Pizza! hold the red sauce

i am so sorry i have not been very good about posting this month. its a crazy month for us - wedding season has begun!!

the other night i made a perfect pizza - i do not like red sauces but i do love cheese and bread so i made up this delicious version of a sauceless pizza.

i got a whole wheat thin crust pizza crust from Harris Teeter

for the sauce:
in my mini food processor i added:
-olive oil twice around the container
-1 clove of garlic
-handful of frozen spinach
-crushed red pepper flakes
-shredded parmesan cheese, one handful
-touch of sea salt

then i grinded that in the mini food processor. once that was to the consistency i liked, i brushed it on the crust, leaving almost an inch around the edge.

then i added 4 thin slices of prosciutto

then i topped it with very generous portions of shredded mozzarella cheese.

i followed the instructions on the thin crust label - heated the oven to 450
degrees and once the oven was ready i turned it down to 425. i placed the pizza crust directly on the rack, in the middle of the oven. i put a baking sheet on the rack below it to catch any cheese or sauce that might drip.

it only took 8 minutes and it was incredible!!!

enjoy!! and please let me know any variations you might have for an alternative to the red sauce!

leftover nachos

i am loving this bridal shower that i had almost a week ago!! my fridge is stocked full of delicious leftovers that i can mix and match into great new meals! im like my very own taco bell. they have like 7 ingredients that they combine to make so many delicious menu items and they are always coming out with something new! they are genius and i am imitating their genius in my very own kitchen.

so yesterday i had the most incredible nachos ever. it took about 1:30 secs to whip this masterpiece up.

i used:

leftover pita chips
shredded cheddar cheese -leftover from the mini mac&cheese bites
1/2 jalapeño - leftover from the "less is more guac"

i spread the pita chips on a plate, added the shredded cheddar. popped in the microwave for 30 secs. and added a slice of jalapeño to each pita chip. absolutely amazing and i truly believe it had to do with the pita chips. here is my friend, rebecca's recipe for the pita chips.

Take the pitas (she did 2 batches, one plain and one whole wheat) and cut them open (cut around the rim) so you have two circles.

Then brush with olive oil on the inside portion. Sprinkle with
salt and pepper over the olive oil.

Then stack them and cut them into the
wedges. Cut the stack like your cutting a pizza into 6 slices.

Then put the wedges on a cookie sheet (with aluminum foil on the bottom) and bake at 350
for 10 minutes. Keep a close eye on them because they can burn really easy.

enjoy!!
my camera has yet to be replaced so here is a picture of my puggle puppy cosmo. he loves the nachos as much as i do. i let him lick the plate when im done but no jalapeños for him!

Artichoke Dip

on saturday my friend, rebecca, and i threw a shower for a friend of ours who is getting married in a few weeks. it was a perfect opportunity for me to use all of my fabulous wedding gifts. the platters, dishes, cookware, etc all finally had their time to shine.

i made my delicious "less is more guac" in my molcajete. and mini mac&cheese bites with my mini muffin pan, from the mini cupcake post. i will share that recipe with you all soon.

rebecca made this incredible Artichoke Dip using my Emile Henry Ruffled Auberge Oval Baker. she served it with her homemade pita chips and it was a huge hit!

1 can artichoke hearts (progresso) - drain, rinse, and chop up into little
pieces
3/4 Cup Mayo
1/2 Cup Parmesan (i generally add twice the recommended amount, you can
never have too much cheese)
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
1 pinch garlic powder
Ground Pepper

Mix all of the above together. Then sprinkle a generous amount of Parmesan
on top. Bake at 350 degrees until bubbly and golden. Yummy!

the Great Dutch Challenge

the Great Dutch Challenge will go down this evening. i had planned on doing it friday but we are going out to dinner to celebrate my brother in law turning in his final exam for biz school!!!

some last minute rules have been brought to the table.

1. my husband is "off the white" and by that he means white bread, rice, grits, bread etc.
2. he also tells me at my $40 limit is a joke and should be brought down to $15.

with these new rules i am rethinking my meal and i will really appreciate any last minute advice :)

Shrimp Fried Rice

last nights dinner definitely had a few more steps involved than normal but it was totally worth it.

you will need:

brown jasmine rice
pam cooking spray
veggies - i used 2 different bags of frozen veggies. one w carrots, beans,corn and peas and the other was a lima bean corn combo.
8 shrimp - i had the frozen bag on hand.
egg whites
3 garlic cloves
butter
soy sauce

i began by steaming the rice in our rice steamer. i wanted to make enough so i would have enough leftover for lunch today. i used 1 cup of brown jasmine rice and 2 cups of water. it takes about 15 minutes.

while that is going, i took out a large frying pan, spayed it w pam and added the frozen veggies to a medium heat. i let those warm up and then i added the egg whites, about 1/3 of a cup is equal to 2 eggs. i mixed them with the veggies and let those warm. i then added the mined garlic and shrimp and soy sauce. the shrimp are already cooked so i just need to warm them up. by then the rice is done and i added the steamed rice and a tab of butter to the pan. i mixed all of that and added a bit more soy sauce. it was pretty incredible i must say. very fresh, very healthy, very tasty.

while we were in thailand on our honeymoon, one of the places we visited was Ko Racha (see pic below) the resort offered a breakfast buffet that included fried rice. i had some every morning and while mine is no where nearly as good as theirs, i suppose this could also be eaten for breaky :)

Challenge update

it's tuesday which means that i have 4 days to come up with a recipe for my Challenge. i have 1 idea but i am not sure that it is meant to be prepared in a dutch oven. so i am reaching out to you all for any helpful ideas or suggestions. if you have anything please feel free to leave it in the comments. i really appreciate it!!

5 minute Breaky

sad news...my camera is broken. it had a long run but sadly it's time is up. so until i can buy a new one this blog might be a little bland, just like my cooking :)

this morning's breaky was a beauty. I am trying to have something that will sustain me until lunch time so i try to balance proteins and carbs. i also do not have tons of time in the morning to make breaky so here is a fast, easy and delicious breaky.

Breaky Sammie

egg whites
tomato
mozzarella
2 pieces of oat bran bread

a trick to making a fast breaky is how i make the eggs. in a tupperware container i add the egg whites and pop them in the microwave for 2 mins. note: spray a little non-stick cooking spray in the tupperware before you add the eggs so they dont stick. this is a great way to cook the eggs bc they come out in a perfect shape to put on a piece of toast.

then add the tomato slice and the mozzarella, a little salt & pepper if you prefer and that is that - you are done!

here is a pic of my husband on our honeymoon. he was enjoying a thai whiskey & soda for breaky. another delicious option for breaky but i do not recommend it unless you are a)working from home or b)working from this pool.