Pizza Experiment #5: Spinach Artichoke Dip Inspired

If you're going to choose to experimenting with one thing or another, you really can't go wrong with Pizza! We've enjoyed loads of pizza experiments and I think I'm getting better and coming up with ideas as well as critiquing each pizza.

I didn't love this sauce, but also knew from the beginning that I wouldn't recreate in the exact same way, ever again. I would have liked to use only Cream Cheese for the 'sauce', but I had some plain yogurt that need to be moved out of the refrigerator, therefore, it went into the mix...and then I had to pile it on, not entirely ideal. Regardless of all the small things I would change given the opportunity, I truly enjoyed this pizza pie and will continue to work with this concept.

Pizza Crust: Bread Machine

Using the bread machine to prepare the dough for pizza crust is an easy way to ensure proper rising, etc.

According to manufacturer recommendation place the following items into your bread machine:

1 1/2 cups Water, 1/4 cup Olive Oil, 3 1/2 cups Flour, 1 Tbsp. Sugar, 1 1/2 tsp. Salt and 2 tsp. Yeast.

Set to dough cycle. Upon cycle completion divide dough based on number of desired pizzas. Flatten each ball and knead a few times, cover with a damp towel for 30 minutes until dough has increased by 20 percent. Roll out and prepare as desire

Toppings: Spinach Artichoke Inspired

Spread crust with a whipped, softened Cream Cheese. Top with Pan Cooked Chicken, Artichoke Hearts, Spinach, Mozzarella and Parmesan. Bake at 450 for 10-15 minutes until cheese is golden and bubbly. Enjoy as part of a budding Family Pizza Night tradition.

SpinachSalad and Home-made Dressing

To accompany the deliciousness that was Brown Sugar Balsamic Glazed Pork Tenderloin and fresh bread with home-made Orange Curd, I decided a nice Spinach Salad would suit our Easter dinner just right.

Ingredients/Directions:

From the Cookbook - Love of Cooking: Salads

Toss together washed and relatively dry Spinach with 1 cup of chopped Mushrooms, 8 sliced Green Onions, 8 slices of cooked and crumbled Bacon and 4 chopped hard-boiled Eggs. For dressing, mix together 1/3 cup of Sugar, 1/2 tsp. Dry Mustars, 1/2 tsp. Salt and 1/3 cup Cider Vinegar in a food processor or blender. Slowly add 1 cup of Vegetable Oil, mixing in between additions. Top salad with dressing before serving and enjoy as a light lunch or dinner or side dish!

Tomato, Spinach, Mushroom and Chickpea Pasta Soup

This came together in the most perfect, beautiful way possible.

I somehow end up with a ton of things in my freezer, all.the.time.

There's all the 'once-a-month-cooking' that I'm still using because honestly, I like to cook things fresh, but having certain things in the freezer is a huge blessing.

There's always some beans because the canned variety aren't abundant in South Korea, so, I'm always putting a load in the slow-cooker and freezing about half.

There's always some homemade chicken broth because that's also great in the slow-cooker and home made broth is outstanding compared to powdered or store bought versions AND if you eat a chicken, why not get the most out of that bird!

There's always other random bits and pieces of only God knows what.

And the other night, a little bit of all that mess made for a most fabulously delicious dinner that way exceeded my expectations and which could be re-created...I think ^.~

Ingredients/Directions:

Since most of these are pre-made but still home made you may want to experiment, I'm sure by the end you could have something delectable and quite similar

Saute in a touch of oil one chopped Onion.  Add to the pot 3-5 minced cloves of Garlic, saute one minute before adding 2 Tbsp. Butter and 1 cup chopped Mushrooms. (If you don't want butter, no problem, I just believe that butter and mushrooms are a beautiful combination).  After a few minutes of sauteing these veggies together, add 1 cup home-made Chicken Broth, 1 cup Water (or 2 cups store bought broth ^.~), and 2 cups Tomato Sauce (I recommend the one linked here as it has a few added depths and flavors that really amp up this dish) and 1 cup Spinach Pesto - without cheese (or you can add chopped spinach toward the end of cooking and surely have an equally delicious experience). Bring to boil add one cup of Chickpeas (or one small can) and about a cup of Pasta (macaroni or another short style) continue to boil 10 minutes or until pasta is cooked to desired tenderness, add water if needed. Serve with toasted baguette slices, a glass of red wine and enjoy!

Grilled Hummus and Veggie Wraps and Sauted Spinach Salad

Neither of these recipes takes a rocket scientist. If anything, you need a fridge full of veggies, some tortillas and a food processor is beneficial as well.

If you need to prepare hummus - throw one or two cups of Chickpeas/Garbanzo Beans into a food processor with olive oil, 2-3 cloves Garlic and 1-2 Tbsp. Tahini and let 'em have it.

I have a thing for roasted veggies, so I threw some eggplant, zuchinni and Onions into our oven while I spread the humus and chopped a tomato. Piece it all together as you would a wrap/burrito. If you have some Feta lying around - I'd TOTALLY throw that into the mix. Enjoy once it's a bit crispy on the outside, you'll feel joyful!

As for the Spinach Salad...I had some left over veggies from a pasta dish that had been 'marinating' in olive oil and balsamic vinegar, I ate the 5 pasta noodle left and wanted to toss the veggies with the spinach...but didn't want the veg sinking to the bottom of the salad. Hence, sauteing...throwing the veg and the spinach into a skillet allowed the spinach to share the dressing and 'grab onto' those veggies a little better than if the Spinach weren't sauted. 

Hasselback Potato with Spinach Alfredo

Hasselback Potatoes are genius and delectable. I don't know why it took so long to learn of their existance. I regret only learning this technique in my 25th year of life. Regardless, I will embrace the Hasselback and attempt to share this great find with the world of eaters who just so happen to meander into 519 Kitchen.

Hasselback Potato Directions per Potato:
1 Clove Garlic, thinly sliced. 1 Potato scrubbed. Slice off thin piece of the bottom so potato cannot roll. Slice 3/4-ish way through the potato every quarter inch or so. Stuff garlic slices into potato pockets. Rub potato with salt and top potato with 1 Tbsp. butter. Drizzle with olive oil. Bake in the oven at about 400 degrees for about an hour or until tender. Baste potatoes every 15 minutes with the pan drippins. Enjoy however you darn well please. I used half a jar of prepared Alfredo sauce with added onions, garlic and spinach. It was out of this world delicious.

Hoppin John Wrap

Eat poor that day, eat rich the rest of the year.

Rice for riches and peas for peace.

- Southern saying on eating a dish of Hoppin' John on New Year's Day.

I don't know when I first heard of this traditional southern US Traditional Dish and I'm not even sure much of this recipe follows closely the concept of Hoppin John. What I do know, is that when I think of Hoppin John, I think of Black Eyed Peas and a Green (in this case Spinach). So, with a growling tummy and some Black-Eyed Peas available, I made my way down the street to the local market, picked up some onions and spinach and within minutes had whipped up this nice little wrap.

Ingredients/Directions:

In a skillet, heat 1 Tbsp. Oil. Saute 1 Onion, chopped and 1 or 2 cloves Garlic, minced. Add 2 cups drained Black-Eyed Peas, heat through. In a bowl, whisk together 3 Eggs, season with salt, pepper and cajun seasoning or chili powder. Add to skillet, scramble with peas and onions. When egg is cooked through, throw in two-three large handfuls of chopped or torn Spinach, sprinkle a bit of Nutmeg and saute until wilted. Serve mixture in large Tortillas with cheese of choice or that which is available and enjoy for the New Year or a mid-year dinner!

Spinach Pesto Pasta with Bell Pepper Fried Eggs

Briliant Idea: Use a Bell Pepper Ring to contain an egg for frying. Place said 'Bell-Pepper Fried Egg' on top of anything you like. I put mine with Spinach Pesto Pasta and it was fabulous...well, not the best combination, but I REALLY wanted to try frying an egg in a bell pepper. You will be seeing more bell-fried eggs here, I'm sure of it!

Spinach Pesto

I knew Spinach Pesto was a possibility, so I set out to find a recipe in order to use up some spinach in our fridge space. Finding a recipe wasn't difficult, so I used this recipe as my guide, and when I say guide, I mean guide. I substituted EVERYTHING in my Spinach Pesto except for the Spinach. I served half with Penne Pasta and a fried egg on top, and froze half to use later. The dish goes together quite quickly, especially with a food processor, Enjoy!

Ingredients/Directions:

1 Bunch Spinach (2 cups, roughly) washed and dried, one handful or 1/4 cup Walnuts, Juice of 2 Clementine's plus Orange Zest from the Clementines, 1/3 cup + 2 tsp. Olive Oil, Salt, and Pepper - grind in food processor until paste like. Stir in 1/3 cup Feta Cheese and enjoy on pasta, sandwiches, as an appetizer, etc.

Spinach and Sun-Dried Tomato Pasta Side

I do not claim to have stumbled upon some new, brilliant form of preparing a pasta dish. On the contrary - this is likely a common concept in the world of Pasta Cuisine, yet for my own personal desire to record food that comes out of '519 Kitchen' - this dish makes it onto the blog.

Pasta boiled and tender. Garlic sauted. Sun-dried tomatoes chopped. Spinach wilted. Tossed together with olive oil, white wine and balsamic vinegar. Enjoyed with the one you love dearly and a side of freshly roasted chicken offers up a night worth remembering.

Roasted Eggplant Lasagna

Extended Life for: Eggplant, Tomatoes and Hummus

If you're ever searching for some great vegetarian options or a way to use vegetables that you're not so familiar with, check out http://www.vegetariantimes.com/ or subscribe to the magazine, it's definitely worth the investment! This recipe was adapted from the recipe posted on their website, but of course, includes a few substitutions and additions as certain ingredients were present in my home and were needing to be cooked quickly! I doubled this recipe (the ingredients that follow are to prepare as doubled) as well and ended up putting the two 8x8 lasagna's in the freezer for a future night when I want something home-made but lack the energy to be the one making it!

Ingredients:

3 medium Eggplant, bite-size chunks

8 Tomatoes, halved

Basil

18 oz. Spinach or Swiss Chard, steamed

1.5 cups Mozzarella

1.5 cups Ricotta Cheese

1/2 cup Hummus, flavor of choice

1 cup Grated Parmesan and Asiago Mix

12 no-boil Lasagna noodles

Directions:
Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Prepare two roasting pans and two 8x8 or 9x9 square baking dishes with cooking spray. Place eggplant in one roasting pan - sprinkle with salt and pepper, place tomatoes in the other roasting pan. Roast both vegetables until tender, about 30-40 minutes. While roasting, toss eggplant occassionally. When veggies are finished roasting, remove from oven, let tomatoes cool slighty then remove skins. Reserve 1/2 cup tomato juice, add the rest of juice, plus tomatoe halves, eggplant and basil to large bowl to mix and break apart tomatoes. Reduce oven temperature to 375 (if you plan to bake them that day, otherwise turn oven off). Steam spinach or chard 4-6 minutes, set aside to cool, then chop. In another large bowl, mix mozarella, ricotta, half of parm./asiago mix and hummus together. Now, begin layering the lasagna: noodles (2), 1/4 eggplant/tomatoe mix, 1/4 cheese mix, 1/4 spinach or chard, repeat. Do the same in other baking dish. Final layer: noodles (2) 1/4 cup reserved tomatoe juice, 1/2 of remaining parm/asiago cheese mix.
We have not yet enjoyed this dish, so I can't yet rave about the flavors, if you get to eating it before us, let us know how it turned out!