Homemade Pizza

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Here's a way to make a healthy homemade pizza for your family.  Feel free to personalize it to your tastes.  This amount makes either one large (14-16") thicker crust or two very thin crusts.  Since I'm trying to watch my calories I normally split it into two crusts and roll it very thin.  This makes our ingredients go further too! :)

Crust:

• 1 (1/4 oz) pkg active dry yeast
• 1 c warm water
• 1 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 c flour (can substitute whole wheat flour)
• additional flour for kneading
• small amount cornmeal

In a medium mixing bowl combine yeast and warm water.  Let sit until yeast foams, about 5 minutes.  Stir in oil & salt.  Add flour, 1/2 c at a time, mixing with a large spoon, until dough comes away from the side of the bowl and holds together.  Sprinkle a little bit of flour onto a large cutting board or pastry board.  Turn the dough out of the bowl and knead about 5 minutes, until it's smooth and springy, only adding enough flour to keep it from sticking to the board.  Form dough into a ball and place in a medium bowl.  Cover with plastic wrap and put in a warm place.  Let rise until about doubled in size, about 2 hours or so.

To make the pizza, preheat the oven to 475 degrees.  Place dough on a lightly floured work surface and flatten with your hand.  Using a floured rolling pin, roll dough outward from the center.  Form dough into a circle or rectangle (whichever shape your baking stone or pizza pan is).

Sprinkle baking stone, pizza pan, or baking sheet with a small amount of cornmeal.  Lay the crust on the stone or sheet.  Top as desired.  The BBQ chicken pizza shown in this picture was made with about 1/2 bottle of BBQ sauce, some mozzarella cheese, grilled chicken, and red onions.  You could also use pizza sauce and any other toppings you like such as pepperoni, sausage, ham, peppers, etc.

Once the pizza is topped, let it rest about 10 minutes for a crispier crust.  Bake pizza for 15-20 minutes or until the cheese is melting & browning a bit.  If desired, sprinkle with sliced fresh basil.  (If adding fresh basil don't add until after the pizza comes out of the oven so the basil doesn't burn.)

Tropical Glazed Grilled Turkey

I'm really looking forward to this summer and grilling season, so here's a great grilled turkey recipe.

• 1 lb skinless turkey breasts
• 1 (15 oz) can sliced pineapple
• 1/4 c honey
• 1 Tbsp butter, melted
• 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
• 1/4 tsp ground ginger
• 1/4 tsp salt

Drain pineapple, reserving juice.  Combine honey, 2 Tbsp pineapple juice, butter, and spices.  Pour remaining pineapple juice over turkey breasts and let stand for 15 minutes while the grill is heating.  Remove turkey from pineapple juice and grill over hot coals for 4 minutes on one side, brushing with honey glaze.  Add pineapple slices to the grill, turning to brown on both sides and brushing with the glaze.  Turn turkey breasts, brush with more glaze, and top with pineapple.  Cook for another 3-5 minutes or until turkey is no longer pink in the center.  Note: When the weather doesn't cooperate to grill outside, this can be made inside on a griddle or an electric grill such as a George Foreman grill.

Coke Chicken

I got this recipe from my friend Shelley Moore when I was in college.  She used to make this on dates when she wanted to impress a guy with her cooking skills.

• Boneless, skinless chicken breast or chicken tenders
• 1 c ketchup or 1/2 c ketchup and 1/2 c BBQ sauce (I usually use the ketchup/BBQ sauce combo for more flavor)
• 1 (12 oz) can Coke or Pepsi
• 1 tsp brown sugar

Mix sauce ingredients and spread over chicken in a skillet.  Simmer for 30 minutes uncovered, then 30 minutes covered.  STIR OFTEN TO PREVENT BURNING THE SAUCE!

Cavitelli

This recipe is from my friend Carol.  She made it quite often and it's delicious!  This is a perfect midweek meal ~ it's easy, yummy, and budget-friendly.

• 1 lb hamburger
• 1 (28 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
• 1/2 of a large jar taco sauce
• 16 oz shredded mozzarella cheese (When I've made this recently I've cut the amount of mozzarella to 8 oz and it still tastes yummy.)
• 8 oz small shell macaroni (My husband has an aversion to shell pasta for some reason so I usually make it with elbow macaroni.)

Brown hamburger and cook noodles according to package directions.  In a 9x13" pan combine hamburger, spaghetti sauce, taco sauce, and macaroni and spread across pan so it's an even thickness in the pan.  Sprinkle shredded cheese on top and bake at 425 degrees for 20-25 minutes until cheese is golden brown and the casserole bubbles.  Note: For a little extra kick I usually add a couple shakes of Frank's Red Hot Sauce to the pan with the spaghetti sauce & taco sauce.

Peach Salsa Pork

This has a delicious combination of sweet and spicy and is great served over rice.  My husband loves this so much he requests it about once a week or so.

• 1 lb boneless pork loin, cubed
• 1 packet taco seasoning
• 2-3 Tbsp oil
• 8 oz jar salsa
• 4 Tbsp peach preserves

Coat cubed pork loin with taco seasoning and brown in a little oil in a nonstick skillet.  Add salsa and peach preserves to skillet.  Stir to mix well.  Cover and lower heat.  Simmer gently for 15 minutes, stirring often.  Serve over rice.  Makes approximately 4 servings.

Chicken Fajitas

This recipe also works for beef fajitas - I just normally make it with chicken.  This is one of our favorite meals.

• 3 medium or 2 large boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• 1 medium to large onion
• 3 bell peppers (My husband isn’t really into green peppers so we usually stick with the red, orange and yellow, but you can use any bell peppers you like.)
• 1 packet fajita seasoning (The brand isn’t real important.  I’ve used Lowry’s and Carlita’s and been happy with both.)
• olive oil or vegetable oil
• soft tortillas
• sour cream
• cheddar cheese

Cut bell peppers, onion, and chicken into strips.  It’s a matter of personal preference how wide your strips are, but I normally cut the peppers & onions into 1/4 to 1/2 inch strips and the chicken into 1/2 to 1 inch strips.  Heat oil in 12″ nonstick skillet.  When oil is hot, saute peppers and onion in skillet until tender.  Remove to a bowl & set aside.  In the same skillet, cook chicken until no longer pink (you may have to add a little more oil to the pan).  When chicken is done, add the peppers and onions back to the skillet and combine with chicken and cook a couple minutes longer.  Add the fajita seasoning and stir to coat.  Cook about 1 minute more and remove to serving bowl.  To serve, spread a small amount of sour cream on a soft tortilla.  Top with chicken & pepper mixture.  Sprinkle a little cheddar cheese on top.  Roll up like a burrito or taco and enjoy!

Melt-In-Your-Mouth Sausages

This is an awesome meal made in the crock pot.

• 2 lbs Italian sausages
• 48 oz spaghetti sauce (2 regular jars)
• 1 (6 oz) can tomato paste
• 1 large onion, thinly sliced
• 1 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 tsp parsley flakes
• 1 c water

Place sausages in skillet and cover with water.  Simmer for 15 to 20 minutes and drain.  Meanwhile, place remaining ingredients in slow cooker.  Add sausages.  Cover and cook on LOW for 4 hours.  Increase temperature to HIGH and cook for 1 hour longer.  Serve in hot dog buns or cut into bite-size pieces and serve over pasta.

Mozzarella Chicken

Here’s a great fast dinner idea.  This chicken is really good served over a bed of spaghetti noodles with a side of your favorite veggies.

• 1 c bread crumbs
• 3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese (grated)
• 3 Tbsp fresh chopped parsley
• 4 chicken breast fillets
• 1 c flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp black pepper
• 1 beaten egg
• 3 oz Italian salad dressing (I actually prefer the Zesty Italian Dressing.)
• 1/4 c margarine or butter (The original recipe calls for margarine, but I prefer the taste of butter better.  Go with what you like here.)
• 4 slices mozzarella cheese (You can substitute shredded mozzarella.)

Combine bread crumbs, Parmesan cheese, and parsley in bowl; mix well.  In a separate bowl, combine the flour, salt and pepper.  Dredge chicken in flour mixture.  Dip into egg; coat with crumb mixture.  Melt margarine or butter in skillet.  Brown chicken in skillet with margarine or butter.  Place in 8×8″ baking dish.  Pour salad dressing over chicken.  Top with cheese slices.  Bake at 350 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese melts.

Italian Stuffed Chicken Breasts

This recipe takes a little extra preparation time, but it’s well worth the effort.  It tastes delicious and it’s fairly low in fat and calories.  Enjoy!

• 1 tsp olive oil, divided
• 3/4 c minced onion, divided
• 1/4 c (1 oz) chopped prosciutto or lean smoked ham
• 1 Tbsp grated fresh Parmesan cheese
• 1 Tbsp dry bread crumbs
• 1 1/2 tsp minced fresh rosemary, divided
• 4 (4 oz) boneless, skinless chicken breast halves
• 1 c low-salt chicken broth
• 1/4 c dry white wine
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Rosemary sprigs, optional for garnish

Heat 1/2 tsp oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat.  Add 1/2 c onion.  Saute 4 minutes.  Combine onion, prosciutto, Parmesan cheese, bread crumbs, and 1 tsp rosemary in a bowl.  Stir well and set aside.  Cut a horizontal slit through the thickest portion of each chicken breast half to form a pocket.  Stuff about 3 Tbsp onion mixture into each pocket. 

Heat 1/2 tsp oil in skillet over medium-high heat.  Add chicken.  Saute 6 minutes on each side or until chicken is done.  Remove chicken from skillet.  Set aside and keep warm.  Add 1/4 c onion to skillet and saute 3 minutes.  Add 1/2 tsp rosemary, chicken broth, wine and garlic.  Bring to a boil.  Cook 5 minutes or until reduced to about 3/4 cup.  Return chicken to skillet; cover and simmer 2 minutes or until thoroughly heated.  Serve sauce with chicken.  Garnish with fresh rosemary sprigs, if desired.

Lasagna

I got this recipe from my friend Leslie’s mom.  It’s by far the best lasagna I’ve ever had.  In fact my husband loves it so much he told me I should throw out my other lasagna recipes and only use this one from now on.  The only changes I’ve made are the addition of fresh garlic to the meat mixture, and I sometimes use low-fat cream cheese and sour cream in the cheese mixture.  The recipe also calls for 6 oz of cream cheese but I normally use 8 oz.

Meat mixture:

• 1 lb hamburger
• 1 clove fresh garlic (or if you get the minced garlic in a jar use 1 tsp garlic)
• 1 Tbsp chopped parsley
• 1 Tbsp basil
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 (1 lb) can diced tomatoes
• 12 oz tomato paste

Brown the hamburger; drain off grease.  Simmer meat mixture 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, cook 1 (10 oz) pkg lasagna noodles according to package directions.

Cheese mixture:

• 1 c (8 oz) small curd cottage cheese
• 6 oz cream cheese (I usually use 8 oz cream cheese)
• 1/2 c sour cream
• 1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese

Also need 12 oz sliced mozzarella cheese (I’ve substituted shredded mozzarella in a pinch.)

Place 1/2 of the noodles on the bottom of a 9″ x 13″ baking dish.  Spread 1/2 of cheese mixture over noodles, cover with 1/2 of mozzarella cheese.  Cover with 1/2 of meat mixture.  Repeat layers.  Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes to 1 hour.  Let stand 10-15 minutes before cutting.

Cheesy Mostaccioli

This is the recipe I made for my husband on our first date.  They say a way to a man’s heart is through his stomach ~ I guess it worked in this case!  LOL

• 1 (16 oz) pkg mostaccioli pasta, cooked
• 1 1/2 lbs ground beef, browned & drained
• 1 tsp ground black pepper
• 1 tsp Italian Seasoning
• 1 (28 oz) jar spaghetti sauce
• 1 (11 oz) can cheddar cheese soup
• 3 c (12 oz) shredded mozzarella cheese, divided

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Prepare mostaccioli pasta according to package directions.  In 10″ or 12″ skillet brown meat and drain.  Add seasonings to meat.  Stir in spaghetti sauce and cheddar cheese soup.  Combine pasta, sauce mixture, and 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese in 2 qt casserole.  (If you have the Pampered Chef Baking Bowl use that - it bakes more evenly.)  Mix to combine.  Sprinkle remaining cheese on top.  Bake 40 minutes or until cheese is light golden brown and casserole bubbles.  Makes approx. 12 servings.

Note:  The original recipe doesn’t call for garlic, but I usually add 1-2 cloves fresh garlic to the meat before adding the spaghetti sauce & cheddar cheese soup.