Pizza crust 101

Hi girls! I tried to cut and paste the real recipe, but I had no luck. Ash, get with me on this if it is indeed possible. Here is a link to the actual CPK crust recipe that I have in my CPK cookbook. It must be made the day before, and per the exact instructions. I always double the recipe to make two 12" pizzas. The recipe is totally high maintenance, but the result is chewy, authentic crust. You will never go back to a same-day make dough again. Remember to place the dough on a pre-heated pizza stone.

This link also provides the recipe for the bbq chicken pizza. It is delightful! You must use more red onions than listed, and smoked Gouda is a must! The picture above looks to have bacon on it as well. That is a swell addition.

http://www.recipegoldmine.com/ccc/california-pizza-barbecue-chicken.html

This link below, will get you the the carbonara pizza recipe that I made just tonight. Add diced Roma tomatoes to the top for color. I really liked it. (Henry still likes the bbq chicken better, and was actually sort of a hater about this pizza.)

http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Pizza-Carbonara/Detail.aspx

FYI, I killed the yeast on the crust that I made last night. Make sure the water is not too hot.

Can I also give a little shout out to Saf yeast? I have failed so much in the past, but this yeast is fool-proof, if you don't kill it, that is. By it at Bowman's, and Dick's. (if you live in the Davis county bubble.) And to you non-Davis county-ites, you know what I mean.

Lettuce Wraps

My friend Ericka posted this on her blog about a year ago. We have made these a couple of times now- and my family loves them. I have made a few minor adjustments- like leaving out the water chestnuts (yuck!!). They are super easy. Try them and I might just be your new best friend : )

3-4 chicken breasts1 large carrot
(10 baby carrots)
1/2 lb mushrooms
3 green onions
1 red bell pepper
2 large cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 head iceberg or butter lettuce, leaves washed and separated

sauce:
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup brown sugar
2 Tablespoons rice vinegar
1 teaspoon sesame oil
1/2 cup soy sauce
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger

Cook chicken in large pan with a little bit of water until cooked thoroughly.

While the chicken is cooking dice up your veggies. A food processor makes this one of the easiest meals I have ever made. Carrots, red pepper, green onion and mushrooms should all be diced to about the size of a kernel of corn.

Remove the chicken from the pan- it will much easier to cut when cooled.

Saute veggies in 1T oil and 2 cloves of garlic (~1 t minced garlic) and 1/2 t sesame oil.

Mix together sauce ingredients and whisk to combine.

When veggies are soft, add diced chicken and sauce and simmer for about 10-15 minutes.

Serve with rice and lettuce. (my kids liked the mixture both on rice and on lettuce. I liked adding a little bit of rice to my chicken & veggies on the lettuce).

ENJOY!! ( **I have also made this with 1 lb ground spicy sausage in place of the chicken. My 11 year old taste tester Kate LOVED them**)

Rolo Cookies

Confession: I like chocolate best when mixed with caramel!

(twix, skor, rolo, pecan turtles- you get the idea)

Rolo Cookies

2 1/4 c flour

3/4 c cocoa

1 t baking soda

1 c sugar

1 c brown sugar

1 c butter, softened

2 t vanilla

2 eggs

48 Rolo- i bought a 12 oz bag and had more dough than rolos

sugar for rolling

In a small bowl combine flour, cocoa and baking soda

In a large mixing bowl, beat sugars and butter until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, beat well. Add flour mixture and blend well.

With floured hands wrap about 1 tablespoon of dough around an (unwrapped) rolo. roll in sugar- and place on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 7-10 min- just until they are set and slightly cracked.

Annie thought that they were so good they shouldn't just be cookie of the month- they should be cookie of the year!!

Soft Molassas Cookies

Judy Brown's Soft Molassas Cookies
( aka supersoft gingersnaps - from Favorites)
1 1/2 c butter
2 c brown sugar
2 eggs
1/2 c molasses
4 1/2 c flour
4 teaspoons baking soda (this is not a typo!)
2 teaspoons cinnamon2 teaspoons ground ginger
1 teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 teaspoon salt

Cream butter and brown sugar. Add eggs and molasses and mix well. Add dry ingredients. Roll into balls with a cookie scoop and roll balls in sugar. Bake on ungreased cookie sheets at 375 for 10 minutes.These make wonderful holiday cookies!

Gram's Gingerbread Boys

Today I made Gingerbread boys with Cori. She hummed and serenaded me with beautiful Christmas songs as I mixed, rolled and cut out the most delish little men ever to be covered with frosting. Cori is a wonderful baker and an amazing song writer- what a gift to be able to turn tender feelings into words.

Thank you Cori for filling my kitchen today with wonderful smells, treats and sounds! Here's the recipe for her gingerbread cookies and for her music visit http://www.coriconnors.com/

Gram's Gingerbread Boys (via Cori) * revised

1/4 c butter

1/4 c butter flavored crisco

1/2 c brown sugar

1/2 c molasses

1/2 t cider vinegar

1/2 c buttermilk

3 c flour

1/2 t salt

1 t baking soda

1 t ground ginger

2 t cinnamon

First off follow the recipe EXACTLY! (or your cookies will be less than delish- trust me!) Cream shortening, butter and sugar. Mix in molasses and vinegar. Mix a cup of flour with the spices. and mix into batter. Then alternate adding flour and buttermilk. ("start with flour and end with flour") CHILL for at least a few hours to over night. Roll out thick and bake at 375 for 6-10 minutes. (6 min was perfect in my oven- don't over bake if you want them soft). Cool and frost with butter cream frosting.

Yummy butter cream frosting

1/2 cup butter softened

1t vanilla

1/4 t salt

1/3-1/2 cup EVAPORATED milk

4 cups powdered sugar

beat the butter until fluffy, add additional ingredients, alternate adding powdered sugar and milk until desired consistency, should be thin enough to spread so the frosting appears smooth on the top of the cookie. The frosting will harden slightly and you can used a pastry bag to pipe on additional decorations.

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Cookies

Rachaels' Pumpkin Cookies (from Favorites)
3 cups canned pumpkin
2 eggs
2 t vanilla
1 cup oil
2 t nutmeg
2 t cinnamon
2 t baking soda
2 t baking powder
3 cups sugar
1 t salt
5 cups flour
1 1/2 c chocolate chips


In a large bowl, combine pumpkin, eggs, vanilla, oil, nutmeg, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, sugar and salt and mix well. Add flour and mix to combine. Stir in chocolate chips. Drop dough onto ungreased cookie sheets and bake at 350 for 15 minutes.



Browned Butter Frosting
1 c. butter
4 c. powdered sugar
1/4 c milk ( i use evaporated milk in frosting)
1 t vanilla


melt the butter on the stove in small sauce pan until melted and it begins to brown. (watch it close so it doesn't burn) add to powdered sugar and slowly add milk until smooth, add vanilla -Frost and enjoy!!!

Brown Sugar Muffins

1/2 butter softened
1 c. brown sugar
1 egg
1 t vanilla
1 c. milk
2 c. flour
1/4 t salt
1 t baking soda

Cream butter and sugar, beat in egg and vanilla. Stir in milk. Add dry ingredients and stir. Pour into greased muffin pan. (makes about 12 regular sized muffins) Bake at 375 for 15 minutes.

We had these tonight with Cauliflower soup!! yummmmm!!!