Breakfast Pizza - Breakfast With A Twist

Breakfast pizza has long been a favorite in our household. When my daughter comes home from college, it brings back memories making it for her and the rest of the family. You can have many variations. Here is the basic recipe to get your started.

Ingredients

Pizza Dough (You can make it fresh using our recipe)
8oz of Monterey Jack or Mozzerella
8oz of Sharp Cheddar
8 Scrambled Eggs
1/4 cup whole milk
1 lb of Bacon
Cracked Sea Salt
Cracked Pepper
Sausage (Optional)
Vegetable Oil or any cooking oil you may use.

Prepare the bacon first. Make sure to be crispy as you will use it for crumbles.
Do the same for breakfast sausage.
Set them aside as your prepare the rest of the recipe.


Place the mound of dough on the baking sheet. Place a liberal amount of cooking oil on top of the dough (about 2 tablespoons.) Flip the dough and repeat the process with an additional 2 tablespoons. Next, stretch and spread the dough. I use a 8.5 by 13 cookie sheet.(Sometimes I use the pizza baking sheet for triangular cuts) Preheat the oven to 425. I have an older vented oven. I place the baking sheet over the vent. The warm air speeds up the rising process. If you have a newer oven, place the stretched dough in a warm area to allow it to rise again.

Once reason, restretch the dough. On the cookie sheet, spread a thin layer of corn meal on the bottom of the pan. This is a wonderful base for the crust, and actually helps the crust retain it's shape.

Next,

In a bowl, scramble the eggs and milk. Spread the mixture evenly over the stretched dough. (If things are uneven, that's okay)

Add the cheese. Start with a mixture of 4 oz of each cheese. For some, this may be enough. For an extra cheesy base, you can add more if you like.

The bacon and sausage will be added in small crumbles. If you used links for the sausage, cut them into smaller diced pieces. Spread evenly throughout the pizza. Add a thin layer of cheese on top.

Place the pizza in a preheated oven at 425 degrees. Set the time for 10 minutes. Check the bottom of the crust and look for a brown consistency. (not burnt) Adjust the rakes if you have to, so that the top is also cooked consistently. ( I find the middle rack requires no adjustments) Take out of the oven and you have a breakfast that will be a tradition in your home.

Note of Cracked Pepper and Salt - Flavor after the pizza is out of the oven to your liking.

Hummus Plates - Easy To Make

Hummus plates can be as creative as you would like. If you go to the dollar store, you can sometimes find inexpensive platters that divide up your offerings. Have fun, and experiment. Two common plates are as follows:

Vegetable Hummus Plate

Carrots (Baby Or Thin Cut)
Celery Thin Cut
Cherry Tomatoes
Cucumbers
Sweet Colored Peppers - Sliced
Cauliflower cured Olives
Cherry Tomatoes

Middle Eastern Plate
Middle eastern plates are more of a dipping plate. More drizzle and the hummus is a larger center piece. Wonderful as an appetizer.

Nan Bread (AKA Tapas) Triangular Cuts                   
Assortment of Cured Olives (Black Very Common)
Cherry Tomatoes
Basil
Falafel


Hummus is an amazing healthy snack and appetizer for you and your family.

Hummus - So Many Ways To Make It

Hummus is an amazing appetizer. Easy to make, and you can adjust this recipe in so many directions. Here is a basic list of what you need:

2 cups canned chickpeas

1/2 cup tahini (sesame paste)

1 tsp of olive oil (Extra Virgin)

2 cloves garlic

Sea Salt and freshly ground cracked black   pepper

1 tablespoon ground cumin or paprika

1 lemon

Chopped fresh parsley

 

In a small food processor, you would mix all of the ingredients minus the paprika and parsley. They will be added later as a garnish. You will blend the ingredients to the consistency of a thick paste. Once you have finished, you place the hummus on a plate and drizzle it with olive oil, paprika and finely chopped parsley.

 

Here is the great thing about Hummus. You can add or delete as you want once you become comfortable with the recipe. Here are some examples:

 

I forgot the tahini! Many times, I start to make Hummus only to realize I forgot to get tahini paste. Do not worry. Add an additional amount of olive oil to the same consistency.

 

Try adding a mixture of finely course pine nuts and olive oil on top as a garnish.

 

Roasted Red Peppers - Amazing flavor and will dramatically change your hummus.

 

Hot Peppers - Add a long hot - if you are a fan of the blog, you know how much I love the what a long hot can do to the recipe.

 

Sirachi - A drizzle of sirachi can kick up the flavor

 

Mix in cannellini beans - I was short on chic peas one time and mixed in a cannellini beans. The consistency was the same and the taste was excellent.

 

 

Cincinnati Chili - Chili With A Twist

Cincinnati Chili is an east coast dish that is easy on the budget an a quick meal for the family. Following the Chili recipe from the cooking blog, you add pasta and dices tomatoes to the recipe. That's it! Add your favorite cheese and you have a quick and delicious meal. This is also a great way to avoid throwing out your leftover chili and saving some money.

Ingredients

Chili
Pasta - Try them all. I personally like Spaghetti
Diced tomatoes (Fire Roasted In Garlic)
Green or Sweet Onions (Optional)

Directions.

Prepare the pasta. Drain and keep in the pan. Add the chili and diced tomatoes and reheat for a few minutes until the tomatoes and chili are the same temperature as the pasta. Remove from the stove and serve.

Note: I have sprinkled green onions or a sweet onion on top for flavor. As with any recipe, experiment to your liking.

Chili Is So Good On a Winter Day

We love chili. Easy to make in a slow cooker. So many variations so that each time you make chili, you can change the recipe. We will provide a base along with variations to sample for future batches of chili.

Ingredients

1 pd of Ground Beef, Turkey, or Veggie Crumbles.
1 can of chili beans                  
2 cans of Crushed Tomatoes
2 -4 cans diced tomatoes (Fire Roasted are best)      
1 Red Onion finely chopped
1 Can of Garbanzo Beans Drained
1 Can of Black Beans
1 Can of Corn
1 Chili powder packet or make your own. Chili Powder, Paprika, Garlic Powder to flavor
1-2 Tsp of Slap Your Mamma Seasoning
Cracked Pepper

In a sauté pan, brown the meat or crumbles with the chili powder mix.
Once brown, add the onions to the pan and continue to saute.

In the crock, add all of the other ingredients together with the meat and onions. You can slow cook for 6 hours on low or 2-3 hours on hi. Add the additional seasonings to flavor as you check the slow cooker. To add some heat( as in flavor) you can spice it up with habanero or Louisiana hot sauce to flavor.

Chili recipes can be altered or varied using different meats or adding ingredients with a southern flavor. Okra is a great ingredient to add to chili. You can also add green peppers or sweet multi-colored peppers. Experiment each time you make chili It is such a quick and easy meal to enjoy on a cold day.

Egg Nog Cheesecake For The Holidays

Eggnog Cheesecake is easy to make and oh so good. Even if you have minimal baking experience, you will find this recipe easy to make.

Ingredients

Graham Cracker Pie Crust from the store

or

Make Your Own Pie Crust

1 1/2 cups of finely crushed graham crackers
1/3 cup of sugar
6 tablespoons melted butter

Mix all of the ingredients together and firmly place in a 8-9 inch pie pan. You can chill for an hour or bake for 7 minutes in the oven at 350 degrees. I have found it easier to bake it in 7 mins because the kids are not patient enough to wait an hour.


Cheesecake Filling

3 packages of Cream Cheese
3/4 cup of eggnog
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
3 tablespoons of floor
Pinch of nutmeg
Rum (Optional)
Pure Vanilla (Optional)

Allow the cream cheese to sit at room temperature to soften. In a bowl, add the cream cheese and all of the ingredients. Allow to set for a few minutes and using a blender on a low speed, mix all of the ingredients. You should have a smooth texture within a few minutes. (You will have minimal clumping. You cannot smooth out the mixture to a perfect texture) You can add vanilla or rum. Your decision. I like the pure vanilla. Sum purists prefer the rum.

Baking instructions

Preheat the oven to 425

Cook the pie for 10 minutes.
Reduce the temperature to 250 degrees
Bake the pie an additional 45 minutes.
The pie should be firm and you will have minimal light browning on the top.
Take the pie out and let it cool.

 
 

1. In a medium bowl combine graham cracker crumbs, 2 tablespoons sugar and butter. Press into the bottom of a 9 inch spring form pan.
2. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes. Place on a wire rack to cool.
3. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).
4. In a food processor combine cream cheese, 1 cup sugar, flour and eggnog; process until smooth. Blend in eggs, rum and nutmeg. Pour mixture into cooled crust.
5. Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes.
6. Reduce heat to 250 and bake for 45 minutes, or until center of cake is barely firm to the touch. Remove from the oven and immediately loosen cake from rim. Let cake cool completely before removing the rim.

Thanksgiving Day Pizza

Most people shrug at the thought of it. So did I at first. Who in the world would eat Thanksgiving Day pizza? Well, try it and I guarantee you will have the same reaction we did. So good. And, it is simple.

Ingredients

Dough (Twice Risen in the Pan)
Turkey
Stuffing
Gravy (Homemade or Jar)
Cracked Pepper
Cracked Sea Salt
Cranberries (Not the gelatin)

First you rise the dough in a pizza baking pan twice. Twice risen dough provides a hardy crust in my opinion. Next, spread the gravy. If you lack real gravy, you can use jarred. Add health portions of the turkey and stuffing. (Do not be afraid to cover the pizza)

Turn the oven on 375. Put the pizza in the oven and cook for about 15mins. Start looking for the crust to brown. When ready, remove from the oven. Add some cracked pepper and sea salt. The last ingredient is the cranberries and you have a quick and delicious use for your leftovers. (Cranberries are an add on if you like them)

You can experiment with this recipe and add other Thanksgiving Day ingredients. Potatoes, yams, etc.