Kielbasa Pasta

This was incredibly simple, and simply delightful!  It's a very easy, quick dinner for a busy weeknight.

Kielbasa Pasta
1 Kielbasa Sausage, cut into slices
3 sweet peppers, chopped
oil for cooking
1/2 box farfalle
garlic powder
oregano
Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning
Freshly Ground Black Pepper
Parmesan Cheese

Sweat peppers in oil until slightly tender, add sausage and brown.  Cook pasta according to package directions; drain and toss with sausage, garlic powder, oregano, creole seasoning, black pepper, and Parmesan.

Serve with cheesy garlic bread.

Serves 2-3

Note: The endorsement for Tony Chachere's Creole Seasoning is because this stuff is amazing!  I did not receive any compensation for this endorsement.

Bubble Pizza

Bubble pizza is quite possibly my favorite meal.  It was certainly one of my favorites when I lived with my aunt and uncle and she cooked dinner every night!  I slightly modified the recipe, especially since I'm cooking for two instead of seven.  (In the past I've also substituted chicken and Alfredo sauce for their red counterparts in this recipe, and added spinach--much like my Deluxe Chicken Alfredo Pizza.)

I don't have pictures of the beef cooking, because I had already cooked it, frozen it, and thawed it the day I took these pictures.  Also not pictured: preheating the oven and greasing the pan.

Start with biscuits--if you're making this for seven people, use two cans.

Cut them in quarters:

Arrange in the pan:

Spread sauce and beef mixture over the top:

Bake a while, then top with cheeses + Parsley.

Bake some more, then let it rest.

Serve with salad and enjoy!

Bubble Pizza

½ lb ground beef or sausage

½ green pepper, diced

Diced onion

1 8-oz can tomato sauce

1 can buttermilk biscuits

1 c. Mozzarella cheese

Parmesan cheese

Parsley

Brown meat with pepper and onion (I like to cook a full pound and freeze half). Stir in tomato sauce. Quarter biscuits; place in greased 11”x7” baking dish. Top with sauce mixture. Bake at 400°F for 15 minutes; top with cheeses and parsley and bake 5-10 minutes longer (until cheese has melted). Let stand 5-10 minutes before serving. Double all amounts to use a 9x13.

Freezer meal idea: brown meat and divide between two quart bags. Add a can of tomato sauce to each bag; mix carefully. Measure cheese into a separate bag; freeze together in larger bag (or label carefully). On serving day, thaw meat and cheese and continue as directed.

Imitation Maple Syrup

Although I grew up making and eating this syrup every Saturday night (pancakes were Saturday's dinner in our house), I haven't made it very much in recent years.  However, my husband and I love to eat granola for breakfast and we go through about a batch a week.  My recipe calls for maple syrup or honey, but both can add up to such a high cost that we might as well buy granola!  I made this syrup specifically for making granola, but it's good on pancakes and French toast.  ☺

It's quite simple, and it doesn't take long. If you're making granola you can use the same pan to melt the butter after making the syrup.

Imitation Maple Syrup

2 cups brown sugar

1 cup water

1 tablespoon maple flavor (or a different flavor to make it interesting)

Bring all ingredients to a boil, stirring to dissolve sugar. Simmer, covered, for two minutes. If storing in mason jars, pour while hot and the lids will seal. (I find that this recipe generally fills three half-pint [jelly] jars, and it's pre-measured for granola!)

This syrup is about the same consistency as real maple syrup; it is nothing like the thick, high fructose corn syrup nastiness you can buy in the breakfast aisle.

Brownie Mix

Long ago, I decided that it was time to make my own brownie mix (I've had these pictures for at least a year).  Then, a friend gave me a jar as a wedding shower gift!  I think her recipe is slightly different from mine, but the jar is cute so I'm including pictures of it. 

It's super easy to whip up a few of these at a time, and then I have mix on hand when I need it--and it's so customizable!

I wrote the ingredients on the bottom of my jar, so that I can reuse it.

Brownie Mix

1 c. sugar

1/2 c. flour

2/3 c. cocoa powder

1/4 t. salt

1/2 c. chocolate chips or other add-ins (nuts, chocolate candy, etc...)

Place all ingredients in a wide-mouthed quart jar.  Whether you stir or layer is up to you.  The strata look is fun if you're giving these as gifts.  ☺   

To prepare brownies, add 2 eggs, 1/2 cup oil, and 1 teaspoon vanilla; bake in a greased 9"x9" pan at 350°F for 20-25 minutes.

Better Than Hershey's Chocolate Syrup

Yes, that's a salad dressing bottle. Don't tell anyone.

1 1/2 c. sugar

3/4 c. unsweetened cocoa powder

1 c. water

dash salt

1 t. vanilla

In a saucepan, combine sugar, cocoa, and salt with a whisk.  Add water; bring to a boil, stirring occasionally.  Reduce heat and cook one minute.  Remove from heat; stir in vanilla.  

Cool and store in refrigerator.   For chocolate milk, add 2 tablespoons chocolate syrup to 8 ounces of milk.  

I found this recipe here.

Deluxe Chicken Alfredo Pizza

I've been making pizza for years.  I started by helping my mother make pizza for dinner, and then I worked at a pizza joint for 4 years.  The basic crust recipe came from my grandmother; I learned a few things from Mom; I learned a lot from making it at work every day; and I've read a book or two which helped me out.  Although I haven't made pizza for probably two years (it's hard to eat a whole pizza by oneself), I ventured to make some for my husband and me tonight.  Someone gave us a pizza stone for our wedding, so I was eager to use it!  

Floured up and ready to go!

The unfortunate thing is that the pizza was baking before I realized that we don't have a pizza cutter.  Thanks to the beauty of the stone, the finished pizza transferred easily to another surface, and cut up nicely with a knife.   

It might not be restaurant-worthy, but my husband said that it's possibly the best pizza he's ever tasted.  That kind of praise makes my day!

Deluxe Chicken Alfredo Pizza

Crust:

1 T. sugar

1/2 t. salt

2 1/4 t. yeast (one package)

garlic powder to taste

oregano to taste

basil to taste

parsley to taste

freshly-ground black pepper to test

3/4 c. warm water (to test the temperature, place a drop on your wrist: if you can't feel the temperature, it's just right)

1 1/2 c. flour + more for rolling

olive oil

In a large bowl, combine salt, sugar, spices, and yeast.  Add warm water.  Stir in 1 1/4 c. flour; gradually add more until the correct thickness is reached (it's impossible to describe this--it's basically trial and error making pizza dough).  Form dough into a ball and grease the top with olive oil.  Cover with a damp tea towel and allow to rise in a warm place about 30 minutes or until double its original size.

Generously dust pizza stone with flour.  Flour a cutting mat, cutting board, or in a pinch the counter (this will make the transfer to the stone difficult).  Gently roll dough until slightly smaller than the stone (it does not have to be perfectly round).  Carefully flip or otherwise transfer from rolling surface to floured pizza stone.  If desired, crimp the edges; it's a pretty touch and it helps keep the toppings from overflowing the sides.  Let dough rise on stone for another 15 minutes.

Note: My grandmother never used a pizza stone, and for many years my mother didn't either.  This pizza dough works in regular pizza pans, or even rectangular baking dishes.  But if you really love pizza, consider investing in a pizza stone--it takes your pizza to heights of delights you never imagined before!

Toppings:

1 c. Alfredo sauce

mozzarella cheese (can use some cheddar as well, if desired; be careful since cheddar burns more quickly than mozzarella)

cooked chicken (approximately 1 large chicken breast)

2 slices cooked bacon

fresh spinach

finely chopped green bell pepper

sliced mushrooms (my husband likes these, so I put them on half the pizza)

Parmesan cheese

parsley, for garnish

Spread sauce nearly to the edge of crust (leaving probably 3/4 inch all around).    Top with part of the cheese (seal off the edge of the sauce-crust connection to prevent everything sliding off with one bite).  Add remaining toppings and top with a little extra cheese, Parmesan, and parsley.  

Bake in preheated 375°F oven for 15-20 minutes, or until crust is golden-brown and cheese is melted and bubbly.

Slice it up and enjoy!  (And then tell me what you think. Any of the toppings can be omitted for taste preferences, and chopped Roma tomatoes might make a pleasant addition.)

Leftovers can be frozen for lunch next week.

Remember That Time...?

Remember when we used to have a blog?  Haha!  I recently remembered it, and signed in--only to discover that a comment from 12/2014 was awaiting approval!  So, I'm very sorry if you've been looking for new and interesting ideas.  We probably don't have any followers any more; but I might post more recipes in the months ahead.  You see, last month I got married (!) and having a husband to cook for has inspired me to try new things.  I made up my own meatball recipe, for example--I'm still tweaking it but I think they're alright.  So don't give up on Morsels of Chocolate entirely: H might still post recipes from time to time, even though we lost K long, long ago. . . .