Contributor: Victoria Blanchard
Source: Inspiration from various pizzas I've eaten and researched online
Ingredients
Pizza dough (preferably homemade)
A few tablespoons of pesto
About 1 cup of alfredo (preferably homemade)
About 2 cups mozzarella
1-2 fresh tomatoes, chopped or sliced (optional)
Spread a thin layer of pesto over pizza dough (most pesto is so salty and flavorful you really don't need much). Spread alfredo sauce over the pesto covered dough. Top with cheese. Add tomatoes if desired. Bake at 450 for 15 minutes.
Notes: This pizza refrigerates well after cooking, but I like to nuke my leftovers rather than eat them cold. I make pizza for dinner every Friday and we always make one red, one white because we love both so much.
Saturday, September 24, 2011
Buca di Beppo Marinara Sauce
Contributor: Victoria Blanchard
Source: Buca di Beppo Cookbook
Yields 6 cups
Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1 red onion chopped
6 garlic cloves
2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
Salt to taste
3 Tbs chopped fresh basil (dry works, too)
In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until golden brown, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Add the tomoatoes and salt. Bring to a boil, then cook over low heat for approximately 30 minutes, stirring often. Turn off the heat and add the fresh basil.
Comments: Ry used to make marinara all the time, but since I've been the household cook for more than the past year, we've been using Hunts canned spaghetti sauce for everything since I was so intimidated to try to make sauce as good as his. If you're the same way, let me assure you: this recipe is incredibly easy, pretty fast, and SO WORTH THE EFFORT! I made a half batch two weeks ago and for the first time we used fresh sauce on our homemade pizza dough and we were going out of our minds. The sauce has kept in the fridge for the two weeks since, and has been enough to make 3 large pizzas (each week I make one red sauce pizza and one white sauce pizza). I vowed on Facebook to never go back to canned sauce except under conditions of duress! I will say, the flavor of the sauce changes if you store it in the fridge versus using it fresh. The flavor just gets heavier with time. But still, so good!
Source: Buca di Beppo Cookbook
Yields 6 cups
Ingredients
1/4 cup olive oil
1 red onion chopped
6 garlic cloves
2 (28 oz) cans crushed tomatoes
Salt to taste
3 Tbs chopped fresh basil (dry works, too)
In a 3-quart saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic, and cook until golden brown, approximately 8 to 10 minutes. Add the tomoatoes and salt. Bring to a boil, then cook over low heat for approximately 30 minutes, stirring often. Turn off the heat and add the fresh basil.
Comments: Ry used to make marinara all the time, but since I've been the household cook for more than the past year, we've been using Hunts canned spaghetti sauce for everything since I was so intimidated to try to make sauce as good as his. If you're the same way, let me assure you: this recipe is incredibly easy, pretty fast, and SO WORTH THE EFFORT! I made a half batch two weeks ago and for the first time we used fresh sauce on our homemade pizza dough and we were going out of our minds. The sauce has kept in the fridge for the two weeks since, and has been enough to make 3 large pizzas (each week I make one red sauce pizza and one white sauce pizza). I vowed on Facebook to never go back to canned sauce except under conditions of duress! I will say, the flavor of the sauce changes if you store it in the fridge versus using it fresh. The flavor just gets heavier with time. But still, so good!
Authentic Italian Bread/Pizza Dough
Contributor: Victoria Blanchard
Source: Brother Metzger, Schenectady Ward, who learned it from his Italian grandmother
Makes 2 large loaves or two large pizzas
Ingredients
Flour (probably 4-8 cups, I'm really not sure)
2 cups warm water
1 Tbs yeast (regular kind)
1 Tbs salt
A little olive oil
In a large bowl, add 2 cups warm water to 1 Tbs yeast. Begin stirring immediately with a whisk and add in 1 cup of flour till smooth (you should see the yeast start to activate). Stir in another cup of flour before adding the salt. (I don't know if it's true, but I heard salt can kill yeast.) Keep adding flour one cup at a time until it is too hard to stir (after the second cup or so you'll want to switch from a whisk to a wooden spoon).
Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface. As you knead for the next 10-15 minutes, keep incorporating enough flour until the dough is no longer sticking to your hands or the counter. When the dough is smooth, wash your hands and the bowl.
Put a little olive oil in the bowl, put the dough back in, and turn in upside down so that the dough has a light coating of olive oil (this keeps it from drying out). Cover with a cloth (you can dampen it slightly if you live in a dry area) and let rise for 1.5 hour or until the dough has doubled in size (apparently you can skip the rise if you're doing pizza dough, but I haven't tried this yet) .
Next, punch down the dough and then dump it onto a floured surface. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough in half (don't pull it in half).
If making bread, gently shape it into two elongated loaves. Let rise another 45 minutes. Then cook at 400 for 50 minutes. If you want, you can make a ball, pinch a hole though the middle, and then twist the loop over a few times to make a pretty twisted loaf.
If making pizza, gently shape into balls and then roll out and put on pans coated with cornmeal (or greased). Add sauce and toppings and cook for 15 minutes at 450. You can cover with foil and refridgerate your pizza before cooking, but I usually don't do it for more than a few hours. If you wait a whole day to cook it, there is a definite decrease in yumminess. Apparently, if you skip the rise, you can cook the dough by itself and then freeze it for later use (I'm going to try this one of these days). But don't let it rise and then cook it without toppings because it will get all puffy in the oven (that was disappointing).
Note: You can double the recipe if you want twice as much, but that's a lot of bread/pizza for a small family, especially since it dries out fairly quickly, even if you freeze it. It's best to consume it all in a day or two unless you're going to make bruschetta with it, in which case if you use enough oil, you'll be fine. Apparently this type of bread differs from many because you want to incorporate as much flour as the dough will accept. Traditionally, women would make the dough right in their flour bins, and the dough would naturally pick up whatever flour it needed as it was stirred around. Also, as you may guess from the ingredient list, this bread is pretty bland, which is fine if you're using it for pizza or bruschetta. Apparently you can add herbs or spices to give it flavor, which I think would be fun, but I haven't experimented with that yet. Also, I was really intimidated about making a rising bread, but this is a great recipe to start with because it's very forgiving. I started making it once a week, and within a month I had the recipe and procedure memorized and felt very comfortable with it. So stick with it!
Source: Brother Metzger, Schenectady Ward, who learned it from his Italian grandmother
Makes 2 large loaves or two large pizzas
Ingredients
Flour (probably 4-8 cups, I'm really not sure)
2 cups warm water
1 Tbs yeast (regular kind)
1 Tbs salt
A little olive oil
In a large bowl, add 2 cups warm water to 1 Tbs yeast. Begin stirring immediately with a whisk and add in 1 cup of flour till smooth (you should see the yeast start to activate). Stir in another cup of flour before adding the salt. (I don't know if it's true, but I heard salt can kill yeast.) Keep adding flour one cup at a time until it is too hard to stir (after the second cup or so you'll want to switch from a whisk to a wooden spoon).
Dump the dough onto a well-floured surface. As you knead for the next 10-15 minutes, keep incorporating enough flour until the dough is no longer sticking to your hands or the counter. When the dough is smooth, wash your hands and the bowl.
Put a little olive oil in the bowl, put the dough back in, and turn in upside down so that the dough has a light coating of olive oil (this keeps it from drying out). Cover with a cloth (you can dampen it slightly if you live in a dry area) and let rise for 1.5 hour or until the dough has doubled in size (apparently you can skip the rise if you're doing pizza dough, but I haven't tried this yet) .
Next, punch down the dough and then dump it onto a floured surface. Using a sharp knife, cut the dough in half (don't pull it in half).
If making bread, gently shape it into two elongated loaves. Let rise another 45 minutes. Then cook at 400 for 50 minutes. If you want, you can make a ball, pinch a hole though the middle, and then twist the loop over a few times to make a pretty twisted loaf.
If making pizza, gently shape into balls and then roll out and put on pans coated with cornmeal (or greased). Add sauce and toppings and cook for 15 minutes at 450. You can cover with foil and refridgerate your pizza before cooking, but I usually don't do it for more than a few hours. If you wait a whole day to cook it, there is a definite decrease in yumminess. Apparently, if you skip the rise, you can cook the dough by itself and then freeze it for later use (I'm going to try this one of these days). But don't let it rise and then cook it without toppings because it will get all puffy in the oven (that was disappointing).
Note: You can double the recipe if you want twice as much, but that's a lot of bread/pizza for a small family, especially since it dries out fairly quickly, even if you freeze it. It's best to consume it all in a day or two unless you're going to make bruschetta with it, in which case if you use enough oil, you'll be fine. Apparently this type of bread differs from many because you want to incorporate as much flour as the dough will accept. Traditionally, women would make the dough right in their flour bins, and the dough would naturally pick up whatever flour it needed as it was stirred around. Also, as you may guess from the ingredient list, this bread is pretty bland, which is fine if you're using it for pizza or bruschetta. Apparently you can add herbs or spices to give it flavor, which I think would be fun, but I haven't experimented with that yet. Also, I was really intimidated about making a rising bread, but this is a great recipe to start with because it's very forgiving. I started making it once a week, and within a month I had the recipe and procedure memorized and felt very comfortable with it. So stick with it!
Sunday, September 18, 2011
Parmesan Sausage Zucchini Boats
Source: Zucchini Houdini by Brenda Stanley
Serves 8
Ingredients:
4 medium zucchini
1 pound bulk sausage
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
⅔ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten (or ¼ cup egg substitute)
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup water
Directions:
Cut zucchini lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and discard them. Scoop out the pulp, leaving a ¼-inch shell. Chop the pulp. In a large skillet, brown the sausage. Add the onion, garlic, and chopped zucchini pulp. Sauté for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add breadcrumbs, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, and egg. Mix well. Sprinkle salt in each zucchini shell. Fill evenly with meat and zucchini mixture. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Place shells in ungreased baking dishes. Pour ½ cup of water into the bottom of each dish. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake another 15 minutes or until zucchini is tender.
Comments: Another stuffed zucchini recipe, but with different ingredients than Laurel's. Incredible. . .these things got inhaled! Finally, after this recipe and the zucchini artichoke quiche, we've used up our zucchini (well, this week's anyway). Two fantastic new recipes to add to our regulars!
Serves 8
Ingredients:
4 medium zucchini
1 pound bulk sausage
1 small onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
⅔ cup seasoned breadcrumbs
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
1 egg, beaten (or ¼ cup egg substitute)
¼ teaspoon salt
½ cup water
Directions:
Cut zucchini lengthwise. Scoop out the seeds and discard them. Scoop out the pulp, leaving a ¼-inch shell. Chop the pulp. In a large skillet, brown the sausage. Add the onion, garlic, and chopped zucchini pulp. Sauté for 5 minutes. Remove from heat. Add breadcrumbs, ½ cup Parmesan cheese, and egg. Mix well. Sprinkle salt in each zucchini shell. Fill evenly with meat and zucchini mixture. Sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese. Place shells in ungreased baking dishes. Pour ½ cup of water into the bottom of each dish. Cover with foil. Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Uncover and bake another 15 minutes or until zucchini is tender.
Comments: Another stuffed zucchini recipe, but with different ingredients than Laurel's. Incredible. . .these things got inhaled! Finally, after this recipe and the zucchini artichoke quiche, we've used up our zucchini (well, this week's anyway). Two fantastic new recipes to add to our regulars!
Saturday, September 17, 2011
Fruited Chicken Pasta Salad
Source: My cousin, Charilyn Peterson Wright
Ingredients:
Ingredients:
- 2 16-oz. rotini pasta (cooked and drained)
- 1 20-oz. cans pineapple tidbits (drained)
- 6 green onions (chopped small)
- 4-5 c. celery (about 1 pkg., chopped small)
- 6 chicken breasts (cooked in CrockPot, shredded, and cooled)
- 1 6-oz. pkg. dried cranberries
- 2 c. cashews
Mix all of the above.
Add:
- 2 c. mayo
- 2 16-oz. bottles coleslaw dressing (Kraft or Litehouse)
Comments:
This was the chicken salad recipe that all the Wihongi family made for Charbri's very Polynesian (Maori & Samoan) wedding reception in July. It's a lot like the other chicken pasta salad I posted on here when the Bistro was first "founded," but a bit more "fruity" with the pineapple and cranberries. (I personally prefer it without the cashews. . .just not wild about nuts in my chicken salads.) A huge hit!
This was the chicken salad recipe that all the Wihongi family made for Charbri's very Polynesian (Maori & Samoan) wedding reception in July. It's a lot like the other chicken pasta salad I posted on here when the Bistro was first "founded," but a bit more "fruity" with the pineapple and cranberries. (I personally prefer it without the cashews. . .just not wild about nuts in my chicken salads.) A huge hit!
Friday, September 16, 2011
Artichoke Zucchini Quiche
Source: Zucchini Houdini by Brenda Stanley
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
This crust-less quiche was so good! For some reason, when I made this, the amount was enough to fill two 9-inch pie plates. . .not that I'm complaining about more quiche. A fun, delicious, light recipe. . .and yet another way to get rid of the surplus zucchini!
Serves 6-8
Ingredients:
- 4 eggs, beaten (or 1 cup egg substitute)
- ½ cup oil
- 3 cups grated zucchini
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed
- 1 (15-ounce) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped
- ½ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- 1 cup biscuit mix
- ½ teaspoon salt
- ½ teaspoon pepper
- ½ teaspoon oregano
- Mix together eggs, oil, zucchini, garlic and artichoke hearts.
- In a separate bowl mix together cheese, biscuit mix and spices. Add to zucchini mixture and blend well.
- Pour into a greased 9-inch pie plate.
- Bake at 350 degrees for about 40 minutes or until knife comes out clean. Serve warm.
This crust-less quiche was so good! For some reason, when I made this, the amount was enough to fill two 9-inch pie plates. . .not that I'm complaining about more quiche. A fun, delicious, light recipe. . .and yet another way to get rid of the surplus zucchini!
Wednesday, September 14, 2011
Rolo Cookies
Source (via pinterest)
Ingredients:
1 package of Rolos, unwrapped
1 box Devils Food cake mix
2 eggs
1/2 cup oil
Directions:
1. Mix cake mix, oil, and eggs.
2. Take a small ball of dough and form a ball around the rolo. (Only use enough dough to cover the rolo so it can spread through the cookie.)
3. Place on a greased cookie sheet and bake at 350 F for 7-8 minutes.
4. Sprinkle with powdered sugar, if desired. Yields about 3 dozen.
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