Homemade Breadsticks (using pizza dough scraps)

As mentioned in my tutorial, this recipe was accidental. I didn't want to waste any of my homemade pizza dough that took nearly 2 hours to rise so I thought, "hey, why the heck not??"

These are yummy, soft, and SUPER CHEESY!!

Did I mention, CHEESY?!?

Ingredients:

pizza dough scraps (or get the recipe for the dough here)
4 ounce stick of unsalted butter
onion powder
garlic powder
freshly grated mozzarella
freshly grated parmesan

Additional items needed:

parchment paper
aluminum baking sheet (do not use dark/nonstick baking sheets)
cornmeal

INSTRUCTIONS:

1. Move your oven rack to the lowest rack. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Over low heat, melt your butter. As the foam rises, carefully scoop it out. Be careful because the butter may spatter! Strain the butter and set it aside.
3. Take a piece of parchment paper and place it on your baking sheet. Sprinkle some cornmeal on it and set aside.
4. On a lightly floured surface, gather up your dough scraps and form a ball. Roll it out into a small rectangle about 1/4 inch thick and place it onto your baking sheet with parchment paper.
5. Using a pizza slicer, slice your bread sticks about 1 inch apart from each other. Cover loosely with saran wrap and wait for them to almost double in size, about 20-30 minutes.
6. Coat your bread sticks with the clarified butter and then top it off with some onion powder, garlic powder (lots of it), mozzarella, and then finally your parmesan.
7. Bake until the cheese has fully melted and you see some slight brown spots on the outer edges. Serve immediately!

Notes: In the tutorial, I tested these out on the baker's stone and I did not like the result. Unless you like your bread sticks crunchy on the bottom, I'd recommend against it. I love them on an aluminum baking sheet though! So soft and moist! Also, I realize that parchment paper isn't meant to withstand temps as high as 450 degrees F. but keep in mind that it isn't in there that long. The edges will begin to brown, but that's it. If you choose to, you may omit the parchment paper and spray some cooking spray on the baking sheet first, sprinkle on some cornmeal, and then place your dough on top of that.

Serve it with my homemade marinara sauce!

Meat Lovers, and Hawaiian Pizza

[caption id="attachment_1327" align="alignnone" width="640"] My Meat Lovers Pizza.[/caption]

 

Who doesn't love a homemade pizza?!? If you're saying you don't, well then...we can't possibly be friends!

Honestly, I was never a fan on pizza until I started making them at home. I used to make pizza years ago and it was oh, so good! I lost the recipe though so I had to start from the bottom and well, that was kind of frustrating.

After a couple of failed attempts, I think I can finally say that I do homemade pizza justice!

Don't believe me??

Give it a go and you be the judge! :)

Ingredients for the Meat Lovers Pizza:

one prepared pizza dough
1/4 cup to 1/3 cup of red sauce
6-8 ounces of freshly grated mozzarella
1/2 a pound of sweet Italian sausage
1 small onion, sliced
pepperoni ( I prefer turkey pepperoni)
uncured turkey bacon
olive oil
butter
salt
pepper
garlic powder
onion powder

Additional items needed:

pizza stone or aluminum baking sheet (do not use dark/non stick ones)
inverted round pizza pan or bakers peel
corn meal
parchment paper
pizza slicer or kitchen scissors

Instructions:

1. Place your pizza stone on the lowest rack in your oven. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees F for 30-45 minutes. While your pizza stone is heating, work on your pizza toppings.
2. In a hot skillet, add some olive oil and butter. Add in your sliced onions and season with salt and pepper. Turn heat down to medium low and cook until caramelized, about 30 minutes. Stir frequently to prevent burning. Drain on paper towels.
3. In the same skillet, add a little bit of olive oil and then add in your Italian sausage. If it's in the casing still, be sure to remove the casing before cooking. Season with some garlic and onion powder and cook until browned. Drain on paper towels.
4. Get a round pizza pan and flip it upside down. Place a piece of parchment paper on top of it and then sprinkle on a big pinch of cornmeal. Set aside.
5. On a lightly floured surface, roll out your pizza dough into a 12-14 inch circle. If you are using a homemade dough, make sure you wait 8-10 minutes before rolling it out. Place your dough onto the parchment paper with cornmeal.
6. Using the pizza slicer, trim the outer edges to make a cleaner circle (or leave as is, as long as it can fit on the baker's peel/pizza stone, you're okay). Keep the excess dough to make bread sticks!
7. Top the pizza with some red sauce,  leaving a 1/2 inch border around the edges. Sprinkle on your mozzarella. Continue by adding your pepperoni, Italian sausage, uncured turkey bacon, and caramelized onions. You must work quickly here--if too much time passes, your dough may begin to stick to the parchment paper and it may get difficult to remove it, later.
8. Gently slide your pizza (with the parchment paper) onto the baker's stone, close the oven door, and TURN THE TEMPERATURE DOWN TO 475 DEGREES F. After about 2-3 minutes, open the oven door and gently REMOVE THE PARCHMENT PAPER FROM UNDERNEATH THE PIZZA (or else it will burn). Close the oven door, and continue to cook for 7-8 minutes, or until the crust is slightly golden brown and your cheese has melted.

My Hawaiian Pizza.

 

For the Hawaiian pizza:

one prepared pizza dough
1/4 cup to 1/3 cup of red sauce
6-8 ounces of freshly grated mozzarella
3-4 button mushrooms, sliced
3-4 slices of uncured turkey bacon (or Canadian bacon), cut into 1/2 inch pieces
some thinly sliced pineapple

Instructions:

Follow the same instructions as stated above, except use the ingredients for the Hawaiian pizza instead! Easy, right?? :)

NOTES:  Different pans will yield different results. Using a pizza stone will give you the best result if you like  your pizza crust thin and crunchy. You may use a regular aluminum baking sheet but your crust will be slightly puffier. You may try poking your raw pizza dough crust all over with a fork and then par bake the crust for a few minutes before you add on your cheese and toppings if you want to achieve a thin crust without a pizza stone.

Marinara Sauce

[caption id="attachment_1315" align="alignnone" width="640"] Chunky spaghetti using my homemade marinara sauce![/caption]

 

I'm sure everyone can name at least half a dozen things to make with homemade marinara sauce! My favorite (and my kids' favorite) is chunky spaghetti sauce! What's your favorite thing to make with marinara sauce?!?

With this versatile sauce, the possibilities are endless!

Ingredients:

1 can (28 ounces) of crushed tomatoes(preferably San Marzano tomatoes)
2 cups of finely chopped onions
1 cup of low sodium chicken stock
4 cloves of chopped garlic
1 tsp of salt
small pinch of chili flakes
1 Tbsp of soy sauce
1/4 tsp of black pepper
2 Tbsp of brown sugar
1/2 tsp of herbs de provence
1 tsp of dried parsley
olive oil

Instructions:

1. Pour some olive oil into a hot skillet. Toss in your onions and add a pinch of salt. Cook until softened, about a couple of minutes.
2. Add in your garlic and a small pinch of chili flakes and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
3. Add in your crushed tomatoes, chicken stock, brown sugar, soy sauce, salt, black pepper, herbs de provence, and dried parsley.
4. Simmer, uncovered on low heat for one hour until the sauce thickens. Stir frequently. Taste check. I added about 1/2 Tbsp more of soy sauce and 1/2 Tbsp more of brown sugar in mine, fyi. :)

Notes:
If you'd like a smoother texture, feel free to blend the marinara sauce in your blender or use a hand immersion blender right in the skillet. Store any leftover sauce in an airtight container in the fridge. Use in 2 weeks or freeze for longer use.

Homemade Pizza Dough

Is there anything more glorious than homemade pizza dough?? Okay, maybe not everyone feels the same way as I do about pizza dough, but one thing's for sure; homemade beats store bought ANY DAY!

Ingredients:

1 cup of warm water
2 1/4 tsp of active dry yeast
1 Tbsp of extra virgin olive oil(plus more to coat the mixing bowl)
1 Tbsp of honey
3 cups of all purpose flour (plus 2-3 more Tbsp for kneading)
1/4 cup of grated parmesan
1 tsp of salt

Instructions:


1. Add your warm water into a large mixing bowl. Sprinkle in your yeast, olive oil, and honey and wait until mixture looks creamy (about 5 minutes).
2. Add in half of the flour and mix well.
3. Add in the rest of the flour, along with the parmesan cheese, and salt. Mix well with a wooden spoon, and then proceed to mix with your hands. Add more flour (a Tbsp at a time), until dough forms a ball. You may transfer dough onto a lightly floured surface and continue to knead for 5 more minutes. Dough should remain slightly tacky.
4. Place dough into a lightly oiled mixing bowl and toss to coat. Cover with saran wrap, and allow for it to double in size, about 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
5. Punch dough down and wait for 10 minutes (to relax the gluten a bit) before rolling it out.

NOTES: Use this pizza dough for homemade pizza. You can find my recipe here. Or for my homemade breadsticks, click here.

Banh Januk (glutinous rice balls in sweet ginger syrup and coconut milk)

Today's post is another popular Cambodian dessert. It will always be one of my favorite desserts, EVER! The rice balls are filled with cooked mung bean and then cooked to perfection. You place them into a serving bowl and then add a little bit of the sweet ginger syrup and then top it all off with some coconut milk and roasted sesame seeds. YUM, right?!?

FOR THE FILLING:

8 ounces of peeled/split mung beans
2 cups of warm water

FOR THE DOUGH:

1 lb of glutinous rice flour
1 1/2 cups to 2 cups of LUKE WARM WATER

FOR THE GINGER SYRUP:

1 large piece of ginger, peeled and sliced
6 cups of water
6 pieces of palm sugar (or 12.5 ounces)
1/2 tsp of salt

FOR THE COCONUT SAUCE:

1 can of coconut milk (14 ounces)
1/2 tsp of salt
2 tsp of corn starch

Additional items:

toasted sesame seeds
ice water bath
Melon baller(optional)

1. Place your mung beans into your rice pot/steamer. Don't have a rice cooker? Get creative. :) Wash the mung beans really well. Drain them and repeat process, at least 3 more times. Add in 2 cups of warm water, and then soak for 1 hour before steaming. Steam until done.
2. Meanwhile, slice up your ginger.
3. Boil 6 cups of water and add in your palm sugar, ginger, and salt. Stir to combine. Once your palm sugar has fully melted, bring everything to a quick rolling boil and then turn it down, and allow your ginger syrup to simmer for 15 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
4. Place your coconut milk into a small saucepan. Add in your salt and allow it to come to a gentle simmer. Do not walk away or else your coconut milk could boil over! Place your corn starch into a small bowl, add in some of the hot coconut milk, and then stir until smooth. Pour your corn starch mixture into the saucepan. Cook until slightly thickened and then remove from heat.
5. Is your mung bean done steaming? If so, add in your salt and then mix until softened. If you're rolling your filling by hand and not using a melon baller like me, then do so now.
6. Place your glutinous rice flour into a very large (and shallow) mixing bowl. Start off with 1 1/2 cups of luke warm water, and then gradually add the rest in until it starts to form a ball. Knead for additional 2-3 minutes.
7. Boil a large pot of water.
8. Pinch off a piece of dough (quarter size) and work it into a smooth ball. Flatten it out with the palm of your hand, and using your melon baller, scoop some of your mung bean filling into the middle. Pinch to seal and then GENTLY, smooth it out to form a ball again. You are done at this point but you may also flatten it out, as well. Using your palm, gently flatten it out and repeat process with the rest of the dough. Don't forget to make some tiny, rice balls (without the filling). Get your kids to help with this part! :)
9. Add your finished rice balls into your pot of boiling water. They are finished when they all float to the top. Using a slotted spoon, remove and place them into an ice water bath for a few minutes.

HOW TO ASSEMBLE:

Add some glutinous rice balls into a small serving bowl. Then, add a little bit of the sweet ginger syrup. Top if off with some coconut milk and then some sesame seeds. YUM!!

NOTES: These are best served immediately! They do not refrigerate well. Also, the sugar syrup may taste a little sweet to you but once you assemble everything together, it should taste just right! :) You can also make the mung bean filling ahead. After you're done steaming them, shape them into balls and then place them onto a baking sheet in a SINGLE LAYER and then freeze. Once frozen, you may put the filling into a ziplock baggie and store for future use. Just remove from freezer and thaw before using! :)