Alfredo Herb Pizza Tutorial

The Goal

Today I was truly hungry for something different and with it being a few days before my monthly grocery shopping trip it was time to get creative. I started by looking in the practically empty pantry and my eyes landed on a package of pizza crust mix. I always stock up on this since it's inexpensive and actually pretty quick. However, I had neither red sauce or pepperoni so I was going to have to come up with something to put on this thing. I did have a jar of pre-made Alfredo sauce and I remembered that one of my fave "Little Cici's" Pizzas was their white pizza. So here is what I came up with:

Ingredients (Parmesan not pictured)

Ingredients: Crust

1 package of Pizza Crust mix

2 TBSP Parmesan Cheese

Warm Water(according to package instructions)

1 dash of Oregano

1 dash of Garlic Salt

Ingredients: Toppings

3 TBSP pre-made Alfredo Sauce

1 cup Mozzarella Cheese

1 sprinkle of Parmesan Cheese

1 dash of Garlic Salt

Chopped *Fresh **Italian Herbs (I used Rosemary, Basil and Flat Leaf Parsley)

*You could use dried but I had these in my garden.

**This could include Oregano, Basil, Thyme, Parsley, Rosemary, and any other herm found in Italian seasoning)

Directions:

1. Combine the crust mix, the parm cheese, oregano and garlic salt in a med mixing bowl. Add warm water according to package instructions, cover and set aside.

2. Prepare toppings by chopping the fresh herbs.

3. Spread pizza dough onto a greased baking pan.

4. Now add your toppings. The Alfredo sauce, the cheeses and then the herbs. Sprinkle with garlic salt.

5. Bake. 400 deg. till cheese is slightly golden and bottom crust is done. About 15min.  Cut and Enjoy!

*Note I would recommend using less rosemary than pictured unless you LOVE it. It's a rather strong flavor and has the potential to cover the other flavors. I happen to like it and so mine was rather strongly flavored.

Hope you enjoy this as much as I did! 

Granola Bananza

Recently, I posted a link for a granola recipe. (See original recipe here... ) I still think this is probably the easiest granola to make and it's delish. However, as I usually do, I thought that I might try to put my own spin on things. So, a couple days ago I decided to give it a try. It was total "try this at home" moment.

The first one I tried is the combo that my sister wanted to purchase from the grocery but it was cost prohibitive. Apple-Craisin-Almond.

1.  First I dehydrated a batch of Apples in my home Dehydrator. (If you do not have a dehydrator you can purchase apples pre-dried at almost any grocery store)
2. Next I followed the original recipe and when it called for the raisins I substituted in some of the dried Apples and Craisins and did not add raisins.  This turned out to be really good!


The Second one I tried was a Fruit and Nut Granola. Basically I added everything that I had into it.

1. Again I started with the original recipe. But when it called for the almonds I also added in pecan chips and chopped walnuts. (These are easy to find  pre chopped in the baking section of your grocery store.)
2. When it called for the raisins I added in a mixture of raisins, craisins and dehydrated apples to make up the 1 1/2 cup of fruit.
This is also really good and has a very hearty taste!

The next one is the most basic one and it's  Oatmeal Raisin Nut. The only thing that I changed was to add in some pecan chips before baking. It just added an extra nutty flavor and I kinda love pecans so they are always a plus!


OK, so the last one is the most deviant from the original recipe. I call it Apple Crisp.

This was inspired by my Mom. When she bakes Apple Pie she always make the Apple Crumb and doubles the crumb topping. It's the Best! So here is what I did:

1. In the original recipe it calls for almonds. I cut those out and replaced them with walnut pieces chopped really fine.
2. Then I added a pinch of Nutmeg in addition to the Cinnamon.
3. The biggest change is that I switched Dark Karo Syrup for the Honey. (used the same measurements.)
4. The only fruit that I added was some of the dehydrated apples.
This was the BEST! It kind of held together more than the other and I liked that for snacking. It was also great with milk as a cereal. I'm gonna have Hubby try it on some vanilla ice cream. I think that might be good.

Feel free to try your own combinations and please comment and let me know what you try. If you try any of the combos above let me know what you think. I always love some feed back.

Now get out there and get cooking! :)

Delish! WW Friendly Home Made Granola

This is not an original recipe from me but it turned out to be super easy and absolutely fabulous so I had to share it! Yes, it's another one from Pinterest.... I made mine with raisins and almond slivers and made a second batch with both raisins and craisins along with the almonds. It's very filling and only 4 WW Pts per cup. A single recipe makes about 6 cups.
Next, I think I might try a combo that my sister saw in the store for $4 a box....Apple, Craisin and Almonds. Hmmm... guess its time to break out the old dehydrator for some apples.
So, check it out and let me know what combinations you try (and if they taste good).

http://www.food.com/recipe/down-to-earth-granola-weight-watchers-272650

ps. If you are looking for an even more healthful way to make this you could substitute splenda brown sugar for the light brown sugar

Welcome

Welcome to my Blog!

Thanks for stopping by! Not sure how well I will do with this blogging thing but I'll do my best! 

I love to cook and experiment with food. Not Froofroo stuff but basic good stuff. People often ask me how I made this or what went into that. Feel free to try what you see here at home and share it with your friends. Most recipes will be rather easy but there might be a few more complicated ones later....

Don't be shy either, leave comments if you try a recipe and let me know how it went or post pictures of your finished product!

Good Luck! and Ready, Set, Bake!