I'm a little behind again. Week 19 I made Santa Fe Chicken and Dressing from Southern Living. I thought that the flavors were good but it was really just like eating a plate of stuffing. Maybe if you eliminated the chicken it would make a nice side dish instead of a main course.
Prep Time: 15 mins
Total Time: 40 mins
- Stir together first 6 ingredients in a large bowl; stir in soup and next three ingredients.
- Spread in a lightly greased 2-quart shallow baking dish.
- Bake, covered at 350 degrees for 30 minutes or until thoroughly heated.
- Uncover and sprinkle evenly with cheese; bake 5 more minutes or until cheese melts.
- Serve with tortilla chips and pico de gallo or chunky salsa, if desired.
Week 20 I conquered my fear of yeast once again and made homemade pizza dough. Yeast is actually a lot easier to work with than I thought! While it does take a little while to wait on it to rise etc. it is actually very easy to make. We made ours kind of like a supreme with pepperoni, black olives, red onion, and green pepper. It was very good and even Nolan enjoyed it. I used the recipe from
The Joy of Cooking. It makes enough for 2 pizzas so I froze one ball of dough to use at a later date.
PIZZA DOUGH
Two 12-inch crusts
Combine in a large bowl or the bowl of a heavy-duty mixer and let stand until the yeast is dissolved, about 5 minutes:
1 1⁄3 cups warm (105° to 115°F) water
1 package (2 1⁄4 teaspoons) active dry yeast
Add:
3 1⁄2 to 3 3⁄4 cups all-purpose flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon salt
(1 tablespoon sugar)
Mix by hand or on low speed for about 1 minute. Knead for about 10 minutes by hand or with the dough hook on low to medium speed until the dough is smooth and elastic. Transfer the dough to a bowl lightly coated with olive oil and turn it once to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a clean cloth and let rise in a warm place (75° to 85°F) until doubled in bulk, 1 to 1 1⁄2 hours. Preheat the oven to 475°F. Grease 2 baking sheets and dust with cornmeal; or place a baking stone in the oven and preheat it for 45 minutes.
Punch down the dough and divide it in half. Roll each piece into a ball and let rest, loosely covered with plastic wrap, for 10 to 15 minutes. Prepare the desired toppings.
One at a time, flatten each ball of dough on a lightly floured work surface into a 12-inch round, rolling and stretching the dough. Place each dough circle on a prepared baking sheet, or, if using a baking stone, place them on rimless baking sheets or baker’s peels dusted with cornmeal. Lift the edges and pinch to form a lip. To prevent the filling from making the crust soggy, brush the top of the dough with:
Olive oil
Use your fingertips to push dents in the surface of the dough, to prevent bubbling, and let rest for about 10 minutes. The pizza is now ready to be topped and baked.
