Homemade Pizza

"What you are seeing in the photo below is a freshly baked homemade pizza.  I made my own dough which is very simple if you want to give it a try.  The recipe is as follows:

Pizza Dough
1 Packet Quick Rise Yeast
1 Cup of Warm Water (about 110 degrees)
21/2  to 3 1/2 cups of all purpose flour
1 tsp of Salt
2 tsp of Olive Oil
Olive Oil and Corn Meal for Pizza Pan
Mix the yeast and water. Add the salt, olive oil and 2 1/2 cups of flour.  Mix till incorporated.  Add rest of flour 1/2 cup at a time.  Mix about 4 mins more till dough starts hitting sides.  Place in a oil glazed bowl, put a towel over and put in a warm place for 1 hour.  Will be doubled in size. Punch down.  Brush pizza pan with oil and sprinkle with corn meal.  Stretch and Press Dough on Pizza Pan. Make yourself a nice crust. 

Next - Put on whatever toppings you like! What is your favorite topping?
I used garlic and tomato sauce, onion, tomatoes, spinach, ham, parmasean cheese and fresh mozzarella cheese. 
Bake for 12 - 15 min at 425 degrees.  Tasted great! My crust was a little on the thicker side put you could use less dough and make a thin crust if you prefer.  I love using the fresh ingredients it just tastes better than the processed stuff.

Dinner on the Grill

"Friday is always a good night for a burger, so I decided on a turkey burger on the grill. I always am one to spice things up so I sauted fresh spinach and garlic and used it along with provolone cheese to top my burger.  The spinach added extra flavor making my turkey burger more exciting then normal! The burger was then placed on a thin honey wheat bun.  I like the thin buns cause it helps hold the burger in place, but doesn't fill me up on "bun".  As a side I grilled up a few french fries.  Ha, yes you heard me right, I put the french fries in some foil and threw them on the grill too.  They were crunchy and had that smokey grill flavor.  What is your favorite burger topping?  Have you tried mushrooms, onions, peppers?"

Did you know that spinach has fiber in it which aids in digestion, prevents constipation, maintains low blood sugar and curbs overeating?

Trying Trout

"It's been awhile since I've had trout for dinner and I wanted to give it a try again. Are there any foods that you haven't tried in awhile that you would like to try again soon?  I purchased the fish from a local grocery store called Earthfare.  It had already been marinating in a bourbon sauce which smelled great.  Originally I thought I would cook the trout on the grill, but come dinner time the weather outside was pretty nasty.  So I decided to simply bake it in the oven on 350 degrees for about 15 min.  When eating the trout it was full of the bourbon flavor without being too over powering.  The fish tasted fresh and moist and almost melted in my mouth! What flavors do you like with your trout? Do you think you would have enjoyed the bourbon flavor?  My two side dishes were roasted soy asparagus and roasted garlic fingerling potatoes.  The asparagus were drizzled with soy sauce and olive oil and sprinkled with salt and pepper.  The fingerling potatoes were sliced and drizzled with olive oil and sprinkled with garlic, salt, pepper and chili powder.  Both sides were wrapped in foil and roasted in a 400 degree oven for 30 mins.  They went nicely with the fish and were quick and easy to prepare . " Lastly, did you know that 1 - 3oz filet of trout contains 19 grams of protein?  Not bad for a fish!

The Invention of a New Lasagna

"My refrigerator was mostly empty, but I needed to make dinner before I could get to the grocery store. Have you ever been in this situation?  I took some cooked turkey meat, tomato sauce, onions, no bake lasagna noodles and a little bit of seasoning and made a simple version of lasagna.  No ricotta or mozzarella cheese to help fill the standard 9 x 13 pan, so I used a loaf pan instead.  I heated the layered ingredients in the oven for about 50 min on 350 degrees and dinner was made."  Sometimes you just need to be creative and take whatever it is that you have and make something out of it.  Who knows, maybe I will end up making this one again. Have you ever had bare bones ingredients in your kitchen, but were able to create a masterpiece?" What did you create?

Sorry the picture came out a little dark.  I think I will be eating leftovers of this tonight so I will try and post a better picture later. 

Mexican Restaurant Night!

 "Last night I went to a new Mexican Restaurant in town.  I ordered a beef and cheese tostada, a cheese enchilada and a beef taco.  In addition, I had an ice cold margarita to drink.  Honestly, the food tasted ok, but I've definitely had better.  The margarita was more a yellowish color rather then green which was different then I expected and it was definitely on the weak side.  Out of convenience we may go back to this place, but it would not be near the bottom of the list for Mexican restaurants in town."



Question: Has anyone ever had a really awesome margarita?  Where was it served?  Was it frozen or on the rocks?  With or without salt?  Was it filled with flavor? Would love to hear your feedback!

Tuna Melt Goodness

"Last night I ate a simple, but good tuna melt"  It was tuna fish mixed with olive oil mayo on a whole wheat roll, topped with cheddar cheese." The tuna melt was warmed in the oven on a cookie sheet under the broiler.  This is a great meal if you need something quick. 

Flashback Weekend Night Extravaganza - The Gin Joint and Beyond

"Saturday I headed to Charleston, South Carolina to visit my dear college friends. For dinner we started with drinks and appetizers at their amazing restaurant called the Gin Joint. If you are ever in Charleston this place is a MUST stop.  The food is incredible and the drinks will put you right up on Cloud 9."  The appetizers we had were as follows:
Fingerling Potato Skins, aged cheddar, bacon and sour cream - These little slices of joy were cooked to perfection with a fresh crisp skin and the right amount of flavor
Pad Thai Popcorn , lime, fish sauce and palm sugar - Wowser! This was my favorite, it had just the right amount of spice and the fish sauce gave it just what it needed to remind me of the traditional pad thai dish, it was crunchy and not soggy in the least. YUM!
Homemade Soft Pretzels, Maldon sea salt, sriracha cheese - Who doesn't like a good soft pretzel with cheese?
Homemade Beef Jerky, soy, garlic, chilli - When they say homemade here, they mean it - this chewy jerky was a delight and it would not be terrible to have some of this in your back pocket while camping in the woods. 
Confit Shrimp, extra virgin olive oil, fennel, lemon, capers - The presentation on this was unique with the shrimp in a small mason jar  - these bad boys were yummy - the oil provided a lovely flavor and I didn't get that overpowering shrimp taste. 

Now the drinks, well, I just can't get over how amazing they taste. I tried several, but the two that were designated to me had very fancy names that I don't remember. One had a grapefruit flavor and the other was a basil.  I didn't think I would like the basil, but I was wrong, as it was very very good.  The fresh quality of these drinks with the right amount of ice every time is to be commended.  I've had drinks in New York, LA, Charlotte, Paris, ect. and none compare to the Gin Joint.  This is by far my FAVORITE place to go for drinks.  If you want vodka or a Bud Light you better go elsewhere because the class and style in these drinks is going to be far beyond what you could imagine.  Ah, I can't wait till the next time.

The Gin Joint Joint was only the beginning course, next we headed to Chai's Lounge which was also located downtown Charleston.  My friends mom needs to eat gluten free, so the chef prepared a very special gluten free menu for us.  If you didn't tell me it was gluten free I would not have known.  It all tasted so good. The lounge was very dark so I wasn't able to take pictures of the food, but here is just a glimpse into what we had.

A very lovely Riesling Wine that was crisp, refreshing and went well with the food.  Normally you get the alcohol burn at the end, but not with this wine as it was very clean at the finish.
Marinated Tomato Salad, arugula, goat cheese, pistachio balsamic - the goat cheese was very creamy and went nicely with the ripe tomatoes
CrispyRock Shrimp, tempura, blood orange, pickled fennel - it was a gluten version of the tempura batter which was fascinating! It wasn't too greasy which was good.
Pork Carnitas, avacado creme fraiche, pico de gallo, corn tortilla - simple but good - all fresh ingrediants
Butcher's Plate, housemade & imported selection of charcuterie, cornichon, house mustard, chutney, crostini . assorted cheese - I loved this because it was a lot of variety, but simple and enjoyable.
Dessert - I just remember it was a smore theme also a gluten free version - the chocolate part was very smooth and went well with the red Pinot Noir that we had.  We also had a dessert with pana cotta, strawberries and with some sort of a white chocolatey crunch. The pana cotta was a little grainy to me, but everything else was wonderful. 

A night to remember.

LOL! Ha, Sunday night I drove home from Charleston and it was late so I opted for a Jr. Whopper and french fries from Burger King. LOL again, I'm not going to even describe this one as it is like dirt compared to the night before.