Fancy Hawaiian Pizza

It's a fancy schmancy version of a Hawaiian Pizza!  I could have eaten this entire pizza by myself -- it was that good.    


I am a regular follower of A Cozy Kitchen blog.  One day last week there was a post about this yummy version of the Hawaiian Pizza they like to order from Domino's.  The girls had been asking to have pizza for dinner so I figured we'd try this one out.  I made a regular cheese version for them and this one for the grown-ups. After they saw me putting the pineapple on this one they decided they wanted it, too.   Needless to say, there weren't any leftovers!  


I used a prepared pizza crust from Trader Joes, but most grocery stores sell them in the deli section for around a dollar!  They are SO much better than the pre-baked ones!  If you are particularly interested in making your own crust, then the link below will provide a recipe. There are just times when you need convenience, right?  I also substituted spinach for the arugula that is listed in the original recipe.  I just like spinach better.  

Fancy Hawaiian Pizza

(adapted slightly from A Cozy Kitchen)

1 medium red onion, thinly sliced

1 – 8 ounce pizza dough

1-4 ounce ball of fresh mozzarella, sliced

1/2 cup diced pineapple (I used canned because it's what I had in my pantry)

5-6 slices of prosciutto, halved lengthwise

1 handful of spinach

Preheat oven to 500 degrees.

In a medium pan add a tablespoon of olive oil and sliced onions.  At the five minute mark, add a 1/4 teaspoon of salt and keep cooking until completely caramelized.  If they dry out, simply add a little water one tablespoon at a time. Should take about 20-30 minutes to completely caramelize.

Gently pull pizza dough apart into a circle  Place on the pizza stone. Drizzle with 1/2 teaspoon of olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.

Add mozzarella and diced pineapple and place on the stone in the oven.  Bake for 10-15 minutes, or until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown.

Remove from oven and add the prosciutto, warm caramelized onions and arugula. 

Chicken Stuffed Crescent Rolls

When was the last time you ate a Hot Pocket?  

The last time I ate one was probably in college, but every time I walk by them in the freezer section of the grocery store I glance over and *think* about buying some.  There's something about those hot, cheesy little pockets that bring back good memories.  

My "healthy" side won't let me buy them anymore, so I decided to make them at home.  This recipe is not necessarily "healthy" but it sure does beat the microwaveable version and my girls think they're fun to eat!  

To make the filling, finely dice some cooked chicken.  I use rotisserie chicken for this recipe, but some baked chicken breasts would work well, too.  In a large bowl combine cream cheese, onion, milk, shredded cheese, seasoned salt and chicken.  Mix it all together and set aside.

Unroll refrigerated crescent rolls on a cutting board.  Use your fingers to press the perforations together.  Using a large knife, cut the crescent rolls into 3x3 squares.  You should have 3 small squares from each can of crescent rolls.

Place the square on a greased baking sheet.  Put about 2 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture on each square.  

Fold the corners of the square into the center.   

Use your fingers to seal all the edges so none of the cheese leaks out.

Brush each pocket with butter and sprinkle lightly with paprika.

Bake at 350 for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.

Chicken Stuffed Crescent Rolls

3 cups diced cooked chicken

2 cans refrigerated Crescent Rolls

6 oz Cream Cheese, softened

1/2 cup finely diced onion

1 cup Shredded Monterrey Jack Cheese

2 Tablespoons Milk

1/2 teaspoon Seasoned Salt

Pepper, to taste

4 Tablespoons Melted Butter

Paprika

Preheat oven to 350.  In a large bowl combine the diced chicken, softened cream cheese, onion, cheese, milk, shredded cheese, seasoned salt and pepper.  Set aside.

Unroll the refrigerated crescent rolls.  Use your fingers to press the perforations together.  Using a large knife, cut the crescent rolls into approximately 3x3 inch squares.  You should have 6 small squares from each can of crescent rolls.

Place the square on a greased baking sheet.  Put about 2 Tablespoons of the chicken mixture on each square.  Fold the corners of the square into the center.   Use your fingers to seal all the edges so none of the cheese leaks out.  Brush each pocket with butter and sprinkle lightly with paprika.  Bake for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.  

Cheesy Noodle Bake

Casseroles don't make an appearance very often in my kitchen.  I have a few go-to casserole recipes, but not many.  I'm not quite sure why that is.  It could have something to do with the fact that my girls don't always like their food all mixed together.  They like to see exactly what's on their plate.  I think they feel like I'm trying to "hide" something super healthy in there!  


Our conversation about this dish went something like this -- Me: "It's noodles AND cheese, both of which you love!" (utilizing the power of suggestion here)  Them:  "What about that white stuff?"  Me:  "Oh, that's another kind of cheese that you've eaten before and liked."  Them: "If you say so..."  After they gave it a few more pokes and prods with their forks, they dug right in.  And of course, they loved it.  

This is one of those dishes you can make in advance and keep in the refrigerator until you're ready to cook.  I made this one morning when I knew there would be no afternoon prep-time for dinner.  I needed something that I could just pop in the oven when our after-school activities were over.    


For the sauce, brown the ground chuck and drain.  Add the tomato sauce, garlic, salt, and pepper.  Let the mixture simmer while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.  

In a separate bowl, combine the sour cream, cottage cheese, green onions, and additional pepper.  Add the cooked noodles and stir to coat.

Add half the noodles to a 9x13 baking dish.  Top with the meat mixture and half of the cheddar cheese.  Repeat the layering with more noodles, meat mixture, cheddar cheese, and mozzarella.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.  

Cheesy Noodle Bake

(adapted from The Pioneer Woman)

8 oz. Egg Noodles, cooked al dente and drained

1 lb. Ground Chuck

1/2 tsp. Salt

1 tsp. Black Pepper, divided

2 cloves Garlic, chopped

15 oz (1 can) Tomato Sauce

1/2 cup Sour Cream

1 cup Cottage Cheese

5 Green Onions, chopped

1 cup Grated Cheddar Cheese

1/2 cup Grated Mozzarella 

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.  Cook egg noodles until al dente and drain.  Brown the ground chuck and drain.  Return the meat to the pan and add the tomato sauce, garlic, salt and  1/2 tsp. pepper.  Simmer this mixture while you prepare the rest of the ingredients.

In a separate bowl combine the sour cream, cottage cheese, green onions and 1/2 tsp pepper. Add the cooked egg noodles and stir to coat.

Add half the noodles to a 9x13 baking dish.  Top with the meat mixture and half of the cheddar cheese.  Repeat the layering with more noodles, meat mixture, cheddar cheese and mozzarella.  Bake at 350 for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

Cheesy Bacon Biscuits

Bacon, bacon, bacon.  I love bacon.  I love cheese, too.  And biscuits.  And to put them all together in one mouth-watering breakfast bite?  I'm in heaven!  I'm not a big breakfast eater to begin with and when I do decide to veer off course from my regular coffee and more coffee breakfast diet, it's usually something savory like these Cheesy Bacon Biscuits.

They were so easy to make!  See my post HERE for a less-messy way to cook bacon.  I cooked the bacon the day before, so on the morning I made these biscuits all I had to do was pull the 5 ingredients out of the refrigerator, put everything together, and throw it in the oven (not literally).  So simple!

Cheesy Bacon Biscuits

(adapted from Picky-Palate)

2 Tablespoons Melted Butter

1 Roll Refrigerated Biscuit Dough, 8 count

1 cup Shredded Mozzarella

1 cup Shredded Cheddar Cheese

1 cup cooked, crumbled Bacon

Preheat oven to 350.  Brush a cast iron skillet with melted butter.  Place biscuits in skillet.  Top with crumbled bacon, shredded mozzarella, and shredded cheddar.  Bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted and biscuits are cooked through.  

Creamy Carrot Pasta

This is so sneaky.  As soon as I saw this recipe I knew I had to make it.  I'm always searching for ways to incorporate veggies into things my girls will eat. They even thought (until I clued them in on the carrots) that it was mac & cheese!   And since I love garlic (nearly) as much as I love chocolate, this hits the spot for the adults in this house, too!

I have a little container herb garden on my deck and thyme is making its debut this year.  Last year I grew basil, rosemary and mint (mainly for Mojito's, of course).  I was so excited to be able to pick a few sprigs of fresh thyme for this recipe, but dried would work just as well.  

Have you ever tried roasted carrots?  They are fantastic!  We have them as a simple side dish quite often.  They lose a lot of their sharp carrot flavor and are sweet and yummy...

I almost didn't include this picture of the carrot puree, mostly because it just looks like baby food.  But I wanted to show how creamy this really is!  All that heavy cream is doing its job.  

Once the carrots are roasted and pureed, they take on a sweet and smooth flavor.  You could even turn this into an entree by adding bacon or diced chicken.

Creamy Carrot Pasta

(adapted from Cinnamon and Spice and Everything Nice)

1 bag of baby carrots (approx. 1 pound)

7 cloves of garlic, peeled

3 Tablespoons Olive Oil

3-4 sprigs of fresh thyme, or 1 tsp. dried thyme

2/3 cup of heavy cream

1/2 cup grated Parmesan Cheese
1 cup frozen garden peas

1 pound of pasta

1/4 - 1/2 cup milk

Salt & pepper, to taste

In a large bowl, combine carrots, garlic, olive oil, and thyme.  Season with salt and pepper.  Spread on a roasting pan and place in a 400 degree oven.  Bake about 45 minutes, or until carrots are tender.  Toss once or twice during cooking to make sure the carrots cook evenly. 


Cook the pasta according to package directions.  While the pasta is cooking make the carrot cream.  In a blender, puree the carrots and garlic together with the heavy cream and parmesan cheese until smooth.  Place in a large bowl.  Toss in the peas and stir.  


When pasta is done, drain and add to the bowl with the carrot puree.  Toss gently to coat.  Slowly add the milk until all the pasta is evenly coated with the puree and is a nice consistency.