Pizza Poppers

fun.  easy.  really, really good.

Ingredients:

1 roll refrigerated pizza dough (Pillsbury thin crust dough works well.  You can use any kind though...)
marinara/pizza sauce
2 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese
1 tablespoon olive oil or melted butter
1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1 block of mozzarella cheese, diced into small cubes

...and any pizza toppings of your choice: ham and pineapple, pepperoni slices, sausage, etc.

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to heat specified on pizza dough package. Usually it’s 400 degrees. If you make your own dough, 400 is usually a good heat as well.

2. Unroll your pizza dough onto a lightly floured surface. Pat or roll the dough so it’s about 12″ by 8″. You’re going to want to cut it into 24 squares, so just eyeball it if you need to. Use a pizza cutter to slice the dough into 24 squares.

3. Place cheese and desired toppings on each square. (Note that you’re not putting the marinara sauce on the dough- it’s for dipping after. I used about a teaspoon of cheese and desired toppings.)

4. When all of your dough squares have cheese and toppings on them, carefully lift up each square and wrap the dough around the toppings. Pinch to make sure each ball is sealed shut and then place them seam side down in a lightly sprayed pie pan (or similar sized dish). 

5. Brush the tops of the dough balls with olive oil or melted butter, then sprinkle with the garlic and Italian seasoning, and top with Parmesan cheese.  

6. Cook them in the oven for about 15-20 minutes or until golden brown on top. Keep an eye on them! Doughs vary, so I’d check them after even 10 minutes.

7. Serve warm with warmed marinara sauce on the side for dipping.

*www.ourbestbites.com

Deep Dish Pizookie!

1. This website is amazing.  Visit it.

2. The ingredients for the Chocolate Chunk Cookie recipe is slightly adapted.

3. A pizookie is a deep dish pizza-looking cookie.

Ingredients:
Chocolate Chunk Cookie Ingredients:

3/4 cup  light brown sugar

3/4 cup + 1 tablespoon granulated sugar

1 cup unsalted butter
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 teaspoon sea salt

3 cups all-purpose, unbleached flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 10 oz. bag semi-sweet or dark chocolate chips

Other:

4" ramekins (or other small baking dish)

vanilla ice cream

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375° F (350° for convection ovens).

Beat together the butter, brown sugar and granulated sugar until light and fluffy.  Add eggs, vanilla extract, and sea salt.

Sift together the flour and baking soda.  Stir into batter, then add chocolate chips and stir until well mixed.

Fill ramekins 1/2" deep with raw cookie dough.  Place ramekins on sheet pan and put in middle rack of oven.  Bake 12-18 min., or until top starts to turn golden brown.  (Remember you want them slightly undercooked, but not too doughy.)

Remove from oven and place each ramekin on a napkin (this allows you to hold the hot dish as you eat your dessert delight.)  Top with a couple scoops of ice cream.  Grab a  spoon and enjoy.

*This recipe makes a lot of dough....like 3 logs worth.  If you don't want to use it all at once,  roll dough into 1 1/2" thick logs and cover with saran wrap.  Click here for a step-by-step on how to make some cookies for later.

*www.whiteonricecouple.com

Thai Turkey Wraps

Deliciousssss!

Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. creamy peanut butter
2 Tbsp. mayonnaise
2 Tbsp. KRAFT Asian Toasted Sesame Dressing
1/2 tsp. hot sauce
2 cups coleslaw blend (cabbage slaw mix)
4 flour tortillas (6 inch)
2-3 slices of turkey breast deli meat
2 Tbsp. chopped lightly salted dry roasted peanuts
2 Tbsp. chopped fresh cilantro

Directions:
1. Mix first 4 ingredients in medium bowl until well blended.
2. Add coleslaw blend; toss to coat. *This makes a lot of slaw.  I only used a little over 1/4 cup in the wrap.  Save the rest to make another!
3. Top tortillas with turkey, coleslaw mixture, nuts and cilantro; roll up and slice!

*www.kraft.com 

Crockpot Chicken-Ranch Tacos

Couldn't be simpler!  This is so freaking good.

Ingredients:

5-6 frozen chicken breasts (Mine were thawed and I only used 3 chicken breasts.  See directions below for modifications.)

1 packet chicken taco seasoning (1 oz.)
1 packet ranch seasoning (1 oz.)
1 can chicken broth

taco shells

...and any added taco fixings!

Directions:

Place chicken breasts in crock pot.  Sprinkle taco seasoning and ranch seasonings over chicken and pour broth over top.  Place lid on top and cook on high for 3 to 3 1/2 hours.  (I cooked mine on low for about 5 1/2 hours, then continued to follow same directions below.)

Shred chicken and place back in broth to cook for 30 minutes more.

Serve in taco shells with all the fixings you love.  

*http://myrecipeboxx.blogspot.com

Egg Salad Sandwiches

Ingredients:

6 hard boiled eggs, peeled

1/2 cup finely chopped dill pickles

2 large stalks celery, finely chopped

1/3 cup mayonnaise (Helman’s….and NOT low-fat) (I used a scant 1/3 cup of mayo and then added about 1 tablespoon or so of yellow mustard.)

salt & pepper, to taste

Directions:

Chop up hard boiled eggs.  Place into large bowl with remaining ingredients. Stir to combine. Fill a sandwich, a pita, a wrap or a tortilla, or use crackers! Makes about 4-5 sandwiches.

*How to boil an egg:

Here’s the easy way to cook the perfect hard boiled egg that it will be easy to peel! Put all of your eggs into a pot and cover completely with water. Cover and bring pot to boil. Once water has boiled, turn burner off and leave the pot alone (while still on the hot burner) for 10 minutes. After the 10 minutes, the eggs are done! 

Now, here’s the important part that makes your life easy or hard when it comes to peeling those shells off. Remove lid and drain hot water while still leaving eggs in the pot. Turn your faucet on and place pot underneath in the sink to shower eggs in cold water. You want to shock your eggs as quickly as possible to shrink the membrane between the egg and the shell. Keep faucet running over top eggs for 2-3 minutes. You may even want to add a little ice to the pot too. Once eggs are cool to handle, crack them open and peel away! 

*www.laurenslatest.com

Chocolate Covered Strawberry Cookies

Oh-so good!!  SUPER EASY!

Happy Memorial Day Weekend!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
1 egg
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon baking powder
1/8 teaspoon baking soda
3/4 cup fresh chopped strawberries

1/2 cup semi-sweet chocolate chips
2 tablespoons milk

Directions:
In a large bowl, cream butter and sugar together until light and fluffy. Stir in egg and vanilla. Add in all dry ingredients and stir until just incorporated. Gently stir in strawberries. Refrigerate dough 30 minutes.

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Scoop dough into small rounds and place on parchment paper lined baking sheets. Bake 7-8 minutes until edges start to barely golden. Cool 5 minutes on baking sheet and transfer to cooling rack. (For some reason, my cooking time was for much longer...about 12 minutes.)

In a small bowl, microwave chocolate chips and milk, stirring every 20 seconds until melted completely. Drizzle over cookies. Serve warm. Makes 2-3 dozen cookies.

*www.laurenslatest.com

Strawberry-Mint Sparkling Limeade

Cheers!  Happy Summer!

Ingredients:

• 3 cups sliced strawberries
• 1/2 cup loosely packed fresh mint leaves
• 1/2 cup fresh lime juice
• 1/4 cup water
• 1/4 cup agave nectar
• 1 (750-milliliter) bottle sparkling wine, chilled
• Whole strawberries (optional) 
• *Club soda (see below)

Directions:

Place first 5 ingredients in a blender; process until smooth (about 1 minute). Pour about 1/2 cup strawberry mixture into each of 6 glasses. Slowly pour about 1/2 cup wine into each glass; gently stir to combine. Garnish with whole berries, if desired.

*For a non-alcoholic and/or kid-friendly version, substitute 3 cups chilled club soda for the wine. When adding the soda/wine, pour slowly down the edge of the glass to tame the foam.

*Cooking Light Magazine, May 2012