Monday, May 23, 2011

Chicken Pesto Pizza with homemade dough

This was super fun to make and was extremely delicious! I had never made homemade dough before so I was pretty surprised that I pulled it off. I cooked mine for a little longer than it said to because I like it a little crispier.



Here is the recipe. Let me know how it turns out!


Ingredients

  • 2 teaspoons active dry yeast
  • 1 cup warm water (110° to 115°)
  • 2-3/4 cups bread flour, divided
  • 1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons olive oil, divided
  • 1 tablespoon sugar
  • 1-1/2 teaspoons salt, divided
  • 1/2 pound boneless skinless chicken breasts, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
  • 1 small onion, halved and thinly sliced
  • 1/2 each small green, sweet red and yellow peppers, julienned
  • 1/2 cup sliced fresh mushrooms
  • 3 tablespoons prepared pesto
  • 1-1/2 cups (6 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

  • In a large bowl, dissolve yeast in warm water. Beat in the 1 cup flour, 1 tablespoon oil, sugar and 1 teaspoon salt. Add the remaining flour; beat until combined.
  • Turn onto a lightly floured surface; knead until smooth and elastic, about 6-8 minutes. Place in a bowl coated with cooking spray, turning once to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place until doubled, about 1 hour.
  • In a large nonstick skillet over medium heat, cook the chicken, onion, peppers and mushrooms in remaining oil until chicken is no longer pink and vegetables are tender. Remove from the heat; set aside.
  • Punch dough down; roll into a 15-in. circle. Transfer to a 14-in. pizza pan. Build up edges slightly. Spread with pesto. Top with chicken mixture and cheese. Sprinkle with pepper and remaining salt.
  • Bake at 400° for 18-20 minutes or until crust and cheese are lightly browned. Yield: 8 slices.

Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Garlic breaded chicken breast with Cous Cous!



Do not even remember what the recipe was, or if there even was one... 
Just dip chicken breast in egg, then the flour, and finally the bread crumbs. I grated some fresh garlic into the bread crumbs before I coated the chicken and added more garlic (you will soon find out, if you do not know already that I LOVE garlic) on top of the chicken with some melted butter before I cooked in the oven. For a last touch I added some grated fresh parmesan on top and it was ready to serve over some hot lemon cous cous. 

As you will see below, I had a great little helper! 




Saturday, May 14, 2011

Brians Birthday and Bday BBQ

So Brian said that he wanted to do something simple for his birthday, like a BBQ. Ok, great! Well, when it comes to ANY party, it is an EVENT. I can't help it, thats what I love to do... PLAN!! So I tried my best to incorporate just a "simple" BBQ into something a little, not so simple! Simple is boring people! Of course Brian would have been happy with just some burgers, some beer, and some friends and family. That is all fine and dandy but come on, lets make it a "little" more than that!


I was super excited to make caramel and chocolate dipped apples! I was going to make a candy apple bar but it would have been a little too crazy for the BBQ, so I just made them myself! I also made some carrot cake and red velvet cupcakes! Yummy!!












Monday, May 9, 2011

Gavin's home made baby food!

So when people asked me if I was going to make Gavin's baby food when he started eating solids, I said no. I really did not put much thought in to it. Well, I really don't know what I was thinking. Did you know that the first year of a babies life is the time that their tissues and cells are at its most delicate and most important time? Crazy, right? It obviously makes sense to me. They are growing like crazy! Their bodies, their minds, and the way they "think" about food and it's association. They need good nutrients. They need good food, REAL food. Why wouldn't I make his baby food? I feel as a mother, I want only the best for my little man!


It makes me SO happy to make it for him, to feed it to him, and to know that I am taking great care of what he puts in his mouth. Besides, before we know it, he will be sneaking in all this processed and crappy food
at his friends houses and wherever else... I want to do what I can, for as long as I actually can. With that said, I posted some pics of a few things. His favorite food is sweet potato! I don't blame him :)

Below is squash and sweet potato. Just cut in half, put face down on 400 degrees for 50-60 minutes. Sprinkle some water before laying them face down to give it a caramelized taste. Yum!

Sweet potato and squash