Beef Stew in Tomato Sauce

Ingredients
500g  | 1 -1 1/2 lb beef - I used skirt (flank) steak
4 large beefsteak tomatoes, peeled and seeds removed
or 1 x 400g | 14oz can chopped tomatoes
2 red onions, roughly chopped
3 garlic gloves, crushed
3-4 tbsp tomato paste
1-2 tbsp olive oil
500ml | just over 2 cups beef stock
240ml  | 1 cup red wine
2 bay leaves
1 large cinnamon stick or 2-3 tsp ground cinnamon
3-4 whole cloves or 1/2 tsp ground cloves
1 tsbp granulated sugar
Chopped flat leaf parsley to serve
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Instructions:
Cut the meat into large cubes. Heat the olive oil in a large pot and fry the meat so it browns evenly. Take the beef out, lower the heat, and add the chopped onions, crushed garlic and sugar. Fry for about five minutes until softened.

Return the beef to the pot and add the chopped tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaves, cinnamon and cloves. Season with salt and pepper. Stir together and then add the stock and red wine. Bring to the boil then reduce heat to a simmer. Cook for about 1 1/2- 2 hours stirring occasionally. Add more hot water if the sauce is too thick.

If you wish to cook this in a slow cooker, brown the meat and sauté the onion and garlic then add all the ingredients to the slow cooker pot and cook for 5 hours on high. I usually prefer to cook this on the stove as I can control the amount of liquid better.

Read More

Artichoke and Spinach Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 (16 oz ) homemade or store bought pizza dough
• 8 oz fresh spinach, divided
• 2 Tbsp butter
• 2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
• 3/4 cup milk
• 1/4 tsp onion powder
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
• 4 oz provolone cheese (1 cup)
• 2 oz shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese (1/2 cup)
• 2 oz finely shredded parmesan cheese (slightly packed 1/2 cup)
• 6 - 8 canned artichoke hearts, drained well and quartered
• Red pepper flakes, for serving (optional)

Instructions

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place pizza stone in preheated oven and allow to rest in oven 20 minutes. Meanwhile, stretch and shape pizza dough over a sheet of parchment paper to a 13-inch round, while creating a taller rim along outer edge. Brush with 1 Tbsp olive oil and season crust lightly with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then allow to rest while pizza stone preheats (note that if your pizza crust has been refrigerated, be sure to bring it to room temperature first, then shape and let it rest the 20 minutes).
• In a large saucepan, heat remaining 1 Tbsp olive oil over medium-high heat. Once oil is hot, add 3/4 of the spinach and saute just until wilted. Transfer to a layer of paper towels and gently press some of the excess liquid out. Finely chop spinach and set aside.
• In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat, then while whisking add in flour and onion powder and cook 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Then while whisking slowly stir in milk and increase temperature to medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly until mixture has thickened well. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove from heat and stir in minced garlic and sautéed, chopped spinach. Chop remaining fresh spinach (you should have about 1 1/2 cups chopped), set aside.
• To assemble pizza, spread the spinach béchamel sauce (the white sauce) evenly over pizza crust, leaving the rim uncoated. Sprinkle chopped, fresh spinach over sauce followed by provolone, mozzarella and parmesan cheeses and chopped artichokes. Slide a pizza peel under parchment paper and carefully transfer pizza to hot pizza stone in oven. Bake 10 - 13 minutes until crust is golden brown. Cut into slices and serve warm sprinkled with red pepper flakes to taste if desired.

 

Enjoy!

Read More

One Pan Pizza

INGREDIENTS

For the dough:

• 14 ounces high-gluten flour (bread flour), about 2½ cups
• 2 teaspoons kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon instant yeast
• 1 cup plus 3 tablespoons water

For the Pizzas:

• 4 tablespoons olive oil 
• 1½ cups thick pizza sauce
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 12-16 pieces of pepperoni 

Optional but tasty:

• fresh basil leaves for adding before and after baking

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Mix together all of the dough ingredients until it is evenly moist and there are no more pockets of dry ingredients. Cover the bowl or dough bucket tightly and let it rise for at least 8 but up to 24 hours.
2. Pour 2 tablespoons of neutral oil into a 10 to 12 inch cast-iron skillet. Repeat with a second skillet. Swirl to coat the bottoms of the pans. Divide the risen dough into two pieces. Gently form into a ball by pulling the side of the dough and tucking it under, rotating ¼ turn and repeating the tug and tug, rotating another ¼ turn and repeating the tug and tuck, then finally doing it once more to form a loose ball. Lay it smooth side down in the oil, then flip so the whole thing is coated in oil. Use the palm of your hand to gently flatten the dough. It will not spread to the edges yet, but that is okay. Cover the pan tightly with plastic wrap and set out at room temperature -undisturbed- for 2 hours.

To Prepare the Pizzas:

1. Preheat oven as high as it will go, preferably to 550°F. Remove plastic wrap from the pans with the pizza dough in them. The dough should now have spread itself (or nearly spread itself) to the edges of the pan. Simply lift the edges of dough to pull toward the sides of the pan if necessary. This will help loosen any trapped air under the dough as well. If there are any large air bubbles, nudge them down with the back of a knuckle.
2. Spread half of the sauce on each pizza right to the edges of the dough. Divide the cheese and top each pizza evenly to the edge, then distribute the pepperoni over the pizzas. If using it, tear half of your basil leaves and toss over the tops of the pizzas. Reserve half of the basil to add to the pizzas when they're removed from the oven.
3. Put into the hot oven and bake for 12-20 minutes. You can check the underside of the pizza crust for doneness by lifting the edge gently with a flexible spatula. A finished pizza will have a crisp, deep-brown bottom and a bubbly, golden- to deep-golden brown top. I pull my pizzas when the edges have some deeply caramelized edges and some dark brown bubbles on top.
4. Use your flexible spatula to slide under the pizza and edge it out onto a cutting board, tear the remaining basil and scatter over the pizzas. Let rest for 5 minutes before slicing into wedges, then let it rest without moving it for another 3 minutes before serving.

Read More

Tomato Tortellini Soup

6-7 servings
Ingredients:

1 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup chopped onion
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 bay leaves
Dash of crushed red pepper flakes
2 (28 oz) cans diced tomatoes
1 (32 oz) container vegetable broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup plain Greek yogurt
2 (9 oz) packages fresh or frozen cheese tortellini
Grated Parmesan cheese and fresh basil, for garnish, optional






Instructions:

1. In a large pot, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until tender, about 5 minutes. Stir in the bay leaves and crushed red pepper flakes.

2. Add the diced tomatoes and vegetable broth. Stir in fresh basil and season with salt and black pepper, to taste. Simmer on low for 15 minutes.

3. Remove the bay leaves from the pot. Use a hand immersion blender to blend the soup (or carefully transfer soup to a blender to blend and return to the pot). Stir in the Greek yogurt until well combined. Stir in the cheese tortellini and cook on medium-low until tortellini is cooked, about 7-8 minutes. Serve warm.

Read More

Pepperoni Piza Cake

Ingredients

2  cans Pillsbury™ refrigerated classic pizza crust

1 ½  cups organic pizza sauce (from 15-oz can)

3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese (12 oz)

1 cup sliced pepperoni

1 tablespoon butter, if desired

  Instructions:

1.    Heat oven to 400°F. Lightly spray large cookie sheet with cooking spray or drizzle with olive oil.

2.    Measure diameter of tall-sided ovenproof pan. (Pan used was 6-inch in diameter with 4-inch high side.) Unroll 1 can of dough onto work surface; press out into thin layer. Cut out 3 (6-inch) rounds; place on cookie sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet to cooling rack; cool.

3.    Unroll remaining can of dough; cut 2 additional (6-inch) rounds from long edge of dough, leaving opposite side untouched. Place rounds on cooled cookie sheet. Bake 8 minutes. Remove from cookie sheet; cool.

4.    Meanwhile, line pan with cooking parchment paper so that ends of paper stick up and out of pan. Cut long strip of dough at least 1/2 inch wider than height of pan. Carefully drape long strip of dough around inside edge of pan to line, leaving 1/2 inch hanging over outside edge of pan and bottom of pan open. Pinch seam to seal.

5.    Carefully place 1 partially baked crust round in bottom of pan. Spread pizza sauce over crust; top with pepperoni slices and sprinkle with mozzarella cheese (when cheese melts, crust above will stick to it). Repeat to make 3 more layers. For top layer, place last crust over cheese; sprinkle with remaining cheese and arrange remaining pepperoni on top.

6.    Fold overhanging dough over top layer of pizza cake to make a raised crust edge.

7.    Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until dough around pizza cake is fully cooked. (To test, carefully pull up parchment paper to raise pizza cake out of pan.) Once completely baked, cool in pan 5 minutes. Remove pizza cake from pan; brush crust with butter. Use sharp knife to cut slices like you would a cake.

*If the top crust begins to get too dark, place a strip of foil around the crust edge to prevent it from burning.

*Use any sort of pizza toppings you like, or alternate each layer of pizza with a different set of toppings.

Enjoy!

Read More