Taco Pizza

 

Pizza is a funny thing.  It's so fun (or at least it was as a kid, now it's mostly convenient) to get a pizza delivered to your door.  It's a family event to go to the pizza place and order your own creation.  But homemade pizza is just so satisfying.  Even so, I often find myself ordering pizza as often as I make it at home.  I love taco pizzas.  It's such a weird combination that actually works.  But I'm never completely convinced.  So I decided that it was high time I made my own taco pizza, and the results were amazing.  The biggest difference is that I used guacamole as a base.  It made all the difference in the world.  I also chose to cook the lettuce with the pizza rather than put it on after, which I liked a lot, because for me, lettuce tends to take away from other flavors.  Please give this a go - I really think it will become a pizza night favorite.

For more pizza night fun, check out these posts!

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

Sausage and Artichoke Calzones

Pizza Buns

Taco Pizza

1 recipe pizza dough

Guacamole (try my recipe!)

Cheese (we used a mix of cheddar and pepper jack)

Black olives, sliced

Shredded lettuce

Tomatoes, diced

Cilantro

Ground turkey meat, cooked and seasoned with taco seasoning



Heat a pizza stone in an oven heated to 400.  Spread the pizza dough into a round and place on a pizza peel generously covered in cornmeal.  Top with guacamole.  Sprinkle half of the cheese on top.  Top with the rest of the ingredients, and then top with the remaining cheese.  Quickly slide it onto the pizza stone and cook for 9 to 11 minutes.  Remove from the oven, let cool, and cut into slices.  Enjoy!

The Best Tin Foil Dinners

The first time I ever had a tin foil dinner, I was disgusted.  I had made it per my husband's instructions - ground beef, carrots, potatoes - and then seasoned the heck out of it.  I was sure that it would turn out so well, but when we ate them, it tasted like nothing.  It was just texture.  I asked if that was what they were supposed to taste like and he said, "Yeah.  Just put some ketchup on it."  Lovely.  So now I was eating textured ketchup.  The next opportunity I had to make a tin foil dinner was this last weekend.  I made sure that we would not be eating the traditional tasteless mush and would be actually eating something we wanted to put in our mouths.

When making this recipe, I decided that it was essential to go way over the top on flavor at first.  The fire had cooked out all flavor before, so I figured that if there was way too much flavor to start with, we might end up somewhere in the middle.  I figured right.  The end result was absolutely perfect.  Cheesy, creamy and delicious.  The sauce soaked right into the vegetables and marinated the chicken.  My husband said that it was the best tin foil dinner he's ever had.  He said, "You have to understand.  These are traditional.  They don't usually taste good, so these are awesome."  I guess I did something right.  And finishing the meal off with a Reese's smore doesn't hurt either.

The Best Tin Foil Dinners

2 large Yukon gold potatoes, sliced

2 large carrots, peeled and sliced

2 tablespoons olive oil

2 chicken breasts, cut into pieces

Salt and pepper

1 can cream of chicken soup

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/2 cup sour cream

1 teaspoon chicken Better than Bouillon, or 1 chicken bouillon cube

1/2 cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Lay out 2-3 large pieces of tin foil.  Lay the potatoes and carrots in each of the pieces of foil.  In a large skillet or medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium-high heat.  Season the chicken with salt and pepper, then cook in the oil until almost cooked through.  Take off the heat and let cool for a few minutes.  Layer the chicken in each piece of foil.  Drain the skillet of excess liquid.

In the same skillet over medium heat, add soup, butter, sour cream and Better than Bouillon.  Cook until butter melts and ingredients are mixed, stirring frequently.  Add cheddar and stir until melted.  Add pepper to taste.  Take off the heat and let cool for about 5 minutes.

Pour the sauce over the chicken and vegetables.  Wrap up well.  Wrap each foil packet with 2 more pieces of foil.

When outside, let the fire burn down until there are just smoldering logs left.  Put the dinners in and turn a few times.  You'll have to watch it though, since cooking time will entirely depend on the heat of your fire and the foil you used.  It will probably take about 10-20 minutes.  Unwrap and enjoy!

Peaches and Cream

This dish truly is simple summer perfection.  I happened to have all of the ingredients on hand the other day (since I have been gorging myself on peaches the last couple of weeks) and realized that I had never had peaches and cream.  It could not be simpler or more delicious, and I have been craving it ever since.  Ok, I'll admit it - I ate this 3 times last week.  It's that good!  It could easily be done for breakfast as well as dessert.  This is definitely going to become a summer tradition at my house.

Peaches and Cream

1 ripe peach, pitted and cut into slices

Heavy cream

Sugar

Put the peaches in a bowl, pour some heavy cream over the top, and sprinkle with sugar.  Enjoy on the patio or with a good movie!

Classic Bruschetta, First Trial

When I saw the movie Julie and Julia, my reaction to the food was mixed.  Some of the items made me feel a bit queasy, and I don't think I would touch them with a 10 foot pole.  On the other hand, the other half of the recipes in the movie made me so hungry and I was just craving them for the longest time.  One of those is the bruschetta that Amy Adams makes at the very beginning of the movie.  Oh. My. Gosh.  I just about died when I saw that bread going in the oil and getting crispy and brown.  So I took it in my own hands to figure out how to make this delectable dinner.  I served this to my husband along with plain pieces of French bread that we dipped in a garlic dipping sauce and butter and honey.  It was delectable.  I say first trial because this one wasn't 100% perfect.  There's not quite enough basil, and the bread, although delicious, wasn't exactly what I had imagined.  I think the skinny baguette that I used wasn't wuite what I had in mind for a dinner of bruschetta, but it would be perfect for an appetizer.  This meal could not be easier, more delicious, or more satisfying.

Classic Bruschetta

4 tomatoes, chopped in large chunks

2 garlic cloves, minced

1/8 cup basil, torn into small pieces (I would definitely add more next time - at least 1/4 cup)

3/4 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

1 tablespoon olive oil plus more for frying

Baguette, sliced into 1 inch pieces

Combine tomatoes, garlic, basil, salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon olive oil in a bowl.  Let marinate in the refrigerator all day.  (I made it that morning after breakfast.)

Put a medium pan over medium-high heat.  Pour enough olive oil in the pan to cover the bottom.  Once it is hot, using tongs and working in batches, put the bread in the oil.  Fry until golden brown and crispy, which will take a few minutes.  Flip the pieces over and let fry until golden and crispy on the other side, an additional few minutes.  Remove from pan.  Cover the bottom of the pan with olive oil again and repeat the process with the rest of the bread.

Top the bread with the tomato mixture and enjoy!

Guacamole, My Way

I didn't always love avocados.  It was one of those foods that I had to "grow into".  Thanks first to my college roommate Rachel, and then to my husband, I have grown to love avocados over the last 5 years.  And in that time, I have learned that not all guacamoles are created equal.  It seems like thousands of recipes for guacamole exist.  Every time I taste some, it is completely different than the last one.  Some are smooth, others chunky.  Some are pretty much only avocado, while others are salty or spicy.  Therefore, I think all people need to experiment and find what works for them.  This one is perfectly seasoned without overpowering the delicious taste of the avocado itself.  Try it - it might become your guacamole!

Guacamole

3 large, ripe avocados

1 large garlic clove, smashed and minced

Juice of 1 lime

1/3 cup chopped cilantro

1 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon cumin

1 Roma tomato, chopped

Put the flesh of the avocados into a large bowl.  Put next 5 ingredients (through cumin) into bowl; mash with a potato masher until it reaches desired consistency.  Put chopped tomatoes in the bowl and stir in with a spoon.  Enjoy!