Vegetable Pizza

Lately I've been making this vegetable pizza for us. My hubby and I really like this pizza and are usually the only ones who will eat it. I used my recipe for Tony's Pizza Dough here on this blog. Instead of using a marinara-type pizza sauce, I used ranch dressing instead. You could even use a alfredo sauce or a basil-pesto sauce (from Costco) too. The types of vegetables you use are endless. I layer spinach leaves over the sauce before adding the other vegetables.

Vegetable Pizza

1 batch of pizza dough
Choice of sauce
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Vegetables: spinach, mushrooms, olives, zucchini, summer squash, onions, bell peppers, canned artichokes and tomatoes.

Preheat oven to 400 F degrees. Roll out part of the dough into a 12-14 inch circle. Spread sauce over dough, add spinach leaves, sprinkle about a 1/2 cup of cheese over the spinach, then top with desired vegetables and saving tomatoes till last. Sprinkle more cheese over vegetables. Add tomatoes last and arrange in a nice decorative pattern on top. Bake for 15-20 minutes until crust is a nice golden brown. Remove, cool slightly, slice and serve.

Other pizza ideas:
BBQ chicken: BBQ sauce, pre-cooked chicken, mozzarella cheese, purple onion
Marguerita: Basil-pesto sauce, mozzarella cheese, sliced tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil
Hawaiian: Marinara sauce, sliced canadian bacon, fresh pineapple chunks

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

Since it's zucchini season, I decided that this would be the perfect time to pull out our favorite chocolate recipe that hides this yummy veggie and makes this cake very moist. My friend Rick loves this recipe and couldn't seem to quit with just one piece when I recently brought it to a potluck. He has no problems with veggies being mixed into his favorite desserts. He only wished he had a glass of milk to go with it. LOL! So for those of you who might have an abundance of zucchini in your gardens this season, this would be the perfect recipe to help use some of them up. Go ahead...give it a try...you won't regret it!

Chocolate Zucchini Cake

1/2 cup vegetable oil
1 1/2 cups white sugar
2 teas. vanilla extract
2 cups flour
1/2 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 teas. baking soda
1 teas. salt
2 cups shredded zucchini
1 egg
1/4 cup water

Preheat oven to 350 F degrees. Grease and flour a 9 x 13" baking dish.

In a large bowl, mix together the oil, sugar and vanilla until well blended. Add the flour, cocoa, baking soda and salt. Fold in zucchini, egg and water. Spread evenly into prepared pan.

Bake for 25-30 minutes in preheated oven until toothpick comes out clean. Cool completely before adding frosting. Slice and serve.

Scaldoni's Greek Pasta Salad

About 8 or 9 years ago, I attended a cooking class for Homemaking (back when it was called that) and we were fortunate enough to have the chef from a local restaurant here in town called Scaldoni's come and demonstrate this yummy pasta salad for us. For some reason, no one bothered to right down the recipe as he was demonstrating it. I was the only one. Goes to show you my true dedication to cooking was a little OCD-ish back then too. With that in mind and because I make it all the time, people seem to think that it's my recipe. I unfortunately can't take credit for this recipe as much as I want to. And believe me...I do! I think this is one pasta salad that I could never get sick of eating. The flavors of each of the ingredients blended together works perfectly. The tartness of the vinegar, the tang from the feta and the mild hot flavor from the pepperoncinis is all very delightful. So with that said, I hope you enjoy it as much as those who are lucky enough to eat this salad. I also love how healthy this recipe is. You could even use the new whole wheat versions of pasta and it would be so much more healthier.

Note: Each of the ingredients that were demonstrated that night never had exact amounts. And to this day I have never used exact amounts. You basically have to eyeball the amount and add each one to your liking. I really don't care for onions, but I know other people do, so I still add it but I slice them small so they don't affect me too much. Also, I really like the look of the bowtie pasta, but other shapes can be used too. A good rule of thumb is to cut the veggies around the same size as the pasta. Mainly the onions, cucumbers and tomatoes. Make sure you don't buy yellow banana peppers, look for the jar that says "peperoncinis". There's a difference!



Scaldoni's Greek Pasta Salad

12-16 oz. box of pasta: bowties, spiral, rigatoni or penne, cooked
Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Greek Seasoning mix (see pic above)
1 large can of olives, sliced
1 large cucumber, seeded and cubed
1 container of feta cheese
2-3 roma tomatoes, seeded and cubed
1 jar of deli-sliced, greek peperoncinis
1 purple onion, sliced

Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, prepare veggies and set aside. Drain pasta in strainer and pour back into pot to cool. DO NOT RUN COLD WATER OVER PASTA! The starch gets washed away and makes it hard for the pasta soak in the flavorings of each of the ingredients. Just keep tossing it to let out the heat. You may add a few tablespoons of olive oil to loosen the pasta so it doesn't stick. The cooling process takes a while so plan accordingly.

Once pasta has cooled, start adding enough red wine vinegar, oil and seasoning to coat the pasta lightly. Start out minimally so that it doesn't overpower the pasta at the beginning. Add in each of the veggies and season once again with the vinegar, oil and seasoning. Toss completely. Taste test the pasta to see if flavor is to your liking. It should taste tangy and somewhat peppery from the seasoning and peperoncinis. Add in feta cheese at the very end. Store in airtight container in refridgerator until ready to serve. Nostimmos! (Greek for delicious!)

Panang Curry over Rice

A few months ago some friends and I went out for dinner at a Thai restaurant here in town called Benja's Thai. This was our first time eating there and we loved it! Later, I decided that would be a great place to go again for our anniversary. Kerry and I had the same dishes my friends and I had earlier. And he loved them! Well, in my quest to try to recreate recipes that I try in restaurants, the hunt for the right ingredients began... In my research online, I discovered that some of the ingredients weren't available in most grocery stores and would need to be purchased in a speciality store. So I gave up hope in making it on my own. Well guess what? Little did I know that I was going to find this wonderful jar of already made Panang Curry in my grocery store's Asian section. Along with this jar of Chili Garlic Sauce...


I was so excited to try out my new discovery! The premade curry sauce made this recipe very simple to put together. In the time I was steaming rice, I was able to chop the veggies, add the two sauces, heat and dinner was ready in about 25-30 minutes.

(A Rick "warning"... no mushrooms on this guy's plate!)

Panang Curry over Rice

2 cups of chopped veggies, sauteed in skillet
1/2 lb. chicken, cubed (or shrimp)
1 jar of Thai Kitchen Panang Curry
1 teas. Chili Garlic sauce
Precooked rice, warm and ready to eat

The directions to this recipe is located on the back of the bottle of curry sauce. I used carrots, mushrooms, zucchini, and broccoli with chicken. You may also use: bell peppers, onions, potatoes, etc...

Once the meat and the veggies are cooked, add both sauces and heat till warmed. Pour mixture over warmed rice and serve.

Notes: The sauce should be runny and there should also be a little more sauce than veggies. That's the typical way it was presented to us at the restaurant. Also, they asked us what level of "heat" we wanted our dish to be. So if you would like to taste the red chilies more in your dish, then add more of the chili garlic sauce.

Oatmeal Toffee Graham bars

It would appear by the amount of bar cookie-type recipes I have on this blog, that I really love to make bar cookies. Which is really not the case, but I have found lately that I really like the amount of different layers and flavors you get when you eat a bar cookie. And I must say that this recipe really fits in that category. I think this recipe is definately going to get rave reviews from all of you and those who get to savor it's every layer. Although I can't take the credit for the recipe, I will kindly say that BHG.com has a winner of a treat.

Oatmeal Toffee Graham Bars

8-12 whole graham crackers (rectangles)
1 1/2 cups oatmeal
3/4 cup white sugar
3/4 cup brown sugar
3 tbls. flour
2/3 cup butter, melted
1 egg
1 teas. vanilla
1 (12 oz.) pkg. semi-sweet chocolate chips
1 cup chopped or silvered almonds

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.

Line a 9 x 13" baking pan with foil, extending foil beyond edges of pan. Arrange whole graham crackers in a single layer in prepared pan. Cut grahams into smaller pieces to fit into smaller areas.

In a large bowl combine the oats, sugars, and flour. Stir in melted butter, egg, and vanilla until well combined. Spoon over graham crackers and spread evenly to edges of pan to cover graham crackers.

Bake for 20 to 25 minutes or until oat mixture bubbles and is lightly browned on top. Remove from oven and sprinkle with chocolate pieces. Return to oven for 1 minute. Remove from oven. Spread melted chocolate over top to cover. Evenly sprinkle with almonds. Cool in pan on a wire rack. Use foil to lift from pan. Cut or break into bars.

Notes: You may change the chocolate chips to milk chocolate or bittersweet depending your liking. And you may also change the almonds to pecans or for the real extreme...coconut!