pizzaschettas

I had been planning to make a pizza with goat cheese and squash last week, inspired by SmittenKitchen but never had time. Still hoping to get my dough making practice in, {still overcoming that aforementioned fear of yeast} I conjured up a way to turn the pizza into an appetizer for our Friday night dinner guests. I decided to further flavor the squash with butter and sugar, reminiscent of my grandma's "squash" that I loved, though it was probably more butter and sugar than squash.
Roaming through the store, I encountered my friend brie and knew I must take action. Brie is heaven on earth. Seriously. So I decided to try out brie as well and think I found some pretty good toppings to "compliment the flavors," if you will. Check it out, they turned out really good and were pretty fun too.
One more thing. If you've never ventured into the realm of exiting cheeses, it's really so very worth it. Proof that there's a God who wants us to enjoy life and eat good food. In my opinion, good cheese is truely a manifestation of heaven on this fallen rock. They may be expensive, but since they're so flavorful and textured and rich and all that great stuff, you really only need to eat and serve and savor them in small portions. Your guests won't expect to be served a plateful of brie, but it's amazing how a tablespoon or less of good cheese can make anyone say whoa, heaven has come to earth, please invite me over for dinner more and I don't care what you make me eat after this because that made my night.

Or maybe that's just me.....

It's possible.

goat cheese & sugared squash pizzaschettas
INGREDIENTS
half of this prepared and risen pizza dough, or about 1 1/2 cup (12oz) pizza dough
1/4 cup soft goat cheese
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/4 cup very thinly sliced and quartered yellow zucchini squash
2/3 tablespoon butter
2-3 tablespoons sugar
DIRECTIONS
Oven to 450. {note} I used goat cheese with the lemon already in it. Found at HEB. Combine lemon and goat cheese. Rub both sides of squash slices with butter and toss with sugar. Or, in small, microwave safe bowl, melt butter. Mix in sugar. Add squash slices and stir, coating evenly in sugar and butter.

Roll out pizza dough to about 1/4 of an inch thick, cut with small biscuit cutter into circles about 3 inches in diameter. Stretch them with your fingers to help them keep their shape and thinness and place on pizza stone or pan. Generously spread about a tablespoon of cheese on each dough circle, leaving a little "crust." Top with one to three squash slices, depending on how many fit.

Bake 10 minutes or until dough begins to brown.

brie & toasted pecans pizzaschettas
INGREDIENTS
1/2 of this prepared and risen pizza dough, or about 1 1/2 cup (12oz) pizza dough
8-10 oz softened brie cheese {heeeaaavenn. do you hear the angels singing?}
1/4 cup chopped raw pecans
chipotle raspberry dressing
DIRECTIONS
Oven to 450. Roll out pizza dough to about 1/4 of an inch thick, cut with small biscuit cutter into circles about 3 inches in diameter. Stretch them with your fingers to help them keep their shape and thinness and place on pizza stone or pan.

Top each round generously with about a tablespoon of cheese. I flattened a chunk of cheese in my fingers then pressed it into the dough, helping keep the dough flat as well, but still leaving a "crust" of dough. Then I topped the flattened piece with another, more thick chuck right in the middle. Place as many pecans on top as fit.

Bake for 10 minutes, or until dough is browned and looks like pizza crust. Can be baked a longside the goat cheese ones on the same pan, if you're making both types, While still warm, top with a few more little chunks of brie. Once cool, top with a teaspoon or two of chipotle raspberry dressing {a little bit goes a long way} or place dressing on the side with a spoon for self service.... Some weirdos like my husband claim to dislike this stuff.

That's the only picture I got of the brie ones with the raspberry chipotle. Please excuse the fact that half of it is missing.

green pizza

Pizzas are such a great leftovers meal. Especially since I'm overcoming my fear of yeast. Since we've been frequenting The Grove, it's inspired me to throw just about anything on there. Too bad I didn't have any mushrooms, then it'd be heavenly. But then I probably couldn't call this Green Pizza.


I realize I'm using spaghetti sauce on this but I sort of like how it's sweeter and plus this jar is much more versatile if I use it for more than just spaghetti. I also like how these come in flavors. The tomato & basil has chunks of tomato that add to pizzas. In my honest opinion. Obviously you could just use marinara sauce or even tomato paste with some garlic but that wouldn't be as random....
Note the feta placement in the bottom picture. Taylor claims to not like strong cheeses, but I really do. And they make pizzas and a lot of other dishes much more fun. So I thought I start him out on feta {since blue cheese would probably be a criminal starting place....but we'll work up to that}. I put a little cluster to see what would happen, and he ate it! I informed him later, at The Grove actually, that he likes feta. Was that mean? I'm not sure but it makes it easier to cook for both of us if I can work on cheese diversification.


green pizza
INGREDIENTS
this pizza dough, or prepared dough {some hebs sell raw dough near their deli section}
1/4 cup thinly sliced and then quartered zucchini
1 cup uncooked baby spinach leaves
4 tablespoons of this pesto, or basil pesto
1/3 cup cooked chicken, diced
1/3 cup shredded colby jack cheese
1/4 cup shredded parmesean cheese
3 tablespoons crumbled feta cheese
1/3 cup of your favorite, well seasoned tomato sauce {or omit and increase the pesto!}
DIRECTIONS
Lightly saute zucchini and spinach {or zap in the microwave} until just beginning to look and feel cooked. I cooked the spinach just about all the way and then squeezed out the moisture and diced it. I cooked the cut zucchini till it was tender but not completely cooked. {see note}

Oven to 550. Cover pizza stone or baking sheet with parchment paper if you have some. {I'm never consistent about using parchment paper}. Roll out pizza dough to desired thickness, will {or should} rise some. Spread pesto then tomato sauce. Sprinkle with about 2/3 of the cheeses. Add zucchini, spinach and chicken evenly. Sprinkle the rest of the cheeses. Bake for 10-12 minutes.

{note} I'd never tried these veggies on a pizza and wasn't sure if they'd cook all the way, being put on the pizza raw. So I gave them a head start. I have no idea if it was necessary but they turned out great.


{recommended variations for your green pizza} asparagus, green peppers, green tomatoes, arugula. ooooo arugula...

fettuccine with light white sauce

This could be called fettuccine alfredo. Except that a real alfredo sauce, I think, based upon minimal online research, is made mostly with cream and much more Parmesan. I made a sauce base, similar to my Mac & Cheese and my
Pot Pie, used 2 % milk then added some cheese and a little bit of lemon. It was a bit lighter than alfredo sauce.

I think the lemon and fresh parsley really set this sauce apart. I was honestly surprised at how good it was, and I was amazed at how easy the sauce was to whip up with basic kitchen ingredients. It was even be better the second day, after all the flavors became better acquainted. I imagine that baking it is not a necessity but I think it helps the noodles soak up some of the sauce flavor....I'm not sure. Try it both ways!

image belongs to chowdownphoenix

fettuccine with light white sauce
inspired by PioneerWoman
8- 10 oz wheat fettuccine pasta (3-4 cups cooked)
2 cups grilled or roasted chicken, diced

1/4 c. butter
1/4 c. flour
2 cloves garlic, minced
generous dash of nutmeg
2 t. cracked pepper
1 t. salt
3/4 to 1 c. milk (room temperature recommended)
3/4 c. low sodium chicken broth
1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese divided
3 t. lemon juice
3 t. chopped, fresh parsley

Heat oven to 375. Cook fettuccine according to package directions, drain and place in oven safe dish. In small pot, warm chicken broth. Melt butter in saucepan on medium heat, add garlic and lemon juice and whisk occasionally until butter is bubbly, about 3 minutes. Add flour slowly with pepper, salt and nutmeg and whisk until combined, about 2 minutes. Reduce heat to medium low and slowly whisk in broth and milk, alternating. Add more milk if it seems too thick. Remove from heat and add 1/2 cup cheese. Pour over noodles. Add chicken. Bake, covered, for 15 minutes. Then remove foil and bake for an additional 7 to 10 minutes. (Don’t bake too long or the pasta will dry out.) Top with remaining cheese and parsley. Yield: 4 servings.

meatballs of veal

So part of me wishes I could retire all blog posts and leave those scones at the top. Not only are they the epitome of my baking aspirations but that picture matches my color scheme so well! It's just the perfect little post with the perfect little picture. But alas, life goes on and so does vittles. I have no idea why, I don't even really like them that much, I'd been wanting to make meatballs with veal. They were fun and a pretty easy way to sass up spaghetti with jarred tomato sauce. Ah! I've admitted to using jarred tomato sauce! A working girl's gotta do what a working girl's gotta do.

Veal Meatballs
inspired by Emeril L. & Rachel R.
INGREDIENTS
1 cup day old Italian bread, crumbled
1/2 cup water
1/2 cup wine
1/2 cup finely minced yellow onion, sauteed
3 clove garlic, minced, sauteed
1/3 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg, eyeball it
dash of lemon juice
1 egg, slightly beaten
1 pound ground veal
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
DIRECTIONS
In a small bowl soak the bread crumbs in the water and wine, then squeeze dry. In a large bowl combine the bread crumbs and the remaining ingredients, mixing with your hands until smooth. Cover and chill for half an hour.

Heat oven to 425. Shape the veal mixture into 1-inch balls. Spritz bottom of rimmed baking dish or cookie sheet with olive oil. Evenly place balls on cookie sheet and spritz tops with olive oil. Bake 10-15 min depending on size of meatballs.
This, I think, is a good base for meatballs. Most of them involve a mixture of meats like pork, beef and veal. I however, could not buy that much ground meat without drowning us in a variety of ground meat leftovers. So I chose veal. Other recipes suggest pan frying or browning in a pan then cooking in simmering tomato sauce. While I thought the cooking in tomato sauce sounded yummy I chose not to do that for a variety of not worth going into leftover situations. But basically the more separate I keep my meal ingredients the more leftover options I allow myself. Had I cooked them in the sauce, they would have been married. Oh the complex thoughts that go through my head. Anyway, Taylor liked these. And don't they look like savory little goobers on that bright yellow dish. Similar in visual savoriness to my Venison Steaks.

White Lasagna with Chicken and Satueed Mushrooms

I thought this had great flavor and wasn't too rich since I used 2% milk and there's not much cheese. It's a pretty good base for any additional ingredients --like prosciutto, spinach, diced roma tomatoes.... I think it's a good balance between the food I like and the comfort food that Taylor is partial too.

White Lasagna with Chicken and Sauteed Mushrooms
adapted from Gourmet
INGREDIENTS
3/4 cup minced shallots (about 6)
8 tablespoons unsalted butter
1/2 cup all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg
3 3/4 cups whole milk (I used 2%)
1 cup rich chicken stock or reduced-sodium chicken broth
2 large eggs, lightly beaten
1/2 teaspoon salt
2 cups grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, divided
12 (7- by 3-inch) no-boil egg lasagna sheets
2 cups shredded rotisserie chicken
1 cup sauteed sliced mushrooms
DIRECTIONS
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.
Cook shallots in butter in a heavy medium saucepan over medium heat, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 4 minutes. Add flour and cook over low heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, 3 minutes. Add nutmeg, then slowly whisk in milk and stock. Bring to a boil, whisking, then simmer, stirring occasionally, just until sauce lightly coats back of spoon, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and cool to warm, stirring occasionally. Stir in eggs, salt, 1/2 teaspoon pepper, and 1/2 cup cheese.

Spread about 1 1/4 cups sauce over bottom of an 11- by 8-inch baking dish. Cover with a layer of 3 lasagna sheets. Coat sheets in about 1 1/4 cup sauce, sprinkle with cheese, mushrooms and chicken. Repeat layering 3 more times, then top with remaining sauce and remaining 1/2 cup cheese. Bake, uncovered, until browned, 45 to 55 minutes.

Sauce can be made 1 day ahead and chilled, covered (once cool).

Update {07/13}: I halved this recipe but thought that I needed to up the flour to compensate for the less thick 2% milk. Such is not the case, equal parts butter (fat) and flour is the base of this type of sauce. Then add and stir liquids to desired consistency. Halving it should not be a problem.

zimply ziti

I first made this when our friends, David and Emily, came to Austin for New Year's. Taylor about died telling me how good it was. So it returned for our first married meal, before we even had real silverware. It's modified from Real Simple: Meals Made Easy. For appropriate portion sizing, I cook the whole pound of hamburger meat and then refrigerate half of it for spaghetti or something else involving ground beef, for later in the week.

Lasagna-Style Baked Ziti
INGREDIENTS
1/2 lb. (half a box) dry ziti
1 T. EVOO
1 small yellow onion, chopped
3/4 t. kosher salt
1/4 t. ground black pepper
1/2 lb. ground beef
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 c. fresh oregano or 1 T. dried oregano powder
1/2 to 3/4 a jar chunky pasta sauce
3/4 c. ricotta
1/2 c. grated Parmesan
1 c. shredded mozzarella
DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 400. Cook ziti according to package directions. Heat oil in large pot over medium, add onion, salt, pepper and cook for 5 min. Add beef and cook, crumbling with a spoon, about 7 min. Add garlic and oregano and cook for 2 min. Add pasta sauce and cook for 3 min. Remove from heat. Add drained ziti to pot and toss. Add ricotta and 1/4 c. of Parmesan, 1/2 c. mozzarella and toss again. Spread mixture into a 2 quart baking dish and sprinkle with remaining cheeses. Bake about 12-15 minutes, until the cheese melts. Serves 4, with leftovers. :)

Tay likes this and diced tomatoes can be added as well as spinach. I want to try it with chicken soon. Stay tuned for pumpkin cookies!!