Recipes and Videos

Simple Pizza

Its time for some super easy pizza. I have been holding this recipe for a while. I figured no one would want to see me make pizza. How simple can pizza be unless your name is Pizza Hut? Until I was blessed enough to get a special package from the people at SheSpeaks and Johnsonville, I didn’t realize how quickly I could make pizza. I know I can make pizza quite quickly because as soon as I got the package, with Johnsonville coupons for free Johnsonville sausage, I ran to the store and got everything I needed.

This recipe makes 2 large pizzas the length of a cookie sheet.

Ingredients for ABM (American bread machine) pizza crust:

• 1 warm c of water
• 4 tblspn of olive oil
• *optional add garlic, Parmesan, and Italian seasonings
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 1/2 c all purpose flour
• 1 tblspn b. powder
• 2 tblspn yeast

*Assemble the above ingredients in your bread machine in the order that your machine requires. Sprinkle a small amount of flour on a cutting board to enable your dough to be touched. At that point, spray your cookie sheet with cooking spray and begin to spread the dough into the pan. I always add the optional seasonings to my dough and in no specific amount.

Recipes for the pizza and my quick sauce can be found by watching this video. . . .

 

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Pico de Gallo

Have you guys ever thought about “How to” write how to articles? Seems like a funny question on Tasty Tidbit Tuesday but I promise, it will all make sense. I am a huge fan of writing “How to” articles and most people shy away from writing them. These articles are simple as long as you know what you are talking about. Let’s think of an article in terms of this recipe. I am going to show you a quick and easy way to write a “How to” article and some delicious pico de gallo as well.

Begin any “How to” article by telling your audience a little something about what you are going to teach them. In some cases, a little history or knowledge would be a good way to start the article.

Sharing the colors of the Mexican flag, pico de gallo is a fresh uncooked answer to homemade salsa. Pico de gallo can be made with a variety of fresh ingredients. Today’s ingredients will stick to tradition and display all the beautiful colors in the Mexican flag.

**The next step in writing your article is to list the ingredients.**

• 1 jalapeno pepper
• cilantro
• 1/4 large onion
• 3 small roma tomatoes
• minced garlic
• lemon juice (fresh or bottled) or lime juice
• Salt, pepper, and/or house seasonings
  

The true secret to writing “How to” articles is to remember to start each step with a verb. “How to” articles must show action. Short sweet and to the point is the key to writing any “How to” article.

Chop the onion, jalapeno, and cilantro.

Wash the chopped veggies and place them in a serving bowl.

Wash the tomatoes.

Dice the tomatoes and place them in the bowl with the onions, jalapenos, and cilantro.

Add 2 teaspoons of minced garlic to the mixture.

Pour in 1 1/2 teaspoons of lemon or lime juice.

Sprinkle lightly with salt and pepper. House seasonings can also be added to reach the taste desired.

Chill for 1 hour and serve with your favorite tortilla chips.

Now it is time for the tips and warning section. In this section, you give any pros and cons to your article.

Tips and Warnings:

**Pico de gallo may or may not include peppers. Feel free to not limit yourself to jalapeno peppers. For a pico de gallo with less spice, try banana peppers.

Last but not least, you will want to give any references used for your article. In my case, life is my reference so this section would be blank. If you referred to a cookbook or other article, please remember to give links to the site or post the name of any books used.

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Indian Fry Bread

Its time for my favorite time of the week to hang out with a couple of my favorite Bloggers. Dian, of Grocery Shop For Free, and Susan, of Permanent Posies are cooking it up and linking it up by sharing some of their favorite recipes. I love to cook so its only natural that I throw my 2 cents in every now and then. This week’s 2 cents is geared towards some good ol’ Indian Fry Bread. This particular recipe is indicative of the Blackfeet Indian Tribe. That statement might be debatable amongst Blackfeet Indians because several variations can be found online. This particular recipe is one my family has used for years and is very similar to a Papusa recipe I will be sharing in the future.

Supplies:

• 1/4 cup of cooking oil (vegetable, corn, or peanut)
• 3 cups of flour
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 1/4 tsp baking powder
• 1 1/3 WARM water (make sure your water is very warm)

This recipe is quick and simple. First, mix flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl with a fork. Create a hole in the center of the flour mixture and pour in a portion of the warm water. I do this a little at a time until I have used all of the water. The dough will not be pretty. It will look something like this:

Flour a cutting board to work the dough. Keep the flour nearby because this is a somewhat sticky dough. Form the dough into a big ball. This ball will NOT be smooth.

Tear off small balls of dough and mash them into flat discs. The shapes are not important, just make them as flat as possible. Your discs will look like this in the end:

Now its time to start cooking. Heat the cooking oil until its nice and hot.

Place them in the skillet one at a time. Cook on each side for about 1 minute per side. Remember the fry bread will brown more after you take it out of the grease.

This is what the finished product will look like:

Dress the bread up the way you like. My honey likes his with refried beans, turkey taco meat, spinach, tomatoes, and salsa!

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Chicken Empanadas

Ingredients:

• 1 whole chicken (add bouillon for a little added flavor)
• Favorite seasonings (chili powder, salt, pepper, garlic, cayenne, etc)
• Bag of your favorite frozen or fresh corn
• Shredded cheese
• 1 8oz pkg cream cheese
• **option refried beans for inside or on the side. Boil 1 whole chicken (add bouillon for a little added flavor)

 

Pie Crust Recipe

Boil 1 whole chicken (add bouillon for a little added flavor). Pull the meat off the bone. Toss the pulled chicken with your chosen seasonings. Add cooked corn and cream cheese to the mixture. Add shredded cheese (cheddar, Monterrey Jack, or Pepper Jack).

Roll out your pie crust and using a cookie cutter, cut round circles. Spoon mixture into pie crust circles. Close circles by brushing with either egg or water and mash the edges together with a fork.

Completed filling!

Use a teaspoon or a tablespoon to spoon the mixture into the center of the circles.

Bake in the oven at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until golden brown. Serve with beans, rice, or cheese sauce!

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Cake Balls

 

Qu’ils mangent de la brioche. . . boules?
I am sure that when this phrase was uttered, they were not thinking cake balls. In all honesty, they were thinking bread, but that’s neither here nor there. We are discussing cake balls today. I see all the cute little cake balls online and it was high time I made some myself. I won’t bore you with too many details but this is how it all went down . . . .

For this cake ball recipe, we are making Chocolate Devil’s Food Cake. When the batter is ready, just pour it into pans and bake as you would normally make any cake. You can make any flavor cake ball you desire. Feel free to use a mix to save time.

Once the cake has cooled, crumble the cake into fine pieces.

Make, or grab some store bought, icing. I made a cream cheese icing to mix with the cake crumbs. If you purchase an icing, do not use the whipped. Use a normal consistency icing because if you make a pretty moist cake, like myself, then you will not have firm balls. Also, whether you buy your icing or make it yourself. Do not use all the icing. Add a little at a time until its easy to form the balls.

 

Next form the cake balls the way you want them. This is the fun part. I made a few that were really big and I will not do that again. Try and make them somewhat small. Imagine taking two bites to eat the ball and you are at the perfect size cake ball.

 

Once the balls are formed, place them in the fridge for 2 hours or overnight (on wax paper). If you are making these ahead of time, put them in the fridge for 2 hours and then put them in freezer bags and put them in the freezer.

Last step, melt some chocolate. You can use white chocolate, almond bark, dark chocolate, or milk chocolate. Have fun with it. I used chocolate meltaways (purchase at Michael’s). They are chocolate wafers that you can use to make some dandy candy! Dip quickly because the cake balls are cold and the chocolate will be a little warm. The balls can easily freeze the chocolate if not careful. Remove the cake ball from the chocolate and let it chill on wax paper in the fridge.

They will chill very quickly, especially if you place them on the same sheet you used when you chilled the balls before.

Let them cool for 2 more hours and you are done.

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Chocolate Pie

 

 

Okay it took me long enough but I finally have it together. First of all, let me apologize now for the confusion in this video. In the video, I am making a chocolate pie and the pie crust as well. The pie crust has to sit in the fridge for 1 hour. While the dough is in the fridge, I suggest making the chocolate pie filling to help kill time. My little tax deductions thought it would be faster to put my dough ball into the freezer ,so I can safely say that after sitting out and defrosting the dough works just fine.

Here are the ingredients you will need:

Pie Crust:

* 1 1/4 c all purpose flour
* 1/2 tsp salt

* 6 tblspn unsalted butter (keep this cold)
* 2 tblspn lard (keep this cold)

* 1/4 c ice cold water

Pie Filling:

* 4 tblspn cocoa powder
* 3/4 c sugar
* 5 tblspn flour
* 1/4 tsp salt
* 1 1/2 c milk
* 2 egg yolks (slightly beaten)

*****Last ingredients to be added:

* 1/2 tsp vanilla
* 1 tblspn butter

Now let the confusion begin:

I got the recipe for the pie crust from my bestie who does not have a clue that I am alive, Alton Brown. I am an Alton Brown mega fan. If you want you can get the book that has the recipe by following this affiliate link: I’m Just Here for More Food: Food x Mixing + Heat = Baking (At least I am honest) I am a huge Alton (or AB) fan. I am slowly gathering all of his cook books. His books are like cooking for dummies personified!
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Chocolate Cake

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Turtle Cake

Let’s talk turtle, Turtle Cake that is! Corny I know, but sooooo delicious. I was sitting around the house one day feeling like I needed to bake. I decided I would try and make a turtle cake. I wanted something sweet but not too overpowering. I want to warn you, this is not a subtle recipe. It is in your face chocolate trouble. You will need:

• 1 Devil’s Food Cake Mix (could always use a homemade recipe)
• 1 cup of chocolate chips
• 1 cup of pecan halves
• 14 oz caramels
• 7 oz sweetened condensed milk
• 3/4 c butter

In a bowl, mix your Devil’s Food cake mix (eggs, cooking oil, water) the way you normally would.

Pour half the batter into a pan and bake it at 350 degrees for 15 minutes. Meanwhile, melt the 3/4 cup of butter in a saucepan. To the butter, add the sweetened condensed milk and caramels.

Melt the caramels completely!

When the half of the cake mixture is done its time to layer your turtle layer. Take your hot cake from the oven.

Grab your chocolate chips and pecan halves.

 

 

 

Pour the mixture onto the hot chocolate cake.

Now pour on the caramel sauce.

Now pour the remaining batter on top of this mixture and bake at 350 degrees for 20 minutes.

Let the cake cool completely before you cut it and your slice should look like this:

 

 

 

This cake actually gets better the next day. The caramel center stays soft and delicious.

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