Awesome Alfredo!

No, your eye's have not deceived you! This is a new recipe! The three of us have had pretty busy lives over the last few months! For me, I was in the states for 3 weeks, where I got to see Sarah! But unfortunately, not Angela :( Then, we found out we are expecting baby number 4! So, I have had little desire to eat, let alone cook, over the last few months. But, I am starting to feel much better and actually starting to cook again!


So, here is the new recipe I have for you today. This awesome Alfredo sauce! I got is from my mom's friend, Jolene. Give it a try and you will love it too!


Ingredients:
2 TBSP Olive Oil
2 TBSP butter
2 to 3 cloves fresh garlic
1 TBSP flour
3 cups heavy cream
1 cup milk
8 oz(1 triangle) fresh Parmesan cheese, grated
1 tsp dried basil (or 2 to 4 TBSP fresh, chopped basil leaves)
salt and pepper to taste


Gently saute garlic in oil and butter. Sprinkle in flour and cook for 1 to 2 minutes. Be careful not to burn the garlic! Stir in cream and milk. Bring to gentle simmer until it begins to thicken. Add cheese, basil, salt and pepper. Stir until cheese is melted. Serve over pasta with cooked chicken. And enjoy!!


~Sarah T.

Crockpot Lasagna

12 Lasagna noodles, uncooked
1 pound ground beef, browned and drained
1 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 jar (28 ounces) spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup water
1 carton (16 ounces) cottage cheese
2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

Break noodles in half. Place half of the noodles in bottom of greased 4-quart slow cooker. Stir Italian seasoning into meat and spread half over the noodles already in slow cooker. Then layer half of the sauce and water, half of cottage cheese, and half of mozzarella cheese over beef. Repeat layer. Cover and cook on low heat 4-5 hours. Do not cook more than 5 hours. Makes 6-8 servings.

For mine I used Turkey Sausage instead of the ground beef. Then I took a can of tomato sauce and mixed half a package of spaghetti seasoning in it. I also filled the can with water and mixed that with the tomato sauce. I substituted this for the jar of spaghetti sauce. The kids really liked it along with Ryan.

Homemade Pizza Dough

This is a recipe I found in Cooking Light. The dough turned out to be really good and it makes enough for two pizzas so you can freeze one and use it for another meal if you want.
1 Package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 cup warm water
1 1/4 cups cold water
2 TBSP olive oil
1 tsp. sugar
1 tsp salt
5 1/2 cups unbleached bread flour, divided
Cooking Spray

Dissolve yeast in 1 cup warm water in a small bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Combine 1 1/4 cups cold water, oil, sugar, and salt in a small bowl; stir with a whisk.
Lightly spoon about 5 1/4 cups flour into dry measuring cups; level with a knife. Combine flour, yeast mixture, and cold water mixture in bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Mix on low 8 minutes or until dough begins to form Let rest 2 minutes; mix on low 6 minutes or until dough is smooth. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 2 minutes); add enough of the remaining 1/4 cup flour, 1 TBSP at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel sticky).
Divide the dough in half, and place each portion in a large zip-top bag coated with cooking spray. Seal and chill overnight or up to 2 days. Let stand at room temperature for 1 hour before using. You can also freeze the dough in heavy duty, freezer-safe zip-top plastic bags for up to 2 months; thaw dough overnight in the refrigerator.

I used the dough right away and then froze the other one for another time and it turned out great. I made turkey sausage pizza cooked it in the oven at 450 for about 15 minutes. Just check on it because the recipe didn't give me a time or temperature so I guessed and it turned out good. Here are some pictures of my pizza. You can also make 4 cal zones out of the dough.

Pizza dough after I kneaded it and before I divided it into two.


The pizza dough all ready for the toppings. I put olive oil on my stone and then just shaped it around the stone with my hands.


This is the pizza sauce that I used.


The pizza with the sauce and half of the cheese on it.


The completed Pizza, Yummy!!!

2 New Recipes

Sorry, no pictures today! It's hard to remember to take pictures of you food because I just want eat it up! But, here is the 1st recipe. I got it from my friend, Carla. I made it last week and it is sooo good!

Pasta Salad

3 TBSP white vinegar
2/3 cup olive oil
2 tsp. dried basil
2 TBSP chopped green onions
2 TBSP grated Parmesan cheese
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp black pepper

Mix all these ingredients together in a blender. Then pour over:

8 oz cooked and cooled spiral tri-color pasta
1 small green pepper cut in thin strips
1 small red pepper cut in thin strips
1 tomato cut into wedges
1/2 c sliced black olives
6 oz crumbled feta cheese

This is so good and a great side dish for a BBQ!

Now, here is the next recipe. I made this for dinner tonight! I found this a long time ago in a magazine and I sorry that I don't remember which one! It was one that they sell in the check-out isle in the grocery store. It is good, fast, and easy!

Pizza Crescent Braids

Take 1 container of Pillsbury Crescent Rolls. Press into a large rectangle in the center of a cookie sheet. Put your toppings down the middle. We like spaghetti sauce, pepperonis, black olives, cooked ham and mozzarella cheese. Then, make cuts along the sides of the dough and fold over, kinda like a braid, over the toppings. Place in a 350 degree oven and bake until browned about 13 to 15 minutes.

So, there you go! Hope you enjoy these as much as we do, well did!

~Sarah T.

Calzones

I promise to get better at my "food photography"! Yikes!

When we lived in the states, we used to eat out a lot. But, since moving to Germany, I think I have done more cooking than I ever have in my entire life!! And, I am learning to cook a lot of different things and some of our favorite comforts foods. The other night, we made calzones and they were delicious! I used this basic pizza dough recipe:

1 cup warm water

2 TBSP olive oil

3 to 3 1/2 cups flour

1 pkg. active dry yeast or 1 TBSP yeast

1 tsp sugar

1/2 tsp salt

Combine yeast, warm water, and sugar. Let yeast bubble. Mix flour, salt, and oil. When yeast is ready mix into flour mixture. Knead dough for 8 to 10 minutes. Let rise for 45 min. Bake at 375 degrees for 20-25 min.

You can fill your calzome with whatever you like. We filled ours with ricotta cheese, mozzarella cheese, Italian sausage, peperoni's, and olives. I closed up the calzone, cut some slits on the top so it could vent, brushed it with melted butter, and sprinkled Parmesan cheese and Italian seasoning. Then, popped it in the oven. Then I made a dipping sauce of 1 can crushed tomatoes and seasoned to taste with olive oil, Italian seasoning, garlic salt and a little sugar. Heat that up and you have a great dipping sauce!

Give it a try!

~Sarah T.