Homemade Pizza.

It's a yummy dinner and a fun family activity - making your own pizza. You can pick whatever toppings you like, or experiment with new ones. This week the boys wanted traditional pizzas with sausage and pepperoni. I wanted something more eclectic so I tried to recreate one of my favorites - the Pear & Gorganzola from CPK. All the pizzas turned out yummy. Here are the pizzas we made. (And you can see my post of Homemade wheat pizza dough for the recipe)

The Ingredients:

Cooked italian sausage, pepperoni, pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese.

Sliced pears, gorganzola cheese, baby greens, pear & gorganzola salad dressing, mozzarella cheese and caramelized shallots.

Putting them together.

For this one I put down a layer of mozzarella, then a layer of sliced pears and shallots and added a little gorganzola on top.

The final products:

After the pizza is cooked, toss the baby greens in the dressing and top the pizza with them. Then slice and serve.

Homemade wheat pizza dough.

What goes better with homemade pizza than a homemade dough (although you can find and use some from the grocery store if you need to - I like the bags of dough at Trader Joe's). For ideas about what do put on your pizza, see my post about Homemade pizzas.

Recipe
Adapted from Curtis Stone on Oprah

This makes 3 balls of dough, about 8 ounces each (personal pizza sized)
1/4 ounce dry or fresh yeast
1 tsp. honey
1 cup warm water (110 to 115°)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1 cup wheat flour , plus more for dusting
1 tsp. kosher salt
1 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil , plus more for brushing

Directions

In a small mixing bowl, combine yeast, honey and warm water and mix to dissolve. Allow mixture to sit at room temperature for 5 minutes.

In a stand mixer mixing bowl, combine the flour, salt, oil and yeast mixture. Mix with a wooden spoon until all ingredients are fully incorporated. Attach dough hook to mixer and knead for 5 to 8 minutes or until the dough is smooth but firm. Remove dough hook and cover bowl with a warm, damp cloth and set in a warm spot for 30 to 40 minutes (or in a warmed oven) or until dough has risen to almost 1 1/2 times its size.

Divide the dough into 3 evenly sized balls (about 8 ounces each), and pull the sides of each ball down and tuck into the bottom of itself. Then, roll the dough under your hand until the top is smooth and has regained slight firmness.

Place the balls of dough back into the same bowl, rub lightly with oil and cover with a warm, damp cloth, and let rise for an additional 15 to 20 minutes in a warm spot.

Pound the dough on a floured work surface and reform into balls. You can roll out into pizza crusts immediately, or brush with a little olive oil and refrigerate covered until ready to use for up to 2 days. Dough will also keep in freezer for up to 2 months if tightly wrapped in plastic wrap.

Stir Fry

I don't know that a lot needs to be said about stir fry. It's pretty easy and very quick. It's a great tasting way to get those veggies into your diet, which is hard for my family sometimes. You just need to find yourself a good sauce (I love Trader Joe's General Tsao sauce). There are many to choose from in the asian isle at the grocery store, or you can make your own with a little soy sauce, cornstarch, garlic and chicken/beef broth. I also usually par-steam the harder veggies (like carrots) so they cook faster in the stir fry. If not, I try to add them first so they have a few more minutes of cooking time.

Recipe

Your choice of meat cut into bite sized pieces (we like beef or chicken).
Your choice of veggies that your family likes cut into bite size pieces (we like to combine 3-6, usually a combo of carrots, sugar snap peas, broccoli, mushrooms, peas, zucchini).
1-3 cloves of garlic, minced (we love garlic and use lots but use what your family likes)
2 T olive oil
1 bottle of your favorite sauce

Directions

Add olive oil to a large skillet or wok and swirl to coat bottom. Add garlic and cook for 1 minute. Add the meat and cook for 4-5 minutes. Add veggies and cook 3-5 minutes, or until meat is cooked through and veggies are cooked but still slightly crisp. Add sauce and cook until warmed through. Serve over brown rice.

Pasta with broccoli rabe.

I saw this recipe a couple years ago and have actually been dying to try it, but I can never find broccoli rabe (also called rapini) in the store. They have it at a local market (Henry’s) every once in awhile but they are always out when I see the sign for it. Well, today I saw it at the store and had to pick it up. It’s a little bitter like other dark greens, but very tasty - like a cross between spinach and broccoli. I will definitely try this one again, maybe even adding some additional chicken, veggies or cherry tomatoes.

Recipe
From Martha Stewart

Salt and fresh ground pepper
1 1/2 pounds broccoli rabe, rinsed, trimmed, and cut in 1-inch pieces
1 pound shaped pasta (orecchiette, bowties, rotini or your favorite)
1/4 cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 or 2 anchovy fillets (optional)
1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
Freshly grated Parmesan cheese, for serving
Lemon wedges, for serving

Directions
Bring a large pot of water to a boil; Salt generously. Add broccoli rabe. Cook until leaves are wilted, about 1 minute. Using a slotted spoon, transfer broccoli rabe to colander; drain well. Return water to a boil, and add pasta; cook until al dente, according to package instructions. Drain, reserving 1/2 cup cooking liquid.

Meanwhile, heat oil in large skillet over medium-low heat. Add garlic; cook, stirring, until soft, 30 seconds, being careful not to brown. Add anchovy fillets, if using, and crushed red pepper; cook, stirring, 1 to 2 minutes. Stir in broccoli rabe; cook until heated through, 3 to 4 minutes.

Add pasta to broccoli rabe mixture; toss to combine, adding reserved cooking water as desired. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Serve with Parmesan and lemon wedges.

Beef & Barley Veggie Soup

I don't have a lot of time to make homemade soups so when I found this one I was very excited. It has wonderful flavor and is full of delicious barley and veggies. It's become a favorite in our house (as are many things from Trader Joes). Maybe someday I'll try to figure out how to make a homemade version, but in the meantime....this is a quick and easy dinner.

Spinach & Proscuitto Pizza

Making home-made pizza is always a fun treat. It's a great activity to get kids involved in, from rolling out the crust to spreading out toppings. You can customize the pizza with toppings your family likes, or experiment with new flavors. This pizza was the latter. I love to buy whole wheat pizza crust from the refrigerated section at Trader Joe's, but I wanted to try some new toppings that were a bit healthier, so I found a recipe that I thought would work (even though there is no sauce)

Recipe
Adapted from Foodnetwork.com

1 whole wheat pizza crust
4 cups baby spinach
3 oz. prosciutto
½ c. shredded parmesean cheese

Directions

Roll out the pizza crust according to package directions. (We rolled out ours into a sqare, but you can use whatever shape you want). Spread the spinach out all over the crust. Cut up the proscuitto into bite-size pieces then spread over the spinach. Top with parmesean cheese. Cook 12-15 minutes, until cheese is melted and crust is cooked and golden. Slice and serve.

Marinated steak

For a quick meal I like to have thin cut steaks and marinate then for several hours (you can marinate them for just 30 minutes if you are short on time). By using a thin cut of steak it makes the meal very quick and easy (although there is certainly a place for a good thick steak another night). Tonight I used about a pound of thin round tip steak that was on sale at the grocery store (skirt steak, flank steak etc. work great with this).

The marinade (you can play with the amounts and flavors depending on what your family likes):

3/4 cup low sodium soy sauce

1/2 cup honey

2-3 minced garlic cloves

1/2 tsp. black pepper

1 tsp. dried parsley (you can substitute 1/4 cup fresh if you have it)

1 tsp. dried mustard

Put the marinade ingredients into a gallon sized ziptop bag and squish them around to combine. Add the steak to the bag making sure to cover all the meat, and seal the bag. Put the bag into some kind of bowl or container to catch any leaks (just in case). Let the bag sit in the fridge for 30 minutes to several hours.

When you are ready to cook, just remove the meat and discard the marinade. Cook the meat to your favorite doneness (I like medium rare, especially for the thinnner steaks) and serve. You can grill it outside, pan sear it, or use a grill pan (as seen here).