I am a very fortunate blogger to be a part of the Freschetta Fresh Connection Team. They recently sent me a letter telling me about their Proud to Support Pink Porgram. They are going to try to raise $50,000 to doante to the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center. They will donate $1 for every code from a specially marked package of Freschetta pizza that is entered on their site (www.ProudToSupportPink.com). You can enter codes until October 31st (sorry for the late notice...I just got the package being that we moved recently).
As if the donation for breast cancer research is not enough, they are also giving away 50 pink iPod shuffles per week. On top of that giveaway, Freschetta will also send 50 iPod shuffles per week to 4 cancer centers around the US for patients to use during their treatments.
The Proud to Support Pink website has a place you can make a donation to this very important cause. There is also survivor stories, a place for people to share their journey through the diagnosis of breast cancer, to the treatment, to the CURE!! It is also a place family members can post their experiences. Breast cancer resources for further information is also available at this site. Everyone should check it out!
My family has been touched by breast cancer. My grandmother (my mom's mother) felt as if her breast was pulling or was heavier than normal. She went to be checked and was diagnosed with breast cancer. She was given the options and opted for a surgery. She is more than 10 years cancer free!
October is breast cancer awareness month! Check out the www.ProudToSupportPink.com website for information about breast cancer, for support and encouragement through other's journeys, to make a donation, to enter to win an iPod....there is also a coupon for Freschetta pizza. While we are trying to raise awareness for breast cancer and seeing that I work in health care, I must also plug in here that make sure you are performing monthly self breast exams. Early detection is the key!
If you plan on having a pizza anytime soon (maybe a good meal before trick-or-treating), have a pizza for the cause....be sure to enter your code on the site!
Now for the giveaway...In order to promote this program, Freschetta is providing a kit for me to give to one of my readers.
The kit will contain a coupon for a Freschetta pizza and 2 pairs of pink earphones.
In order to enter, leave a comment on this post. Since it is October, leave a comment about your favorite things about October.
The winner will be chosen at random on October 29.
Disclaimer: Freschetta has contacted me about this program and giveaway. They have provided me with a kit identical to the giveaway, but the views expressed here are my own.
Friday, October 21, 2011
Saturday, October 15, 2011
Pumpkin Spice Bagels
I made these bagels last weekend and I was so happy with the recipe! YUM! I will say though, only make as many as you will eat the day you make them, because they will be a little tough the next day.
Pumpkin Spice Bagels
(Makes 8 bagels)
2/3 cup warm water (around 80 F)
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (you could make it fresh, or use canned, but be sure NOT to get pumpkin pie mix. You could also substitute mashed sweet potato)
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp all spice
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 T water
1 egg white
1. Pour warm water in bowl of mixer and sprinkle in yeast. Allow yeast to proof for about 3-5 minutes (water will look cloudy).
2. Add the brown sugar, salt, pumpkin and the spices to the water and yeast. Stir to combine.
3. Add flour to wet ingredients. Fit the mixer with the dough hook. Turn on mixer and mix/knead for about 7 minutes. (You could mix together and then knead by hand).
4. Place dough into a bowl that has been prepared with cooking spray and cover bowl with clean towe. Allow to rise about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
5. Divide dough into portions (probably about 8). Roll the dough portion into a ball. Flatten the ball slightly and then poke a hole through the center with your finger. Shape into bagel shape and place on a floured pan. Cover with the plastic wrap allow to rest for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, place pan into refrigerator overnight.
6. When ready to cook, remove the pan from the refrigerator and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring large pot of water to a boil. Add in 1 tsp of baking soda to boiling water.
7. Preheat oven to 400 F.
8. Drop bagels into boiling water (don't overcrowd the pot) and allow to boil about 30-45 seconds per side (flip after 30 seconds). Remove from water and allow to dry slightly on a clean towel. The original recipe recommends dipping the bottom of the bagels into cornmeal. I didn't have any, and my bagels stuck pretty bad, so I would recommend using it. Place bagels onto baking sheet.
9. In a small bowl, mix water and egg white. Brush tops of bagels with egg wash.
10. Bake bagels at 400 F for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Pumpkin Spice Bagels
(Makes 8 bagels)
2/3 cup warm water (around 80 F)
2 1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 cup pumpkin puree (you could make it fresh, or use canned, but be sure NOT to get pumpkin pie mix. You could also substitute mashed sweet potato)
1/3 cup brown sugar, packed
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
3/4 tsp nutmeg
1/2 tsp all spice
3 cups flour
1 tsp baking soda
2 T water
1 egg white
1. Pour warm water in bowl of mixer and sprinkle in yeast. Allow yeast to proof for about 3-5 minutes (water will look cloudy).
2. Add the brown sugar, salt, pumpkin and the spices to the water and yeast. Stir to combine.
3. Add flour to wet ingredients. Fit the mixer with the dough hook. Turn on mixer and mix/knead for about 7 minutes. (You could mix together and then knead by hand).
4. Place dough into a bowl that has been prepared with cooking spray and cover bowl with clean towe. Allow to rise about 1 hour, or until doubled in size.
5. Divide dough into portions (probably about 8). Roll the dough portion into a ball. Flatten the ball slightly and then poke a hole through the center with your finger. Shape into bagel shape and place on a floured pan. Cover with the plastic wrap allow to rest for 10 minutes. After 10 minutes, place pan into refrigerator overnight.
6. When ready to cook, remove the pan from the refrigerator and allow to rest for 10 minutes. Meanwhile, bring large pot of water to a boil. Add in 1 tsp of baking soda to boiling water.
7. Preheat oven to 400 F.
8. Drop bagels into boiling water (don't overcrowd the pot) and allow to boil about 30-45 seconds per side (flip after 30 seconds). Remove from water and allow to dry slightly on a clean towel. The original recipe recommends dipping the bottom of the bagels into cornmeal. I didn't have any, and my bagels stuck pretty bad, so I would recommend using it. Place bagels onto baking sheet.
9. In a small bowl, mix water and egg white. Brush tops of bagels with egg wash.
10. Bake bagels at 400 F for 20 minutes or until lightly browned.
Friday, September 16, 2011
Pizza Dough
I came across this recipe a long time ago and filed away as a recipe I wanted to try sometime. I just never made it because usually I make pizza at the last minute which doesn't allow time to let the dough rise overnight in the refrigerator like this dough requires. Somehow, my mom came across the same recipe, tried it, and swore it was the best dough she had ever made. Well, a few weeks ago I decided to make personal pizzas for a football get together. I put out a pizza toppings bar so everyone could put their own toppings on the pizza. I decided to make the dough, bake it prior to everyone arriving so that I could enjoy our company and the football game. The dough was SO easy to work with. You could get it very thin without the dough tearing. It didn't stick while rolling it out. It was also quite delicious!
Pizza dough
(Note- I am posting the whole recipe- I ended up making 1 and a half batches, and found the mixer did better making half a batch. The whole recipe was too much for my mixer to handle. I recommend making the dough in 2 batches)
4 and 1/2 cups flour (all purpose or bread flour), chilled
1 and 3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp instant yeast
1 and 3/4 cups ice cold water
(Original recipe adds in olive oil, but I didn't have any, so I left it out- see link if you'd like to use it)
1. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, salt, and instant yeast. Add in the cold water while mixing on low speed until the flour is all absorbed. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and sticky. If the dough looks too dry, add in a few drops of water. It is looks to wet, add in flour slowly until the dough pulls from the side of the bowl.
2. Seperate dough into desired number of pizzas (should make about 6 regular size, but many more personal sized pizza). Round each piece of dough into a ball Place the dough onto a floured sheet pan. Mist the top of the dough with olive oil (I used cooking spray). Cover dough with plastic wrap or damp towel. Put the pan/dough into the refrigerator overnight to rest the dough. You can also make it 3 days in advance and keep it in the refrigerator or put in a freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months (per original recipe).
3. Remove the dough from the refrigerator about 2 hours prior to cooking. Sprinkle the dough with flour and press to flatten to disks. Cover the dough with the plastic wrap or damp towel and allow to rest for 2 hours.
4. If you have one, place a baking stone in the lowest rack in the oven and heat as high as oven will go about 45 minutes prior to baking pizza. If you don't have a pizza stone, you can bake the dough on the back side of a cookie sheet, but do not preheat it.
5. Flour the surface you plan to roll out the dough liberally. Roll dough to desired thickeness. At this point, I usually put the dough onto the stone and then put the toppings. So, place dough onto preheated pizza stone if using or put onto back side of cookie sheet. Apply sauce, cheese and other toppings.
6. Bake at 475-500F about 2 minutes, check and rotate if needed. Bake approx 5-10 minutes or until the dough has browned and the cheese is melty and browned.
Enjoy!
For my toppings bar, I used 2 chip and dip platters. I put out bacon, sausage, ground beef, ham, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers and onions, olives, roasted garlic. It was a lot of fun and so tasty!
Pizza dough
(Note- I am posting the whole recipe- I ended up making 1 and a half batches, and found the mixer did better making half a batch. The whole recipe was too much for my mixer to handle. I recommend making the dough in 2 batches)
4 and 1/2 cups flour (all purpose or bread flour), chilled
1 and 3/4 tsp salt
1 tsp instant yeast
1 and 3/4 cups ice cold water
(Original recipe adds in olive oil, but I didn't have any, so I left it out- see link if you'd like to use it)
1. In the bowl of a mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, mix the flour, salt, and instant yeast. Add in the cold water while mixing on low speed until the flour is all absorbed. Switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for 5 to 7 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and sticky. If the dough looks too dry, add in a few drops of water. It is looks to wet, add in flour slowly until the dough pulls from the side of the bowl.
2. Seperate dough into desired number of pizzas (should make about 6 regular size, but many more personal sized pizza). Round each piece of dough into a ball Place the dough onto a floured sheet pan. Mist the top of the dough with olive oil (I used cooking spray). Cover dough with plastic wrap or damp towel. Put the pan/dough into the refrigerator overnight to rest the dough. You can also make it 3 days in advance and keep it in the refrigerator or put in a freezer bag and freeze up to 3 months (per original recipe).
3. Remove the dough from the refrigerator about 2 hours prior to cooking. Sprinkle the dough with flour and press to flatten to disks. Cover the dough with the plastic wrap or damp towel and allow to rest for 2 hours.
4. If you have one, place a baking stone in the lowest rack in the oven and heat as high as oven will go about 45 minutes prior to baking pizza. If you don't have a pizza stone, you can bake the dough on the back side of a cookie sheet, but do not preheat it.
5. Flour the surface you plan to roll out the dough liberally. Roll dough to desired thickeness. At this point, I usually put the dough onto the stone and then put the toppings. So, place dough onto preheated pizza stone if using or put onto back side of cookie sheet. Apply sauce, cheese and other toppings.
6. Bake at 475-500F about 2 minutes, check and rotate if needed. Bake approx 5-10 minutes or until the dough has browned and the cheese is melty and browned.
Enjoy!
For my toppings bar, I used 2 chip and dip platters. I put out bacon, sausage, ground beef, ham, tomatoes, sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, peppers and onions, olives, roasted garlic. It was a lot of fun and so tasty!
Tuesday, August 23, 2011
Chicken Enchilada Soup
My sister brought some leftover chicken enchilada soup she had made over to my mom's one night. It was so delicious. She told us she bought a pouch of a mix and added chicken, corn, and rice. It was so good, I decided I wanted to make it this week. When I went to the store, I only found one mix, and it was 4 dollars. I was then inspired to try to make it from scratch. I searched for chicken enchilada soup recipes and came across a few copycats for Chili's chicken enchilada soup. A few had velveeta, which I don't usually buy, but I did find one with cheddar, so I decided to give it a try. YUM!!! This soup is awesome!
Note- this recipe calls for Masa Harina. This is a corn flour that can be used to make tortillas, tamales, and this soup! It can be found either in the ethnic food or with the flours.
Chicken Enchilada Soup
(Chili's copycat)- Original Recipe found on Allrecipes.com
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes and cooked
1/2 onion diced
1-2 garlic cloves diced
4 cups chicken broth
3 cups water, divided
1 cup masa harina
1 can red enchilada sauce
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1. Prepare a large pot with cooking spray and heat over medium high. Add onions and garlic and cook until soft and translucent. Add chicken broth and 1 cup water.
2. In a bowl, combine 2 cups of water and masa harina and mix until well combined. Add mixture to soup and stir in.
3. Add enchilada sauce, cheddar, salt, chili powder, cumin and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. When boiling, add chicken and lower heat to simmer. Simmer 30 minutes.
I think I am going to add in corn and rice next time.
Note- this recipe calls for Masa Harina. This is a corn flour that can be used to make tortillas, tamales, and this soup! It can be found either in the ethnic food or with the flours.
Chicken Enchilada Soup
(Chili's copycat)- Original Recipe found on Allrecipes.com
2 boneless skinless chicken breasts cut into small cubes and cooked
1/2 onion diced
1-2 garlic cloves diced
4 cups chicken broth
3 cups water, divided
1 cup masa harina
1 can red enchilada sauce
1 1/2 cup shredded cheddar
1 tsp salt
1 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp cumin
1. Prepare a large pot with cooking spray and heat over medium high. Add onions and garlic and cook until soft and translucent. Add chicken broth and 1 cup water.
2. In a bowl, combine 2 cups of water and masa harina and mix until well combined. Add mixture to soup and stir in.
3. Add enchilada sauce, cheddar, salt, chili powder, cumin and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. When boiling, add chicken and lower heat to simmer. Simmer 30 minutes.
I think I am going to add in corn and rice next time.
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Coconut Cheesecake
I LOVE coconut; so when I saw this cheesecake recipe on The Novice Chef blog, I knew I had to try it. My recipe is different because I wanted to make mini cheesecakes to bring to work. I didn't want too much tempting dessert in the house. Check out The Novice Chef blog for the original (which includes a recipe for coconut whipped cream topping which I didn't make). My recipe is different that hers, but I used hers as a base.
Crust
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
4 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp shredded coconut
1 Tbsp melted butter
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Place paper liners in muffin tin.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, coconut, and melted butter. Stir until well mixed.
4. Scoop graham cracker mixture into each of the cupcake liners. Bake at 350F until lightly browned (approx 5-7 minutes).
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Cheesecake
1 package cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat cream cheese)
1/3 - 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3 Tbsp coconut milk (I used light, but I don't think it had enough flavor)
1/4 cup cream of coconut (YUM)
1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl, cream the cream cheese until smooth using either a spatula or hand mixer. Add in the sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat until well combined. Add in the egg and beat until well incorporated. Add the coconut milk and cream of coconut and beat until well incorporated.
3. Pour mixture into cupcake liners on top of the prebaked crust. Do not fill to top as they will rise slightly. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes, or until the filling looks set. Remove and allow to cool.
YUM!
Crust
1/2 cup graham cracker crumbs
4 tsp sugar
2 Tbsp shredded coconut
1 Tbsp melted butter
1. Preheat the oven to 350 F.
2. Place paper liners in muffin tin.
3. In a medium bowl, combine the graham cracker crumbs, sugar, coconut, and melted butter. Stir until well mixed.
4. Scoop graham cracker mixture into each of the cupcake liners. Bake at 350F until lightly browned (approx 5-7 minutes).
5. Remove from the oven and allow to cool.
Cheesecake
1 package cream cheese, softened (I used 1/3 less fat cream cheese)
1/3 - 1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1/4 teaspoon salt
1 egg
3 Tbsp coconut milk (I used light, but I don't think it had enough flavor)
1/4 cup cream of coconut (YUM)
1. Preheat the oven to 350F.
2. In a large bowl, cream the cream cheese until smooth using either a spatula or hand mixer. Add in the sugar, vanilla, and salt. Beat until well combined. Add in the egg and beat until well incorporated. Add the coconut milk and cream of coconut and beat until well incorporated.
3. Pour mixture into cupcake liners on top of the prebaked crust. Do not fill to top as they will rise slightly. Bake at 350 F for 20 minutes, or until the filling looks set. Remove and allow to cool.
YUM!
Monday, August 15, 2011
Pork Braciole
This past weekend we decided to take a friend to dinner at one of our favorite local Italian Restaurants, Lonzano's. Every time I go to Lonzano's I try something new. Usually when I find something I like, I stick to it, but they have so many tempting options, I feel the need to experiment...and I have yet to be disappointed. This past weekend, I decided to try the Veal Rollitini. It was veal pounded thin and stuffed with a ham and breadcrumb filling. It is usually served with a sherry wine sauce, but their maranara is so good, I decided to get that instead. YUM! It was so good, I wanted to try to make it at home this week. The dish reminded me of a dish my mom makes called Braciole. It is basically a thin piece of beef which she wraps around a filling of seasoned breadcrumbs and cheese and cooks in the tomato sauce. One of my favorites! I decided this week to try it with pork. The end result was so tasty, but with the cut of pork I brought home (and the way I used it), it wasn't as thin as I like it, but since it was so delicious I will still post the recipe. I would recommend trying a pork cutlet that you can smash very thin.
Pork Braciole
1 pound pork (I used a loin that I cut to flatten and tried to thin, but it wasn't think enough, so I suggest a pork cutlet)
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesean cheese
2-3 small cloves of garlic minced
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 tsp salt
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1/4 jar (approx 1 cup) Ragu tomato sauce (I used Old World Style)
1. In a bowl, combine bread crumbs, cheeses, salt, garlic and mix until well incorporated. Sprinkle mixture over each piece of thin pork. Wrap the pork around the filling and secure (I used toothpicks, but remember how many are in the meat, you could also use cooking twine).
2. Bring pan (use one with sides, because once meat is browned, I put the sauce over to cook through) to heat over medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray and add pork. Brown on all sides. If you have a smaller pan, you may have to work in batches. Do not overcrowd the pan, or the meat will steam and never brown. Once all of the pork has browned, add it all to the pan and cover with tomatoes and tomato sauce. Bring to rapid simmer and cover. Lower heat to low and allow to cook through (I let mine go for about 45 min to an hour).
I serve mine over pasta and it was SO GOOD! I couldn't stop eating the sauce!
Pork Braciole
1 pound pork (I used a loin that I cut to flatten and tried to thin, but it wasn't think enough, so I suggest a pork cutlet)
1 cup seasoned bread crumbs
1/4 cup parmesean cheese
2-3 small cloves of garlic minced
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 tsp salt
1 large can crushed tomatoes
1/4 jar (approx 1 cup) Ragu tomato sauce (I used Old World Style)
1. In a bowl, combine bread crumbs, cheeses, salt, garlic and mix until well incorporated. Sprinkle mixture over each piece of thin pork. Wrap the pork around the filling and secure (I used toothpicks, but remember how many are in the meat, you could also use cooking twine).
2. Bring pan (use one with sides, because once meat is browned, I put the sauce over to cook through) to heat over medium high heat. Spray with cooking spray and add pork. Brown on all sides. If you have a smaller pan, you may have to work in batches. Do not overcrowd the pan, or the meat will steam and never brown. Once all of the pork has browned, add it all to the pan and cover with tomatoes and tomato sauce. Bring to rapid simmer and cover. Lower heat to low and allow to cook through (I let mine go for about 45 min to an hour).
I serve mine over pasta and it was SO GOOD! I couldn't stop eating the sauce!
Thursday, August 11, 2011
Smoky Lentil Soup
This recipe came to my inbox the other day along with an advertisement for a new soup making small appliance for the kitchen. I don't really feel that I would ever need something like this appliance (which is pretty much a blender that can heat up to cook ingredients prior to needing to be blended...I can achieve the same thing-although with a few more dishes to do- with a pot and a blender), but the recipe was intriguing. Now I can't believe in the dreadfully hot day we are having that I decided to make soup, but I did and it is delicious! So we will just sit under the fan in the A/C eating this yummy soup!
Using the Cuisinart soup maker and blender, you can sauté the vegetables, cook the soup and then puree it all in one vessel. For a quick and easy weeknight dinner, pair this hearty lentil soup with our Grown-Up Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (see related recipe at left).
3 slices of bacon (I used turkey bacon)
1 small onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 tsp. smoked paprika (I didn't have this, so I used a little more than 1/2 tsp of chili powder)
1/4 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained (I also didn't have this, so I used crushed tomatoes)
3/4 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
1. Preheat large pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned/crisp. Drain on paper towels and chop.
2. Return the pot to the heat and add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, tomato paste and paprika (or chili powder). Cook until the vegetables just start to soften. Add the tomatoes, lentils and broth. Cover and cook on high heat until the lentils are tender, approximatley 30 minutes. Add in bacon reserving a few pieces for garnish.
3. This step is optional. I used my stick blender and pureed until smooth and almost creamy. If you like yours more chunky, you can skip this or just blend it lightly. If you don't have a stick blender, you can pour the soup into a blender. Use the lid, but leave that central piece out and cover with a towel, blend on low.
Using the Cuisinart soup maker and blender, you can sauté the vegetables, cook the soup and then puree it all in one vessel. For a quick and easy weeknight dinner, pair this hearty lentil soup with our Grown-Up Grilled Cheese Sandwiches (see related recipe at left).
3 slices of bacon (I used turkey bacon)
1 small onion, diced
1 carrot, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 celery stalk, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 tsp. minced garlic
1 Tbs. tomato paste
1 tsp. smoked paprika (I didn't have this, so I used a little more than 1/2 tsp of chili powder)
1/4 cup canned diced tomatoes, drained (I also didn't have this, so I used crushed tomatoes)
3/4 cup lentils, picked over and rinsed
4 cups chicken broth
1. Preheat large pot over medium-high heat. Add the bacon and cook, stirring occasionally, until browned/crisp. Drain on paper towels and chop.
2. Return the pot to the heat and add the onion, carrot, celery, garlic, tomato paste and paprika (or chili powder). Cook until the vegetables just start to soften. Add the tomatoes, lentils and broth. Cover and cook on high heat until the lentils are tender, approximatley 30 minutes. Add in bacon reserving a few pieces for garnish.
3. This step is optional. I used my stick blender and pureed until smooth and almost creamy. If you like yours more chunky, you can skip this or just blend it lightly. If you don't have a stick blender, you can pour the soup into a blender. Use the lid, but leave that central piece out and cover with a towel, blend on low.
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