One of my favorite appetizers is spinach and artichoke dip. This pizza from Real Simple is a sister to the dip! I love it! Now pizza is not my most favorite food, but if I make my own crust and cook it on my pizza stone it is a food made in heaven. The pizza is not as heavy as you would think. Really it is light yet filling. So if you are in the mood for pizza and don’t want to go the meat lover’s way this one is for you.
Filed under Main dish
Talk about a show stopper this Sky-High Brunch Bake is one that will stop you in your tracks! I could not resist making it when I saw the picture in Food and Family by Kraft. It is beautiful to look at and it is quite tasty. I am keeping this bookmarked to use during the holiday season for a brunch because the green spinach and red peppers are so colorful! Don’t let the beautiful picture intimidate you because it is super simple to make if you can get past rolling out the pastry dough. Just follow the thawing directions on the box. You can thaw it overnight in the refrigerator or leave it out for about 45 minutes ahead of time. I like to thaw it out in the refrigerator. If you let it get too warm just put it back in the refrigerator for a few minutes. The pastry dough is very forgiving. The rest of the recipe is a cinch to make. Trust me by saying the novice cook can pull this off without a hitch and come out smelling like a rose!
I love a good pasta dish. Usually they are quick to make and you can add whatever you have on hand to make them your own dish. That is exactly what I did with this dish that my Tennessee friend told me about. Her family loved it so I knew that we would , too. I was right. It was a big hit. I am not a lover of alfredo sauce. It’s just too heavy for me. I’m more the fresh tomato sauce person or pesto sauce. I liked the dish the first night I served it, but what I did with the leftovers the next night I loved!
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School started Monday and this is what I cooked for dinner. It is easy and filling. I just love the recipes that I am finding in the Make & Take July issue from Better Homes and Gardens. By the way it was a good first day. But, I have more news! It is my blog’s birthday. Yes, it has been three years since I started this experiment and I want to reward you the reader with two cookbooks from one of the first friends that I made as I was over whelmed with the whole blog thing. I did not know what I was doing. Well, if the truth be known I still don’t! Susan Russo from Food Blogga befriended me. I love using her blog for my class as a resource. She knows what she is talking about and is so well rounded. Check her blog out you’ll love it! Anyway, I am giving away two of her cookbooks Recipes that Every Man Should Know and The Encyclopedia of Sandwiches to a lucky reader. Just comment here on the blog. The deadline is Sunday at midnight. Good luck! And you are going to love this recipe! It is a keeper!
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I have dreamed of making a great lasagna. You know the real Italian kind that’s labor intensive and that has your heart in it from start to finish. And yes, this is that recipe! This is not a recipe that you can make at the spur of the moment. It will take a little over an hour to put it together and about an hour to bake it, but it is so worth it!
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I have been enjoying kale for about four years now. It seems that every food magazine and food show recently is using this nutrient rich green. Just this morning I saw in my new Bon Appetit Magazine a grilled kale and apricot salad that I must try. But, now here is another wonderful recipe from Gourmet Quick Kitchen for kale that I have enjoyed at least six times and I love it! It is so easy and with the super nutritious kale you can’t go wrong. I made this dish again last Friday night with kale that this young actress brought me from her parents’ garden. It was wonderful with spicy sausage topped with shaved Pecorino Romano. Oh my gosh! By the way check out Ashley in this movie that’s just been released on HBO. What could be better – pasta, kale, and a good movie?
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Are you a lover of meatloaf? I’ve found that you either love it or hate it. There is no in between. Here is recipe that you are going to love. It screams out with so much flavor. I’m a lover of meatloaf especially my mother’s meatloaf. Her recipe has eluded me for as long as I have been cooking. She used just ground beef with an egg, a few bread crumbs, onion, and bell pepper. The loaf was placed in a corningware loaf dish. To make a wonderful tomato gravy to go with the meatloaf she poured tomato juice over the meatloaf then baked it. It was heavenly with rice. I’m not going to give up, but in the mean time this fantastic recipe certainly does fit the bill!
This is what my classes did for their last lab. Simple, quick, and somewhat healthy. I was pleasantly surprised at the number of students who really loved spinach. Spinach is one of the mega foods that is packed with nutrients. A plate of spinach might not be so appealing, but put it in a tortilla with cheese and it will win hearts every time!
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The Friday we cooked Fried Rice in my class I left school and ran errands. I wonder what went through the minds of those that passed me in the aisle at Publix. I’m sure they thought that I worked at some local Chinese restaurant or that I was too cheap to buy real perfume and just dabbed a lot of soy sauce behind my ear. I am not kidding you when I say that I had to roll the windows down in my car on the way home because the odor permeated every pore of my body. Just imagine 24 kitchens using sesame oil with a clove of garlic, ginger, onions, and soy sauce. The entire school smelled like a Chinese Wok by noon and we have a large school. This was a first, I had students checking out to go home and change clothes. The odor lingered in my room for weeks! Was the food good? Yes, it was, but I do need a much better ventilation system. Two large windows just does not cut it.
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I love recipes that require little effort, that you can pull the ingredients out of your pantry at a moment’s notice, and taste heavenly! This is the recipe. Easy, easy, easy and good, good, good! I cannot tell you one time that I have had pinto beans other than a Mexican restaurant. My mother always made black eyed peas, but no pintos or black beans. Well, now I have broadened my horizons or rather my tastebuds. I love this recipe and have made it several times now and each time there is not one spoonful left and there are just two of us eating these beans. I made homemade cornbread, but also being the nutrition teacher that I am I sauteed spinach with a little olive oil, garlic, and red pepper flakes and topped it with a squeeze of fresh lemon juice. Oh, my gosh!
Filed under Main dish, Slow Cooker
The Teacher Cooks 