French bread pizza

Ingredients:
1 loaf French bread (split in half horizontally)
1 ½ cups pizza sauce
4 ounces fresh mushrooms (sliced)
1 ounce pepperoni (sliced)
1 cup mozzarella cheese
1 teaspoon oregano
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon pepper
2 tablespoons parmesan cheese (grated)

Again, just so I don't forget about it!

guacamole

Ingredients:
3 avocados (halved, seeded, and peeled)
1 lime (juiced)
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon ground cumin
½ teaspoon cayenne pepper
½ medium onion (diced)
2 Roma tomatoes (seeded and diced)
1 tablespoon fresh cilantro (chopped)
1 garlic clove (minced)

Just for my own info!

Whole Wheat Garlic Knots

Whole Wheat Garlic Knots

makes about 10 garlic knots

1 package active dry yeast, about 2 1/2 teaspoons

1 cup warm water (just warmer than body temperature)

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon sea salt

2 teaspoons sugar

For the garlic mixture:

4 to 6 cloves garlic, peeled and minced

2 tablespoons melted butter

2 tablespoons olive oil

1/4 cup chopped parsley

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

In a small bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar with warm water.  Let sit for 5 minutes until yeast is frothy.  That means it’s alive and ready to go.

In a large bowl, whisk together flours and salt.  Create a small well in the center of the flour mixture.  Pour in the yeasty water and add oil.  With a fork, mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients.  If the dough is too sticky, add more all-purpose flour.  Dough should be slightly sticky, but not stick to your hands too much.

Knead dough on a lightly floured surface for about 5 minutes.  Place dough in a large greased bowl.  Flip the dough over to coat the dough.  Cover with plastic wrap and a clean kitchen towel, and leave to rest in a warm, draft-free place for 1 hour, or until the dough is doubled in size.  At this point, you can make the garlic knots, or let the dough rise in the refrigerator overnight.  Just bring the dough to room temperature before rolling it out.

When ready to prepare the garlic knots, roll out dough on a lightly floured surface.  Roll into a 10-inch by 10-inch square.  Roughly…. it doesn’t have to be perfect.  Use a pizza cutter to slice 10 1-inch stripes.  Tie a knot in the center of the dough, and wrap the ends under and around the knot.  This doesn’t have to be perfect either… just make sure that the dough is all tucked into itself.  Cover with clean kitchen towel and let rest for 30 minutes.

Place racks in the center and upper third of the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees F.   Line two baking sheets with parchment paper.  Place dough knots on prepared baking sheets and bake for 15 to 18 minutes, until golden brown.

While bread bakes, in a large bowl whisk together minced garlic, butter, olive oil, parsley and salt.  When rolls come out of the oven, immediately toss them in the garlic butter mixture.  Toss until coated and remove from the butter bowl.  Serve rolls warm.

Rolls are best served the day they’re made, but will last for 3 days if well wrapped.  Just reheat in a piece of foil in a 350 degree F oven for 10 minutes.

Chicken Lime Tacos

1 1/2 Lbs. chicken, cubed
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
juice of 1 lime
2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 tsp. black pepper
4-5 green onions, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
4 Tbsp fresh cilantro (or to taste)
Flour tortillas

Optional toppings:
Pico de gallo
cheese
onions
tomatoes
jalapeno
guacamole
cilantro
sour cream

Sauté chicken in a medium skillet in a little oil for a few minutes until chicken becomes white all around. Combine vinegar, lime juice, sugar, salt, pepper, green onion, garlic and cilantro and add to chicken. Simmer for an extra 10-20 minutes until chicken is cooked through. Add chicken to tortillas and top with lettuce, tomato, cheese, avocado, cilantro, salsa, sour cream, or any other taco topping you like!

Chicken Cordon Bleu Pizza

Ingredients:
1 large chicken breast
1 egg
Butter (for frying)
½ cup dry breadcrumbs
½ cup shredded provolone cheese
½ cup shredded mozzarella cheese
½ cup alfredo sauce
½ cup ham steak (diced)
1 pre-made pizza crust (such as Pillsbury)

Step 1: Beat an egg small bowl. In a shallow pie dish add bread crumbs. Roll the chicken breast in the bread crumbs, then dip in the egg mixture and roll in the bread crumbs again. Heat a medium skillet over medium-high heat and melt butter. Add chicken breast and fry in the butter on both sides until golden brown and fully cooked (when the internal temperature has reached 165 degrees). Remove from the pan, cool, and slice into strips.
Step 2: Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Roll out pizza crust onto a pizza pan. Place into the oven and bake for 7-8 minutes. Remove from the oven and spread the alfredo sauce over the partially baked pizza crust and top with provolone cheese, mozzarella cheese, chicken and ham.
Step 3: Return to the oven and bake for 10-15 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted.

Creamy Chicken Lasagna

Creamy Chicken Lasagna
Cassie Craves

1 pound chicken breast, cubed into small pieces
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon olive oil

3 cloves minced garlic

2 cans cream chicken soup

1 8-ounce package cream cheese

2 cups sour cream

1 cup milk
1 cup chicken broth
1 tablespoon Italian seasoning
Salt and pepper to taste

1 box no-boil lasagna noodles

4 cups shredded Colby-jack or cheddar-jack cheese blend

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

2. Season chicken with salt and pepper. In a large frying pan, cook chicken in olive oil and butter until the chicken is no longer pink. Remove chicken and keep warm.

3. Add garlic to pan; cook and stir for 30 seconds. Add cream soup, cream cheese, sour cream, milk, and chicken broth to the pan. Stir until ingredients melt and thicken slightly. Season with Italian seasoning and salt and pepper to taste. Add chicken and continue to stir. Turn heat down and simmer for 2 or 3 minutes.

4. Spread a thin layer of sauce in a greased 9 x 13 baking dish. Layer noodles (I used about 4 per layer), then cream sauce with chicken, then cheese (about 1 cup per layer). Continue to repeat until your pan is full, ending with cheese on top. Bake at 350 for 40 to 45 minutes or until hot and bubbly.

Pizza Pasta Salad

Although, of course, we never use the olives!

Ingredients

• 1 bag colored spiral noodles
• ¾ c. pepperoni cut into wedges
• ¾ c. mozzarella cut into small cubes
• ¾ c. fresh tomatoes, diced
• ½ c. olives, sliced
• ¼ c. parmesan cheese (not the powdery kind)
• 1 bottle Bernstein's Restaurant Recipe Italian Dressing

Instructions

• Mix together all ingredients and chill in the fridge for at least 3 hours before serving. We like to put it in a tupperware container with a tight lid and flip it upside down, then right side up a few times while it is chilling to distribute the dressing into the