Heeyyy Yoouuu Guyyysss!! It's Pizza Night!

Ah, yes... pizza. But don't pick up the phone for it -- or go to the freezer. It's so much more satisfying to do it yourself. Ideally, you should make it with a bag of fresh dough from a local bakery or pizzeria -- they usually have some at the grocery store. But, of course, dear Bravo (the grocery store around the corner from me) had none of these. My only option was Pillsbury dough in a can -- not bad, but not my first choice.

ANYWAY. Other than dough, you can pretty much do your own Pizza Night however you want. Whatever toppings you like.

Here's what I did -- after pre-baking the crusts for about 5 minutes, like the directions say. It's important -- you don't want to get stuck with soggy crust!! Spray your cookie sheet AND sprinkle a little flour over the top to prevent any sticking. (I used a regular crust for #1 and the thin crust for #2):

PIZZA #1: Barbecue Chicken.

• Pour about 1/3 of a bottle (depending on size) of barbecue (this one is amazing -- sweet, smoky and a little spicy) sauce onto your crust. Use a little less of this sauce than you would tomato sauce -- it tends to be pretty salty and very tasty.
• Add chicken strips on top. (Just cut up & brown chicken breast in a skillet with some olive oil, garlic, paprika & cumin... or whatever.)
• Dump more than half of a bag of shredded mozzarella cheese on top.
• Final touch: Thinly sliced rings of red onion.
• Bake in the oven around 400 until the cheese is melty and the crust is browned to your liking.

PIZZA #2: Classic with Onions and Pepperoni.

• In a small pot, soften about 1/3 of an onion (cut into rings) in olive oil with garlic (I just used powder because I had no cloves!). Once softened, add half a can of tomato paste and about 5 tablespoons of crushed tomatoes (the kind with basil). This ratio can change depending on the thickness you prefer, but I found extra tomato paste was better for the pizza. Add some salt and crushed red pepper. Let it simmer for about 15 minutes then spread over pizza crust when ready.
• Add shredded cheese on top -- four cheese Italian blend was perfect. (I also added some of the leftover chicken since there wasn't enough to save for later.)
• Slice up some good pepperoni and spread over the cheese -- You know, an actual stick of pepperoni. 
• Bake in the oven around 400 until the cheese is melty and the crust is browned to your liking.

Perfect accompaniment for pizzas? Well, salad -- definitely. (I went the super-easy lazy route and just used a bag.) But more important than salad? The movie... ⚡

Homemade French Fries

This is the real deal. Potatoes; double deep fried.

2 - 3 lbs of potatoes (depending on how many fries you want to make - and any potato will do. They all have different textures)

canola oil

salt, pepper, old bay seasoning

2 paper bags

slice up the potatoes any way you want (I like mine in wedges; steak fry style)

fill a deep skillet with the oil and be sure to fill it high enough to cover the potatoes once they're in there.

Heat the oil on med high heat - you'll know its ready when you throw a drop of water in and it crackles. At this point carefully put the cut up potatoes in. you should have a nice rolling boil to the oil. Cook the potatoes until soft and a little golden - around 10 minutes.

Take the potatoes out and place in them in a paper bag. Roll them around gently to get rid of excess oil.

Turn the heat up under your skillet to high. When the oil is really hot, return the semi-fried potatoes to the oil, stirring frequently until they are a crispy golden brown.

Once they are done, take them out and place them in a second unused paper bag. Dump in salt, pepper and old bay seasoning (or whatever you feel like using).

Strain out your oil once its cooled and save it for the next batch of fries (and there WILL be a next batch of fries!)

Nutella Pop-Tarts

Seriously... Nutella Pop-Tarts. How amazing is that? I am going to be testing these out... maybe a nice, Valentine's Day treat? I'll let you know how it goes!

⚡

Apple Honey Grilled Cheese Sandwiches

All I can say is: yum. The best part about this recipe is that you can mix and match everything in it. Different apples (pears?), different cheese, different breads.

I really didn't measure anything here (in the spirit of this blog)....

For each sandwich you'll need:

2 pieces of bread. I used some sort of healthy-nut-oat bread. It grilled up nicely.

On the outer side of each slice of bread, slather some softened butter. (NOT margarine)

on the inside lay down 4 or 5 THIN slices of granny smith apple

2 - 3 slices of swiss cheese (or gruyere or smoked cheddar or . . .)

drizzle honey over the cheese

salt and pepper (don't skip this - it really makes a difference)

assemble the sandwich and grill in a pan over med heat. (if you have a bacon press or another heavy frying pan, use it to press down the sandwich) If you're making a few of these, place the finished ones in a warm oven so they don't get too cold while the others are cooking.

Cheesey Cheese Delicious Cheese

Super duper (no measure) macaroni & cheese is, well, super duper easy to make. So easy I'm just going to tell you straight out:

Melt a chunk of butter in a pot (like 2 tbsp), add a few tablespoons of flour and whisk it together. It's okay if it's chunky. Pour some milk over and keep whisking. Add about 1/2 a bag of shredded cheese in too. (Or more... depends on how cheesey you like it -- I used about 3/4 of a cheddar & monterey blend.) Keep whisking! Add a bunch of pepper, a little garlic powder and a squirt of spicy brown mustard (trust me). Add more milk or more cheese to get the consistency you want.

Mix with pasta! And broccoli! And sliced grape tomatoes! And chicken burgers! (...Or whatever you want, that was just my dinner tonight.)

And, as usual... I was too hungry to take a photo before devouring. It happens. ;)

⚡

Easy Peasy Rainy Day Lunch

It's easy peasy, but fear not, Pea Haters -- no peas included.

What You'll Need:

• 1 can (Well... half a can, but you can't only buy half) of Progresso Hearty Tomato Soup
• Some leftover brown rice (...or white, but you should be eating brown rice!)
• 2 tablespoons of ricotta cheese
• Parmesan cheese 

Put it All Together (the easy part):

• Pour soup into your bowl, on top of your brown rice.
• Dollop the ricotta on top.
• Microwave for about 2 minutes.
• Sprinkle with parmesan and some pepper (I prefer freshly ground). 

And... well... that's it. Makes a plain can of soup a little more interesting. (That tomato soup is delicious on its own anyway -- my favorite.)

⚡