Hello friends, been quite a while, hasn’t it? I send my very sincerest apologies, in hope that this will gain back your trust! Maybe not so well deserved, but I will TRY very very hard to post more often. When I first started this blog, I was like “Yeah! I’m gonna blog every day, and everyone is gonna read this and I’m gonna be the best blogger…” but none of that, unfortunately has come anywhere NEAR close to true. So again, I apologize for those of you who faithfully check for new posts… I will be better about this in the future.
I think one of my problems is the fact that I don’t know really what to blog about. Constant struggle. I can’t settle on JUST ONE THEME for my blog. Being totally serious, is a theme necessary? I feel like all good, successful blogs have some sort of underlying theme. So at first I was just going to post about relevant “themes’ in life, but them I was like “Hey guys, I really like CREPES! And you should too, here’s how to make them.” Then I was back to relevance posts. In general, I tend to be a fairly random, “free-spirited(-ish)” type person, and that is kind of one of the things my blog reflects.
Now, if I knew how to properly use WordPress blogs (or the internet/computer in general) maybe I could ORGANIZE my in-coordinate thoughts… into their own nice, neat, little tabs. Alas, the first and last time I tried to do that, I spent at least an hour looking it up on Google and the HELP section and whatnot, but I’m not too good with that hip internet lingo… So, for those of you who understand what I pathetically explained and feel like lending me a hand, PLEASE COMMENT! Thank you!
Okay, now to my actual purpose of today’s blog…
PIZZA.
PIZZA.
PIZZA.
Now, this is not your ordinary pizza that you order from Papa John’s or where ever you prefer, I’m talking PESTO. Pizza. Yes, my friends, it is a thing. The most delicious type of pizza you will ever consume if you like basil and Parmesan cheese and garlic. “Coincidentally,” I am a fan of all three. If you’ve never had pesto before, I strongly recommend that you whip up a small batch and slather it on chicken or something. That is also supergood.
That was my first tip. Second: try GRILLING homemade pizza crusts instead of baking them. Sooo much better. I bet you can see where this is going.
♫I Have A Recipe For You!!!♫
Whole(more like Half)Wheat Grilled Pizza with Pesto Sauce!
Doesn’t that sound delicious? Maybe not. But if I could feed you a piece of this person’s brilliant creation through the internet, I would. Since I can’t, I’ll supply you with a few pictures. But first here’s the recipe…
Since I am not a patient person, I found a NO RISE version!
1 cup of water (110 degrees)- I just boiled some water and then measured out what I needed.
1 Tbsp. olive oil
1 Tbsp. sugar
1 packet of yeast (instant or rapid-rise or whatever. Secret: I used regular yeast…)
1 3/4 c. all-purpose flour
1 c. whole wheat flour
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
Pinch of salt
How To
Whisk the water, oil, sugar and yeast together in a large bowl. Let stand for about 5 mins.
In a food processor, pulse both flours and the cheese until combined. I just did it by hand because my food processor wasn’t big enough.
Heat your grill to medium high.
Add the flours to the water/yeast etc. and knead it a couple times until everything is nicely together. DON’T FORGET TO FLOUR YOUR HANDS, BY THE WAY.
Roll out your dough on a floured sheet of waxed paper or a cooking stone into whatever shape you want, about 1/4 inch thick. If you want, separate the dough and make personal pizzas. I floured both sides of my crust.
Transfer your crust to your grill and cook for about five to seven minutes, or until you can clearly see those lovely grill lines, then flip the crust and repeat.
Cook this side for about five minutes on medium low then you can start putting your toppings on, but keep the pizza on the grill to melt the cheese and whatnot (see ***).
PESTO
When I make pesto, I don’t usually measure my ingredients… I just blend until it “looks right.” I suggest you make your favorite pesto recipe, or if you don’t have one, follow my vague directions:
In a food processor, blend 2 Tbsp. of olive oil, 1/4 c. Parmesan cheese, 1 c. (or more) of FRESH basil leaves, washed (preferably), and 1/2 cup of pine nuts, almonds, or walnuts, and 2-3 cloves of fresh crushed or mince garlic. Garlic presses as wonderful things, dear friends. I usually use pine nuts. If this doesn’t look or taste right to you, add more of any of the above.
***Smear the pesto on your cooked crust and sprinkle (very liberally) with FRESH grated Parm. cheese. I love olives, so I put some slice green ones on top of mine. Grill for a while longer until the cheese in melted.
If you don’t like pesto, use pizza sauce instead. Because I didn’t have enough pesto for the whole thing, I also used some generic old pizza sauce from a jar… You can add ANY TOPPINGS YOU WANT. For my pizza sauce third, I used mozzarella cheese and pepperonis. Enjoy this delicious creation!
Thank you to Pinterest and thefauxmartha.com (blog) for this recipe.
One more thing for ya…
Who likes wings? Me! Who likes tortilla chips? Me!
Here’s another great combo…
Buffalo Chicken Dip
Whoever decided do make buffalo chicken wings into DIP FORM?! Great idea, you clever geniuses…
Ingredients
- 1 cup greek yogurt, plain
- 1/2 cup mayonnaise, reduced fat
- 4 oz cream cheese, fat free, room temperature
- 2 tbsp. ranch seasoning
- 1/4 cup Franks Hot Sauce (To taste)
- 5 oz chicken, cooked, diced or shredded small
- 1/4 cup light cheddar cheese, shredded
How To
- Preheat oven to 350 F
- Spray an oven safe baking dish with cooking spray
- In a bowl mix together yogurt, mayonnaise, cream cheese and ranch seasoning, until incorporated. Stir in hot sauce and chicken. Sprinkle top with cheddar cheese.
- Place in oven and bake for 30 minutes until cheese is bubbly.
Props and credit to peanutbutterandpeppers.com and Pinterest (no surprises there) for this one.
Enjoy these great comfort foods! I will blog SOON again!
SOME GREAT SONGS.
You’re Beautiful by James Blunt
The Scientist by Coldplay
Next to Me by Emeli Sandé
Fall for You by Secondhand Serenade
The Promise by When in Rome
Take on Me by a-ha
Nothing Compares 2U by Sinéad O’Connor
One and Only by Adele
Sweet Pea by Amos Lee (MY FAVE!!!)
Diane Young and Giving Up the Gun by Vampire Weekend (anything by them really… Check out their new album Modern Vampires of the City!!!)
a little glass heart 