Pizza Fondue with Breadstick Bites

Yes, of course we got a fondue pot for our wedding. No, of course we had not used it yet. . . until tonight! We broke out the fondue pot and whipped up some pizza fondue! It was fun, fairly easy, and (best of all) I already had all the ingredients in the apartment! We didn't have much on hand to dip in the cheese sauce, so we used zucchini bits (one zucchini plant in our garden and it seems like we eat it every day!) and I made some little breadsticks too. So fun!

Pizza Fondue- from http://fatgirltrappedinaskinnybody.blogspot.com/2010/04/pizza-fondue.html


Enough for 4 people as their meal
1 tsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves
1 jar (24 ounces) marinara sauce (use our favorite kind)
3 cups mozzarella
1 cup cheddar
1 cup parmesan
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/4 cup white wine (I used plain old water)
2 tbsp chopped fresh basil

In a medium sized pot, saute the garlic and olive oil over medium/high heat for about 30 seconds. Add the white wine and marinara sauce. Once the mixture starts to boil (about 3 minutes), reduce the heat to medium.

In a large bowl mix the cheese and cornstarch. Add the cheese to the marinara mix. Stir over medium heat until all the cheese is melted and smooth (about 5 minutes). Add the fresh basil. 

Pour into your fondue pot and start dipping.

AND WHAT WILL YOU DIP IN THAT DELICIOUS CHEESY GOODNESS????


I made little breadstick bites that were really awesome, using a recipe from http://www.grouprecipes.com/71559/pizza-dough-or-bread-sticks.html.

This was before they were cooked. I didn't get an "after" picture of just the breadsticks.

Pizza or Breadstick Dough

Ingredients

---

• 1 cup warm water
• 1 tablespoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon (1 package) active dry yeast
• 1 tablespoon olive oil (or vegetable oil)shopping list
• 2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder, optional

• How to make it

  ---

  • Put the warm water and sugar in a mixing bowl, stir to dissolve sugar. Sprinkle yeast onto the water. Let sit for a 5-10 minutes.
  • In a separate bowl, combine together the flour, salt and garlic powder.
  • Stir the oil into the yeast and water. Stir in about 1/2 of the flour mixture and mix well. Stir in the other 1/2 of the flour and then turn out onto a floured counter and knead for 6-8 minutes until you have a smooth and elastic dough; add flour a little at a time, if necessary.
  • Cover and let rest on the counter for 10-15 minutes.
  • For Pizza Crust: Oil two pizza pans and sprinkle with cornmeal. Divide the dough in half . Pat and stretch the dough out until will fir your pan. Place on the pan and finish stretching with your fingertips until it fills the pan. Pinch a bit of a thicker edge. If dough is resistant to stretching, let rest for a few minutes and then continue stretching.
  • Par-Bake for about 10 minutes at 425*F. Top with sauce and toppings of your choice. If desired, brush the edge with garlic butter. Bake for an additional 10-15 minutes, until cheese melts and just starts to get golden brown.
  • For Bread Sticks: Roll dough into a rectangle about 1-inch thick. Cut into desired number of strips. Place on a lightly greased cookie sheet. Brush with melted butter (you can add more garlic to the butter) and sprinkle lightly with salt. Allow rise for about 20 minutes,
  • Bake in a 425*F oven for 10 minutes, or until golden brown.
  • For leftovers, re-heat in the oven (350*F) wrapped in foil for about 5 minutes or place in the toaster oven for a quick reheat.
  Husband's Reaction: "Mmmmmm! You can write that on your blog: 'Husband's reaction: Mmmmmm!!!'"

Healthy Homemade Cornbread

Healthy Cornbread from http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/excellent-and-healthy-cornbread/detail.aspx

Ingredients

• 1 cup unbleached flour
• 1 cup cornmeal (If you are going to make homemade cornbread, you have to buy this. I had been planning on making some of this stuff for a while, so I bought it. BONUS: You can put it on the bottom of pizza to make it like the real kind. HA! ---sorry, it's late)
• 1/4 cup white sugar
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 1 cup plain nonfat yogurt (Yeah, who has this in their fridge? I sure didn't. I substituted sour cream. Worked out perfectly!)
• 2 eggs, beaten

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F (200 degrees C). Lightly grease an 8x8 inch baking pan.
2. In a large bowl, mix flour, cornmeal, sugar, soda and salt. Stir in yogurt and eggs. Do not over mix, stir only until well blended. Pour batter into prepared pan.
3. Bake in preheated oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until center of the bread springs back when gently pressed.

This was a really good recipe. I could tell it was a little healthier than normal cornbread (less sugar), but it tasted good anyway. . . of course, I drenched mine in butter and honey because I have no will power, but that's just me. 


My husband really liked it. I could tell because he kept eating it every time I brought it out as a side dish for chili, soups, and pasta. We made so much I was afraid we would never finish it, but he kept on eating it every time. Usually when I bring out leftovers he ignores them if he has the chance. 


So, ladies and gentlemen, this one's a keeper.

Husband Approved!

1000 Page Views!

Guess what? This blog now officially has 1000 page views!!! Woohoo!

I feel like Miss America!

Well, no, not really.

To celebrate, let's look at a picture of homemade pizza!

Yummmmm!!!!!! I know, I'm sorry, it's not fair to show you such deliciousness and not share.

But, I have to brag a little that I got to eat this wonderful thing and I didn't even have to make it!

My brother-in-law, Ben, is a family expert on homemade pizzas. We were lucky enough to have him come spend the evening with us a few nights ago, and he made us pizza. He even taught us all his secrets. (oo la la!)

Here is Danny trying (and not quite getting it, according to Ben) to stretch out the dough:

You can kind of see their almost-matching t-shirts. :)

So, if you are ever lucky enough to taste Ben's pizza, then you are blessed.

As for the pizza secrets? The one thing I will share is that Ben claims that you must never roll out the dough with a rolling pin--it's gotta be hand stretched. And it seems to work; his pizzas are way better than any I have ever made.

The rest of the secrets? Well, they are called "secrets" for a reason. :)

Pasta with Fresh Spinach

Pasta with Fresh Spinach

*recipe adapted from the recipe "Elbows with Fresh Spinach"

Ingredients:

8 ounces pasta
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
10 ounces spinach (fresh or frozen)*
4 ounces cherry or grape tomatoes (or a few regular tomatoes cut up)
1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

*I could not figure out how much 10 oz of spinach would be. I looked it up online, and it said about 6 cups of fresh spinach leaves would be about 10 oz. But I really don't know. I used 3 cups of fresh spinach picked from our garden, and I think that was about the right amount. Normally, you'd probably just use frozen anyway. But! If you ever need to get rid of fresh spinach that you don't know what to do with, this recipe is great!

Directions:

1. Prepare pasta according to package directions.
2. In a large skillet over medium-high heat, sauté garlic in olive oil for 3 minutes.
3. If using fresh spinach, coarsely chop. If using frozen spinach, thaw and drain. Place spinach in sauté pan and cook until wilted, about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally.
4. Toss spinach with tomatoes and hot pasta. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.

Nutrition information per serving (1/6 of recipe): 193 calories; 8 g protein; 10 g digestible carbohydrates; 7 g fat; 1 g saturated fat; 3 mg cholesterol; 111 mg sodium; 4 g total dietary fiber.

This recipe was so easy and simple...and it tasted really great. It tasted healthy, because it was! But it was a delicious-fresh-summer-lite kind of healthy...not a boring-no fun-diet kind of healthy. Really.

Husband's reaction: I honestly don't remember. It was a few days ago. But he liked it. I told him he needs to start giving more creative reactions. He usually says, "This is really good, honey." or "This is good." or "I like it." Yeah, boring. :)

Taquitos!

Chicken Taquitos

(10-12 taquitos, 3-4 servings)

Photo and recipe from: http://barefootandbaking.blogspot.com/2011/05/chicken-taquitos.html

3 oz cream cheese, softened

1/4 cup salsa (I used homemade, but use whatever you love)

1 T fresh squeezed lime juice

1 t chili powder

1/2 t cumin

1/2 t onion powder

2 cloves garlic, minced

3 T chopped cilantro

1-2 green onions, chopped

2 cups shredded chicken (about 1 1/2 chicken breasts)

1 cup shredded Mexican cheese (I used cheddar)

10-12 6-inch (fajita size) flour tortillas

cooking spray

kosher salt

1/2 can corn, drained (optional)**
1/2 can black beans, rinsed and drained (optional)**

Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper, or spray with cooking spray

In a large mixing bowl, combine the cream cheese, salsa, lime juice, spices, cilantro, green onions, chicken and shredded cheese. Mix until well combined.

Briefly heat the tortillas until they are soft enough to roll easily. Place a tortilla on a work surface and fill with 2-3 Tablespoons of chicken mixture down the middle. Roll the tortilla tightly around the filling and place the taquito seam side down on the baking sheet. Repeat until all the tortillas are filled. Space them evenly on the baking sheet. Lightly spray the tops with cooking spray and then sprinkle with kosher salt. (This actually gives a great pop to these, so do not skip this step!)

Bake for 15-20 minutes, until crisp and golden brown. Serve with salsa, sour cream and guacamole, if desired

*To freeze for later use, transfer the baking sheet to the freezer and chill the assembled taquitos for 30-60 minutes. Then transfer them to a freezer safe container or storage bag for storing. To bake them from frozen, simply add a few minutes to the original baking time, until the filling is warmed through

**We made these again and added one can of black beans and a can of corn (both drained), omitted the cheese, left the chicken the same and doubled the cream cheese and spices and it made twice as many taquitos!  We didn't miss the cheese at all and LOVED the corn and beans in them!

I saw this on Pinterest.com and had to make them today! They were very easy. I used ground turkey instead of chicken and lemon juice instead of lime juice (it's what I had on hand), and added onions and green bell peppers to mine. I also cut bigger tortillas in half to keep my taquitos small. This was nice, because it looked like we had twice as much! 

Husband's Reaction: "Mmmm...these are good. Better than the kind you get at the store."

Mine got a little darker than the ones in the picture. I might bake them for less time next time. Also, I didn't add any corn or black beans, but I think that would taste good in these. And I would like to try them with chicken too. I think it would make it taste even better!

My New Favorite Thing

K, well, I already told you about allrecipes.com.

My new love?

Pinterest! I waste hours on that thing. There are so many cute/good ideas under the Food + Drink button. I just can't get enough!

One of my favorite things I have found on the site are these little babies:

Cookie Monster Cookies!

-Pinned by Pamela Murray, from this website: http://sammifong.tumblr.com/post/591658073

I just cannot get over how cute they are. My husband told me I was being too girly when I kept showing him and saying, "Aren't they SOOOO cute????" 

Well, he had a point, but I couldn't help it!

Oven Roasted Asparagus

Roasted Asparagus

Ingredients:
Asparagus
Olive oil
Salt
Pepper

Wash and thoroughly dry as many asparagus spears as you would like. Cut two inches off the woody end.

Arrange the asparagus on a baking sheet. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Put baking sheeting to a 400-425 degree oven for 5 minutes.

Serve with your favorite meal. Enjoy!

P.S. Thanks, Mom, for telling me what to do over the phone. :)

Husband's Reaction: "This is just like a treat to me! When it's cooked this way." So, we had some the next day too.

Thai Noodles with Chicken and Broccoli

Thai Noodles with Chicken and Broccoli

*I found this recipe on a family food blog made by an old roommate's family. I hope they don't mind if I put it up on here too.

Sauce:
3 Tbls soy sauce
1 Tbls sesame seed oil ( I didn't have any on hand, so I used regular oil. I know, not cool, but it worked).
3 Tbls peanutbutter
1 Tbls sugar
1 1/2 tsp chili paste ( Note from roommate's mother: I am not sure what this is so I put 3/4tsp chili powder. So, that's what I did too).
2 Tbls vinegar
1/2 cup chicken stock
Wisk above ingredients together and set aside.

Noodles:
8 oz spaghetti noodles 
4 cups broccoli florets
2 carrots sliced diagonally
Boil the noodles in large pot of water for 5 minutes. Add the broccoli and carrots cook an additional 3 mintues. Drain.

Chicken:
1 Tbls sesame seed oil
1 Tbls minced ginger root (I used ginger powder)
3 cloves garlic minced
1/2 lb chicken breast sliced in thin strips
1/4 cup chopped fresh coriander (use as garnish)
Stir fry chicken garlic ginger until chicken is no longer pink. Add the above sauce to the chicken and simmer covered for 5-10 minutes. Toss with the noodles and vegetables. Garnish with the coriander (I didn't have any coriander, so I left that out).

My old roommate's mother put this note at the end of the recipe: This is a recipe from Carolyn Mackay who we meet here in Moscow. I was surprised how easy and fast this was and I thought it would be something children may like.


This was so much better than I thought it would be! I could smell all the spices, and I was worried it would be too strong. But I tasted it and was pleasantly surprised! It was really great! Often when I cook, I have no appetite by the time the meal is done. My food always tastes okay to me, but it's hard after cooking it to love it. . . this dish I loved!


Husband's Reaction: 

One of My Favorite Salad Dressings (from JoAnn Fisher’s Spinach Salad recipe)

A Good Salad Dressing


Sorry, I didn't take a picture this time. Just make it yourself to view in person!


1 cup cider vinegar

2 cups oil

1 cup sugar

2 Tb grated onion

1 tsp dry mustard

2 tsp salt

2 tsp Poppy seeds

½ lb sliced mushrooms

Okay, I leave out the mushrooms when I make this.  It tastes close to the dressing on my favorite salad at Zupas (the Nuts About Berries salad).  I would use this dressing on a salad that had some kind of craisins or berries and nuts in it.  I love that kind of salad.


I made this the other night for a salad we had with some Papa Murphy's pizza. My husband seemed to enjoy it. He finished every bite!