Get your pizza fix with a twist

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  Everyone loves pizza!  Today's adventure is a twist on everyone's love for the good old pizza. A step away from the "traditional pizza" without going to far away that you can't dip your crust in your favorite tomato sauce.

Savory Sausage, Spinach, and Onion Turnovers
cooking spray
2/3 cup peeled diced, red potatoes  
1/3 cup diced red bell pepper
1/3 cup diced yellow onion
2 (3.5 ounces) links hot Italian chicken sausage
3 cups washed baby spinach
2 tablespoons finely chopped fresh basil
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 package refrigerated pie dough
2 tablespoons water
1 egg white, lightly beaten
3 tablespoons Parmesan cheese

• 1. Preheat oven to 400°.
• 2. Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add potatoes, bell pepper, and onion to pan; sauté 4 minutes or until onion begins to brown, stirring frequently. Add sausage; cook 4 minutes or until browned, stirring to crumble. Stir in spinach; cook 2 minutes or until spinach wilts. Stir in basil, salt, and crushed red pepper. Remove from heat.
• 3. Cut dough into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion into a 5-inch circle. Spoon about 1/2 cup potato mixture on half of each circle, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Fold dough over potato mixture until edges almost meet. Bring bottom edge of dough over top edge; crimp edges of dough to form a rim.
• 4. Place turnovers on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Combine 2 tablespoons water and egg white in a small bowl, stirring with a whisk; brush evenly over dough. Sprinkle about 2 teaspoons cheese over each turnover. Bake at 400° for 18 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand at least 5 minutes before serving.

There you have it our game plan/ menu for tonight.  Pictures and review to come later tonight until next time, play with your food and have fun.
 

Lighting up without going hungry part 2

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  Hope you enjoyed our adventure today as much as i did.  I am full satisfied but not weighed down.  A perfect dinner to round out my week.  This would also be a great hit for a dinner party with friends, or would even make a great first or second course in a fancy meal.

 The cod was nice and flaky moist and delicious. I made the choice to not dust my fish with the dried mushrooms, the cod is a delicate flavor and wanting to be able to taste the cod.  Mushrooms have a deep strong earthy flavor and too me the dried mushrooms would have over powered the simple delicate flavor of the cod.  In the perfect bite you want a layer of flavor that your taste buds dance through.  Biting through the cod you get the soft flavor noticing the flaky texture. Then you taste the meaty, earthy, woodsy flavors of the mushrooms, then your taste buds hit the slight sweetness of the carrot  rounding out the perfect bite

Until next time remember play with you food and have fun.

Lighting up without going hungry

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  The end of the week is coming near and for myself and all my weight watchers friends out there, weigh in is always on our mind.  Last week was about getting back on track and we did.  Even when we are on track sometimes we can feel like were eating heavy foods, that are weighing us down.  This does not mean what were eating is unhealthy.  Today's adventure is a light fish dish packed with filling tasty flavor.

Pan-Roasted Fish on Mushroom-Leek Ragout 
2 slices bacon, chopped
1 pound portabella mushroom cups, gills removed and sliced
2 leeks white parts only, rinsed and thinly sliced
1/4 cup finely diced carrot
1/4 cup finely diced celery
1/2 cup chicken broth
1/2 cup white wine
1 1/2 teaspoon minced fresh thyme
S&P
1/2 ounce dried shiitake mushrooms
4 (5oz) pieces cod
1 1/2 tablespoon olive oil 

• 1. In a large frying pan over medium-high heat, stir bacon often until browned and crisp, 6 to 7 minutes. Add portabellas and stir often until golden brown, about 5 minutes; pour into a bowl. Add leeks, carrot, and celery to pan; reduce heat to medium and stir often until vegetables are soft, 8 to 10 minutes.
• 2. Return portabellas to pan and add chicken broth, wine, and thyme; simmer, stirring often, until liquid is almost evaporated, about 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
• 3. Meanwhile, preheat oven to 450°. In a spice or coffee grinder, grind dried mushrooms to a fine powder; pour into a wide, shallow bowl. Sprinkle both sides of fish with salt and pepper, then coat with the ground mushrooms.
• 4. Pour olive oil into another large, ovenproof frying pan over medium-high heat. Add fish and cook until browned on the bottom, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn pieces and transfer pan to oven. Bake just until fish is opaque in center of thickest part, about 8 minutes.
• 5. Divide mushroom-leek ragout among four plates. Top with fish.

Note: If you don't want to dust your fish with the dried mushrooms just skip that step and go onto next step.

There you have it our game plan/menu, pictures and review to come later tonight.  Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.

Number....... to dress up chicken part 2

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  Hope you enjoyed this easy and fast dish, one of the many ways to dress up chicken.  No more dreading hearing chicken is whats for dinner.  This is also a perfect meal to make on the fly or when things don't go according to plan.  Running late? Fear not you don't have to go to the frozen isle, you can still have healthy and satisfying try this meal it will not let you down.

 
There was a sweet tang that lingered on your tongue after every bite, just making your taste buds search for exactly what it is your tasting.  Yet the sweetness is not overwhelming because you still have savory flavors of garlic and Italian seasoning that step in and say hello at just the right moment.  Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.

Number....... to dress up chicken

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  Bored to death of hearing chicken is whats for dinner tonight?  No need to dread hearing chicken is whats for dinner, with this recipe you will look forward to chicken tonight.

Balsamic Chicken
1 teaspoon olive oil
3/4 cup coarsely chopped onion
4 garlic cloves, sliced
2 boneless skinless chicken breast
1 cup sliced green bell pepper
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
1/4 cup sliced mushrooms
1 teaspoon dried Italian seasoning
1(14 1/2 ounce) can diced tomatoes, undrained
1 cup hot cooked long grained rice

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onion and garlic; sauté 3 minutes. Add chicken; cook 4 minutes on each side or until browned. Add bell pepper and next 4 ingredients (bell pepper through tomatoes). Reduce heat to medium-low; cook 20 minutes or until chicken is done. Serve over rice.

There you have it the game plan/menu for tonight review and pictures to come later tonight.  Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.






   

A little grilling tip

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  This is just a short post with a quick tip when grilling veggie kabobs.

Veggie kabobs are easy fast simple and a tasty way of getting in your veggies.  Here is a way to throw a twist on the everyday veggies.  Chop veggies into desired size place in a bowl, pour your favorite marinade over veggies and let sit for hours to soak up flavor.   Tip: you can do this in advance and let sit refrigerated over night.  However if using same day let veggies soak up marinade on the counter of at least an hour, the longer the better.  I use a garlic based marinade finding the veggies soak up the flavor more, but try any marinade you have. Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.

Thursday "fake out take-out" part 2

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.  Our at home take-out was a knock out,  who needs take out when you can make your very own stir-fry?  That taste even better than what take-out offers.  Take-out is nice, however having control what is in your food is so much better.

This stir-fry is a little labor intensive, but trust me it is well worth it.  Normally I am all about "short cut" but not tonight guys.  You must try this dish at least ounce following the recipe step by step.  You will think your eating a dish from your favorite Chinese restaurant, all from your own kitchen.  All the taste you love salty sweet a little heat the perfect bite. Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.

Thursday "fake out take-out"

Hello fellow foodies and food lovers.   End of the week comes and your tempted to reach for the phone and order in STOP.  Don't let your week of hard work go for one night of take-out.  Were back on track so let's stay on track.  You will be pleasantly surprised by this dish and will want to make it over and over.

Stir- Fried Pork with Broccoli and Cashews
cooking spray
4 cups vertically sliced sweet onion
2 cup small broccoli florets
1 (1pound) pork tenderloin sliced thin
1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper
1/2 cup chopped green onion
1 tablespoon sugar
1 tablespoon minced peeled ginger 
3 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 chicken broth 
3 tablespoon soy sauce
1/2 chopped, dry-roast cashews
2 teaspoon dark sesame oil
2 cups hot cooked long grain rice 

Place a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add sweet onion; cook 8 minutes, stirring occasionally. Remove the sweet onion from pan; place in a bowl. Recoat pan with cooking spray. Add broccoli; stir-fry 3 minutes. Add broccoli to sweet onion. Recoat pan with cooking spray. Add pork and red pepper; stir-fry 4 minutes or until pork loses its pink color. Reduce heat. Stir in the green onions, sugar, ginger, and garlic, and cook 30 seconds, stirring constantly. Stir in onion mixture, chicken broth, soy sauce, and cashews; cook 1 minute. Drizzle with sesame oil. Serve with rice.

There you have it our game plan/menu, pictures and review to come later tonight.  Until next time remember play with your food and have fun.