No Yeast Pizza

You know those days where you are just really wanting pizza? (Come on, we all have those days!) Well, I was having one. I wasn't in the mood to waste money on pizza delivery, but I had no yeast. What's a girl to do? Make some dough w/out the yeast of course. This pizza had a second benefit to our family that I didn't think of 'til it was time to eat... A baby lacking in the teeth department can eat this pizza 'cause it crumbles up in their mouth. Yay!

8 Simple Ingredients (for crust):
2c flour
2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Italian seasoning
1 tsp garlic salt
2/3 c milk
1/4 c olive oil
2 tbsp olive oil
Prepping the Goodies:
Sooooooo easy!
Throw all the ingredients into a food processor until combined. (Or, you can stir it all up w/some old fashioned elbow grease if you don't have a food processor.)
Knead a little until the dough is well combined. Don't over do the mixing r kneading or your doguh is gonna be realy tough!
Form (or roll ) into 1 large pizza or 2 small pizzas. (I used a dinner plate as my guide, see below.)

Now, on to the cooking!:
Spray the pan with cooking spray.
I chose to sprinkle some cornmeal on the pan also, but it's not necessary.
Rub a very small amount of olive oil on the top of the dough.
Bake at 450 for 15 minutes.
Making the crust a PIZZA:
Add the toppings of your choice.
(I did one ricotta, spinach, and tomato & the other tomato sauce & cheese.)
Bake an additional 10-15 minutes, until the toppings look "done" to your satisfaction.

How to eat it:
Well, duh, it's pizza. Eat it as is, or add ranch or Tabasco or whatever it is that you add to pizza.

Not as good (IMHO) as the yeasty dough, but if you're craving some pizza & don't have yeast, or don't have the time for to make "real" dough, this fills in wonderfully!

Meat-lover variation:
Use meaty toppings. :)

Meaty Cornbread and Mexican Coleslaw

I've been busy. Sorry. Back on track now with some Mexican flair. We LOVE Mexican in our house!

9 Simple Ingredients:
Meaty Cornbread:
1 tbsp olive oil (omit if you use beef instead of turkey)
1 lb ground beef
1 yellow onion (chopped)
2 ears of corn (kernels cut off)
1/4 c. taco seasoning (or 1 packet)
1 pkg of cornbread mix
1 c. milk
1 egg
1 c. cheddar cheese (forgot it for the pic)

Prepping the Goodies:
Really nothing, just chop the onion & cut the corn off the cob.

Now, on to the cooking!:
Heat 1 tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. (If you use beef, skip the olive oil 'cause the beef has enough fat to get the job done!)
Add ground beef, onions, and corn.

Heat until all meat is browned.

Add taco seasoning & let simmer a few minutes.

(Spray casserole dish with cooking spray.)
In a bowl, mix the cornbread mix, milk, egg, and meat mixture together.
Pour into casserole dish and cook at 350 for 15 minutes.

Sprinkle cheddar cheese on top & bake an additional 10-15 minutes (less for a larger, more shallow dish, more for a smaller, deep dish).

10 Simple Ingredients:
Mexican Coleslaw:
1/2 head of cabbage (chopped in typical coleslaw form - lol)
Cilantro - to taste preference (chopped)

1 jalapeno - (de-seeded & chopped finely)

1/2 red onion (chopped)

Juice of 1 lemon

1/3 c. vinegar

3 tbsp olive oil

1 tsp garlic salt

1 tsp chili powder

1/2 tsp dry mustard

Prepping the Goodies:
Chop, juice, and measure!

Now, on to the cooking!:
Mix all ingredients in a big bowl. Flavor is best if allowed to sit at least a couple of hours.

How to eat it:
Dish it up. Add avocado, salsa, sour cream, or whatever else you like with your Mexican food.
I turned the coleslaw into a taco salad (with fake meat), it was YUMMY!

Luke's response: It's okay, it needs something. Well, I skimped on the cheese (used 1/2 cup) trying to make it low-fat. He added extra cheese & was happy. I adjusted the recipe to accommodate. 1 cup should be plenty, but the more the merrier, right?
My thoughts - the coleslaw was sooooo good!

Meat-lover variation:
You can use ground beef, ground chicken, or even cubed chicken. You can also follow my lead & make the coleslaw a bed for a yummy taco salad.
Enjoy!

Cheesey BBQ Chicken & Veggie Stuffed Sourdough

I knew I wanted to do something w/BBQ for the chicken 'cause Luke ALWAYS wants BBQ sauce on his chicken, as for the veggie stuffed sourdough... I figured it was just crazy enough to be good... and it is!

11 Simple Ingredients
Chicken Breast (I used 1 HUGE breast & cut it in half)
app. 1/4 c. BBQ Sauce (I used Stubbs: Smokey Mesquite)
1/4 Red (Purple) Onion, chopped finely
1 Roasted Jalapeno, chopped finely
2 Ears of Corn, boiled about 10 minutes
Sourdough Bread, I cut a portion off, you could stuff an entire loaf though.
2 Tomatoes (Roma for me again), chopped finely
2 Yellow Squash, roughly cubed
1 c. Spinach, chopped finely
3/4 c. Cheddar Cheese, shredded
Avocado, sliced or chopped (use as desired)
(S&P & butter to taste)


Prepping the Goodies:
(As pictured below.)

Heat oven to 350.
Optional: Marinate chicken overnight in veg (or chicken) broth that has a splash of BBQ sauce added.
Beat chicken VERY thin.
Place chicken in baking dish & cover w/ BBQ sauce, then top w/a desired amount of onion & roasted jalapeno (see directions below).
Wrap corn in foil to bake in oven w/everything else. (If you like, you can add butter, S, & P before putting in the oven.)
Hollow bread.
Put tomatoes (reserve about 2 tbsp for chicken), remaining onions, roasted jalapeno (if desired), squash, & spinach in casserole dish & sprinkle w/S&P & splash with water (app. 1 tbsp.).


*Jalapeno prep:
To roast the jalapeno, either hold over open flame (on a gas stove or on a grill) for about 5 min, or broil in your oven (as close as possible to the broiler) for about 8 minutes. It should be black all over, and tender to the squeeze.Next, place the jalapeno in a bowl & cover with plastic wrap. Let it sweat about 5 minutes.Then, gently scrub all of the skin off with a towel & rinse briefly.Chop the jalapeno into fairly small pieces.

Now, on to the cooking!:
Put veggies & corn in the oven. (They will cook a TOTAL of 25 min.)
5 minutes later, put chicken in the oven. (It will cook a TOTAL of 20 min.)
15 minutes after adding chicken to the oven:
Add 1/2 c. cheddar cheese to the veggies & stir well.
Sprinkle remaining tomatoes on the chicken, then sprinkle 1/4 c. cheddar cheese on top.
Bake an additional 5 minutes (this now = 25 min for the veggies & corn & 20 min for the chicken).
Stuff hollowed bread w/finished veggies, wrap in foil & warm in the oven (2 minutes for single serving, app. 8 minutes if you did an entire loaf).

How to eat it:
For the chicken, it's ready to go! Add butter to the corn if you like & grab a piece of buttered sourdough if you don't want to try the stuffed kind, and dig in! :)
For the stuffed sourdough, grab a knife, add the fresh avocado & enjoy.




I can't believe it... Luke's response was "it's good". It MUST be good to get something beyond "it's okay". Yay me! :) I *loved* the stuffed sourdough. OMGosh, it was just perfect I think.


Meat-lover variation:
hmmmm, I think cubed turkey or chicken might work if you just have to have that meat in the stuffed sourdough.

Zucchini Tacos

I found a yummy-sounding recipe in a magazine recently & decided to cook it, a-la-Helen. So, here we go... My recipe would make 3 BIG burritos, or 4-6 small ones. (These would go great with a salad or some rice & beans.)

11 Simple Ingredients:
3 medium tomatoes (I prefer Roma)
"some" fresh cilantro (probably about 1 tbsp chopped)
1 jalapeno
1/4 tsp garlic salt
1 corn cob
1/3 c. cream (heavy or half & half will work)
2 zucchini
1 tbsp oil
Queso Fresco (however much you like)

Avocado (again, however much you like)
tortillas (I chose flour, corn would be yummy too)

Prepping the goodies:
(As pictured below:)
Crumble the cheese.
Roughly dice the tomatoes.
Cube the zucchini.
Roast, sweat, scrub, then dice the jalapeno (see below).*
Chop the cilantro.
Chop the avocado.
Cut the corn off of the cob.
Measure the garlic salt.
Measure the cream.


*Jalapeno prep:
To roast the jalapeno, either hold over open flame (on a gas stove or on a grill) for about 5 min, or broil in your oven (as close as possible to the broiler) for about 8 minutes. It should be black all over, and tender to the squeeze.
Next, place the jalapeno in a bowl & cover with plastic wrap. Let it sweat about 5 minutes.
Then, gently scrub all of the skin off with a towel & rinse briefly.
Chop the jalapeno into fairly small pieces.

Now, on to the cooking!:
Heat the oil in a pan over medium-high heat (ie: setting #7).
Add the tomatoes & cover. Cook them, covered, for about 5 minutes, stirring several times (or they might stick & burn!).
Next, add the cilantro, jalapeno, garlic salt, corn, cream, & zucchini. Turn the heat down ever-so-slightly (ie: setting #6). Heat, uncovered, about 8 minutes. If you notice the sauce drying up, add a splash of water as necessary.

How to eat it:
Warm the tortilla(s) of your choosing.
Add an appropriate amount of fixins'.
Top with an appropriate amount of cheese (as far as I'm concerned - there's never "too much").
Add your avocado, and anything else you might like (hot sauce, tabasco, sour cream if you must).
Roll or fold, and EAT! Yummy! Luke had already eaten, but tried a bite. His vote "it's okay". (That's pretty much always his vote though, unless it's bad.) My vote - I say an 8 out of 10. Pretty yummy, but missing something... Maybe black beans?


Meat-lover variation:
Honestly, there's not much room in this recipe for meat. However, if you "have" to have it you could add some pre-cooked shredded chicken in when you add all the other goodies. (I wouldn't add any other meat, it just wouldn't taste right.) I'd also recommend cutting the zucchini in half & not adding "tons" of meat, less is more here, for sure.