Recipe: Basil Pesto

Made this myself for dinner last night!

Hello everyone! I’m back with another recipe. This time, it’s one I thought of on my own and it’s really simple to make, despite the cost of some of the ingredients. I visited Rome, Italy a few years ago and that was my first experience with Pesto. It was so delicious and fresh that I wanted to make it at home. Well it took me a while but I finally did manage to make my very own batch and believe me when I say that it is DELICIOUS and extremely simple to make.

Basil Pesto

Ingredients:

• One pack of Fresh Basil (available at many mega-marts)
• One pack of Pine Nuts (also available at many mega-marts)
• 1.5 Cups of Olive Oil
• Heavy Pinch of Grated Romano Cheese
• 4 – 5 Cloves of Garlic
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Small pinch of Oregano or Rosemary

Hardware:

• Blender
• Half Sheet Pan
• Spatula

1. Spread out the Pine Nuts on the sheet pan and toast at 400-degrees until lightly browned. Keep a watchful eye on these guys. They burn easy.
2. Add all other ingredients into the blender and then add the Pine Nuts when they’re done.
3. Blend the whole thing until smooth.
4. Pour over your favorite pasta dish or meat dish and serve!

How simple was that? This dish literally takes no time at all to make and it’s a ready-to-eat sauce that requires almost no cooking! And as I briefly mentioned, pasta isn’t the only thing Pesto can be paired with. It goes really well with meats as well! Enjoy!

Recipe: 3 for 1 Pizza Special (Part 2)

Here it is, as promised! The final part to this two-post extravaganza and the finale to Pizza Week! I promised two more recipes and I shall deliver! So here we go!

Super Savory Pizza

Ingredients:

• Fresh or Store-bought pizza crust
• 1 Can of Tomato Sauce
• 1 Tablespoon of Dry Oregano
• 2 Cloves of Garlic
• 1 Pack of Pepperoni
• 2 Italian style Sausages out of their casings
• 1 Cup of Provolone Cheese, grated
• Olive Oil
• Salt and Pepper

Hardware:

• Box Grater
• Sautee Pan
• Pizza Pan
• Silicone Spatula
• Pizza Cutter

1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees
2. Stretch out your fresh dough on the pan
3. Cover with the tomato sauce
4. Sprinkle the Oregano on top
5. Heat the sautee pan on medium-high heat. Add olive oil
6. Add the Sausages and break them up with the spatula. Season with salt and pepper
7. Sautee the Sausages until brown
8. Take out the sausages and put them off to the side for a bit
9. Dice up the garlic and, using the fat that remains in the pan, sautee the garlic for 1 – 2 minutes
10. Add the garlic to the tomato sauce on the crust
11. Cover with the Provolone
12. Add the pepperoni and browned sausage on top
13. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes

Enjoy this one folks! It’s another favorite of mine. If you’re a sucker for Italian Sausage like I am, then you’ll love this! Now, on with the show!

Asian Style Pizza

Ingredients:

• 1/2 Cup of Hoisin Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons of Sesame Oil
• 1 Tablespoon of Soy Sauce
• 1 Pack of Instant Ramen
• 1 Teaspoon of Crushed Red Pepper Flake
• 1/2 Teaspoon of Chili Oil
• 1 Cup of Shredded Chicken (or Duck if you can get your hands on it. yet another leftovers magnet here)

Hardware:

• Small Pot
• Pizza Pan
• Small Bowl
• Balloon Whisk
• Wooden Spoon

1. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees
2. In the bowl whisk together the sauce-to-be
3. Fold in the chicken
4. In the small pot, cook the ramen in salted water for 5 – 6 minutes. Drain thoroughly when done
5. Stretch out the dough on the pan and add the chicken-sauce mixture
6. Top with the cooked and drained ramen noodles
7. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes

Surprised? Well I at least hope you were! This is a recipe I just thought of a few days ago. I tried it and it really is fantastic! It’s a nice little twist on the traditional pizza and it’s a great way to experiment with flavor profiles. Have fun with this one!

Well that draws Pizza Week to a close! I hope everyone enjoyed this little culinary excursion into Pizza Land. It’s a land of unlimited possibilities where instead of asking “Why?” you should instead ask “Why not?”

Send me some feed back by leaving comments or e-mailing me: CadetGuardsman@gmail.com. You can even leave me messages on my Twitter! See you guys later!

Recipe: Pasta Lovers Pizza

Yes, you read correctly! Pizza Week Day 5 arrives with one heck of a pizza! Like my Ramen Omelette recipe, this one is a fantastic leftovers magnet. It takes the most basic pizza recipe and turns the dial up to 11. Now, i realize I said in my last entry that sometimes the most simple recipes are the most delicious, but by all means, feel free to experiment. It’s how I came up with this particular recipe, after all. Now, on with the recipe!

Ingredients:

• Either home-made or store-bought pizza crust
• 1 Cup of Parmesan Cheese, crumbled of shredded
• 1 Cup of Mozzarella Cheese, shredded
• 1 Cup of Cheddar Cheese, shredded
• 1 Can of Tomato Sauce
• 1 – 2 Cups of leftover pasta (sauce and ingredients may vary, but are welcome)

Hardware:

• Pizza Pan
• Pizza Cutter
• Box Grater

1. Preheat your oven to 450-degrees
2. Spread out the dough on the pizza pan
3. Pour out and spread the tomato sauce on the pizza crust
4. Add Parmesan Cheese
5. Add the leftover pasta
6. Cover with the Mozzarella Cheese
7. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes
8. Let cool, divide and eat up!

Personally, I’m a huge fan of these recipes that are “Leftover Magnets.” They really save time and help clean out your fridge at the same time! Now, you could very well do this recipe with fresh ingredients. But, in today’s fast-paced society, sometimes, you’re allowed/forced to cut corners. Let this recipe (and my Ramen Omelette recipe) show that cutting corners doesn’t mean cutting out flavor or creativity. It’s like that Food Network show, Semi-Homemade with Sandra Lee. When you experiment, you can come up with some fantastic recipes.

One more day of Pizza Week left folks! Admittedly, it may be a bit late because I’m going to be at Six Flags Great Adventure with my friends, but I can promise you this, there will be an additional recipe that I didn’t list on my first post of Pizza Week. So stay tuned and check it out!

Recipe: Veggie Pizza

Day 4 of Pizza Week has arrived and this time, we’re going to try and be HEALTHY! I will say this right now, healthy doesn’t mean it has to taste horrible. Believe me, with the right amount of preparation, veggies can taste AMAZING.

Ingedients:

• Half of a Red Onion, sliced
• 4 cloves of Garlic, diced
• 1 Red Bell Pepper, sliced
• 2 Artichoke Hearts, sliced
• 1 Stalk of Celery, sliced
• 1 Carrot, peeled and sliced
• 1 Cup of Parmesan Cheese, crumbled or grated
• Pizza dough (home-made or store-bought)
• 1 Can of tomato sauce
• 1 Tablespoon of butter
• Salt and Pepper

Hardware:

• Saute pan
• Pizza pan
• Silicone Spatula
• Pizza Cutter

1. Preheat your oven to 450-degrees
2. Set up your pizza dough and arrange it on the pizza pan
3. Spread out the tomato sauce on the dough in a thin layer
4. In the saute pan, melt the butter on med-high heat, and add in all the veggies, except the garlic
5. Season them with salt and pepper. Saute until the veggies are soft and the onions are translucent
6. Add the garlic and saute for 3 more minutes
7. Kill the heat and add the veggies to the pizza dough and tomato sauce
8. Cover the whole thing with the Parmesan Cheese
9. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes
10. Let cool for a couple of minutes when done. Divide and serve!

As I’ve said before, veggies are good and good for you. It’s all in how you prepare them. Many people will say that pizza is really bad for you, but I hope that this recipe will silence the critics and show just how good veggies (and pizza) can really be. Hope you guys enjoyed this one!

Recipe: Six Cheese Pizza

Well this one took forever, mainly because I passed out after work and just woke up like 20 minutes ago…sorry guys! Anyways, here we go with Pizza Week Day 3! This one is a personal favorite of mine to make…and eat. Why? Because it’s so gosh darn cheesy! Next to chocolate, I am a cheese freak, what can I say?

Ingredients:

• 1 Cup of the following cheeses, shredded:
• Provolone
• Parmesan
• Cheddar
• Mozzarella
• Asiago
• Swiss
• Either the home-made pizza dough we talked about OR a store-bought pizza crust
• 1/2 cup of Marinara Sauce (store bought is fine too)

Hardware:

• Pizza Pan
• Pizza Cutter
• Box Grater

1. Grate all that cheese! Oh, and preheat your oven to 450.
2. Stretch out your fresh dough on the pizza pan. You should know what to do with the store-bought dough already
3. Add Marinara Sauce
4. Add cheeses
5. Bake at 450 for 10 minutes

Prepare for one of the cheesiest pizzas you are going to eat in a LONG time. Now, as a tiny bit of an aside, let’s talk about cheese. I mean seriously, who doesn’t love cheese? Cheese is one of the most versatile foods on the planet! It can be prepared in any number of ways and it’s delicious to boot. It’s one of those foods that has so may variations of itself that it lends itself to so many cooking applications. I guess that’s why I love it so much and love cooking with it so much (as evidenced by this recipe and my Mac & Cheese recipe).

That’s all for today folks! Sorry if this one seemed a little simple, but trust me on this, sometimes the most simple recipes are the most delicious. And this one is no exception.

Recipe: BBQ Pizza

Pizza Week, Day 2! Now, I am well aware that many restaurants and major pizza chains have done their own variation on this recipe, but trust me, it’s so much better if you do this yourself with all homemade ingredients. Trust me, it’s worth the work. We’ll start off with my home-made BBQ sauce, which works great as a dip, sauce or even a glaze on or off the grill.

NJ Chef’s BBQ Sauce

Ingredients:

• 5 Tablespoons of Ketchup
• 5 Tablespoons of A1 Steak Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons of Soy Sauce
• 2 Tablespoons of Worcestershire Sauce
• 1 Tablespoon of Frank’s Red Hot Sauce
• 1 Teaspoon of Crushed Red Pepper Flakes

1. Put everything into a bowl and whisk to combine.

If you want a sweeter sauce, replace the Hot Sauce with Honey. Now, onto the pizza!

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:

• The home-made Pizza Dough we discussed the last time OR one store-bought pizza crust
• 1 1/2 half cups of Grilled Chicken (store-bought works fine too)
• 5 or 6 Strips of Bacon (or Turkey Bacon)
• 2 cups of grated Cheddar Cheese
• The BBQ Sauce we made earlier

Hardware:

• Pizza pan
• Pizza Cutter
• Spatula

1. Preheat your oven to 450-degrees
2. If you’re using fresh dough, stretch it out until it meets the size of the pizza pan. If you’re using the store-bought crust, just put it there and move on, just like last time.
3. Take all the BBQ sauce and spread it out on the dough
4. Slice or shred the chicken and add it to the pizza and sauce. Alternatively, you could mix the chicken with the sauce and THEN put the whole thing onto the pizza dough. Either way works well
5. Cover the whole thing with the cheddar cheese
6. Slide the whole thing into the over and bake for 10 – 12 minutes
7. Divide and serve

If you want this pizza to be REALLY hot, add some sliced Jalapenos (keep the seeds and the membrane if you’re REALLY brave).

Well I hope you enjoyed this one! Stay tuned for more pizza goodness tomorrow!

Recipe: Cheesy Chicken Pizza

Hello and welcome to Pizza Week, Day 1! First, a quick note. My last entry said that this would start tomorrow (May 11), BUT when I was writing this and as it was uploading, it was still May 9 so, yeah. Here you go!

Now, surprisingly enough, I found a recipe for pizza dough courtesy of http://www.youtube.com/user/yellowsaffron

I have yet to actually try this recipe myself, but I’m just passing it along to help you all out. And don’t worry, once I actually do this recipe, I’ll let you know how it went. Now, on with the show!

Pizza Dough (makes 4 – 5 pizzas)

Ingredients:

• 6 Tablespoons of olive oil
• 2 Tablespoons each of Sugar and Salt
• 1 3/4 oz (2 packages) of active dry Yeast
• 10 cups of flour
• 2 1/2 cups of water

Hardware:

• 2 Large Mixing bowls
• Measuring Spoons
• Small bowl for the Yeast

1. Wake up the yeast. Put the yeast and sugar into the small bowl. Add 1/2 cup of water and stir until dissolved. Let sit until it looks foamy (that’s the yeast giving off CO2 as they munch on the sugar)
2. Put the flour into the large bowl and add the salt, olive oil, yeast/sugar mixture and the rest of the water (go SLOW with the water). Mix thoroughly.
3. When the dough comes together, turn it out onto a floured work surface and knead until it becomes smooth (about 5 – 10 minutes)
4. Once that’s done, put the dough into the other mixing bowl that has been floured. Cover the dough with a tea towel and let it rest in a warm, dark place until it has doubled in size (minimum 2 hours)
5. When you’re ready to make the pizza, take a quarter of your dough and knead and shape it into the classic circle shape or any shape you wish, for that matter! Now, speaking of the pizza…

Cheesy Chicken Pizza

Ingredients:

• The Bechamel Sauce recipe as first seen in my Four Cheese Mac & Cheese recipe (basic flour and butter roux mixed with 2 cups of whole milk. cook until thick)
• 2 Cups of shredded or crumbled Mozzarella Cheese
• 1/4 of your pizza dough OR one store-bought pizza crust
• 2 cups of leftover roast chicken

Hardware:

• Pizza Pan (a flat, aluminum pan with perforations in the bottom to allow heat in. it makes for a really crispy crust)
• Small pot for making the Bechamel Sauce
• Whisk
• Pizza Cutter

1. Preheat your over to 450-degrees
2. Shape your fresh pizza dough into a disk that fits the pizza pan (10 – 12 inches). If you’re using the store-bought crust, just put it on the pizza pan and move on
3. When your Bechamel Sauce is thick, add 1 cup of the Mozzarella Cheese and whisk until it’s dissolved.
4. Add the sauce to the pizza dough. Add the chicken.
5. Add the rest of the cheese
6. Put the whole thing in the oven and cook for 10 minutes.
7. Divide and serve!

Day one is complete! Stay tuned for day two tomorrow! I hope you enjoy!

Food Bites: A Salute to Pizza

Pizza is not only my favorite food ever, but it also has to be the most versatile food creations I have ever seen. It’s portable, it’s easy to make and most of all, it’s delicious!

Now, granted, I have never made pizza dough from scratch, although I do want to some day soon (it looks fun). I will say this, store-bought pizza crusts are just as good to use, if you store them correctly. Just keep them in a cool, dry place. If you want longer storage options, the freezer is your best bet. Now, even with completely frozen pre-made pizza dough, you can still send it straight to the oven and cook with it. the end result will remain the same.

Now, as far as toppings and sauce are concerned, the sky is the limit. The traditional tomato sauce, cheese, pepperoni is nice, but you can go WAY beyond that. For example:

• White sauce, roast chicken and mozzarella
• BBQ sauce, grilled chicken, bacon and cheddar
• Marinara sauce, and 6 different cheeses
• Tomato sauce, sauteed veggies and Parmesan cheese
• Leftover pasta and lots of cheese
• Tomato sauce, pepperoni, Italian sausage, sauteed garlic and provolone cheese

And before you all ask, YES, I did make all these pizzas myself. Personally, they’re all great on thin crust pizza, but you can do whatever you want, to be honest. Now as the week goes on, I’ll post up a recipe, one per day on the 6 that I just mentioned. Think of it as Pizza Week here on Thoughts for Food. That’s all for now! Look for the first recipe to be posted up here tomorrow!

Oh, and one last thing, follow me on Twitter if you want to know when new entries are up! http://twitter.com/NJ_Chef

Recipe: Ramen Omelette

This recipe is fantastic for clearing out leftovers in the fridge. All the different types of flavor profiles that can be made and combined here are many and varied. This takes a little bit of work, but the end result is well worth it.

Ramen Omelette

Ingredients:

• 4 Large eggs
• 1 pack of instant ramen (Maruchan works best)
• 1 Tablespoon of milk
• 1 Tablespoon of Soy Sauce
• 1 Teaspoon of Hot Sauce
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• Butter and Olive Oil

Now, the rest of the ingredients can be just about anything! Fresh herbs, sauteed veggies, even leftovers from the fridge. The sky’s the limit! I’ll tell you when to add them in later on.

Hardware:

• Spring-Loaded Tongs
• Silicone Spatula
• Pizza Cutter
• 2 Large Bowls
• 1 Medium-sized pot
• Balloon whisk
• Either a non-stick or over-safe pan

1. Bring 2 cups of water to a boil in the pot. When the water boils, salt the water and add the ramen cake. Cook for about 5 minutes.
2. In one bowl, combine the eggs, milk, soy sauce, flavor packet from the ramen and the hot sauce. Whisk to combine.
3. When the ramen is done, kill the heat and drain the ramen thoroughly.
4. Combine ramen with egg mixture. NOW is the time to add any more ingredients you may want to add. Sauteed mushrooms, caramelized onions, roasted garlic, shredded chicken, diced ham, etc. The sky’s the limit! There’s only two things I’d caution: don’t use more than three ingredients at a time and if you want to add cheese, don’t do so until the end.
5. Melt butter and add olive oil in pan with medium-high heat
6. Add the mixture to the pan and cook for 7 or 8 minutes, while moving the pan occasionally to prevent sticking.
7. If you have an oven proof pan, slide the entire thing into your over set to broil. Cook until the top is browned and slightly crispy. If you don’t have an oven proof pan, take your pizza cutter and divide the mixture into 4 slices and flip over each slice and cook for another 5 minutes. Serve hot.

I hope you guys enjoy this recipe! It is well worth the work! It’s perfect for breakfast, lunch or dinner!

Recipe: Double Feature!

That is correct! To apologize for the LUDICROUS idle time on this blog, I am dishing out (no pun intended) TWO recipes to share with you! So enjoy!

This first recipe comes from my girlfriend who lovingly made this for Sunday Brunch while I was visiting her last weekend. It was some of the most delicious Hash that I ever ate and I will be using this recipe for a LONG time.

Sunday Hash:

Ingredients

• 6 small Yukon Gold Potatoes or 2 large Russet Potatoes
• 1/2 of a large onion
• 1 – 1  1/2 cup of ham (this is a perfect time to clean out leftovers from the fridge)
• 1  1/4 Teaspoons of the following seasonings:
• Season salt
• Garlic Powder
• Cayenne Pepper
• Thyme
• Salt and Pepper to taste
• 1 Teaspoon each of butter and olive oil

Hardware

• Large non-stick frying pan
• Silicone Spatula

1. Peel and dice/shred potatoes.
2. Dice half of the onion.
3. Heat pan with butter and oil inside until butter melts.
4. Add potatoes first and season with salt and pepper.
5. Cook until soft.
6. Add onions and season with rest of seasonings.
7. Cook until onions are translucent. NOTE: if the pan gets too dry, you can add some more butter to counteract that.
8. Shred ham and add to the pan.
9. Continue cooking for another 4 – 5 minutes.
10. Serve while hot

The second recipe is very basic, yet very versatile. It’s a classic scrambled egg recipe with a twist. Scrambled eggs can be modified any number of ways, but here’s one of my favorite:

Herb Eggs:

Ingredients

• 3 Large Eggs
• 1Tablespoon of milk
• 1/2 teaspoon each of thyme and oregano
• 1 teaspoon of butter
• Salt and Pepper

Hardware

• Balloon whisk
• Large frying pan
• Silicone Spatula
• Mixing bowl

1. Beat eggs, herbs, salt, pepper and milk in bowl.
2. Melt butter in frying pan with heat set to med-high.
3. Add eggs and swirl around pan. Keep the pan and your spatula moving and remember to scrape down the sides if any get stuck up there. The more you move, the fluffier the final product will be. Keep an eye on the eggs at all times. To quote Alton Brown: “If they look done in the pan, they’ll be over-done by the time they hit the table.”
4. Plate up and serve.

I hope you’ve enjoyed these two recipes and I hope you give them a try. These recipes are perfect for any time of the day (yes, even dinner). Happy eating!