Life and "Sloppy Supper"

Life has been crazy at our home lately. 2011 has not been very kind to us so far, but we are hoping the rest of the year will go better.
Because of the craziness that is life I have let a lot of things slide, this being the first of many things that went by the wayside when things got stressful. Posting recipes just didn't seem appealing when there was hardly any food in the house due to cash inflow problems. But lately I have felt more like sharing some of the recipes I have come across lately, especially those that I have tweaked to make Vegetarian.

So here I am, posting, can you believe it?

Not going to promise I will post with any sort of frequency, but we will see how it goes.

The first recipe I want to share comes from a kids cookbook called "Eat It Up", though I have tweaked it to be vegetarian. My oldest loves to help make this Indian inspired dish, and we all love to eat it. I will warn you that it is a tad on the spicy side, so if you or your kiddos are not into spice I would suggest finding as mild of a tandoori paste as you can AND cutting the amount down to 1/3 a cup!

Sloppy Supper

1/2 cup Tandoori paste (can be found at most grocery stores near the Asian foods)
1 cup plain yogurt
1 14 oz can Diced tomatoes (or try the kind with Cilantro and lime!)
1 bag Chick'n tenders (We use the Quorn brand)
1 medium onion, diced

1. Combine tandoori paste, plain yogurt, and diced tomatoes to make the sauce.
2. Pour over Chick'n tenders in a small casserole dish (you can let this marinate in the fridge overnight for extra yummy Chick'n!)
3. Fry onions in a small amount of oil until soft, combine with Chick'n and sauce.
4. Bake for one hour at 350 Degrees. Serve with Naan bread and basmati rice.

Naan Pizza, Two Ways!

A few weeks ago a company called Tandoor Chef was having a contest to come up with a Naan pizza. Naan is an Indian flat bread, similar to a pita (not the kind with the pocket, but the flat ones). They can be found at any Indian Grocer, whole foods, and on occasion I have even seen them at Walmart. They are great served with many Indian dishes, but this Naan pizza thing wasn't something I was sure about. I decided I would give it a try anyway.

I sent Dominic off to find a new Indian grocer, since the one we usually frequent had closed, and he came home bearing a package of 10 frozen naan and two blocks of yummy paneer. I was so excited to try making an Indian version of pizza! I had picked an Indian recipe I love and had kind of deconstructed it so that just the sauce was in the recipe, and had the other ingredients set to be toppings. It was an interesting idea, but I was still skeptical of what the results would be.
I chopped, grated, stirred, and assembled. I threw them in the oven for 15 minutes and what should come out but one of the most delicious personal pizzas in the entire world (if I do say so myself!). They were like eating a little piece of Indian heaven. Yumm! The whole family loved them, even baby Jack!

With that such a hit I was excited to try making a traditional pizza on the naan. We still had six naan in the freezer, so one night I asked Ryan what he wanted and he said PIZZA!! He was so excited I decided I would gather the ingredients and let him assemble the little pizzas himself. I let him choose a jarred sauce from the cupboard, and four veggies from the fridge. I chopped the veggies and placed them on a plate for him to assemble the pizzas!
He had a blast spreading the sauce on the pizzas and then placing some of each of the veggies on them, but his favorite was sprinkling the cheese on top of it all! It was so much fun! I wish I had had a camera to capture it!

So, now that you've heard how much fun we've had who is ready for some new recipes? Here goes nothing!

Chili Paneer Pizza (serves 4)

For the Sauce:
2-3 Tbs Tomato paste
2 tsp Chopped garlic
1 Tbs Diced Green chiles
1 tsp onion powder
1 tsp Garam Masala
1 tsp ground ginger paste
2 tsps soy sauce
1/4-1/2 cup vegetable broth

For the pizza:
4 frozen Naan Bread
1 8 oz Block Paneer Cheese, grated
1 half a green bell pepper diced
1 half a red bell pepper diced

1. Pre-heat over to 350. For sauce combine all ingredients except vegetable broth in small bowl, stir. Add vegetable broth until desired consistency for your pizza sauce.
2 Spread about 2-3 tablespoons of sauce on each naan, divide bell peppers between the four pizzas, top with the paneer cheese.
3. Place naan on lined cookie sheet (only two will fit, so you need to cookie sheets, of to do it in two batches.). Bake in the over for 15 minutes, or until the paneer starts to turn a little golden.
Enjoy!

Ryan's Special Pizza (serves 4)

1/2 cup of Ragu Sun-dried tomato and sweet basil pasta sauce (or your favorite pasta sauce!)
1/2 cup sliced mushrooms
1/2 cup baby spinach leaves
1 Small roma tomato, diced
1/2 red bell pepper, diced
About a cup of Mozzarella Cheese
4 Naan Bread

1. Pre-heat oven to 350. Spread 2-3 tablespoons of sauce over each naan bread. Divide veggie toppings evenly between pizzas, top with mozzarella cheese.
2. Place on lined cookie sheet (only two will fit on each sheet, so make sure you have two, or are prepared to do it in two batches). Bake for 15 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and slightly browned.

Now wasn't that easy! I think Naan pizzas may become a go to quick meal in our house! One of the greatest part of this is that you can freeze these! Just wrap each pizza in plastic wrap and then place them in a large ziploc! When ready to eat them let them thaw on the counter while the oven pre-heats and bake as normal!

Wow! I had a lot to say today! Hope you enjoyed this! If you have some other fun ideas for pizzas please comment below!

I love the Smell of Curries: Curried Red Lentils

I've decided that having a theme for the week helps me get going and actually post on my blog, even when life is a little crazy, so this week we are taking a trip to India and Asia.
There is little I love more than walking into a place that smells of curry. Don't get me wrong, I love other foods but by far Indian food would come out on top. There is something so warm and reassuring about the spices used in Indian curries that makes me crave it when it starts to get cold. The fragrant spices speak to me of warm exotic places.
I've been craving Indian food for weeks now, but our sweet little "Shop and Go" closed down sometime when I wasn't looking and has left me in a lurch to find all my favorite Indian food staples like Paneer, and Naan.
I searched for a quick Indian curry that used things easily found at the local grocery store, and with a little tweaking I have a super yummy, quick lentil curry that even my one year old devours! You should be able to find all the ingredients at the grocery store nearest you if you don't already have them in your cupboard.

Curried Red Lentils

2 cups red lentils
1 large onion, diced
1 tablespoon vegetable oil
2 tablespoons curry paste
1 tablespoon curry powder
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon chili powder
1 teaspoon ground coriander
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 teaspoon ginger root, minced
1 (14.25 ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
1 cup frozen green peas
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro

1. Wash the lentils in cold water until the water runs clear (this is very important or the lentils will get "scummy" and believe me you don't want that!), put the lentils in a pot with enough water to cover and simmer covered until lentils tender (about 10 minutes) adding more water if necessary.
2. While the lentils are cooking: In a large skillet or saucepan, caramelize the onions in vegetable oil.
3. While the onions are cooking, combine the curry paste, curry powder, turmeric, cumin, chili powder, coriander, salt, garlic, and ginger in a mixing bowl. Mix well.
4. When the onions are cooked, add the curry mixture to the onions and cook over a high heat stirring constantly for 1 to 2 minutes.
5. Stir in the diced tomatoes and peas and reduce heat, allow the curry base to simmer until the lentils are ready.
6. When the lentils are tender drain them briefly (they should have absorbed most of the water but you don't want the curry to be too sloppy). Mix the curry base into the lentils, garnish with cilantro and serve immediately.

This makes a ton, about eight main dish servings, and goes together very quickly. It's a great way to wow a crowd, and an excellent as leftovers! Serve with Naan and rice for a great meal!

Halloween Continues: Mummy Face Pizzas!

Last year I was in charge if dinner on Halloween and I decided to make everything Halloween themed. We had monster toes, breadstick bones, bug juice, and some Mummy pizzas! My oldest thought it was so much fun! He especially liked the pizzas though, because he is a pizza junkie! They were so easy to make that I thought they would be a great addition to this weeks Halloween recipes! These little guys can be made ahead and frozen for fright night, but they are so easy I recommend just making them!

Mummy Face Pizzas
1- 6 count package of English Muffins
Your Favorite Pizza Sauce
12 Sticks mozerella string cheese
1 Can sliced olives

1. Heat oven to 400ºF.

2. Spread english muffin halves with sauce. Pull cheese into thin strips; place in random criss-crosses on tops of bagels to resemble mummy bandages. Trim ends with kitchen shears. Add olives for the eyes.

3. Place on baking sheet. Bake 10 min. or until muffins are crisp and cheese is melted.

These would be great to have a child help with, they will love pulling the string cheese apart!

Halloween: Edible Jack-o-Lanterns

This weekend is Halloween! Halloween is a big deal in my family. My little sister was born on Halloween, and my mom has always gone all out for Halloween. She does so many crafty things and makes all kinds of fun meals. Because she is so into Halloween I decided I would do a whole week of fun Halloween recipes!
This first one comes from the blog of one of my Husband's cousins. I stole it, with permission, it's always fun to see what other people are doing! The idea came to her as she was flipping through a Halloween magazine: stuffed orange peppers with Spaghetti and cut them up like Jack-O-lanterns. Here is her take on the idea!

7 orange peppers

1 cup brown rice

1 package mushrooms, sliced

1/2 onion, diced

1 tbsp butter

1 tbsp soy sauce

1 tbsp Parmesan cheese

2 tbsp shredded mozzarella cheese

Salt and pepper to taste

1. Preheat Oven to 350 degrees. Cook rice according to directions

2. Hollow out and cut peppers like jack-o-lanterns, make sure you reserve the tops! You can't make a proper jack-o-lantern without a stem.

2. In a sauce pan, melt the butter. Add onion and cook until translucent. Add the soy sauce and mushrooms, cook until tender.
3. Turn off heat. Add Parmesan cheese and mozzarella cheese.
4. Mix vegetable and cheese mixture with cooked rice, stuff into peppers.
5. Place on baking sheet, cook at 350 degrees for ten to fifteen minutes, until peppers are tender.

Don't these sound fantastic! And they look so much fun! I imagine you could mix just about any veggie in with the rice mixture and it would be just as good! I'm thinking of trying these with some spinach added, as it is hard to get my kids to eat the green veggies unless they are mixed in with other yummy things!

Beggars Purses- A creative Crepe Presentation

I love to throw parties. Getting friends and family together and having good food, games, music, and conversation is one of the most wonderful things! I'm always looking for a reason to throw a party, be it a birthday, just a game night, or even a party to celebrate cheese (our third annual cheese party is coming up in march!).
When it comes to parties I am all about the food. You can't have a great party if people are hungry! I love to make a least one dish I make look especially cool, it tend to jump start conversation and make for a pretty presentation.
Enter the beggars purse.
The hardest thing about these is roasting the peppers, but they turn out so yummy and beautiful it is worth the time! I borrowed the steps on roasting the peppers and the pictures that accompany them from Allrecipes.com


Beggars Purse

One recipe Chive Crepe Batter
1 cup cherry or grape tomatoes, chopped
3.5 oz Goat cheese
4 Bell peppers
3 tablespoons olive oil
One long fresh chive or green onion for each crepe

1. Pre-heat your oven's broiler. Coat each pepper evenly with oil. A pastry brush is a useful tool to use when coating the peppers, but fingers will work in a pinch if a pastry brush is not on hand. Make sure to coat inside the folds of each pepper.

2. Arrange the peppers on a baking sheet and place the baking sheet on the highest rack in your oven.

3. Keep a watchful eye on the peppers to ensure that they do not become too scorched. When dark splotches begin to appear on the peppers, remove the baking sheet from the oven and carefully turn each pepper over.

4. The peppers will be very hot, so use tongs or some other kitchen utensil to do this. Once all of the peppers are turned, return the sheet to the oven.

5. When the tops of the peppers begin to darken again, remove them from the oven and place them into a bowl large enough to accommodate all of the peppers. Cover the bowl. It is important that the peppers are in an air-tight container for this step of the process in order for them to be steamed. The trapped hot peppers generate the steam necessary to loosen their skins.

6. Once the peppers are cool enough to handle (probably about 15 to 20 minutes), pull the stems out of each pepper.

7. Hold one end of the pepper down on a flat surface and gently peel the skin off of each pepper. The skin should slide off fairly easily.

8. Lift each pepper up and hold it with one hand, while using your other hand to squeeze down the pepper's length. The bulk of the seeds and pulp should drop out the bottom when this motion is completed.

9. With the backside of the knife, slit open the side of each pepper and spread them out (ribbed side up) on your work surface. With the dull side of your knife, scrape off any of the ribs or membrane that remains in the pepper.

10. Dice up the roasted peppers and return to the bowl, add the chopped tomatoes and goat cheese, stir well

11. Place about two tablespoons of the pepper mixture in the center of a crepe, gather up the sides to make a "purse"(see picture), and tie together with a chive or green onion. Repeat for each crepe.