14 Tablespoons butter 1 onion, diced 1 cup celery ¼ cup smoked ham 3 Tablespoons bourbon 1 cup bread crumbs 4 Tablespoons pecans, chopped 8 ounces heavy cream 4 sprigs fresh thyme 1/4 teaspoon lemon juice 8 pork chops, thick cut with bone in 3 Tablespoons flour 2 teaspoons chicken bouillon 2 cups hot water Melt 6 T. butter in skillet. Add ½ c. onion, 1/3 c. celery and ham. Cook 10 minutes. Add bourbon and bring to a boil. Reduce. Remove from heat and stir in breadcrumbs, pecans, ½ t. thyme and lemon juice. Season with salt and pepper.
Remove from pan and add additional 2 T. butter. Add 2/3 c. onions and 1/3 c. celery. Cook 5 minutes.
Add 1 T. flour and cook 1 more minute. Combine bouillon and water and slowly whisk 1 cup into vegetable mixture. Raise heat to medium and stir in ½ t. thyme, ¼ t. pepper and ¼ t. salt. Scrape bits from bottom of pan. Return chops to pan and add remaining bouillon. Baste chops with liquid. Bring to a fast simmer and turn to low and cover with a lid. Cook 1 ½ - 2 hours, basting every 20 minutes. Blend 2 T. flour with 2 ½ T soft butter. Remove chops from pan and bring gravy to a boil. Add butter-flour mixture. Simmer 3 minutes. Add ½ - 1 cup cream until gravy thickens. Serve chops with gravy. These pork chops are definitely not low in fat or calories but they are worth the indulgence every once in a while. Don't be afraid of the long list of ingredients or the lengthy instructions. Plan about 40 minutes to get the pork chops ready and another hour and a half of cooking time. This recipe makes 8 pork chops so you may end up with some leftovers. When I have pork chops left over, I transfer the cooked chops to a pyrex dish to cool. Once they're cool, I cover and refrigerate or freeze them. When I am ready to reheat the pork chops, I cover the pan with foil and put it in the oven for 20-30 minutes until they are warmed through. Ciao! My family was invited to a "Back to School" party over the weekend and we were asked to bring chips. Even though my husband suggested picking up a bag of chips at the supermarket, I just couldn't bring myself to show up at a party with a bag of Doritos. Don't get me wrong - I love Doritos but I didn't want that to be my contribution to the party. I don't know if it was the lack of creativity or the lack of thought that is involved in purchasing a bag of chips but I just couldn't do it. I ended up buying a bag of tortilla chips and making a chunky salsa to go along with it. I have seen quite a few versions of this recipe. It is especially popular in the south for some reason. I call mine Black and White salsa because I usually use white shoepeg corn and black beans. Black and White Salsa 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed Juice of 2 limes 10 ounces frozen white corn (I used yellow this time because I was out of white corn.) 1 jalapeno, thinly diced and ribs removed 1 bunch green onions, thinly sliced 1 Tablespoon olive oil 1 red tomato, diced ½ teaspoon salt 1/8 teaspoon pepper fresh cilantro I love avocado and I think it makes just about everything taste better so I added avocado to my portion of the salsa. (Pictured at the top of the blog.) Unfortunately not everyone shares my love of this creamy vegetable so I left it out of the salsa that I was taking to the party. It was a big hit.
Ciao! I am usually a chicken eater so it's pretty rare that I get a craving for a thick, juicy hamburger but when I do - this is the one that I make. These patty melts are smothered in Swiss cheese, topped with caramelized onions and served on marble rye bread. Craving satisfied. Patty Melts 10 slices rye bread 2 Tablespoons milk 3/4 teaspoon onion powder 1 1/4 teaspoons salt 4 slices Swiss cheese 1/2 teaspoon pepper 1 1/2 pounds 85% lean ground beef 3 Tablespoon butter 2 onions, sliced thin
Divide cheese between 4 slices of bread. Top with cooked patty and onions and anther slice of bread. Clean skillet and melt 1 T. butter. Cook sandwiches until golden brown on the outside.
My husband and my son loved these Patty Melts. My daughter wanted to know if we were out of "regular" hamburger buns. She ended up eating the entire burger but still wasn't completely sold on the rye bread. Maybe someday she will learn to appreciate really great bread. Ciao! My daughter LOVES meat - hamburgers, steaks, pot roast, ribs, and especially meatloaf. Last year I asked her what special dinner she wanted me to make for her birthday - meatloaf! I blame my husband for this meat loving gene that she inherited. I get tired of making plain old meatloaf and I don't like to serve beef more than once a week so I decided to mix it up tonight and pull out my recipe for spinach filled turkey meatloaf. As you could imagine, the kids scraped out the green filling and ate the outside of the loaf. My only hope is that somehow some of the nutrients from the spinach seeped into the turkey during the cooking process. (Unlikely, but I'm hanging onto the dream.) My husband and I quite enjoyed the meatloaf AND the filling. Spinach Filled Turkey Roll ½ pound mushrooms ¼ cup green onions ¼ cup chopped celery 1 Tablespoon butter 1 package frozen spinach, thawed 1 egg 2 slices of bread, crumbled 1 Tablespoon herb and garlic soup mix 1 pound ground turkey
Cover and bake 50 minutes at 350. Uncover and bake 10 minutes more. Let stand 5 minutes before slicing.
I made this meatloaf early in the afternoon and put it in the refrigerator until dinner time. I love having dinner ready before the kids get home from school. Things are always busy from the time they walk in the door until we sit down for dinner. I am more available to help with homework when I am not busy with dinner preparations. (Although, I'm really not all that much help these days - not sure how I ever passed Chemistry.) I hope that your family enjoys this meatloaf recipe and much as mine does. Maybe one day my kids will even eat the "green stuff" in the middle. Ciao! |
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