That's A Spicy Meat-a-ball!! Pizza

So took another gander at the meatball pizza last night! I must say this time around was a better success. My sister was here to help me and together we made amazing yummy things happen in my kitchen!!!! I went with a different dough recipe and while it was way better than last time, I'm just convinced dough will never be a friend of mine. I got the recipe out of an Italian cookbook, and still to no avail, it did not rise! I need a dough lesson big time. And not from a cookbook. But the rest was really simple. We used fresh veggies and fresh cheese. I made the sauce (pretty tasty!). 

I loooove pizza! You can do anything with it. This was definitely a happy dinner crowd. This pizza will appear on my table again. And it should appear on yours too! I think you would like it. Feel free to experiment with the crust or buy store bought. 

For my "not so rising" crust: 

1 1/2 all purpose flour, extra for dusting

1 tsp. salt

1 tsp. active dry yeast

1 tbsp. olive oil

6 tbsp. luke-warm water (I didn't think 6 was enough and used about 10)

Pre-heat oven to 450 degrees. 

Sift the flour and salt into a medium size bowl. Stir in the yeast. Make a well in the middle of the bowl and add your oil and water. Gradually stir in the flour with your hand. When a soft ball of dough is formed turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes. Return to a clean bowl and cover with some lightly oiled plastic wrap. Let rise for one hour. 

When (if) it's risen, turn out on a floured surface once more and knock down. Knead briefly, cut in half, and roll out to 1/4 inch thickness. Bake on a lightly oiled baking sheet. 

This serves 2 so you might want to make 2 batches or 1 bigger batch. Just double everything up.

For my "oh-so-delish" meatballs: 

1 lb. ground beef

2 eggs, well beaten

3/4 c. Italian seasoned bread crumbs

1/4 c. Romano cheese, grated (imported preferred)

1 tsp. salt

Black pepper to taste

1 1/2 tbsp. basil

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

1 shallot finely minced

Mix all ingredients well and shape into golf-ball size. Place in a non-stick baking pan or spray pan with pan coating. Bake in a preheated oven at 375 degrees for 15 minutes. When the sauce is ready and the meatballs are done add them to the sauce to stay warm and yummy!

Let's get saucy!!:

1 shallot, minced

2 whole cloves of garlic (I push them through a garlic press but you can mince if you don't have one)

1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil

1 28 oz. can crushed tomatoes

1 tbsp. italian seasoning

1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper (for a little zing!!)

salt and pepper to taste

Heat the oil in a sauce pan over medium heat. Add the shallot and the garlic and cook until the onion is soft. Add the tomatoes and the seasoning. Bring to a simmer for 15 minutes. 

After all is said and cooked just assemble your pizza! You can use whatever else you like. We chose green peppers, red onion, black olives, parmesan cheese and fresh mozzarella.  And on a more fattening note, we brushed the crust (pre-saucing) with garlic infused butter! 

After baking for about 12-15 minutes it turned out to be something like this:

Meatball recipe courtesy of: http://www.cooks.com/rec/view/0,1718,156175-224206,00.html 

Sweet Dreams?? I don't think so...

The flowers here are made from pineapple!

You've got it bad when you can't sleep because you're thinking of food. I toss and turn, sometimes almost giving up on sleep, because of food. Most people lay down and start thinking about what they need to do tomorrow. I lay down and start thinking about the next thing I want to cook. One time, for almost a week, I had trouble going to sleep because I kept thinking about pulled pork. Succulent, tender, fall off the bone and smother it in sauce, pulled pork. So that week I made some. Another time it was crema. Mexican crema to be exact. I wanted to make it extra special with onion and chilis, and cilantro, spice it up a little and drizzle it on a taco. So I did. It was keeping me from my sleep. I love my sleep. I had to do something about it!
Now, it's 11:50 at night. I have to be at work at 7:00 in the morning. I should be snoring... But here I am.

Tonight I'm thinking about cake. Coconut cake. Moist, fluffy, covered in butter cream. Vanilla bean butter cream. Sweet island bliss in a cake. Surrounded by pretty yellow flowers made out of dried pineapple. OMG!!! It's going to be my undoing if I don't get this cake. I was going to make it 2 days ago but instead found myself at a flea market. What treasures did I find? Only a cake stand! Thus confirming my subconscious desire for this cake. So I've decided that this coming Thursday will be the day. I'm off work and don't have a lot of errand. Perfect? I think so. I'll be sure to post this sleep depriving cake and it's pretty little decorations. I hope it doesn't disappoint. Then again, when does cake ever disappoint?!

This picture was my inspiration for my pineapple flowers. The flowers on this cake are pineapple! How cute! I can't wait to make my own. I hope they look this good! 

Pictures from: http://www.axis-of-aevil.net/archives/food/american/cakes_and_pies/  &

http://radio-weblogs.com/0129838/stories/2004/04/18/isMyBlogBurningCakeWalkTheHummingbirdCake.html

Cheesy Orzo Stuffed Chicken with Pink Vodka Sauce

Here's what you'll need:

1 pound chicken breast (either thinly sliced or butterflied will work)

1/4 cup cooked orzo pasta

1 small onion, minced and separated in 2 equal piles

1 cup ricotta cheese

1/4 cup Parmesan cheese

1/4 cup shredded mozzarella 

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, plus a teaspoon more for garnish

salt and pepper

1 clove of garlic, minced

1/2 cup vodka

28 oz can crushed tomatoes

1 1/2 tablespoons italian seasoning

pinch of red pepper flake

1/2 cup of heavy cream

2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

Stuffed Chicken

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Season the chicken with salt and pepper and set aside. 

In a medium skillet heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, over medium heat.  Add half of the onion and saute until tender and slightly golden. Drain off on a paper towel.  

In a medium size bowl mix together the cheeses, pasta, parsley, and onions. Spread evenly onto the chicken breast. If they're butterflied just fold them over and secure with a toothpick. If they are thinly sliced roll them up and secure them with a toothpick. Make sure to leave enough room to be able to pull the toothpick out once the chicken is cooked. 

Vodka Sauce

In a sauce pan heat the other tablespoon of olive oil. Add the garlic and the other half of the onion. Cook until the onion in tender and translucent. Add the vodka and cook until reduced by half, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, the seasoning and a pinch of salt and pepper. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer. Cook until slightly thickened. Take off the heat and add the cream. 

Put the stuffed chicken into a greased casserole dish. Pour the sauce over top. Bake for 40-45 minutes or until the chicken is cooked through.

Dark Chocolate Reese's Cupcakes w/ Peanut Butter Frosting

Since it's like the tail-end of February I couldn't let myself go into March without posting at least one super delicious chocolaty concoction. These cupcakes are A-mazing. They come from a box of course, we all know my baking doesn't really go past that. But I'm really good at coming up with different ways to have things. I mean, chocolate cupcakes are always good as is. But add in something extra special... It just speaks for itself.

You will need:
1 box dark chocolate fudge cake mix, I prefer Duncan Hines
3 large eggs
1/2 cup veggie oil
1 1/3 cups cold water
1 1/2 bag Reese's Cup Miniatures


Preheat your oven to 350 degrees.  Mix the first 4 ingredients according to the directions on the box. Set aside for a moment. Unwrap all the reese's cups into a small bowl. Put them into a food processor, one handful at a time and chop until just broken up. Fold chopped reese's into cake batter. Line muffin pan with liners and fill 3/4 full with batter. Bake for 22 - 25 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

 

Peanut Butter Frosting:

1 1/4 cup creamy peanut butter

1/4 - 1/2 cup milk

1 2/3 pounds confectioners sugar

Cream peanut butter in a large bowl. Adding 1/2 cup at a time, slowly add the powdered sugar. Gradually add milk to keep a smooth consistency. This will always help it from flying out of the bowl and covering you and your kitchen. The end result should be creamy but firm. Fill a plastic sandwich bag with the frosting cutting off a small part of one end. Close the bag and pipe frosting onto cupcakes!

Salmon w/ Lemon and Parsley, Parmesan Potatoes

I can't believe I've gone pretty much the whole month of February without posting something. I guess I fell off the wagon. Well I'd like to think I'm back up there and I have a few recipes that I'll be sharing over the next few days. The first one, mentioned above, was dinner tonight. Really delicious and really healthy. Well, maybe not the potatoes. But still, delish.

For the salmon you will need:
2 - 6-8 oz. salmon fillets
1 tsp freshly grated lemon zest
1 clove of garlic
1 tbsp fresh dill
1/4 cup fresh parsley
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
salt and pepper to taste

Put zest, garlic, dill and parsley, salt and pepper in a food processor. Pulse until just combined, streaming in oil. Put the salmon into a greased glass oven safe dish. Spread the mixture from the food processor into the salmon. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes. Cook the fish in a preheated 425 degree oven for 10-15 minutes. The fish will flake easily when done.

For the potatoes you will need:
1 pound red potatoes
2 tbsp butter
1/4 milk, warmed
1/4 cup shredded parmesan cheese
salt and pepper to taste


Cook the potatoes in boiling water until fork tender. Drain off the water.  Add the butter and milk and mash with a hand smasher to desired texture. Stir in the cheese and cover with aluminum foil until ready to eat. Season to taste.