The Hot One

Inspired by Sammy's of Eau Claire (not Winona). They have a pizza called the "Hot One". It's pepperoni, banana peppers, and pepper flakes in the sauce. Here's what I did:

The Sauce:

• 1 can tomato paste, they are like 7.5 oz or so
• 1/2 cup of water
• 1/2 tsp basil
• 1/2 tsp marjoram
• 1/2 tsp oregano
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp red pepper flakes or so

Mix that together in a bowl, I did it a few hours a head of time, to let the pepper flakes get all mixed and marinated in the sauce.

The Pizza

• 15 - 20 turkey pepperonis
• 8 peppercinis cut up
• 2 cups mozzerella

Spread the pizza crust on an olive oiled pan, check below for a recipe. Rub a bit more olive oil on top, for luck. Then cover in sauce, I used about half the sauce we made up, Jbiz doesn't like his pizza too saucy. Cover with the pepperonis and peppercinis. Cover that with the mozzerella cheese. 500 degree oven for 10 minutes.

Buffalo Chicken Pizza

We are on a homemade pizza kick! Let's start with the crust.

• 1 and 1/2 cups warm water
• 1 packet of yeast
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 4 cups AP flour
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Sprinkle the yeast onto the warm water, set aside. Mix together flour and salt. I use my Kitchen Aid mixer with a dough hook. Drizzle in the olive oil. Then drizzle in the yeasty water. Keep the mixer on low for a bit, let it all get mixed nicely together. Then, put the dough into a large bowl, and I do mean large. Make sure the bowl is coated with olive oil as well. Roll the ball of dough, coat it with the oil. Put some plastic wrap on it, put it in the fridge for awhile. 2 or 3 hours, or even days. This makes enough dough for 2 pizzas, so at least 2 meals for the B-bergs.

Now, this is the recipe I've been using for the past 2 weeks, and I really love it. Jbizzle even loves it. When I made him eat the tomato and eggplant pizza all he could say was "I DO like the crust!"

SO, onward!

I had leftover chicken from a whole chicken I baked up the day before. Have I talked about how much I LOVE whole chickens?

• 1 cup shredded chicken
• 4 tablespoons butter
• 4 tablespoons hot sauce, buffalo sauce, Franks, whatever
• 2 cups mozzarella cheese, or maybe Jack
• bleu cheese crumbles

Melt the butter together with the buffalo sauce, dump in the chicken. I did this about 2 hours ahead of time, put it back in the fridge to marinate.

Spread the crust (just half of the above recipe) out onto a olive oil covered baking pan. Put a bit more oil on top. Then top with the mozzarella cheese, then the chicken, drip the excess sauce from the chicken out on top (you may need to microwave the chicken a bit if you had it marinating in the fridge), bake at 500 degrees for about ten minutes. Sprinkle some of the bleu cheese on top, and serve away!

I don't think that you HAVE to use olive oil. You could probably use canola or vegetable, but would you really want to?

Mushroom Bacon Pizza

Whip up your favorite pizza crust, and top with this:

• package Mushrooms
• 5 slices of bacon
• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 cups mozzarella
• 2 tablespoons butter
• 2 tablespoons flour
• 1 and 1/2 cups of milk/half & half/whatever you got
• 1/3 cup parm cheese or so
• salt and pepper

OK, make up the sauce. Melt the butter, stir in the flour. Cook down, roux style. Slowly add the milk, and I mean SLOWLY, like 1/4 cup at a time, whisk it right in. Cook for awhile, until it thickens. Salt and Pepper to taste, add some Parm cheese.

Cook up bacon in skillet until crisp. Remove bacon, crumble it up. Cook mushrooms up for a few minutes in the bacon fat. Add the minced garlic, careful, don't burn it.

Bake your crust for a few minutes, just to get it a bit crisp. I do it at 500 degrees. Spread the sauce on top, I didn't come close to using it all, adjust accordingly. Top with mozzarella cheese, then mushroom/garlic, and then the bacon. Sprinkle more parm on top. Bake at 500 degrees for 10 minutes.

Chocolate Dipped Strawberries

OMG. Hold on to your hats. This is so easy, you are gonna wonder why you didn't do it first.

All you need:

• Semi-Sweet Chocolate chips (I use the baby sized ones, they melt faster)
• Clean, dried off, strawberries

Microwave the chocolate in nice microwave safe dish, for 14 seconds at a time, stirring when it beeps. Do this for maybe 4 turns, and it will be melted. Careful, chocolate burns, so maybe you wanna do double boiler method. Dip your strawberries, use a spoon to help coat much easier. You have to dry off the strawberries, if any water gets in the chocolate, and I mean ANY, you are hosed. Set on a plate with parchment paper, put in the fridge for 15 minutes, and you are ready.

Eggplant Tomato Pizza

I loved it, Con ate some crust, John picked at it (but did eat it). Boys don't like veggies and love meaty pizzas. I knew going into it, John wouldn't like it, but I did not care. The eggplant was yummy, the salting and letting them sit for a bit to take out the bitterness, brilliant.

Once again, Pioneer Woman, I love you.

Check out the instructions, here.

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Funnel Cake

It's good. Trust me. Recipe here.

Garlic Cheese Bread

• 2 cups cheese - mozerella in this case
• 1/2 cup parm cheese
• 1/2 cup mayo
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• Italian Seasoning
• loaf of french bread
• butter
• garlic, minced up

Mix together cheeses, salt, seasoning and mayo. Slice french bread up, I do half long way, half short way. Melt 2-3 tablespoons of butter, stir in minced garlic. A clove or so per bread piece. Set the bread, cut side down, into the butter, and allow it to toast up. BE CAREFUL not to burn the garlic, or even get it too brown, as garlic gets bitter quick, and you should just throw out the bread at that point. Repeat with all the bread, wiping the pan clean between each bread, to avoid blackening the garlic. Then put the cheese mixture on top, and bake for 8 minutes at 400 degrees.

Also. Use real butter. Use real cheese. Use real mayo. duh.

Honey Butter

1/2 a stick of butter soften and 2 good squirts out of the honey bear. Stir with a for, and spread on some corny - corn bread. Yuuuuummmm. Make sure the bread is hot, and the butter will drip all the way down.

Frappucino Shaker Style

• 3/4 cup espresso (cooled, or use strong coffee)
• 3/4 cup skim milk
• 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup (or caramel)
• 2 tablespoons flavored creamer
• 1 teaspoon sugar (or not, just how are you feeling?)
• 3 ice cubes

Put them all into a jar, shake it all about, pour over ice. Dress it up with a heart-shaped crazy straw.