Basic Pizza Dough

I, along with the rest of the United States, love pizza.  We do order out for pizza a decent amount but we also love to have make your own pizza nights here at the house.  Basic pizza dough obviously makes great pizza but it also is great for making strombolis and calzones.

This recipe makes 2 balls of dough.  I like to go ahead and throw one in the freezer so i'm always prepared.  If you're cooking for one then cut the loaf into smaller pieces.

Pizza Dough:
(Martha Stewart's Baking Handbook)

1 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1/4 teaspoon sugar
1 envelope active dry yeast
2 3/4 cups unbleached flour
1 teaspoon table salt
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
Fine cornmeal, for dusting

In a small bowl , sprinkle the sugar and yeast in the warm water.  Mix with a fork and let sit for 5 minutes or until foamy.

In a food processor, pulse the flour and salt to combine.  Add the yeast water mixture and the olive oil; pulse until the mixture comes together but it still slightly sticky.  Turn the dough out onto a slightly floured work surface; kneed four or five times until a smooth ball forms.

Place dough ball into a slightly oiled bowl, smooth side up.  Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place for about 40 minutes, or until doubled in size.

Punch dough down, fold onto its self four or five times.  Place back in the bowl, smooth side up, and let rise for an additional 30-40 minutes.

Punch dough down again.  Turn out on a floured surface and divide the dough into 2 pieces.  Knead each piece of dough 4 or 5 ties and turn into a smooth ball.  If freezing, wrap the dough in plastic and let thaw in the refrigerator before using.  Otherwise roll out and top with your favorite toppings.

Weekly Meal Plan: October 30

It's almost November.  Goodness.  Mr. T's birthday is on Wednesday so we will be either going out or i'll be making a steak dinner.  We will see.

As for the rest of the week I'm planning on making a soup or white chicken chili for the weekend or to freeze (or both).

1) Red Beans with brown rice

2) Turkey Burgers, toppings TBD (maybe guac, tomato, spinach?)

3) Chicken fajitas with yellow rice

4) Fried rice using the leftovers from fajita night

5)  I'm still looking for a recipe but this might be a good one to build off of.  White Chicken Chili

6) Massive salad with chicken and more than likely some buffalo chicken dressing

The Dillard House

I recently went on a trip to north Georgia.  Part of this trip included going to The Dillard House in Dillard, GA.  I've heard about this place from my family and some friends.  This was my first experience.














We arrived towards the end of the service but were able to get a pretty nice window seat. 














The food was served family style and was all you could eat (they even gave us take home boxes).  We had our choice of: bacon, sausage links, sausage patties, pork chops, scrambled eggs, grits, sausage gravy, red eye gravy, biscuits, cinnamon rolls, fruit, cinnamon apples, orange juice, and muffins.  I was good to go until supper time.

Everything was great.  My favorite things were the bacon (of course), chicken fried steak, and the cinnamon apples.  The service was really fantastic.  I was however, a little disappointed with the biscuits.  I think I might have just picked the wrong one out of the basket because I was told that they other one was great.  That is the main reason I hate being at the end of service.

I didn't get a chance to take a picture of the breakfast menu but here's the lunch menu for the day.  Next time we go up that way I plan on stopping by and trying out lunch or dinner.

Left Overs Fried Rice

I had a half day of work this week and was able to come home early and have lunch.  I was going to settle on a bowl of cereal but as I was poking around in the the refrigerator I decided that it was time to use up some of the stuff that we had in there.  I went with fried rice and was very happy with the way it turned out.

I used some of the left over chickpea patties in this rice dish.  It's not a normal thing to add to fried rice but they needed to be eaten.  They worked surprisingly well.  This is a smaller portion so if you want to make a larger just add more rice and veggies.

Left Overs Fried Rice:

1 cup of left over rice (I used brown rice)
1 egg
1 carrot, chopped into small cubes
1 green onion, chopped into small pieces
2 tablespoons vegetable oil
1 teaspoon sesame oil
2-3 tablespoons soy sauce
2 left over chickpea patties

Heat up the oil in a pan.  When it get hot add the rice and left over chickpeas to the pan.  Cook, stirring, for a minute.  Make a space in the middle of the rice, add the egg and scramble it in the empty spot on the pan until it's just cooked but still soft.  Mix the egg up with the rice.  Add the vegetables to the pan, stir and let cook some.  Add the soy sauce and stir.

I only had carrots and green onions in the house.  I usually add frozen peas, bell peppers, or broccoli to my fried rice.  Just to give some more ideas.

Pineapple Nut Cake

Pineapple is one of my favorite fruits.  This cake is so moist and is perfect with a good cream cheese frosting.  It was a very easy cake to make and most of the ingredients are pantry staples.

Pineapple Nut Cake:

Cake:

2 cups flour

2 eggs

2 cups sugar

2 teaspoons baking soda

1 #30 can crushed pineapple - do not drain

1 tsp vanilla
1 cup chopped nuts (I used walnuts)

Grease & flour 9 x 13 pan. Mix all ingredients by hand. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes.

Frosting:

8 oz cream cheese  1 teaspoon vanilla

½ cup butter or margarine

1 ½ cup powdered sugar

Mix with electric mixer & frost while cake is warm.  Sprinkle top with 1 cup chopped nuts.

Crispy Chicken Sandwich

I love chicken, who doesn't?  This was another recipe that I found in one of the many magazines on my book shelf.  I was amazed with just how crispy this chicken stayed.  I ended up just eating the chicken breast with a side salad, but Mr. T ate his as a sandwich.

Crispy Chicken Sandwich:
(adapted from Clean Eating Magazine- March 2011)


1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper
4 egg whites
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
1 cup whole-wheat panko bread crumbs
1/3 cup whole-wheat flour
4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts, pounded thin
1 tablespoon olive oil
4 whole-grain sandwich buns
Lettuce
Tomato

Whisk together egg whites, dijon mustard, and salt and pepper.  In a shallow pan add the bread crumbs.  In another pan add the flour.

Dredge each piece of chicken in the flour, shaking off the excess, then in the egg, and finally in the bread crumbs, gently pressing the bread crumbs into the chicken.

Heat the oil in a skillet over medium-high heat.  Cook the chicken for 3 to 4 minutes on each side until golden brown and fully cooked.

Meal Plan: Week of October 23

It's that time again.

1) Homemade pizza

2) BBQ Chicken with green beans and baked beans

3) Mustard Chicken Tenders with a salad and ranch potatoes

4) Cubed Steak Sandwhich

5) Skirt Steak Fajitas