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Selasa, 15 April 2014

Thin Crust Pizza with Italian Sausage and Fresh Garlic

Homemade pizza is one of those things can be a bit daunting to make, at first. However, once you find an easy pizza dough recipe the possibilities are endless. I generally make this pizza dough, which is indeed very simple, once every couple of months, cut it into 4 servings, eat one that night and freeze the other three for use at a later time. Since last night was one of the those later times, I removed the frozen ball of dough from the freezer Friday night and let it thaw in the refrigerator. About 1-2 hours before its time to eat, I remove the dough ball from the refrigerator and place it in an olive oil coated bowl and allow it to come to room temperature.

Meanwhile, I made the pizza sauce. To a cold sauce pan, I added about 2 tablespoons of olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes and 1 whole, but smashed garlic clove. Turn on the heat and allow the oil and garlic to come up to temperature while infusing the oil with the garlic flavor. Remove the garlic and discard when it turns a deep golden brown. Add a can of diced tomatoes to the garlic infused oil, 1 tablespoon of dried oregano, 1 teaspoon of sugar, and salt and pepper. Cook at a medium simmer until the the sauce is thick with a luscious coating of olive oil floating on top. Remove from heat and let cool.

When the dough has come to room temperature press it out to about 1/4 inch thick and place on a baking sheet that has been coated with corn meal. Spread the tomato sauce sauce over the dough and top with any ingredients that you enjoy. I sliced a hot italian sausage very thin, shredded some mozzerella cheese, grated parmesan and thinly sliced a clove of garlic and evenly distributed all over the top of the pizza. Brush the crust with olive oil. This pizza cooked in a 500 degree oven for about 10 minutes until the cheese was melted and the crust was crispy and golden brown.

Minggu, 23 Februari 2014

SANDRAS SUGGESTIONS ON HOW TO FREEZE FRESH HERBS The easy way and tips for using them later

I often find that I have an abundance of herbs at times,
and here is a quick method of freezing some of them
so you have use of your herbs year round...

Posted: by Sandra

This is so rewarding...

I often have to go to the market for just one herb while cooking a particular recipe. Further, I tend to never use all the herbs I purchase or grow, so this is the best method I found to preserve herbs is by freezing them.

Choose the best and healthiest, leaves, sprigs, or shoots of herbs: basil, parsley, thyme, chives, rosemary, etc., (See below).

Wash, and spin dry fresh herbs (or pat dry with paper towels).

Spread them out in one layer on a parchment paper (or wax paper) lined baking sheet. Flash freezing them flat and individually will prevent them from melding together later on.

Cover and place the cookie sheet of herbs into the freezer and freeze solid for a minimum of 24 hours.

Meanwhile, mark small Zip Lock bags with date/name of herb/amount/expiration date = up to 6 mos. When frozen, measure and place ¼ cup into individual bags, and to freezer.

If you freeze quite a few herbs, it may be easier to find them in your freezer if you store the individual packages of the same herb together in one large container.

[Be aware that when herbs are frozen, they become limp, lose their color and are best used in cooked foods, dressing, sauces, pesto, salsa, etc., although not as a garnish for instance.]

BASIL a natural snipped in with tomatoes; terrific in fresh pesto; other possibilities include pasta sauce, peas, zucchini, Italian toppings for brochettes

CHIVES dips, potatoes, tomatoes

CILANTRO Mexican, Asian and Caribbean cooking; salsas, tomatoes, salads, dips

DILL carrots, cottage cheese, fish, green beans, potatoes, tomatoes, dips

MINT carrots, fruit salads, parsley, peas, tabouli, tea, parfaits, desserts, drinks, garnish

OREGANO peppers, tomatoes, sauces, stews

PARSLEY The curly leaf is the most common, but the flat leaf or Italian parsley is more strongly flavored and often preferred for cooking. Naturals for parsley include potato salad, tabouli, green salads, sauces, soups, and stews, to mention a few

ROSEMARY chicken, fish, lamb, pork, roasted potatoes, soups, stews, tomatoes

SAGE poultry seasoning, stuffings

TARRAGON chicken, eggs, fish, salad dressings

THYME eggs, lima beans, potatoes, poultry, summer squash, tomatoes

WINTER SAVORY dried bean dishes, stews