Veggie-licious Focaccia

Here is a yummy bread recipe that you can get creative with!  It's easy to customize it just how you want it and you can just add whatever veggies you have on hand.  It's easy and delicious!  Turns out great every time!

Veggie-licious Focaccia:

Ingredients:
BREAD:
1 c lukewarm water
1-1/2 tbsp olive oil
4 tsp sugar
1-1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 tsp salt
3-1/4 c flour
1-1/2 tsp active dry yeast
TOPPING:
1 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp dried basil
2 medium tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 medium red onion, thinly sliced
1 c fresh sliced mushrooms
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1/2 c grated Parmesan cheese
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

1.  Place the first 8 ingredients in bread machine in order suggested by manufacturer.  Select the dough cycle.  Check dough after about 5 minutes to see if it needs an additional 1-2 tbsp of water or flour.

2.  When cycle is complete, turn dough onto a lightly floured surface.  Punch dough down.  Roll into a 13 x 9 inch rectangle and transfer to a greased 13 x 9 inch baking dish.

3.  Brush dough with olive oil and sprinkle with basil.  Layer the tomatoes, onion, and mushrooms on top of the dough.  Sprinkle with salt, pepper, and Parmesan cheese.  Cover and let rise in a warm place until double, about 30 minutes. 



4.  Bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.  Sprinkle with mozzarella cheese and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes or until golden brown and cheese is melted. 

***Don't like mushrooms?  You can easily add chopped broccoli, chopped spinach, sliced chicken breast, or crumbled bacon.  Be creative and use whatever you like!***

Cheesy Prosciutto Chicken

Here is a recipe that I think is pretty good.  It's nice to have something different once in a while and this is pretty easy to throw together.  Plus, it looks wonderful so it's sure to impress guests. 

Cheesy Prosciutto Chicken

Ingredients:

4 boneless, skinless chicken breasts
1/3 c all-purpose flour
2 tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
1 tsp Italian seasoning
2 tbsp olive oil
4 thin slices prosciutto or ham
4 slices mozzarella cheese (or provolone or swiss)
1 tsp chopped fresh sage leaves (optional)

Directions:

In a shallow dish, mix flour, Parmesan cheese, and Italian seasoning.  Dip chicken in flour mixture and shake off excess flour.  In a large skillet, heat oil over medium heat.  Add chicken and cook about 8 minutes or until no longer pink in the center, turning every few minutes to make sure it doesn't burn.  Place 1 slice of prosciutto or ham and 1 slice of mozzarella cheese on each chicken breast.   Cover skillet and cook another 1-2 minutes or until cheese is melted.  If desired, sprinkle with fresh sage before serving.  

**Prosciutto is an Italian ham that is seasoned, salt-cured and air-dried.  You can replace it with thinly sliced deli ham if desired.  Feel free to use any kind of cheese you like.**

Old-Fashioned Coconut Cream Pie

Mmm...coconut cream pie!  This is a recipe for made-from-scratch pie that is so incredibly creamy it's divine!  It's really not that difficult and it is definitely worth the effort!  If you like coconut cream pie I suggest you give this a try. 

Coconut Cream Pie:


Ingredients:

1 cups heavy whipping cream
2 cups coconut milk

2 eggs
3/4 cup white sugar
1/2 cup flour
1/4 tsp salt
3/4 cup flaked or shredded coconut
1 tsp vanilla extract
1 (9 inch) pie shell, baked

Topping:
1 cup heavy whipping cream

2 tbsp powdered sugar
1/2 tsp coconut extract
1/4 cup flaked or shredded coconut, toasted

Directions:

In a medium saucepan, combine coconut milk, cream, eggs, sugar, flour, and salt.  Bring to a boil over low heat, stirring constantly.  It will thicken as it cooks.  Remove from heat and stir in the coconut and vanilla extract.  Pour into pie shell and chill 2-4 hours or until firm. 
For the topping, whip cream on med-high speed until soft peaks form.  Add sugar and coconut extract and beat until stiff peaks form.  Spread over cooled pie and sprinkle toasted coconut over the top.

Notes:

1.  You can make this in the microwave if you combine all the ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave, stirring after every minute or two, until it comes to a full boil and is a pudding-like consistency when you stir it.  It can be easy to over-cook it this way so be careful!
2.  To toast the coconut, put it on a cookie sheet in a 350 degree oven for 5-7 minutes, stirring occasionally, until golden brown.
3.  If you don't have coconut milk you can use regular milk and just add 1/2 tsp of coconut extract to it.

84EF3D8F-A2AA-B609-5F45-F467DE6D24D5

1.03.01

Super Easy Manicotti!

First of all, I forgot to take a picture of this when I made it so the picture is of the leftovers the next day so it may not look quite as good as it did the day before but it was still delicious!  I love Italian food and I absolutely love manicotti but it can be such a pain to try to stuff floppy noodles with spoonful after spoonful of cheese.  Well, not anymore!  Here is a much simpler way to do it where you pipe the cheese into the uncooked pasta and it still comes out perfect.  It's simply tasty!

Super Easy Manicotti

Ingredients:

1 (15 oz.) container ricotta cheese
1/2 cup cottage cheese
1-1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, divided
2 tbsp Parmesan cheese
2 eggs
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp pepper
1 tsp minced garlic
1/3 cup finely chopped spinach (fresh or frozen) - optional
1 package uncooked manicotti tubes
1 jar traditional style spaghetti sauce
1-1/2 cups water

Directions:

1.  Preheat oven to 375 degrees.  Spray a 9x13 pan with cooking spray. 
2.  Combine all four cheeses, eggs, salt, pepper, garlic, and spinach in a large bowl.  Mix well. 
3.  Pour mixture into a gallon-sized baggie and snip off one corner.  Squeeze cheese mixture into the uncooked manicotti tubes, filling each completely, and place in the 9x13 pan.
4.  Pour the whole jar of spaghetti sauce over the top and then pour the water on top of that.
5.  Cover with foil and bake for 45 minutes.  Take the foil off, sprinkle with additional mozzarella cheese if desired, and bake for an additional 10-15 minutes.  Let it sit for 5-10 minutes before serving.

84EF3D8F-A2AA-B609-5F45-F467DE6D24D5

1.03.01

Peanut Butter Brownies

These made-from-scratch brownies are perfectly chocolate with a delicious peanut butter cream cheese layer that gives a nice balance of flavor.  Next time you are needing a chocolate fix you should give these a shot!

Peanut Butter Brownies

Ingredients:

Chocolate brownie:
3 eggs
1 c butter, melted
2 tsp vanilla extract
2 c sugar
1-1/4 c flour
3/4 c baking cocoa
1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 c milk chocolate chips (or semi-sweet)
Peanut Butter Filling:
2 pkg (8 oz. each) cream cheese, softened
1/2 c creamy peanut butter
1/4 c sugar
1 egg
2 tbsp milk

Directions:

1.  For the chocolate batter, mix eggs, butter, and vanilla in a large bowl.  Combine dry ingredients and add to egg mixture.  Mix well.  Gently stir in the chocolate chips.  Set aside 1 cup for topping.  Spread remaining batter into a greased 9 x 13 inch pan.
2.  In a small bowl beat cream cheese, peanut butter, and sugar until smooth.  Add egg and milk on low speed until just combined.  Carefully spread over chocolate batter in pan.  Drop reserved chocolate batter by spoonfuls over filling.  Cut through batter with a knife to swirl layers together.
3.  Bake at 350 degrees for 35-40 minutes or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.  Cool on a wire rack before cutting. 

84EF3D8F-A2AA-B609-5F45-F467DE6D24D5

1.03.01

Sloppy Joes!

For some reason I can never say "sloppy joes" without instantly thinking of Adam Sandler singing the sloppy joe song while Chris Farley dances around in a hair net.  If you want to see the famous Lunch Lady Land skit, here it is:  Lunch Lady Land
Anyways, the other day a friend of mine told me that she has NEVER had a sloppy joe that didn't come out of a can.  REALLY???  I decided to put an end to that one, fast!  Sloppy joes are really very simple to make from scratch and it tastes a million times better than something you plop out of a can onto a bun.  Go ahead and give my grandmother's recipe a try.  You might actually like sloppy joes :o)

Sloppy Joes

Ingredients:

2 lbs ground beef
3 cans tomato soup
2 tsp sugar
1 tbsp vinegar
4 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp mustard
1 tbsp Worcestershire sauce
1 bell pepper, diced
1 medium onion, diced
shredded cheddar cheese

Directions:

Brown meat in large skillet.  Add bell pepper and onion; let simmer for a few minutes.  Add remaining ingredients and mix well.  Simmer for about 20 minutes until peppers are soft and it has thickened up a bit.  Serve over hamburger buns and top with shredded cheese.  Enjoy!

84EF3D8F-A2AA-B609-5F45-F467DE6D24D5

1.03.01