Basic Pizza Dough (Food Nanny)

Makes one 16-inch or two 12-inch pizza crusts.

1 TB active dry yeast
1 C warm water
2 TB olive oil
1 TB honey
1/4 tsp salt
3-4 C all purpose flour

1. Mix the yeast and water in a small bowl, and let stand until foamy, 5 to 10 minutes.

2. Mix the oil, honey, salt, and yeast mixture in a large mixing bowl. Add 1 cup of flour at a time, mixing well after each addition.

If the dough seems too wet, mix in more flour, 1/4 cup at a time, until the dough is soft. Turn the dough onto a floured surface and knead in more flour, 1/4 cup at a time until the dough is moderately stiff adn somewhat firm to the touch, about 6 minutes.

3. Lightly grease pizza pans. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough on a floured surface. Gently stretch the dough to fill the pan.

4. Let the dough rise (it will not rise very much) while you make sauce and continue with the pizza recipe of your choice.

5. Bake 425 degrees for 10-15 minutes

Strawberries'n'Cream Trifle

Ingredients:
Small sponge cake, pound cake, or lady fingers
Large box of Jell-O Vanilla pudding
Tub of Cool Whip or 1 quart of whipped cream
Fresh strawberries cut into slices
Whole strawberries for garnish
Red jam of your choice

Make vanilla pudding following the instructions on the box. Put in medium sized mixing bowl. If it's the cook and serve, chill in the fridge. Add half the cool whip/whipped cream to cooled pudding. Break cake up into bite size pieces. Line a trifle dish* with cake bits. Drop a thin layer of jam on top of cake. Drop on a layer of pudding on next. Layer strawberry slices on top of pudding. Repeat layers until dish is full. Finish with a generous layer of whipped cream and garnish with whole strawberries. Serve immediately.

*We made individual servings in iced tea glasses since we do not have a trifle dish.

Cottage Pie 2

From Lara

1 1/2 pounds of mashed potatoes (whipped with milk, cream, sour cream, however you like)
2 TB canola oil
1 cup chopped onion
2 carrots, peeled and sliced small
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 1/2 ground beef (or ground lamb for traditional shepherd's pie)
1 1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/2 teaspoon of pepper
2 TB flour
2 TB tomato paste
1 cup chicken or beef broth
1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons freshly chopped rosemary leaves*
1 teaspoon freshly chopped thyme leaves*
1/2 cup fresh or frozen corn kernels
1/2 cup fresh or frozen peas

While potatoes are boiling before mashing, make beef filling.

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Place canola oil into a 12 inch saute pan and set over medium-high heat. Once the oil shimmers, add onion and carrots and saute until they begin to take on color, approximately 3 to 4 minutes. Add garlic and stir to combine. Add ground beef (or lamb), salt, and pepper and cook until browned and cooked through. Sprinkle meat with flour and toss to coat, continuing to cook another minute. Add tomato paste, broth, Worcestershire sauce, rosemary, and thyme and stir to combine. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover and simmer slowly 10 to 12 minutes or until the sauce is thickened slightly.

Add the corn and peas to the meat mix and spread evenly into an 11 by 7 inch glass baking dish. Top with mashed potatoes, starting around the edges to create a seal to prevent the mixture from bubbling up, and smooth with a rubber spatula. Bake on the middle rack of the oven for 25 minutes or just until the potatoes begin to brown. Remove to a cooling rack for at least 15 minutes before serving.

*I didn't have these herbs fresh, so I just used a dash of the dried herbs.

Doctored Cake Mix Recipe

These tweaks make a cake-mix cake denser, moister, and more like a pound cake. Perfect for carving or stacking for fancier cakes.

Cake mix
4 eggs
1 1/4 cup milk (whole milk will give best results)
1 TB oil
1 small box (4 serving) of powdered pudding mix of a complimentary flavor.

Mix ingredients together. Pour into greased cake pan and bake at 300-325 for a little longer than recommendations based on the cake mix instructions. Just check with a tooth pick every 10 minutes longer than the recommended time.

Delicious!

Roasted Chicken Lettuce Wraps with Spicy Coconut Curry Peanut Sauce

Coconut Curry Sauce

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup creamy peanut butter
• 1/2 cup Lite coconut milk
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• Juice of 1 lime
• 2 tbsp honey
• 1-2 tbsp red curry paste
• 1 tbsp soy sauce
• 1 tsp fresh minced ginger
• 1/2 tsp garlic

Method:

In a medium sized bowl whisk together peanut butter, coconut milk, orange juice, lime juice, and honey. Add curry, soy sauce, ginger, and garlic.

Mix until smooth and even and set aside.

Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:

• 1 Rotisserie chicken, shredded or sliced
• 1 pint red, orange, and yellow mini bell peppers, thinly sliced
• 2-3 cups matchstick carrots
• 1 oz can water chestnuts, drained and chopped
• 3-4 green onions, sliced
• 2 oranges; skins removed and thinly sliced
• Zest from 2 oranges
• 1 head of lettuce leaves rinsed and patted dry
• Chopped peanuts
• Snipped cilantro
• Wonton strips (optional)
• Lime wedges

Method:

In a sauté pan over medium heat, pour desired amount of curry sauce over sliced chicken. Heat for 1-2 minutes, or until sauce starts to bubble. Remove from heat.In a sauté pan over medium heat, pour desired amount of curry sauce over sliced chicken. Heat for 1-2 minutes, or until sauce starts to bubble. Remove from heat.

To assemble wraps:

Place curry chicken inside lettuce leaf, top with carrots, chestnuts, peppers, cilantro, green onions, peanuts and wonton strips. Squeeze lime juice over top, if desired.

Makes 4-6 servings

Amy Richardson Studio 5

Royal Icing

3 egg whites
4 cups confectioners' sugar
1/2 tsp. cream of tartar
1/2 tsp. almond extract or white vanilla extract

Place all ingredients in bowl and beat on medium high for a full 10 minutes. Icing will become thick and glossy but will not increase in volume. Keep covered with damp cloth while using, removing small portions to bowl as needed. Tint if desired. To thin, add a few drops of water. Royal icing hardens with a nice sheen.

Gingerbread

4 cups of flour
1 cup of sugar
2 TB baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp clove
1 1/2 tsp ginger
1 1/2 tsp cinnamon
1 cup shortening
2/3 cup molasses
2 eggs

Mix together. Grease and flour pan; use either a large sheet cake pan, or divide dough and make thinner gingerbread in two cookie sheets. Press/roll into pan. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes. If using the smaller cookie sheets, reduce baking time to 18 minutes. Let cool for a few minutes. While gingerbread is still warm and soft, cut out shapes for the gingerbread house. Cool on rack. Assemble with royal icing when cool.