Loaded Chicken And Potatoes

Today I have a special treat, a recipe from my daughter Nikki.  Nikki is a wonderful cook, like her momma she isn’t afraid to try new things or to deviate from a recipe to make it her own.  If Nikki is afraid of anything it’s the thought of me turning the blog over to her, just can’t seem to get Nikki comfortable with writing about her cooking adventures.  I’m working on it though.

We’re pretty proud of our girl.  She is going through some life changes lately some are good, a few are bad, others are sad.  But Nikki is a strong girl with a good head on her shoulders, there is no doubt she is going to come out on top of all of this.

Recently Nikki quit her job of eight plus years because of the hours and the time it was taking her away from her little man Eric who started Kindergarten this past September.  As scary as that decision was it turned out to be the right one.  Nikki immediately landed a great job with endless possibilities; a great place for her to settle into a career and not just a job.  Best of all she can take Eric to school in the morning and she is home at night with her little man.  Eric loves it and so does Nikki!   It also means that I get to spend a couple hours a day, a few days a week with Eric before Nikki comes home.  It’s a win, win, win for all three of us!

Eric and Nikki have been putting their time together to good use.  They do homework, read books, play outside, go for walks and play on ABC Mouse.  They have been cooking up a storm too!!  It’s fun watching them together, Nikki will actually ask Eric what they should make for dinner, he gives his opinion.  A family meeting resulting in a joint decision, a mutual agreement.  Needless to say I am hoping that all this cooking and experimenting over there is going to be great for our blog!

Yesterday when Nikki shared this recipe on her Facebook page and posted that she was making it for dinner last night I knew I had to get her to let me blog about it.  I had no doubt that I wouldn’t get Nikki to write the blog so we agreed that she would whip up the dish and let me know how it turned out so I could blog about it.

When Nikki took it out of the oven she sent me a picture via text and her message read; “Smells and looks fantastic!”  After she taste tested it she sent me another text; “OMG!!  Cajun instead of paprika one “hell of a kick!!”  It’s awesome!!  No doubt Nikki is my daughter, she used Cajun instead of the paprika the recipe calls for.  Not only did she make a spice switch she made sure it was spicy too!!

This dish is easy to make and can be put together pretty quickly.  Perfect for a fall evening at home while spending time with those you love.  Give it a try!

Thanks Nikki!!  Can I put my request in now for one new recipe a week?  Next I have to work on my momma, she has some great recipes I’d like to share, I just need to get Mom a digital camera for photo’s!!

Have a great Thursday everyone!!

LOADED CHICKEN AND POTATOES

Ingredients:

1 lb boneless chicken breasts, cubed (1″)

6-8 medium skin on red potatoes, cut in 1/2″ cubes

1/3 c olive oil

1 1/2 tsp salt

1 tsp black pepper

1 Tbsp paprika (Nikki substituted Cajun Seasoning)

2 Tbsp garlic powder

2 Tbsp hot sauce (more if you like it HOT)

Topping:

2 c fiesta blend cheese

1 c crumbled bacon

1 c diced green onion (Nikki omitted the onion)

Directions:

• Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
• Spray a 9X13″ baking dish with cooking spray
• In a large bowl, mix together the olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika (cajun seasoning), garlic powder, and hot sauce
• Add the cubed potatoes and chicken and stir to coat
• Carefully scoop the potatoes and chicken into the prepared baking dish
• Bake the potatoes and chicken for 55-60 minutes, stirring every 20 minutes, until cooked through, crispy, and browned on the outside
• While the potatoes are cooking, fry your bacon (about half a pound)
• Once the potatoes and chicken are fully cooked, remove from the oven
• Top the cooked potatoes with the cheese, bacon, and green onion
• Return the casserole to the oven and bake for 5 minutes or until cheese is melted

Serve with any of the following:

• Extra hot sauce
• Ranch Dressing
• Sour Cream

Source:  N. Kiester (Source: SuperMoms Raising Healthy Kids – Kristen Washington)

Looking For A Sign

I am looking for a sign….a sign that spring is indeed on its way.  By calculation spring should only be 3 weeks away, a mere 624 hours, better yet only 26 days away.  Sitting here in Michigan watching the snow pile up outside my window it feels and looks like we are going in the opposite direction.  Ah…but yesterday was a busy day running…running…running finally stopping somewhere around 6:30 p.m. I am now free to sit inside today to watch the snowfall through the window, still confident that spring is on its way and feeling triumphant that I don’t have to go out into this nasty weather yet sure that with every flake that hits the ground the snow is chanting “Haha….not yet Nancy!”

It’s always nice to hear when someone, anyone tries the recipes that we’ve liked and posted.  Here are just a few recent updates:

• Mom made the three envelope pot roast on Sunday for the second time and once again mom and dad weren’t disappointed, it turned out delicious!
• Nikki made the slow cooker chicken and gravy recipe on Tuesday and an hour in to it’s 3 hour cooking time Nikki reported that the house smelled “great already,” she wasn’t sure she could wait till it was done.  Later that day when I asked how it tasted she reported “mmmm it was yum!”
• A few days ago I shared with everyone that Tina made the Vanilla Coconut Muffins and I was happy to report that they turned out so well Tina shared them with a neighbor….see, they are that delicious.

Today I am hoping the biggest decision I have to make will be which recipe I should leave you with, soup or brownies.  I am opting for brownies because on a day like today they are sure to take the “bite” out this nasty, snowy day!  I cannot even begin to tell you how delicious these brownies are. Joshua knew I was making brownies as soon as he walked through the front door, in fact, he surprised me when he said “Grandma can I have a brownie?”  First, Josh had just walked through the door and I never said anything about the fact I was making brownies and second, they were still in the oven.  When I was finally able to give Josh the first piece his eyes rolled back into his head, he buckled his knee’s and he said “Mmmm, grandma these are so good.”  “We should call them Triple Chocolate Death Threat Brownies.”  I think this name may have some indirect link to his love of WWE.

Walt’s reaction was pretty much the same as Joshua’s.  Walt couldn’t barely get passed the “mmmm” and the “ohhh” and the “wow.”  John was left speechless as well, “Ohhhh man….mmmmm, Oh my God….mmmm”  Yes these brownies are that good, they remind me of a brownie you’d find in a really good bakery or even in a great restaurant.

Joshua will be the first one to tell you that grandma cannot make a box mix brownie to save her life.  I can’t, I don’t know why.  I think I once mentioned in a post that even boxed cake mixes don’t work for me, each and every time I make a cake from a box cake mix it will split, no matter how long I let it cool before removing them from the tins.  Brownies from a box always seem to come out thin, hard and dry.

But these brownies, scratch brownies, are thick, chocolately, and delicious….”mmmmm” and “OMG” are the first words that come to mind when you bite into them.  Even the corner pieces, which are usually the ones no one wants, are as good as the center pieces.  Try them this weekend, they are well worth the little extra effort I promise you won’t be disappointed.

ULTIMATE CHOCOLATE BROWNIES  

What You’ll Need:

1 cup HERSHEY’S SPECIAL DARK Chocolate Chips or HERSHEY’S Semi-Sweet Chocolate Chips (I used the Special Dark Chocolate Chips)

1/4 tsp. Salt

1-1/3 cups All-purpose flour

1 tsp. Vanilla extract

1/2 cup Boiling water

2 cups Sugar

2 Eggs

2/3 cup Butter or margarine , melted and divided  (I used Butter)

3/4 cup HERSHEY’S Cocoa

1/2 tsp. Baking soda

ONE-BOWL BUTTERCREAM FROSTING (recipe follows)

Directions:

• Heat oven to 350°F.
• Grease 13x9x2-inch baking pan or two 8-inch square baking pans.
• Stir together cocoa and baking soda in large bowl; stir in 1/3 cup butter.
• Add boiling water; stir until mixture thickens.
• Stir in sugar, eggs and remaining 1/3 cup butter; stir until smooth.
• Add flour, vanilla and salt; blend completely.
• Stir in chocolate chips.
• Pour into prepared pan.
• Bake 35 to 40 minutes for rectangular pan, 30 to 35 minutes for square pans or until brownies begin to pull away from sides of pan.
• Cool completely in pan on wire rack.
• Frost with ONE-BOWL BUTTERCREAM FROSTING.
• Cut into squares.
• Makes 24 to 36 brownies.

ONE-BOWL BUTTERCREAM FROSTING

6 tbls.             Butter or margarine, softened
2-2/3 Cups   Powdered sugar
1/2 Cup         HERSHEY’S Cocoa
1/3 Cup         Milk
1 tsp.              Vanilla extract

Beat butter in medium bowl.

Add powdered sugar and cocoa alternately with milk, beating to spreading consistency (additional milk may be needed).

Stir in vanilla.

About 2 cups frosting.

Source: https://www.hersheys.com/recipes/recipe-details.aspx?id=4315

 

Kaylee’s Cupcake Cake

Saturday was a crazy day here.  We had all three grandchildren, always a crazy time when Eric and Kaylee get together, they are way too close in age which translates to…..TROUBLE with grandma and papa trying to stay a step or two ahead of them.  Which, I am willing to admit, is not always easy since they think alike and are at the same level of curiosity.

But I do get it, I did the same thing when I was little and went to my grandparents houses.  When I went to Two-Car Busia’s (my great-grandmother on my mom’s side) I always wanted to play in on the enclosed front porch.  It wasn’t really enclosed, it was open but you could only get to it from the living room and not from the outside.  It was really pretty cool.  My Two-Car-Busia also drank cold coffee out of fine china cups with saucers while she watched wrestling on TV.  Keep in mind this is in the late 50’s early 60’s.  My Two-Car-Busia was a hoot!!

When we went to busia and dzia dzia’s house (my mom’s parent’s) there were two rooms that had a connecting closet so when the cousins got together we would run and chase through that closet.  The other interesting place at my grandparents was in the backyard, there was an arbor at the entrance into the yard, I loved it.  The upstairs was always mysterious too because there were storage areas behind the walls, not something my own house had so as kids we were always curious as to what was up there.  Plus Uncle Bob’s room was up there filled with model cars…what kid doesn’t want to check that out right?

My granny, (which by the way Eric has started to call me out of the blue), my grandma Pawlica (my dad’s mom, my grandpa passed away when I was really young), I loved going to granny’s, she would let me drink coffee out light green milk glass coffee cups at the kitchen table.  Of course it was more milk than coffee but at the time I didn’t know that, I just always remember that we would sit at the kitchen table and drink coffee.  The big thing at granny’s house were the dolls, she had lots and lots of beautiful dolls dressed in pretty frilly dresses sitting on the beds.  Big dolls with eyes that opened and closed.  If I promised to be very, very careful I was allowed to play with the dolls.

So, you see, I can completely understand that when the grandbabies come over, they are curious about every little nook and cranny and of course their unfiltered impulse is to check everything out.  All three of them have informed us that there is a ghost who lives in our storage room, Josh will go downstairs and leave that room open, it wasn’t always the case.  Kaylee and Eric however, want the door closed.  Eric won’t even walk to the door straight on, he will go all the way around and come up to the door from the back so that he isn’t exposed to the open doorway, then he’ll slam the door shut.

This weekend Kaylee came over with a cupcake cake baking set, she wanted to make her momma (Cindy) a cupcake cake for her birthday which just so happened to be on Saturday.  I’ve never used a cupcake cake mold let alone a silicone one, so I knew we were headed for an adventure.  Although the cake did not come out exactly the way I would have liked it to my little Kaylee bug loved it so that’s all that matters.

Here are a few photo’s of our Saturday Cupcake Cake Adventure:

On a side note, I am a pretty experienced baker.  I have taken decorating classes and can make and decorate some pretty nice cakes.  I have to note, this cupcake mold is not as easy nor does it do exactly what the box indicates it will do.  The best thing about this set is that Kaylee had a great time making the cake and decorating it…and for that reason it makes this kit priceless.

Have a great Tuesday everyone!!

Blink…It’s Another Monday

Another Monday is here….I could swear it was just Friday and I was whining about going grocery shopping.  As we move toward the end of the year Monday’s seem to keep coming faster and faster.  Wish I could find a way to slow things down just a little bit.

Another busy weekend has come and gone, Josh and Kaylee spent time with their daddy messing around and having a good time, “Orange you glad you can see their big smiles?”

Our little Eric was home sick with bronchitis….poor little man is on three different medications plus momma’s snuggle’s and kisses.  The snuggle’s and kisses are really the best medicine when you’re 4 and not feeling all that great.

Yesterday (Sunday) Mom made the “Three Envelope Pot Roast” in the slow cooker that I posted on the blog in October, you can find the recipe under the tab “Slow Cooker Recipes.”  Mom sent me a quick e-mail last night to let me know that she made the roast and that it was “fantastic,” dad loved it.  If you have not tried this yet you are missing out on a tender, tasty roast.

I made the roast again yesterday as well.  I turned on the slow cooker just before we left to take Josh to his football practice for the tournament next weekend.  When we got back home and I opened the door the house smelled incredible and when we sat to eat the roast, once again, was tender and tasty.

Since John was here for the weekend for his visit with Josh and Kaylee I made a sausage breakfast casserole on Sunday morning.  I still made chocolate chip pancakes for Josh, but papa and I need a break from pancakes.  I don’t remember where this recipe came from other than it’s from a bed and breakfast and I have been making it for about 14 years. or more.  I am not sure if the recipe is from a bed and breakfast that Walt and I stayed in or if I found it in a bed and breakfast cookbook.  What I do know is that this recipe is easy to make, is delicious and re-heats perfectly for the next day as well.

When I can find it, I use Bob Evans Maple roll sausage, unfortunately the roll Maple is hard to find so I use the Sage instead.  You don’t have to use Swiss cheese, use any kind of shredded cheese that you prefer, I’ve used Swiss, Cheddar even Mexi Blend.  You can add just about anything to make it your own, bacon, a little onion or any type of veggie, we happen to like it with just the sausage and cheese.

This dish is a hit at our house, Nikki loves it, Johnny love it and so does Walt.  Make it your way and serve it with fresh fruit.

 

Sausage Breakfast Casserole

What You’ll Need:

1             8 Count Crescent Roll – (Original)

1 lb.       Roll or bulk breakfast sausage

6            Eggs

2 tbsp.  Milk

1 cup      Swiss Cheese (or cheese ofyour choice)

Salt and pepper

Directions

• Pre-heat oven to 350 degrees
• Brown sausage breaking it into small chunks as it cooks – Drain grease
• Roll our Crescent rolls in the bottom of a 13×9″ baking dish make sure you pinch the seams together

• Spread cooked sausage over the crescent rolls

• Whisk eggs with 2 tbls. milk – pour eggs over sausage

• Sprinkle cheese over top of casserole

• Bake 30 minutes or until set and golden brown
• Let sit a few minutes – cut into squares and serve.

Brisk and Wild……

First we’d like to say that our hearts and prayers go out to all of those on the East coast affected by Sandy.   Watching the news coverage I can’t even begin to imagine what it’s like to be hit with winds at 85-90 mph bringing huge waves and flood waters with it.  Traffic lights falling, decks flying away, sides of buildings blowing off, history washing away, scary and sad.  It’s also hard to imagine that as you’re talking about torrential rains in one state, the coverage switches to blizzards in another.

It’s amazing to me that even though we are some 660 miles east of  New Jersey (give or take a few miles) where Superstorm Sandy hit land last night, here in Michigan we’ve experienced a little of her temper, the cold and wet winds whipping through here at up to 40-50 miles per hour.  My pumpkin witch decided to fly into the night, thank goodness papa found him in the driveway.

This morning will prove to be a perfect day to just hang out inside and cook!  I’ll have dinner in the slow cooker later this morning, a chicken and rice dish I’ve been wanting to try, the recipe will be posted tomorrow.  I’ll also have my sausage/beef pasta sauce on to simmer so it’ll be ready for tomorrow when I make my lasagna for our Halloween dinner with my parents.  Decided on lasagna because it’s one of those dishes I can make in the morning and throw in the oven later today.

Later this afternoon I’ll head downriver to see Eric in his school’s Halloween Parade, can’t wait, his first school party, Halloween!!  Eric’s parade is today because he doesn’t have school on Wednesday’s, so glad that they didn’t just skip it all together and they are making the effort to do it the day before.  I can’t wait to see Eric walk in his first parade, he is such a character this is going to be exciting for him!   So…Eric’s parade will kick-off our family Halloween festivities this year!!

As I write and look out my window and catch bits and pieces of our local news, I am learning that more and more schools are being added to the list of school closures.  I hope Eric’s is not one of them, I’ll check with Nikki in a bit to make sure pre-school has not been cancelled.

When Eric came over on Friday, we made this Chicken and Dumpling recipe that I found on Pinterest posted by Plain Chicken.  Although it was tasty, I am sad to say that this was the first recipe I’ve tried from that site that I wasn’t impressed with.  Nikki, Walt and I all agree it needs more added to it.  Eric of course loved it, asked for seconds and told me that I needed to make sure his mom knew how to make it.

Many years ago, probably when Nikki and John were Eric’s age (somewhere around 1985) I found a chicken pot pie recipe in a Good Housekeeping magazine, it was made almost identical to this basic recipe with the exception that you added mixed veggies, you used buttermilk instead of regular milk and added tarragon.  We never considered it a true pot pie because it only had a crust on top and not on the bottom, but Good Housekeeping published it as a Pot Pie.  The Good Housekeeping recipe is so good that through the years as Nikki and John got older, I had to make two 13×9 pans so that there was enough for them to dig into leftovers as they came and went.

Please don’t get me wrong, this is/was tasty, everyone had seconds.  But I think because it somewhat resembled the one that I made, it’s what my family was looking for.  Not everyone likes mixed veggies, this is great recipe if you want to serve veggies on the side and/or a big garden salad.

Here is the link to Plain Chicken and the Chicken and Dumpling recipe.   If you’re looking for a basic chicken and dumpling dish this is tasty, quick and easy.  http://www.plainchicken.com/2011/11/chicken-dumpling-casserole.html

Chicken & Dumpling Casserole

What You’ll Need:

3-4 cups of cooked chicken (I use a rotisserie chicken)
2 cups chicken broth
1/4 cup unsalted butter
1 cup flour
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
1 cup milk
1 can Campbell’s cream of chicken soup

Directions

• Pre-heat oven to 400.
• Melt butter in the microwave and pour into bottom of a 9×13 pan.
• Shred the chicken and spread it on top of the butter.
  Whisk together the milk and the flour, baking powder and salt.
• Slowly pour over the chicken.  Don’t stir.
  Whisk together chicken broth and cream of chicken soup.
• Pour soup over the flour and milk mixture.  Don’t stir.
  Bake uncovered for 35 to 45 minutes, or until dumplings are golden brown.

Our Foodie “Staycation” – Day 2 – Lil E and Burgers Too

Good morning family, friends and fellow bloggers!!  It’s Monday morning, Joshua is still asleep (he stayed two nights this weekend), Papa Walt is on the computer before he has to leave for work and I’m having my morning coffee as I gather my thoughts about today’s blog as well as trying to focus on getting back into my regular weekly routine and wondering what I should make for dinner tonight.

When our grandbabies come over the menu planning is a wee bit easier, although some planning has to go into what we make with them too.  Josh is our picky eater, he’s pretty happy with pizza, mac and cheese, hot dogs, steak, and last but most important the ever popular with almost every child…..Chicken fingers.

Our lil Kaylee is not as fussy as her big brother.  Although she likes all of the same things Joshua does, Pizza is not really one of her favorites.  Plus Kaylee will try new things, Josh….not so much.  With Kaylee we can make burgers (which she complemented papa on a few weeks ago saying it was the best burger she’s eaten….she’s four), hot dogs, spaghetti, mac and cheese, chicken (not just fingers) and a variety of other foods.  At our house Kaylee loves to make the pizza but not so much eating it.

Tuesday of “Staycation” was lil E day.

Tuesday – Little E Day!!!

Nikki and her friend Mandy were going to a Detroit Tiger game and Eric had to work so we planned Tuesday as Lil E Day.  We had great plans for Tuesday, it was supposed to be hot out so Walt was going to fill the little pool and was going to make a little sand area in the corner of the yard that we have not developed yet so lil E could play with the big Tonka trucks he loves so much.  For dinner we were going to grill hamburgers.

It was all planned, we were ready to go and then…….the rain came.  And it rained, then stormed, then rained, then stormed, then rained a little more and stormed.  ALL DAY!!!  Anytime I thought might be a good time to take our little guy outside even if it was only for a walk around the block the skies would get dark and the rain would fall.

The rain didn’t stop us from having a great day indoors.  We spent the day with Little Bear and Little Bill, we went on fun adventures with the Backyardigans, Dora and Diego.  We played “Hungry, Hungry Hippo” (NOT grandma’s favorite game, who came up with that idea).  Lil E and Papa also spent a lot of time on the floor with Joshua’s Playmobil Police set (Playmobil – great stuff!).  There were good guys and bad guys, the police station with a jail where the bad guys were held, police cars with flashing lights and helicopters too!

Eric became a Fire Chief…

My little guy with a great imagination

Papa was his fireman….both running around the house putting out imaginary fires.

We took pictures of each other

The day was filled with fun, laughter, games and even a rainbow………..

Eric’s Rainbow

We had a great time with our little guy, he is sweet, loving and full of life.  I was awaken Wednesday morning at 5:00 a.m. to little E rubbing his hands on my cheeks saying “Grandma, Grandma wake up!”  “You look just like my momma without your glasses on!!”  Opening my eyes, even that early in the morning, to see that sweet smiling face was proof of just how blessed we are.

Our morning stared with hugs, kisses and smiles then we were greeted and entrained by butterflies outside the kitchen window.  What a great way to start the day with juice for Eric and coffee for grandma and papa as we watched them flutter around the flowers.  Eric was the quietest I have ever seen him as we snuck outside to take a picture.

Outside our kitchen window
everyday a spectacular butterfly show

 The sunshine was out, it was time to go outside!!

Helping Papa fill up the water fountains

Having a good morning!!

And we relaxed……

Day 2 of Staycation….priceless!!!

Because of the rain, Papa had to grill the burgers on the patio alone….no photo’s this time!

Little E’s Grilled Burgers

What You Will Need

1.5 lbs.     Ground Round

Hamburger buns

Condiments of your choice:  Mustard, Ketchup, Mayo, Onions, Relish, Pickles, Tomatoes, Lettuce, Cheese

Directions

• Divide beef into four patties, we use a little burger press I found at Meijer
• Season with salt, pepper and garlic powder
• Grill burgers over direct medium heat until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F about 8-10 minutes, turning once halfway through grilling
• Add cheese – grill till melted
• Serve immediately

Tomorrow:  Celebrating the July 4th with Lemon Curry Rotisserie Chicken.

Perfecting Our Pizza Crust……

Hi family, friends and fellow bloggers, hope everyone had a great weekend!!

When Walt decided to take this week as a vacation week he said his sole purpose was to eat his way through the week …trying out new recipes every night on the grill and to drink….trying a new bottle (or two) of wine(s) with dinner.  This is going to be our adventure for the next week and I’m all in.

What better day to start our foodies adventure than on Saturday and we started with pizza.  I know, I know, for those of you who follow you’re thinking “hey, you guys make pizza a lot!”  You’re right we do, but we generally use Boboli pizza crusts to make things a little easier.  This week we decided to make our own crust and we (Josh, Walt and I) unanimously voted that it is the only crust that we’ll use.

Our crust recipe was taken from “Weber’s Charcoal Grilling – The Art of Cooking With Live Fire (page 48).  We added our own toppings.

We had to read the directions

 

Gather the ingredients

 

Measure everything

 

Making sure we’re ready

Thin Crust Pizza

Dough

1     envelope (2-1/4 tsp.) active dry yeast

1     tsp. granulated sugar

4     cups all-purpose flour plus more for kneading the dough

3     tbsp extra virgin olive oil plus more for oiling the dough

1     tbsp kosher salt

Directions

• In a very large bowl combine the yeast and sugar with 1.5 cups warm water 105 degree F – 115 degree F)
• Stir for a few seconds to dissolve the sugar and let stand until foamy about 5 minutes

Combine yeast and sugar with 1-1/2 cups warm water

• Add 4 cups of flour
• 3 tablespoons of oil
• Salt

Add Salt

 

Add 4 Cups of Flour

 

Stir

• Mix and knead with your hands until all the flour comes off the sides of the bowl and the dough holds together in a coarsely textured ball.
• Allow the ball to sit in the bowl at room temperature for 15 minutes

Mix and Knead

• Knead for 10 to 15 minutes
• Test the dough; tear off a small pice; pull and tug the dough from all sides if the center tears easily the dough needs more kneading
• If you can stretch a paper-thin translucent membrane of dough in the center it has been kneaded enough.

Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 to 15 minutes

Shape into a ball

Place in an oiled bowl

Cover with a kitchen towel
Set aside in a warm place for 1.5 – 2.5 hours

• When dough has risen punch the dough down in the bowl

When the dough has risen
Punch down the dough in the bowl and transfer to a work surface

• Transfer to a work surface

Transfer to a work surface

Cut into 4 equal pieces

You can place dough in baggies and refrigerate or freeze until ready to use

 

Oil parchment paper

 

Using your fingers…flatten each piece of dough

 

Create a round crust

• Brush the tops with oil
• Let sit at room temperature 5-10 minutes

Place the crust on the grate with the paper sides facing up.
Grill over direct medium heat with the lid closed until the crusts are well marked and firm on the underside – 2 to 5 minutes

 

Brush the bottom with oil
Flip and add toppings

Sauce

 

Cheese

 

Pepperoni

 

Grill indirect heat about 20 minutes moving the pizza to avoid burning

 

Perfect Pizza

 

Down to the crust before I could even get the photo!

 

Joshua’s Oreo Cream Pie

Hi Everyone, this blog was really supposed to be published yesterday but because I was just a little bit busy, I didn’t get a chance to post it.  This posting is authored by Joshua and me…….by now you probably all know my grandson Joshua.

Josh was our first grandchild and I think he has taught me how to be a pretty good grandma.  Because of Joshua, the “road to getting one over on grandma” has been paved for Kaylee and Lil E.  Although they don’t get away with everything, I have some how acquired a resistance to say “No” or “hey don’t do that” like I did when his daddy and his Auntie Nikki were his age.  This has been pointed out by both of my children both verbally and with the occasional lifted eyebrow.  Why is it so much easier to be the grandma when the momma’s and daddies are gone?  They are stunting my grandma growth!!

To be fair, my parents were not the same ones that raised me when they became grandparents either.  At one point I can recall being told I was stiffling one of the kids growth by not letting them explore the visiting room of the hospital.  Ahhummm……guess this apple didn’t fall far from that tree.  And I know that my grandparents were not as strict with us as they were with my parents when they were kids.  Hmmm, maybe it’s in the genes.

Anyway…..I had the pleasure of spending some unexpected one on one time with Joshua on Monday.  We were both happy to discover that I had all the makings to put together one of his famoous Oreo Cream Pies so we decided it should be our next food blog.  We had fun putting this together to share with all of you.

Joshua’s Oreo Cream Pie

Ingredients

1     Ready Made Oreo Pie Crust

12  Oreo Cookes

2  3/4 oz pkgs White Chocolate Jello Pudding Instant

1 1/2 cups Cold Milk

2 tubs (8 0z each)  Cool Whip  Whipped Topping – thawed

 

Directions

 

Gather all your ingredients

Crush Oreos - I put the Oreos in a plastic baggie and use a mallet to crush them

Empty both pudding packets into "The Bowl"

Add 1 1/2 Cups Cold Milk

Whisk for 2 minutes

Add 1 of the 8 oz Cool Whip tubs - mix gently

Add crushed oreos and mix with cool whip/pudding mixture

Add filling to pie crust

Spread evenly in crust - Refrigerate at least 4 hours

Top with extra Cool Whip and some extra cookies.....YUMMMMMM!