Upside down Pizza

If you haven't noticed already my family LOVES pizza.  I think M would order out at least once a week if I would let him.  M worked late yesterday so I needed something quick for the kids and when I came across this I knew it wouldn't take long at all.  K LOVED it, he eat the whole thing without me telling him to "eat" every 5 mins. 

1 lb of ground turkey (beef or italian sausage casings removed would be good also)
1 small onion chopped
1-2 tbsps of minced garlic
salt & pepper to taste
1 jar of pizza sauce
1 lb of mozzarella cheese

Pizza crust
1 cup of milk
2 eggs
1 tbsp of evoo
1 tbsp garlic salt
1 cup of AP flour

Saute onion and garlic in evoo, till tender.  Add turkey and brown, when cooked through add the pizza sauce and warm.  While the meat is cooking combine ingredients for the crust.  Spray a 9x13 baking dish with cooking spray.   Put the mozzarella at the bottom of baking dish and top with meat mixture.  Pour the crust mixture on top of meat and bake in a 350 oven for 35 minutes.  Very quick and easy!!!!

Sloppy BBQ Chicken Pizza

Cornbread:

3/4 cup cornmeal

1 1/2 cups of flour

1/4 cup of oil

1 egg

1/4 cup of sugar (I will use honey next time)

1 cup of milk

2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

Mix together, place in oven safe skillet (I used my round cast iron), but a 9x13 would also work.  Bake in a 400 degree oven for 20-25 minutes, till golden brown.

Topping:

2 cups of cooked chicken

3 tbsp brown sugar

1 8oz can of tomato sauce

2 tsp of hot sauce

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tbsp worcestershire sauce

1 tsp cumin

1-2 tbsp mined garlic

2 sweet peppers (I used a red and a green)

1 small onion chopped

cheddar cheese

Saute garlic, peppers, and onion in evoo till tender.  Add the rest of the ingredients and mix well.  Cook till sugar dissolves.  Put mixture on cooked cornbread, top with cheese and put back in the oven till the cheese melts. 

I liked the chicken mixture, it had a really good flavor.  The only thing I didn't like was there was almost too much corn bread to mixture ratio.  I might use only half of the cornbread next time and just bake the rest to use as cornbread stuffing for something else.  I also thought it might be good if the cornbread was on the top of the chicken instead of the bottom, but the bottom is what makes it the "pizza" part. 

Pizza Pot Pie

1 lb of sweet italian sausage, casings removed

1 sweet red pepper

1 small onion

1 tbsp minced garlic

small box of button mushrooms (I used the canned mushrooms and it was good but next time I will use fresh)

8 oz of fat free cream cheese

1 jar of pizza sauce

mozzarella cheese

2 thin crust pizza dough

Saute pepper, onions, garlic and mushrooms till onions are tender.  Add the sausage and brown then add the cream cheese and melt, then add in pizza sauce.  Grease a 9x13 and put one of the pizza crust on the bottom (take a fork and put holes in the dough to keep from bubbling up), sprinkle with cheese and top with meat mixture.  You can add more cheese on top of mixture if you want (we did, who doesn't want MORE cheese).  Put the other pizza crust on top and bake in a 400 till crust is golden. 

You can leave out the bottom crust if you would like, Matt said he liked both since he thought it held it all together.

I have to say this one is a keeper, the kids loved it and Matt went back for seconds.  And the good thing is there was leftovers for lunch!!!!! 

Cheesy Chicken Chowder

2-3 cups cooked chicken
8-10 cups of chicken broth (depending on how soupy you like it)
1 onion chopped
3 celery stalks chopped
3-4 carrots chopped
3/4 cup white rice
1/2 lb of velveeta
salt & pepper to taste

Saute the veggies in evoo till tender.  Add the broth and bring to a boil.  Stir in the rice and cook till tender, usually 20-30 mins.  Turn down the heat to a simmer and add chicken and velveeta, stirring often till cheese melts.  Salt and pepper to taste. 

This was really good.  K ate it all without us having to constantly tell him to "EAT."   Very good with loaf bread. 



White Bean Chicken Chili

4 chicken breast

1 can rotel

1/2 cup of salsa

2-4 cups of chicken broth, depending on how soupy you like it

2 15oz cans of white beans (I used great northern)

These added to taste

chili powder

cumin powder

paprika

cumin

cayenne

salt

pepper

Place chicken in slow cooker and top with rotel, salsa, and broth.  Cook on high for 1 1/2 - 2 hours depending on size of chicken.  Turn to low and cook till tender, but not over done. 

Remove chicken and shred.  Put back in slow cooker.

Add beans and seasoning as desired.

Cook on low for at least an hour to let flavors distribute.

Serve with cheese and sour cream.

I usually make a more complicated version of this, without the rotel or salsa, on the stove top but this was SO very easy.  Both kids liked it and Matt LOVED it.  I made homemade cornbread to go with it. 

 

Orzo Stuffed Peppers

1 lb ground turkey (Italian sausage would be good also)
1/4 to 1/2 lb of orzo-cooked
14 oz Italian tomatoes
small box of mushrooms
5 oz feta cheese
1 tbsp of Italian seasoning
1-2 tbsp minced garlic
Breadcrumbs
Parmesan cheese
4-6 sweet peppers, depending on size

Brown turkey with garlic, red pepper flakes to taste and Italian seasoning.  Meanwhile cook orzo according to package. 
When meat is done remove from pan and saute mushrooms. 
Add the meat back to the pan and add the tomatoes, orzo, and feta.
Fill peppers with mixture and top with breadcrumbs and parmesan cheese.  Place in baking dish with about 2 cups of water at the bottom of pan.  Cover with foil and bake for 30 min, uncover and bake 10-15 mins more or till peppers are fork tender.

I really liked the orzo in these instead of rice.  I used green and red peppers, but next time I will probably use yellow or orange.  To me the green had no flavor and the red was overpowering.  The kids LOVED the filling. 
When selecting the peppers if they are small I would use at least 6, maybe 8.  If they are larger you might be able to get away with just 4.  It made a lot of the stuffing so I ended up with some left over. 

Jumping In

I love cooking, I am passionate about it.  I believe that you can show someone how much you love them by cooking for them.  I just wish I would have realized this passion when I was in high school, so instead of wasting 3 years in college not knowing what I wanted to do, I could have gone to culinary school.  But I didn't know it was my passion till I was on my own and cooking for myself.  You see my mom cooked so I really had no clue I would love it as much as I do.  I really started cooking when I was dating my husband.  I have 3 kids that I want to grow up knowing what a home cooked meal is, not take out all the time.  Don't get me wrong we still do takeout every once in a while, but its just not the same as a home cooked meal.  Even at the end of a VERY stressful day I want to cook, it relaxes me.  So here is my new blog, devoted to just cooking.  I am keeping my other blog, but it will be used for everything else.  I hope you enjoy reading as much as I enjoy sharing.