Pizza!

Pizza!
Modified from 1001 Low-Fat Vegetarian Recipes

Up to 3 cups all purpose flour, divided
1/4 cup yellow cornmeal
1 package fast-rising yeast (2 1/2 tsp if you are not using packets)
1 tsp sugar
1 cup warm water (not boiling--it will kill the yeast)
1 can fire-roasted tomatoes
1 Tbsp italian seasoning
freshly grated mozzarella
Additional toppings, as desired

Combine water, sugar, and yeast in a small bowl. Stir to break up the yeast and allow to sit for 5 minutes. Combine cornmeal and 1/2 flour to a medium bowl. Add yeast mixture and stir until incorporated. Continue adding flour, 1/2 cup at a time, until the dough is sticky, but no longer sticks to the side of the bowl. Turn out and knead on a floured or oiled surface until smooth and elastic. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes, or until doubled in size.

In a separate bowl, combine tomatoes and italian seasoning. Roll out dough on pan to desired thickness, then spoon enough sauce to cover. Finish with mozzarella cheese (and other desired toppings). Bake at 400 degrees until crust is browned and cheese is bubbly, 15-20 minutes.

Variations:
- Instead of sauce, use olive oil and top with cheese, tomatoes, and spinach. Add garlic if desired. Or go for the Margarita style and use basil in place of spinach.
- Use alfredo sauce in place of tomatoes and add green vegetables for contrast.
- Use goat cheese spread out in place of tomatoes, mixed with some italian herbs, then top with thick slices of tomatoes. Allow tomatoes to dehydrate slightly.
- Use pesto in place of sauce, and top with cheese and other desired toppings. Spinach and tomatoes are a good start.

My Notes:

I admit it, my favorite pizzas are totally non-kosher. I like white pizzas with chicken, and I like sausage pizzas. So finding a kosher pizza that I like is a huge challenge. I like this one because it's nice and basic. The fire-roasted tomatoes give some nice flavor to the sauce, and the addition of cornmeal to the dough gives it a nice crust. Using freshly grated mozzarella also makes such a huge difference. I kind of want to try this with some different cheeses, just to see how it would taste. This recipe is definitely a keeper, though.

Edit (6/13/13): I've changed up the recipe a bit to better reflect my pizza doughs. It's much more soft, and I can actually get it to rise now, so overall, I think it's a winner. I've also added some additional variations on toppings which I've found to enjoy over the past few years.

Crepes

Crepes
Originally found at in 1001 Low Fat Vegetarian Recipes

Crepes:
1/2 cup all purpose flour
1/2 cup milk
1 egg
2 egg whites
1 Tbsp vegetable oil

Filling:
8 oz (1 block) cream cheese, softened
1 cup powdered sugar
1 tsp vanilla
sliced strawberries

Beat all crepe ingredients together until smooth (batter will be thin). Spray a small skillet (or 8-inch crepe pan) with cooking spray and heat over medium heat until hot. Pour 1/4 cup batter into the pan, tilting to coat the bottom evenly with batter. cook over medium heat until browned on bottom, 2-3 minutes. Flip and cook until browned on the other side, 2-3 minutes.

Mix together the cream cheese, powdered sugar, and vanilla until smooth. This is best done with an electric mixer. Put a dollop of cream cheese mixture in the center of the crepe and spread in a line down the middle. Place strawberries on top, then fold over the sides (burrito style).

My Notes:

These are incredibly sweet thanks to the cream cheese mixture, so you probably shouldn't try to have more than 2 in one sitting. They're nice for a dessert, or for a quick breakfast. I loved them.

I had crepes nearly every day while I was in Germany last year, because they had an awesome stand. Their crepes were considerably larger than these, but same concept. For some variations in the filling, try...
-Nutella +fruit (apples, bananas, etc)
-pie fillings (ala cherry, apple, etc)

Just have fun with it!

Chimichangas

Chimichangas
Original recipe found at A Year of Slow Cooking

1 lb chicken
1 can corn, drained
1 small can green chiles
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
1 tsp cumin
1/4 onion
Tortillas
Oil for frying

Cook chicken completely (I used a crockpot on high for about 3 hours). Allow to cool and shred. In a crockpot or saucepan, combine shredded chicken, corn, chiles, tomatoes, cumin, and onion. Heat through.

Spoon mixture onto a tortilla. Fold opposite sides over the filling, then roll. You may want to warm your tortillas slightly before you start, as they tend to crack otherwise.

Place chimichanga in oil (heated to about 350 degrees) seam-side down. If you are using a deep fryer, cook until the tortilla is golden brown. If using a pan, turn the chimichanga when golden brown on seam-side, about one minute. Allow to drain on a paper towel, then serve with salsa.

My Notes:

I modified these, because I didn't think there'd be enough flavor in the chimichangas. Originally, I wasn't going to add any type of vegetable, because my favorite chimichangas only have meat on the inside, but I opted to anyway. Draining the cans is important, because if you don't, your chimichangas will contain too much moisture and will splatter when you cook them. If you don't drain them, make sure to squeeze the moisture out of the filling before you put it on the tortilla.

Overall, a pretty good recipe. I think I might modify it a little in the future, but it's still a keeper.

Variation: Substitute black beans for chicken. Still yummy, and completely pareve.

Steak Fajitas

Steak Fajitas
Originally found at Simply Recipes

1 lb of steak*
1 large yellow onion, peeled and sliced with the grain (so they are wedges, not rings)
2 large bell peppers, stemmed, seeded, de-ribbed, sliced lengthwise into half-inch wide strips
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves garlic, peeled, minced
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 fresh Jalapeño pepper, seeded, ribs removed, finely chopped
tortillas

Mix together olive oil, garlic, cumin, and jalapeno. Set steak in the marinade and allow to sit for at least an hour, or overnight. Heat a small bit of oil in a frying pan on high heat. Add the steak and cook to desired doneness. If pan starts to smoke, reduce heat to medium-high. Reduce heat and saute the onions and bell peppers for about five minutes, until the onions are slightly translucent. Serve on warm tortillas with desired toppings.

My Notes:

* I used stew meat, because I got some cheap at the store. It was a little tough, but it was already cut and everything. I cooked it until it browned nicely. The original recipe calls for an actual steak that you slice after cooking. Whatever your preference is, go for that.

These fajitas had some kick, but I feel like they were missing some sort of spice. I'm just not good at trying to figure out what spice was missing. Maybe some color in the form of chili powder. This recipe gives some ideas for some additional spices, so I might try those in the future.

Still, they were good. We had beans on the side. Would have had mexican rice as well, but I hadn't found a good recipe and wanted something to eat.

Winnie Palmer

Image Pending

Winnie Palmer
Original recipe

4 bags Wild Berry Zinger (Celestial Seasonings; or your favorite tea)
1/4 cup sugar
4 cups water
ice
lemonade*

Bring water to a boil, then place in tea bags. Allow to steep for 5-10 minutes, then mix in sugar until dissolved. Remove from heat and pour into a pitcher filled with ice. Stir to combine and remove tea bags.

Fill a glass half full with tea, then top off with lemonade. Stir and enjoy.

My Notes:

*I used powdered lemonade and poured two quarts of mix into the bottom of the pitcher prior to adding ice. I added just enough water to dissolve the mix, then filled the pitcher about half full of ice. Once the ice was melted after adding the tea, I topped the pitcher off with water.

I discovered this the other night while eating out with some friends; one of the guys in our group ordered one, and I thought it sounded interesting. I'm pretty picky about my teas, though, so I opted to wait til I got home to try it. It came out wonderful. It's my new favorite drink.

You can make this an official Arnie (Arnold) Palmer by using completely unsweetened tea. I just prefer my tea sweetened, and technically the name for that is a Winnie Palmer. Go figure.

Fresh Corn Cakes

Fresh Corn Cakes
Originally found in Southern Living Magazine July 2008

1 can corn (or corn from about 5 ears)
2 large eggs
2/3 cup milk
3 Tbsp butter, melted
3/4 cup all purpose flour
3/4 cup white or yellow cornmeal*
1 cup fresh grated mozzarella cheese
salt and pepper to taste

Pulse first four ingredients in a food processor until corn is coarsely chopped. Stir together flour, cornmeal, mozzarella cheese, and salt and pepper in a large bowl. Mix in corn mixture until dry ingredients are moistened. Spoon 1/8 cup batter onto a hot, lightly greased griddle or large, non-stick skillet. Cook cakes 3-4 minutes or until tops are covered with bubbles and edges look cooked. turn and cook other side 2-3 minutes.

My Notes:

* I used masa in substitute of cornmeal, so I'm pretty sure mine came out much less coarse.

I also used fewer wet ingredients than the original recipe calls for, so my batter was thick and I had to press the cakes to cook them fully. The original recipe sounds like it creates a batter similar to pancake batter.

My sisters loved them, and I liked them. I think it'd be good with something sweet, but I'm not exactly sure what. I think I'd like to try it with some more corn (I only had one can in my pantry, and I was going to use hominy until I looked at the texture of it. Bleh). Overall, a nice dish, though.