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.

9-Layer Taco Dip (Vegetarian)

This recipe is for a 9-layer taco dip.  It is my first time making it.  I used a traditional 7 layer dip recipe and adjusted it to suit my tastes and what I had on-hand.  The end result is a delicious appetizer with many delicious flavors working together.  Enjoy!

9-Layer Taco Dip (Vegetarian)

Ingredients

¨            1 can vegetarian refried beans

¨            1 can black beans

¨            1 container of sour cream

¨            1 block of cream cheese, softened

¨            1 pack of taco seasoning of your choice

¨            2 ripe avocados

¨            1 can corn

¨            1 jar salsa of your choice

¨            ¼ cup sliced green onions

¨            2 cups Mexican cheese

¨            ¼ cup sliced black olives

 

Directions

1.    In 9” square glass pan, spread layer of refried beans on bottom of pan.

2.   Add layer of drained, rinsed black beans

3.   In separate bowl, combine sour cream, cream cheese and ½ of the taco seasoning.  Stir to mix.  Spread over the beans to make the 3^rd layer.

4.   Spread salsa over the sour cream mixture.

5.   In separate bowl, mix avocado and rest of the taco seasoning.  Spread over salsa to make the 5^th layer.

6.   Spread green onions over avocado, this is your 6^th layer.

7.   Spread can of corn over green onions. (layer 7)

8.   Spread cheese over top of serving dish. (layer 8)

9.   Spread layer of black olives over cheese. (layer 9)

10. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to set dish, serve with tortilla chips

Overall

This is a great dish to bring to a party.  Everybody likes it and its simple to throw together. Next time I might skip the avocado if they are not on sale.  Great combination of flavors.

Frugality

This is not my cheapest dish to make.  The sour cream was $2.50, the beans were 2 for $3, the cream cheese was $1.29, taco seasoning was $.79, the avocados were $.80 each, the corn was $.89, the salsa was $2, the green onions were $1, the black olives were $1 and the cheese was $2.50.  The total for this dish is $16.57.

Look Forward To

I have a broccoli to use and a craving for pasta with red sauce.

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.

Plum Coffee Cake Muffins

I had an abundance of plums that were ripe and ready to use.  So I searched for recipes until I found one that looked promising.  I found this recipe at http://www.twopeasandtheirpod.com/plum-coffee-cake-muffins/ and made some adjustments to it to suit my tastes.  The most time consuming part of this whole thing is cleaning the plums.  I ended up doubling to recipe because of my wealth of fruit.  The end result is a great muffin with chunks of fresh fruit.  Delicious!

 

Plum Coffee Cake Muffins

Ingredients

¨           3/4 cup sugar

¨           1 tsp ground cinnamon

¨           2 cups flour

¨           1 tbsp baking powder

¨           1/2 tsp salt

¨           1/8 tsp ground nutmeg

¨           2 eggs

¨           1 tsp vanilla

¨           3/4 cup milk ( I used skim)

¨           1/2 cup melted butter, cooled

¨            About a tablespoon of cinnamon sugar (enough to cover 12 muffins)

¨           3-5 ripe plums, depending on their size, pitted and cut into small chunks.

 

Directions

1.    Preheat the oven to 375 degrees.

2.   Spray or line 12 muffin cups

3.   In a large bowl, combine 3/4 cup sugar, 1/2 tsp cinnamon, flour, baking powder, salt, and nutmeg. Set aside.

4.   In another large bowl, whisk together eggs, vanilla, milk, and melted butter. (Make sure the melted butter is cool before you add it.)

5.   Fold the egg mixture into the flour mixture with a rubber spatula. Divide the batter evenly.

6.   Divide one half of the batter evenly among the 12 lined muffin cups.

7.   Add a layer of plum pieces to each (I used about 6 pieces per muffin).

8.   Divide the remaining half of the batter over the layer of plums.

9.   Sprinkle cinnamon sugar over muffins. 

10. Bake for 15 – 20 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center of one of the muffins comes out clean. Leave to cool in the muffin tin for 5 to 10 minutes before removing from tin and transferring to a wire rack to cool completely.

Overall

This is a great muffin recipe that is easy to make.  I am glad to have found such a delicious way to use up my excessive amount of plums.  The muffin has a great cinnamon taste that makes it ideal for breakfast or dessert.

Frugality

The plums were $1.27 from my local food co-op.  I had all of the baking ingredients on hand. 

Look Forward To

I’ve been eyeing a recipe for broccoli cauliflower cheese bake with panko topping.  I also have a few artichokes to cook soon.

Avgolemono (Greek Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup)

So my question today was what do I want for dinner?  Completely uninspired and close to grabbing take-out, I asked a co-worker and he suggested Egg Drop Soup….which got me thinking that I haven’t had Avgolemono (Greek lemon orzo soup) –also has eggs in it- in years.  I’ve been a vegetarian for 13 years so it has been at least that long, as it’s usually made with a whole chicken as the base for the broth.  I started this recipe by looking online at recipes and really didn’t find one I liked.  So, I called my mom and she and I worked out a new recipe while on the phone for a good hour.  Here is what we came up with, enjoy!

Vegetarian Lemon Orzo Soup (Avgolemono)

Ingredients

o   2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

o   1 large onion, chopped

o   3-4 large carrots, chopped

o   A head of celery, chopped

o   8 cups of water

o   1 tablespoon dried dill weed

o   ½ tablespoon dried oregano

o   1 cup orzo

o   3 eggs

o   The juice of 2 lemons

o   Salt and pepper to taste

 

Directions

1.    Heat EVOO in large soup pot, add veggies and sweat them out for a few minutes.

2.   Add 8 cups of water and bring to slow boil.  The longer you cook this, the better broth you will end up with.

3.   While veggies are cooking, prepare 1 cup of orzo according to directions on the box.

4.   Use immersion blender or food processor to break down big pieces of veggies when broth is ready (broth should cook for at least ½ hour).

5.   Add orzo to prepared vegetable broth.

6.   In separate bowl, whip eggs and add lemon juice.  Slowly add a few tablespoons of the broth to the lemon egg mixture at a time, to avoid curdling the eggs.  Do this until the lemon mixture is hot enough to add to soup pot without cooking the eggs.

7.   Add salt to taste and enjoy!

Overall

At first I wasn’t sure about this recipe, I was going for a very specific taste when I set out to make this.  Once the soup cooled down and I added enough salt to take the place of the missing chicken, it was divine!  I will absolutely make this again.  Next time I might consider roasting the veggies before adding the water for a richer flavor.

Frugality

The onion was probably about $.50, the carrots were $.44, and the celery was $.88 all from Sprouts.  I had the spices and eggs on hand.  The lemons were $.84 and the orzo was $1.50 from Fresh and Easy.  The total for this big pot of soup came out to $4.16.  A great deal!!

Look Forward To

Doing something with all of these plums, nectarines and tomatoes…I’m thinking of plum oat muffins and maybe a homemade tomato sauce but that could change with my mood. 

Kate's Veggie Lasagna

This recipe is one of my favorite ways to use up all the veggies I have in the house.  In this case, I had broccoli, red bell peppers, zucchini and onions.  You can use whatever vegetables you have on hand though.  This recipe fills a 9 X 13 pan to the tippy top.  Enjoy!

Kate’s Veggie Lasagna

Ingredients

o   1 pound of broccoli, cut into small florets

o   3 red bell peppers, diced

o   2 sweet yellow onions, diced

o   2 medium zucchini, sliced

o   2 15 ounce containers of part skim ricotta cheese

o   1 egg

o   2 jars of your favorite pasta sauce

o   Extra virgin olive oil (enough to coat a large pan)

o   1 tablespoon dried basil

o   1 tablespoon dried oregano

o   Salt, to taste

o   1 package of lasagna noodles

o   1 bag shredded mozzarella cheese (I used part-skim)

o   ¼ cup shredded parmesan cheese

o   4 cloves garlic, minced

 

Directions

1.   Preheat oven to 350 degrees. 

2.  In a large pan, coat bottom with EVOO, add onion, broccoli, bell peppers, garlic and zucchini.  Cook until the veggies are soft and the onions have a golden color.  Add salt to taste.

3.  In a large bowl combine ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, basil, oregano and egg.  Stir.

4.  Add veggies to cheese mixture, stir.

5.  In 9 X 13 baking pan (I used glass but metal is good too), make layer in this order- uncooked lasagna noodles, ½ cup sauce, 1/3 veggie/cheese mixture, 1/3 cup mozzarella cheese.  Repeat layering until your ingredients are all used up.

6.  Cook for an hour and serve warm.

Overall

This is my go-to recipe for veggie lasagna.  The flavor of the fresh vegetables goes great with the 3 kinds of cheese.  This full pan of lasagna will definitely provide some great leftovers!  Enjoy!

Frugality

This is not my cheapest meal but its worth every penny.  The pasta sauce was on sale 2 for $2 at Fresh and Easy.  The broccoli was $.88, the squash was also $.88 both from Sprouts.  The bell peppers were 3 for $1 at Sprouts, the onions were about a dollar.  The ricotta cheese was $4 from Fresh and Easy, the spices, parm, garlicv and EVOO were on hand.  The lasagna noodles were $2 and the mozz was $2 both from Fresh and Easy.  The grand total for this pan of deliciousness is 13.76 and enough food to feed you for a good few days.

Look Forward To

I still have a spaghetti squash and 2 portobella mushrooms to use and I will be getting a produce basket from my local co-op on Saturday morning.

Garlic Oven Fries

Ok so on a happier note, I found my new go-to recipe for oven fries.  This recipe is from http://mostlyfoodandcrafts.blogspot.com/2011/08/garlic-potato-fries.html with just a few adjustments to suit my tastes.  The end product was a delicious, garlicky crispy French fry.  Will definitely be making these again.

Garlic Oven Fries

Ingredients

•  8 garlic cloves, minced
•  6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
•  4 medium red potatoes (slide into halves and then ¼ wedges)
•  3 tbsp cornstarch
•  1 1/2 tsp salt
•  1 1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
•  ½ tsp garlic powder

 

Directions

1.   Preheat oven to 425 degrees. 

2.  In a large bowl, toss all ingredients to coat potatoes.

3.  Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and bake until golden brown, for 40 minutes, turning once, halfway through cooking.

4.   Serve immediately with your choice of dipping sauce.

Overall

What a delightfully crispy treat these garlic fries are!  Easy to make and super delicious!

Frugality

The potatoes were about $2 and the garlic was about $.25.  These beat any fast food French fries you could get for $2.25!

Look Forward To

I still have a broccoli, a spaghetti squash and 3 red bell peppers to work with this week.