Greek Pizza

Normally when I make leftover pita pizzas, I do a simple tomato sauce with some mozzarella and toppings.  This weekend, however, I had so much feta cheese left, I thought I'd try something different.

Here's what I came up with that we will definitely be adding to the regular rotation.  My husband loved it!

Greek Pizza
3/4 of a green zucchini, halved and sliced
3/4 of a yellow squash, halved and sliced (feel free to change up these vegetables to things you can find!)
1 onion, halved and sliced,
3 garlic cloves, minced
2 slices cooked bacon, chopped (this was leftover too, so we thought why not? Easy to omit for a veg meal)
Seasoning of your choice (I used a seasoning jar called "Montreal Chicken", no idea what's in it!)
1 T. olive oil
1-2 tomatoes, sliced
Feta Cheese
Leftover pita bread

Heat olive oil in a skillet.  Add onions and garlic and sauté 3-4 minutes until tender.  Add zucchini and squash and bacon, and seasoning. Sauté until vegetables are cooked.

Divide cooked vegetables between two pita bread rounds.  Top with sliced tomatoes and crumbled feta.  Bake in 180 oven for 5-10 minutes.

Really, could it be any simpler?  But oh my, was it amazing! 

Italian Fried Paneer Sticks

We had this at June G's house several years ago, and I thought it was such a great idea!  So easy, and a great side item for Italian meals, especially for a vegetarian pasta meal. 

Italian Fried Paneer Sticks


250 grams paneer

2 t.. salt

1 1/2 t. garlic powder

1 t. black pepper

1 t. onion powder

1 t. oregano 

1 T. butter

1 T. olive oil

Combine all spices in a bowl.  Cut the paneer into strips.  Pat them to dry on a paper towel.  Next, dredge them in the spice mixture.  Melt the butter and olive oil in a pan.  Get it nice and hot, barely smoking, then put the paneer strips into the pan.  Cook on one side until browned, then turn.  Try not to move them around much if possible to keep them in one piece.  If the pan is not hot enough, they will not sear on the outside and will crumble.  

Remove to a plate and serve!  Easy, peasy! You can mess with the seasonings until you get it just the way your family likes it! 

Thanksgiving Preparations, Day 1

Another recipe I made today. This is from my Grandma Stafford...

Spinach Balls

4 slices of thick, dense bread

2/3 c. water

2 T. butter

1/4 t. sage

1/4 t. poultry seasoning

1 T. chopped celery

2 t. onion powder

2 t. parsley

1/8 t. pepper

1 large bunch of spinach (6 c. chopped)

1 small onion, chopped very finely

3 beaten eggs

6 T. butter

1/2 t. garlic powder

1/2 t. salt

1/2 t. thyme

1/4 c. parmesan

1. Cut the crust off the bread slices and cut the bread into 1/4-1/2 inch cubes, like stove top. :) This should be four cups when you start toasting, about two cups when you're done.

2. Toast the bread at 175 for five minutes. Bas. (Hindi for enough)

3. Boil the water and butter together until butter is melted. Add seasonings, sage through pepper.

4. Stir in the toasted bread cubes. Voila. Stove Top. :)

5. Chop the spinach coarsely. Measure out six cups. Heat a skillet on high heat. Toss in the spinach.

6. Saute until dark green and wilted. Add a bit of oil if you need to keep it from sticking.

7. Mix together all the ingredients. (Stove Top stuffing mix, spinach, and everything else)

8. Measure out 1 T. balls onto a greased baking sheet. Bake at 175 for 10 minutes.

9. Let them cool, and remove to a freezer bag. Stick them in the freezer!

When you're ready to serve, pull them out and cook another 10-15 minutes, until crispy and brown. If you want to make and serve them the same day, just cook them about 20 minutes. Yum! :) This makes about 30 balls.

Ericka's Chicken Quesadillas

Chicken Quesadillas

(This should feed one person – maybe two if they are not hungry or eating other things as well. You can also substitute spinach instead of chicken, but I do not know exact measurements – try 1 to 1 1/2 C uncooked spinach and pretty much follow the recipe. You may need to drain liquid off spinach after cooking it.)

2 flour tortillas

1 medium to large chicken breast

1/3 C chopped onion

½ C grated cheddar cheese (can use Monterey Jack or Mozzarella)

¼ Tsp salt

1/8 Tsp Cumin

2 Tbls oil

Salsa

Sour cream

Cut chicken breast into small pieces. In a small skillet heat 1 Tbls oil. Add onions, salt, and cumin (can add chili flakes if desired). Once hot add in raw chicken pieces. Cook over low heat until chicken begins to brown. Lay each tortilla flat and put half the chicken mixture on each. Place chicken on one side of tortialls in order to fold the tortillas in half. Then put equal parts of grated cheese on each tortilla (about ¼ C). Fold the tortillas in half. Add ½ Tbls of oil to small cleaned skillet. Cook one tortilla over medium heat until one side is brown. Flip the quesadilla and brown the other side. Repeat with the second quesadilla. Cut each quesadilla into thirds (3 triangles each). Serve with salsa and sour cream.

Ericka's Salsa

Ericka's Salsa

1 C stewed tomatoes chopped with juice (3-4 large tomatoes)

1/3 C chopped onion (purple or white)

1/3 C chopped bell pepper

1 box tomato puree or can tomato paste (200ml or 8oz)

2 Tbls chopped fresh cilantro (a lot of people don’t like this so I don’t usually put it in, but if you like it by all means add it)

4 garlic cloves chopped or 2 Tbls garlic paste or ¼ Tsp garlic powder

½ Tsp salt

¼ Tsp Cumin

2 Tbls lemon or lime juice or vinegar

Red chili flakes to taste (if you don’t like spice, start with ¼ Tsp)

Wash tomatoes and cut an X on the bottom of each one. Place them in a small pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and heat a few minutes until skins begin to peel back. Remove from heat and drain and cool.

While tomatoes cool, put onions and bell peppers in small pot and barely cover with water. Bring them to a boil add garlic, salt cumin and chili flakes. Cut up the tomatoes, be careful not to lose the juice. Add to the pot and mix. Remove from heat and add tomato puree, vinegar (lime or lemon juice) and cilantro. Taste and add anything that is lacking – sometimes more salt and vinegar is needed. Cumin and garlic may be needed depending on what you like.

Put in a container with a lid and refrigerate. It should keep about a week. This is great with Mexican food as a substitute for taco sauce, as a dip and also on eggs.

Caramel Apple Dip

This is a great recipe from ShannonB. What a great idea to whip up for unexpected guests in a hurry! I'm guessing that most of us keep brown sugar on hand. If not, I bet you could substitute breakfast sugar and a little vanilla to get the coloring right. I'll try and let you know how it comes out. :)

Caramel Apple Dip

1/2 cup butter

1 cup brown sugar

1 1/2 - 2 cups yogurt (to taste)

Melt the butter and cream it together with the brown sugar. Mix with the yogurt and serve with apple slices.

Eggplant Hummus

Thanks to RachelR for this recipe as well, though she credits JoyceF for it originally.

"The eggplant is optional but SO stinkin' good. It's so creamy. Just wrap the eggplant in foil (well!) and toss it in the oven the next time you bake something. When it soft, it's done. Let cool completely in foil, then unwrap and add to hummus in the blender. This is great with chapatis!"

Eggplant Hummus
1 1/2 - 2 cups chickpeas (you'll want to soak these overnight before cooking them in the pressure cooker for about 1 hour)
2-4 cloves garlic, crushed (or 1/2 tsp dried garlic)
1/6 cup water
2-4 Tbsp tahini (opt)
1 Tbsp olive oil
pinch salt
Lemon juice - start with 1/2 lemon and add to taste
1 eggplant, roasted*

Dump. Purée with stick blender/blender/food processor. Dip chapatis, pita or other flat bread.

*Many of you have probably seen your helper do this, but another way to roast an eggplant is to put it directly on the burner with the gas on and turn it continuously. It usually takes about 30 minutes, if I remember correctly.