Roasted Garlic French Bread Pizza

This recipe is for simple roasted garlic French bread pizza.  I love pizza but I love it more when it’s loaded with garlic.  In this recipe, I prepared some roasted garlic and used it as the first layer on the French bread.  I covered it with sauce and plenty of cheese and voila!  The outcome is a delicious, crusty, garlicky cheesy pizza.  Enjoy!

Roasted Garlic French Bread Pizza

Ingredients

¨            2 heads of garlic

¨            Extra virgin olive oil

¨            1 loaf of crusty French bread

¨            1-8 ounce bag of mozzarella cheese

¨            1 jar of pasta or pizza sauce of your choice

 

Directions

1.    Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

2.   Cut ½ inch off the top of the garlic.  All of the cloves should be exposed.  Place inside muffin tin and drizzle with olive oil.  Cover with aluminum foil and cook for 35 minutes in oven.

3.   Adjust temperature in oven to 350 degrees.

4.   Cut French bread in half lengthwise.

5.   Remove garlic from oven and allow to cool slightly.  Use butter knife to remove cloves and spread garlic on bread.  Cover the bread with all of the garlic. 

6.   Cover the garlic with pizza sauce.  I like extra sauce but you can use what you like.

7.   Cover the pizza sauce with mozzarella cheese.

8.   Bake in oven for 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and browned to suit your taste.

Overall

This pizza turned out delicious.  Next time I make this, I will use some artichokes and sundried tomatoes as a topping.  Delicious and easy to make. 

Frugality

The French bread was $2, the pizza sauce was $1.50, the mozzarella was $2.50 and the garlic was $.50 all from Fresh and Easy.  The total for this meal is $6.50 and much tastier than you can get from your local pizzeria.

Look Forward To

I still have a broccoli to use and there’s a shopping trip in my near future.

Lemon Garlic Grilled Artichokes

I love this recipe for fresh artichokes.  It combines some of my favorite flavors- garlic, lemon and olive oil. 

Lemon Garlic Grilled Artichokes

 

Ingredients

¨           2 large fresh artichokes

¨            2 cloves garlic, minced

¨            The juice of one lemon

¨            ¼ cup of olive oil

¨            Salt, to taste

 

Directions

1.    Clean artichokes and cut into quarters.  Remove the choke.

2.   Boil artichokes for about 10-12 minutes.  You should be able to easily stick a fork in the heart when they are done.

3.   While artichokes are cooking combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon juice and salt, mix.

4.   Place cooked artichokes into large bowl, cover with olive oil mixture.  Allow to marinate for at least 15 minutes.

5.   Grill artichokes until edges are light brown, enjoy!

Overall

This is my favorite way to prepare fresh artichokes.  

Frugality

The artichokes were 2 for $3 and the lemon was $.44.  All of the other ingredients were on hand.  The total for this side dish is $3.44.

Roasted Peppers

This is my favorite way to prepare red peppers.  This can be served in a variety of ways; you could eat them plain, with meat, in pasta or in salad.  I like to scramble them with eggs.  Enjoy!

 

Roasted Peppers

Ingredients

¨            5 bell peppers (I had 3 red and 2 green)

¨            1 clove minced garlic

¨            2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

¨            Salt to taste

 

Directions

1.    Scrub the outsides of the bell peppers.

2.   Place over medium heat on grill or on oven roasting pan, allow skins to char and burn slightly.  Turn as necessary so all sides are crisp.

3.   Place in large bowl and cover with towel.  This will allow peppers to steam so the skins will come off easily.  Allow cooling enough so you can handle them without burning your hands.

4.   With clean hands, peel the charred skins off of the peppers.  Remove seeds and cut peppers into strips.

5.   Place strips into jar or storage container.  Add olive oil, salt and garlic.  Allow peppers to marinade in oil and garlic over night.  Serve as you desire (mine will be scrambled with eggs).

Overall

YUMMMMM!!!  These peppers are so yummy!  This is a great way to prepare bell peppers.  You can use them in other recipes or just eat them as an antipasti dish. 

Frugality

The peppers were on sale 3 for $1.  The garlic and olive oil were on hand.  The total for these peppers is less than $2! 

Look Forward To

I still have 2 artichokes, a broccoli, a cauliflower, some lemon, some onions and 12 plums to work with. 

Marinated Grilled Portabella Mushroom

This is my favorite way to prepare portabella mushrooms.  You can eat them plain, like a steak or on a bun, like a burger.  The end product is a delicious alternative to meat with tons of flavor.

Marinated Grilled Portabella Mushrooms

Ingredients

o   2 large portabella mushrooms

o   2 cloves minced garlic

o   2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

o   2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

o   2 teaspoons oregano

o   salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions

1.    Clean mushrooms by taking a moist paper towel and wiping them down.  Do not run under water, as this will make your mushrooms soggy.

2.   Place mushrooms face up in baking dish large enough for both mushrooms to lay flat.

3.   Cover mushrooms with garlic, olive oil, vinegar, oregano and salt and pepper.  Allow time to marinade (at least 15 minutes).

4.   Preheat grill to medium heat.  Add mushrooms face up so the marinade has more time to soak in. 

5.   Cook about 5 minutes on each side, or until desired firmness.

6.   Serve warm either plain or on bun.  Enjoy!

Overall

The end result of this recipe is a very meaty, garlicy delicious addition to your meal.  Serve along side my herbed spaghetti squash http://thefrugalveg.blogspot.com/2011/09/herbed-spaghetti-squash.html.  

Frugality

The mushrooms were $3 and everything else was on hand. 

Look Forward To

I will be picking up my produce basket from my local co-op tomorrow.  I’m looking forward to discovering my new foods to work with next week!