Pizza

There really is no recipe for these, that's what makes them so easy to make. I just get some store bought pizza dough in the refrigerator section at the supermarket, and top with whatever suits my fancy, or whats left in the fridge :)
This was tomato sauce, fresh basil and cheese.

This has red onion, asparagus, and cheese with some olive oil drizzled on top.

This is Serrano ham, spinach, and of course cheese :)

All you do to make these is put the pizza dough in a flat pan, you dont' need anything special a pie pan or a baking dish work fine. Spread out the dough. Add your toppings. Pop it in the oven at 400 degrees for about 20-30 minutes. When it gets brown and bubbles up and the cheese gets melty, it's done. Pizza!!! I use a half of the dough to make a pizza for one and keep the rest in the fridge. A little drizzle of EVOO on top if you want and thats it. 

BUON APPETITO!!!

                                                                                                                                                                    

Almond Cookies

I just think these cookies are so pretty and they taste really good!!! Almond is another of my favs and these are full of almond flavor. There aren't many ingredients and they are super easy to make.

Cookies

1 cup butter softened
3/4 cup sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt

Glaze


1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 teaspoon almond extract
water to thin glaze as needed (start with small amount)

sliced almonds


Heat oven to 400°F. Combine all cookie ingredients in large bowl. Beat at medium speed, scraping bowl often, until well mixed.
Drop dough by rounded teaspoonfuls, 2 inches apart, onto ungreased cookie sheets. Flatten balls to 1/4 inch thick with bottom of buttered glass dipped in sugar. Bake 7-9 minutes or until edges are very lightly browned. Cool 1 minute on cookie sheet; remove to cooling rack. Cool completely.

Combine all glaze ingredients except almonds in small bowl with wire whisk. Decorate cooled cookies with glaze and sliced almonds as desired.

Thats all there is too it!!! These are probably my favorite cookies, I hope you enjoy them as much as I do!!!!

White chocolate covered macaroons

OK so you know I loooove coconut and these are all coconut and covered with chocolate even better right??? And so easy to make. 

Heres what you need: 

INGREDIENTS:
1 14-oz bag of sweetened shredded flaked coconut
1 can of sweetened condensed milk
1 1/2 tsp. almond extract
1 tsp. coconut extract
1 tsp. vanilla extract
2 - 3 Tbsp. of all-purpose flour 

Chocolate for dipping

DIRECTIONS:

In a large mixing bowl, mix together the coconut, condensed milk, flour and extracts until well incorporated. Cover and put bowl in the fridge for several hours; overnight if needed.
Use a spoon to scoop batter and then roll with your hands to form 1 1/2-inch balls. Place each ball on baking pans lined with a silicone baking mat or parchment paper, leaving about 1-inch of space in between each. Preheat oven to 330 degrees. Bake for 20 - 23 minutes, or until the tops are golden brown.

Let them cool and then cover them in melted chocolate. I sprinkled some sugar on top to make them pretty.

There you have it, sweet treats enjoy!!!!

Roasted Brussel Sprouts

 I know Brussel Sprouts, you either love them or hate them, but I love them, especially roasted with some EVOO. And of course this is another quick & easy dish to make. Its also yummy & healthy. 

These were roasted just with olive oil, but I have used oil and added  lemon zest, garlic, even honey, it gets all caramelized, soooo good! Depending on what you like and what veggie you use, its super adaptable.

This works well with  whatever veggies you like too. I have used asparagus, broccoli, broccoli rabe and they all have  come out great. Just put your EVOO in a roasting pan with your veggies add whatever extras you want to use. Put the oven on 350 degrees for about a half an hour or so and done! You know I am a pasta lover, this works well over pasta on its own or I sometimes add it to tomato and make it a sauce. 

There you have it another quick & easy satisfying meal! Hope you enjoy!

Hainanese Chicken & Rice

This is a really comforting dish, a chicken soup for the soul type meal. I start with poached chicken breasts but you can use a whole chicken if you want to make a bigger batch.

Poach chicken recipe:

  1. Start with boneless, skinless chicken breasts. Place the chicken breasts at the bottom of a wide pan. 
  2. Add enough water or chicken stock so that you cover the chicken breasts with at least two inches of       water.
  3. Add some chopped veggies, for this recipe I used garlic, ginger, scallion, red chile pepper and some       sesame oil.
  4. Bring the water to a boil, then lower it to a simmer.
  5. Simmer for about 10 minutes, then turn off the heat, cover the pot tightly and let the chicken breasts       stand in the hot water for another 15 to 20 minutes, depending on how big the chicken breasts are.

Cook your rice and when done spoon chicken and broth mixture over the rice. I added some more sesame oil. You could sprinkle some sesame seeds as well. I also added some fresh ground pink Himalayan salt on top. Yummy!!!

This is a real treat on a rainy or cold day.

 

Stir fry veggies

Here's a healthy quick meal and again use whatever you like. I used asparagus, carrots, scallions and some garlic. 

Slice up all your veggies so they are about the same size. I like the carrots on the diagonal. I think they are prettier that way.

Add some fine chopped garlic.
Toss everything in a pan with some oil. I used some olive and some sesame oil for a little Asian flavor.

You can adapt this to whatever flavors you like. Any veggies and oils. Make it how you will like it. I am a pasta lover so I cooked some up and put it all together, you can put it on rice as well. It makes it a little heartier. I sprinkled some sesame seeds on top and voila!!! Dinner.

                                                ENJOY

Butterscotch butterscotch chip cupcakes

I love butterscotch, but why dont I see any recipes for it anymore??? Is it old fashioned?? maybe, but I still love it and if you do too here is a great recipe for cupcakes filled with butterscotch goodness.

Butterscotch Cupcakes:
1/2 cup butter, softened
1 cup sugar
2 eggs
1½ cups flour
1 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 cup milk
1/2 tsp vanilla
1/2 cup butterscotch chips


Preheat oven to 350°.  Line a 12 cupcake pan with paper liners.  With electric mixer in large bowl, cream butter and sugar.  Add eggs one at a time, beating well after each.  In separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt.  Add flour mixture alternately with milk and vanilla to creamed mixture, beating until smooth and light.  Mix chips into cake batter.  Scoop batter into muffin cups distributing evenly.  Bake for 22-25 minutes or until center is set.  Cool in pan about 10 minutes, remove and finish cooling on rack.  Cool completely before frosting.


Frosting:

1 cup of butter, 4 cups of powdered sugar, a tablespoon or two of milk if needed, and 1-3 teaspoons of vanilla extract.

So good, so sweet, love them hope you do too!

Burger & fried potatos

Sometimes I just crave a nice juicy burger!!!! add some fried potatos and it just doesnt get any better than that. I just get some ground beef I like 80-20 ratio otherwise its too dry, hey I dont eat these too often so if I am going to indulge I might as well go for it. Just shape the meat into patties, nice and thick. I dont add anything to the meat but you can season it if you like. Fry it up in a skillet, it will brown in its own juices since there is some fat in the meat.
Add whatever toppings you like, I added cheese, I like American because it melts easily, all gooey and yummy! pickle and ketchup and I am done. Again make it however you like it.

Fry up some potatos in some EVOO add a little salt when they are done and enjoy!!!

Dont they look good, all crispy and golden brown.

 

Brown sugar pineapple filled cupcakes with pineapple frosting

These were really good, nice flavor but not too sweet. Heres the recipe.

Brown Sugar Cupcakes

Makes 12 cupcakes

1 cup loosely packed brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup unsalted butter, melted and cooled
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt


Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda and salt, stirring to mix. Set aside. Line a cupcake tin with liners.

In a large bowl, whisk brown sugar and egg until smooth. Add in vanilla extract and milk, again mixing until combined. Slowly pour in melted butter, continuing to whisk. Add in the flour, soda and salt, mixing with a large spoon until batter is smooth.

Using a 1/4 cup measure, add batter to liners. Bake for 16-19 minutes, or until tops are puffy and golden, and don’t jiggle when touched. Let cool completely.

When cool use that handy little tool to make room for the pineapple filling. I used a can of crushed pineapple and just strained the juice out really well so the cupcakes wouldnt get soggy.

Frosting

1 cup of butter

4 cups of powdered sugar

 A tablespoon or two of milk if needed, and 1-3 teaspoons of some pineapple juice, I used the juice I strained from the canned pineapple.

Here they are all decorated and ready to eat!!!!!    Enjoy!!!