Mandy and Jace

This is one of the most fun and easiest meals we make. It is great for us because we can try all different kinds of toppings and not waste too much time and money. It would also be fun with kids.

Forgive me for the bad photos. My camera’s battery died and I had to use my iphone.
We use Pillsburry Thin Pizza Crust . It has a sweet flavor that I love.

I cut the dough in half so we each have our own personal pizza. You don’t have to cut it if you want a big pizza. I also fold my dough in half to make a thicker crust. Jace likes his thin so he leaves his like it is.

I like my pizza with tomato sauce, hamburger meat and cheese. I keep cooked hamburger meat in the freezer for meals like this when I don’t need a lot of it.

Jace likes his with olive oil, bacon, basil and fresh mozzarella cheese.

Next put them in a 400 degree oven and cook or about 20 minutes depending on the toppings you use. After that they are ready to eat!

Build your own pizza

Pillsburry thin pizza crust
any toppings you want on it

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
Spray two sheet pans with non-stick spray. Cut the dough in half and place one on each pan. Pile on your toppings and put the pizzas in the oven.
Cook for about 20 minutes or until the dough is done in the middle.

Happy November everyone. Time is flying so fast! Before we know it Christmas will be here.
Here are my meal plans for this week:

Tonight: steak with mashed potatoes and sautéed veggies.
Tuesday: family dinner out for Jace’s birthday.
Wednesday: build your own pizza. I’ll put up photos and the recipe is for this meal on Thursday.
Thursday: not sure yet. Probably some kind of whole wheat pasta and cream sauce.
Friday: date night

If you see any meals that you want the recipe for and I don’t post them let me know and I would be happy to put them up for you.

Happy eating!

I have tried several recipes for guacamole and I like this one the best. I got it from my “Family Chef” cook book. The dip is smooth but a little bit on the tangy side and is SO good.

Guacamole
makes 3-4 cups
4 large ripe avocados
1/4 cup red onion, chopped
2 tablespoons cilantro, finely chopped
1 serrano or jalapeno, chopped (the serrano is going to be hotter than the jalapeno)
Juice of 1/2 lime
1/2-1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder

Cut the avocados in half. Remove pit and scoop the flesh into a bowl.
Add the rest of the ingredients to the avocado and mash with a fork. If you like it more on the smooth side use a potato masher.

Rainy and cold weather always makes me want Mexican food. I’m not sure why but that is my comfort food. I’ll take bowl of salsa over mashed potatoes any day. So this week we are making enough tacos for tonight and for leftovers.

Here’s my meal plan.
Monday: Chipotle Beef Tacos with guacamole for me since Jace won’t touch the stuff.
Tuesday: Either leftovers or takeout. We are cleaning Pastor’s house for pastor appreciation.
Wednesday: Grilled Chicken, rice and corn on the cobb
Thursday: praise and worship practice so probably take out
Friday: Girls and Guys night. I’m having the girls over to my house and Jace is going to one of his friends house so pizza and brownies!

Healthy tip: Choose guacamole over queso. Avocado is great for you. It is low calorie and it is has over 20 different nutrients in it. I didn’t like it for the longest time but after I found out the nutritional benefits I slowly made myself like it. Now I love everything about it. I put it in soups and salads and I make guacamole when I can. You can find out more benefits of avocado here.

Happy eating!

You may have noticed that I changed the recipe plan from brown rice to white rice. We made it with brown rice last night and it took 65 minutes to cook. By the time the rice was done the veggies were mushy, so I am going to give the recipe to you with white rice. White rice cooks a lot faster: It only takes about 20 minutes and it is still very, very good. This is a very versitile recipe; you can throw in any kind of meat or veggies you want. We did chicken a couple of weeks ago and it was great. But you really don’t need any meat at all. In fact, it was the only time I’ve seen Jace say he could live without chicken on his plate.

Teriyaki White Rice with Veggies
canola oil
1 Squash, chopped into cubes
1 Zucchini, chopped into cubes
1/2 eggplant, chopped into cubes
1/2 onion, diced
1 1/2 cups white rice
1/2 cup teriyaki sauce (I really didn’t measure what I put in, so just put in as much as you would like)
1/4 cup soy sauce (this serves as your salt so don’t use any salt and pepper)
Chicken broth

Coat the bottom of a large saute pan with your canola oil. Throw in your onion and sweat them until they’re just translucent (a pinch of salt here will help them sweat out a little faster). Then put in your squash, zucchini and eggplant and a little bit of teriyaki and soy sauce. Go easy on the soy sauce or it will end up too salty at the end. Cook for about 3-4 minutes. Make a little empty spot in the middle of your pan and add the rice there. If the veggies have soaked up all the oil from your pan, add another teaspoon or so to help the rice. Once you add the rice you’ll need to stir pretty regularly to keep it from sticking (and then burning), so stir it all around for a minute. Pour in a can of chicken broth (or about 2 cups) and teriyaki sauce and cover the pan. When the rice soaks in the liquid add more broth. Do this until the rice is cooked to your liking. At the end taste the rice and see if it needs more teriyaki sauce or soy sauce. Serve immediately.

If you really want to use brown rice, since it is supposed to be quite a bit better for you, you could probably start by cooking the onion, then add the rice and broth, cook for 20 minutes or so and then add the veggies. But, really, white rice is fine and it’s a lot faster.