The Hits Keep On Coming

I told you pizza might continue this week! Have you ever made a great pizza and then thought, how many different ways can I create something so great? No? Well, I did!
We made homemade Calzones. That's right, homemade. Okay, almost homemade.

To make it a little easier on ourselves, we picked up some fresh made dough from Whole Foods. The ingredients were simple and the dough was made that day, so it worked out perfect. Check out Whole Foods for hand made dough, this is the only place I would buy already made dough!

We started off playing...I mean working the dough. We spread out flour onto the very very clean counter to make it easier to roll out the dough. You have to really work with dough, so we rolled it out a few times, and then picked it up and stretched it, then repeat that a few more times until you have a nice, flat final product.

So what made up our Calzone? Check it out.
Vegetarian Calzone
Serves about 4
Ingredients:
1 package of pre-made dough from Whole Foods (if not from here, find somewhere that it is freshly made and uses simple ingredients)
1 red onion, diced
2 small jars of roasted red peppers, diced
2 cups of Baby Arugula
1/2 cup Kalamata Olives, sliced in half
1 1/2 cups of Mozzarella Cheese
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, prepare the vegetables as directed above. Bring out the dough, and place flour on your working surface. Roll out the dough with a rolling pin consistently. In between rolling out the dough, pickup the dough and stretch it out very gently with your hands. Repeat rolling with the pin. Once you have achieved the desire result of your dough, use a paintbrush to coat the dough with olive oil. Then, on one side, place the arugula, onion, roasted red pepper, Kalamata olives and mozzarella cheese. Mix all the ingredients with your hands so it is blended together nicely. Finish off with some salt and pepper. Finally, gently fold the other bare half of the dough over the side with all the ingredients. Make sure to press firmly on the edges (leaving fingerprints is good). You can also use a fork to seal the edges as well.
It should look something like this:

Directions(continued):
Take the fork and poke a few times on top of the folded over Calzone. This will stop the dough from bubbling. Finally, place the Calzone in the oven and bake for about 20-25 minutes. Make sure to keep your eye on the Calzone. Once it is golden brown, it is ready to be pulled.


This Calzone was incredible. The fresh veggies and the gooey cheese and chewy crust definitely satisfied this palate. I think I am "pizza-ed out" after this. On to another cooking adventure!

Let Me Count the Ways

Okay so it has been a pizza week, and it might continue tomorrow too. There are so many different ways to make a pizza, from the toppings, right down to the crust.
This great guy I know, knows good pizza.
So let me begin by saying we started a great little herb garden at his place, and it has grown so quickly and beautifully over the past month and a half.

Look at this basil

Look at this oregano! You will see some of this sprinkled on our pizza.

Some beautiful Sage. I absolutely love the smell of sage, it is so calming.

Look at this cucumber plant! It is getting ready to start growing the cucumbers.

And here we have some Italian Parsley. Although the humidity is not a lot of fun to deal with, the herbs LOVE it, and respond so well to it.

Alright, so we used some of the fresh oregano on some ordinary frozen pizza.
Oh wait...scratch that...actually the most amazing pizza I have ever had.
Lou Malnati's Deep Dish Pizza is the best pizza I have ever had. What is great about this pizza is that it can be shipped nationwide. It is shipped frozen, but Lou Malnati's Deep Dish Pizza puts the typical frozen pizza to shame.

We tried the Deep Dish Sausage Pizza.
Look at the flaky crust, the gooey cheese, the incredible slices of sausage.

Topped with some fresh oregano, this was a little slice of heaven.

You can order Lou Malnati's Deep Dish Pizza online and get it shipped right to your house.

Not Your Typical Pizza

I know I have mentioned Naan's before in a previous post, but you have got to try the Naan that Whole Foods makes. I wanted to make a pizza dish, and decided to use the Naan as my crust.

Pear Goat Cheese Pizza
Serves about 2
Ingredients:
1 Whole Wheat Naan
1 Taylor's Gold Pear, sliced
2 Tbs. of Goat Cheese
1 cup of Baby Arugula
1 small Red Onion, diced
Balsamic Vinaigrette
Olive Oil
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Meanwhile, prepare the pear and red onion as directed above. Once the pear and red onion are cut and cleaned, set aside. On one naan, spread the goat cheese thinly. Add the arugula, then the pear and red onion. Drizzle the top with some balsamic vinaigrette and olive oil. Finish off with salt and pepper. Bake for about 10-15 minutes, or until the toppings look golden brown and crispy.
Once done cooking, feel free to add more salt and pepper or olive oil and balsamic vinaigrette to your liking.


This pizza was incredible and light. The sweet creamy taste of the pear and goat cheese, paired with the crunch of the red onion and arugula was perfect. The drizzle on top was a great addition that gave just the right extra flavor.

Hidden Treasures

I had a great time on my weekend get away. We spent the weekend in Sandusky, Ohio. My brothers spent the weekend at Cedar Point, the place to go if you love roller coasters. My mom, my mom's friend Bobbi and I spent our time walking, reclining on the beach, and checking out the local produce.

We found this incredible hidden beach. We walked down this gorgeous path...

And on the way, these gorgeous lilies appeared. As Bobbi said, it looks like a Monet painting!

And after we walked for awhile, there was a little hidden pathway through the trees, that led us to this.

A gorgeous secluded beach, with hardly anyone around. Bobbi and I spent almost two hours in the water talking about life and enjoying the sun and some relaxation. That is all I wanted to do all weekend and it was fabulous!

On our way back home, we stopped at a local produce stand, Mulvins Farms.

There was a lovely selection of:
Zucchini and Squash

Cherries and Peaches

Apricots and more cherries!

Banana Peppers and Chile Peppers

And Finally some Fresh Corn...That is my mom gathering some fresh corn!

We brought home some corn, peaches, Banana and Chile Peppers.
Great way to end the nice little get away, and my mom made a fabulous peach cobbler with the peaches we got from the local stand.

My Options Are Endless

So, today I got a much needed pedicure. My toes look fabulous! I went with a nice pink-fuchsia color. I am so looking forward to this weekend, especially since mine with involve laying by a pool, or maybe laying by the beach, or enjoying a cocktail...which can happen at the pool...or beach! My options are endless. Tonight, I wanted a dish with some pasta, some fish, and some creaminess. What do we have here, eh?

Roasted Red Pepper Tuna Fettuccine
Serves about 2
Ingredients:
2 Handfuls of Whole Wheat Fettuccine
1/2 Cucumber, diced
4 Roasted Red Peppers (in the jar), diced
1 small onion, diced
1 can tuna
1/2 cup mayonnaise
Handful of Parmesan Cheese
Dash of Cayenne Pepper
Dash of Garlic Powder
A few sprigs of Fresh Basil, sliced finely
Salt
Pepper

Directions:
Bring a large pot of water to boil and add salt. Cook the whole wheat fettuccine according to the package that you have. Meanwhile, in a medium size bowl, empty the can of tuna and break up the pieces of tuna. Add the mayonnaise, onion, cucumber and roasted red pepper, once diced. Mix well. Add the cayenne pepper, garlic powder, salt and pepper. Mix well. Place in the refrigerator until ready to use. (You can also prepare the tuna mixture the night before or several hours before to the let the flavors really incorporate with each other).
Once the fettuccine is done cooking, strain the fettuccine, and add just the fettuccine back into the hot pan. Bring out the tuna mixture and add into the fettuccine. Stir well. Once the mixture is nice and hot, top with Parmesan cheese, salt, pepper and fresh basil.

This dish was incredible. I love a hot pasta tuna dish. The crunch of the cucumber, and spice of the roasted red pepper and cayenne pepper was out of this world. The mayonnaise made for an incredible sauce for the pasta. It was almost like an Alfredo sauce, except without all the cream and butter.


I had an incredible wine paired with my dish, called Bohemian Highway, a 2008 Pinot Grigio. The flavor paired nicely with my dinner. I highly recommend this wine.
This weekend I am off on a little getaway with the family, which is much needed! Check back for details on my weekend getaway!

The Incredible Egg

Who says that eggs are just for breakfast?!
I didn't really have breakfast this morning, so I was still craving a breakfast-like dish for lunch. I absolutely love eggs and firmly believe that they can be used as a main dish for not only breakfast, but for lunch and dinner as well.

We have had so many lovely food dishes coming our way, to help with the whole grieving process. Why is that when someone passes away, everyone feels the need to cook and bake? Don't get me wrong, I love it, and it has been absolutely great the past few weeks. However, it is an interesting topic to reflect on :)
We have a lot of leftover Honey Baked Ham. So I thought, what kind of dish can I make with this ham that is quick and easy?

Today, Afternoon Ham Scrambler.

Afternoon Ham Scrambler
Serves about 2
Ingredients:
1/2 Cubanelle Pepper, diced
1/2 Red Pepper, diced
1 small onion, diced
4 slices of Honey Baked Ham, diced
2 eggs
splash of milk
dash of garlic powder
dash of red pepper flakes
mozzarella cheese
Parmesan cheese
1 Tomatoes, diced
Handful of Curly Parsley
Salt
Pepper
Olive Oil


Directions:
Place the olive oil in a medium-high heat. Add the onion, red pepper and Cubanelle pepper. Let cook for about 5 minutes. Meanwhile, place the two eggs into a small bowl and add the splash of milk. Whisk well and set aside. Then, add the ham into the pan. Let cook another few minutes. Then, add in the egg mixture into the pan. Let cook for another few minutes, until the eggs are golden brown. Add in the tomatoes and sprinkle the garlic powder and red pepper flakes. Mix well. Once the eggs are fully cooked, remove the pan from the oven. Add the mozzarella cheese and let melt. Sprinkle salt, pepper and Parmesan cheese as desired. Garnish with fresh curly parsley.


This was an incredible dish and the honey baked ham made this dish have a great sweet flavor. With the addition of the peppers and the spice of the red pepper flakes, it was perfect.
Now, off to the beach to do some reading, some lounging and some swimming on this hot summer day!
Have a great day all!

Courageous Heart with a Childlike Spirit

I have not posted a blog entry since last Thursday because a terrible tragedy happened in my family.
My dad suddenly and unexpectedly passed away last Thursday night, June 24, 2010 at the young age of 54.
It is such a terrible loss because he was such a huge part of my life. No one ever had a mean thing to say about him! He was kind, friendly, funny, sincere, genuine and giving.
Obviously, blogging and cooking have not been my top priority. We have also been bombarded with tons of food, so cooking has not been necessary!
On Monday, July 5th, I am going to start blogging again. The last thing my dad would want is for me to stop doing what I love.
Here are a few pictures of my dad and I. What a great man, and he will truly, truly be missed.




His favorite thing to do was grill out and have a great family dinner with all of us. He loved to have a nice burger, fruit salad and corn on the cob. Here is the fabulous meal we had this past Father's Day that he absolutely loved. My family and I are so fortunate that we were able to spend this last Father's Day with the most incredible dad anyone could have.