Smoked Salmon Pizza

When you order smoked salmon pizza in a restaurant, it usually has a tomato sauce as the base.  I personally find that the cooked tomato flavor of the sauce overpowers the smoked salmon, and so does my mom, so she decided to create a creamy dill sauce for the base of our smoked salmon pizza.

Now this sauce needs to be introduced very carefully.  Before I tell you what's in it, let me tell you that if I had tasted it not knowing what the ingredients were, I would have thought it was a béchamel sauce. But this sauce is much healthier than a regular cream sauce; it's made out of potatoes and cauliflower!  This is my new go-to cream sauce for everything from pizza to pasta, just leave out the dill and you can pretty much use it on anything.

Pizza
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 summer squash, quartered then sliced
2 cups sliced mini bell peppers
1 ½ cups spinach and 1 bunch dill, thinly sliced and mixed
1 can sliced olives from Trader Joe's
½ red onion, thinly sliced into half rings
1 ½ cups halved cherry tomatoes
1 can artichoke hearts from Trader Joe's, roughly chopped
½ log Fresh & Creamy Goat Cheese from Trader Joe's, frozen then crumbled
2 cups shredded Mozzarella cheese
½ cup capers, drained
Smoked salmon
1 recipe of your favorite pizza dough (try my Pizza Dough recipe)

Creamy 'Béchamel' Sauce
1 peeled russet potato, boiled and thoroughly drained
1 cauliflower, boiled and thoroughly drained
½ log Fresh & Creamy Goat Cheese from Trader Joe's
¼ cup olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 TBSP white wine
1 lemon, juiced
2 TBSP heavy cream
1 TBSP sugar
Chicken stock
Salt & pepper to taste
1 bunch dill, finely minced

For the sauce:

Put the potato, cauliflower, goat cheese, olive oil, garlic, white wine, lemon juice, heavy cream, and sugar in a blender and thoroughly blend, adding chicken stock as needed to achieve a creamy yet not too thick consistency.  Add salt and pepper to taste.

Thoroughly stir in the dill.  If you are using this sauce for something other than this pizza, you can leave out the dill for a more generic cream sauce.

For the pizza:

Prepare all of your ingredients, then arrange them in a large container for easy access while you are topping your pizza.

Roll out your pizza dough, then fold over the edges and brush them with olive oil.  You can leave your edges flat, but I find that you get a nice crust if you fold them over.

Use a ladle to swirl a thin layer of the dill sauce across the pizza crust, making sure to go all the way to the edges for maximum flavor.

Top the sauce with a generous layer of mushrooms, squash, bell peppers, olives, onions, tomatoes, artichoke hearts, capers, and smoked salmon.  Be generous with the capers and smoked salmon!

Sprinkle with a thin layer of crumbled Goat cheese and shredded Mozzarella cheese.

Cook in an oven or barbecue until the pizza is bubbling and slightly crispy, but not quite finished.  Sprinkle with some spinach and dill, then finish cooking the pizza until it is just the way you like it.  If you want, you can drizzle the pizzas with Balsamic Glaze from Trader Joe's right when you take them off of the heat for some added flavor.

Repeat this process with all of your ingredients, or until you run out of pizza dough.  For me, this recipe makes six delicious pizzas with a few onions and bell peppers left over, which is just enough to feed a hungry family of four for two meals!

Any fan of smoked salmon or locks is sure to love this pizza, so although it may be a little unusual, give it a try.  It certainly gets an A+ from me!

To see more of my pictures, you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.

Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Tacos (from Cooking Classy)

Lately I've been noticing how many uses there are for quinoa.  Quinoa salad, quinoa burgers, quinoa cakes, quinoa muffins, but particularly quinoa tacos.  I recently saw a pin on Pinterest featuring Cooking Classy's recipe for Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Tacos and decided that since I was going to the beach, it would be a perfect meal for when I got back!  This taco filling is also great served over lettuce for a variation on my Taco Salad.

Cooking Classy's picture of her Quinoa, Black Bean, and Corn Tacos

I prepped all of my ingredients in the morning and put them in covered prep bowls in the fridge, then when I got home it only took 30 minutes to make dinner.  I followed Cooking Classy's recipe down to the teaspoon and the tacos came out perfectly!  I love her blog and will definitely be making more of her recipes in the future.  You can find the delicious recipe for these tacos here.

To see more of my pictures you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.

Tostadas (10 minute family meal)

Almost everyone loves tostadas, and they are actually surprisingly easy to make at home.  They are a great dish for on the weekend, because the only preparation is chopping up vegetables and mashing beans, which means everyone can help!  The total prep time is 10 minutes, and there is no cooking involved, which makes this a quick, nutritious, and delicious meal that takes hardly any time at all.  I didn't feel like frying my tortillas, so I just brushed them with olive oil and toasted them on the BBQ, but if you want to fry them feel free to.  I also prefer using Trader Joe's Handmade Tortillas because they are all-natural with no added sugar or corn syrup, but you can use any kind you want.

Handmade Tortillas from Trader Joe's, toasted or fried
2 cans black beans, mashed
1 can olives, drained
1 head lettuce, washed & chopped
2 bell peppers, finely sliced
Habanero & Lime salsa from Trader Joe's, or your go-to tomato salsa
Cowboy Caviar from Trader Joe's (this is my favorite corn salsa)
Sour cream
Guacamole or sliced avocado
Sliced tomatoes
Fancy Lite Shredded Mexican Cheese Blend from Trader Joe's
½ bunch cilantro, minced

Lay out all of your prepped ingredients from left to right in the order they are listed (first tortillas, then beans, etc).

Let everyone top their tortillas with what they want, no more prep necessary.  This could also be a great  meal for summer parties when you don't want to be slaving away in the kitchen all day.  Just prep extra ingredients and let everyone top their own tortilla!

To see more of my pictures you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.

Tilapia with Pesto Pasta & Broccoli (30 minutes including cleanup!)

This is a super easy, efficient, and delicious meal that's perfect for when you are out all day and have to time to cook when you get home.  All together it only takes 30 minutes to make, serves 8 people, and if you prep all your ingredients early in the day it only takes 15 minutes to cook the fish when you get home.  It's also such a delicious dish that my Mom says she's going to make it next time she has a dinner party!

Near the end of the recipe, when you are making the sauce for the pasta, I have you using lots of 'splashes,' with not a lot of exact measurement.  That is because no matter how much or how little of everything you use, the sauce will still be delicious, so don't worry about it being perfect!

4 fillets tilapia
2 bunches of broccoli, washed and cut into florets
1 lb. Fusilli pasta
1 onion, diced
1 bell pepper, finely chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
6 oz. jar Pesto from Trader Joe's
White wine
Lemon juice
Chicken stock
Salt
Pepper
Heavy cream



The before-hand prep:

Coat the tilapia in two big scoops of the pesto, then cover and put in the fridge.

Boil a large pot of salted water and cook the broccoli for 5 minutes.  Use a slotted spoon to remove the broccoli from the pot and transfer to a colander.  If you are prepping in advance, chill the broccoli with ice, then cover and put in the fridge.

Use the broccoli water to cook the pasta for 12 minutes, drain into a colander, and rinse thoroughly.  If you are prepping in advance, cool the pasta, then cover and put in the fridge.

I love having lots of prep bowls with lids for these kinds of recipes, it just makes the before-hand preparation so much easier!

For the 15 minute cook time:

Preheat a pan heavily coated in olive oil.  Once the oil is sizzling, carefully lay the fish in the pan, cover, and cook on high for 5 minutes.

While the fish is cooking, clean the prep dishes from earlier and any other dirty dishes you have lying around the kitchen (I'm sure there are some other dishes you haven't had time to clean yet, there always are for me).

Flip the fish, then add the chopped onion, a splash of the lemon juice, and some white wine, then cook on high until the fish is browned on both sides and flakes easily.

Cut the fillets of fish in half to make 8 pieces in total, then transfer the fish to another dish, leaving the onions in the pan.  Add the bell pepper, garlic, and a big splash of the white wine to the pan and sauté until the bell pepper is just beginning to soften.

Add another large scoop of pesto along with some chicken stock, a sprinkling of salt and pepper, and a tiny splash of heavy cream.

Cook until the sauce is bubbling vigorously, then turn off the pan, add the pasta, and mix thoroughly until the pasta is coated in the creamy sauce.

Serve a piece of the buttery fish alongside a scoop of the pesto pasta with several florets of broccoli.  All the flavors from the sauce, fish, and pesto meld together to create a perfect combination, making this dish absolutely delicious.  And it only takes 30 minutes to make, including prep and cleanup time!

 

 

To see more of my pictures you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.

Pasta with Sausage, Sage, & Tomato Cream Sauce

My favorite pasta dishes are always very colorful & flavorful, so this Pasta with Sausage, Sage, & Tomato Cream Sauce definitely passes the test!  It's surprisingly easy, only uses one pan, has minimal ingredients, and is still a delicious dish that looks like you spent hours slaving away over the stove to make it.  With the flavors of sweet chicken sausage, sage, mushrooms, & tomatoes all coming together in a creamy sauce, this dish will satisfy foodies and pasta-lovers alike.

1 ½ lb. spagetti pasta
1 onion, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, minced
8 oz. mushrooms, sliced
1 package raw Sweet Italian Chicken Sausages from Trader Joe's
3 bell peppers, sliced lengthwise
1 bunch sage, minced
3 cups finely chopped tomatoes
1 cup heavy cream
¾ cup chicken stock

Cook the pasta in salted boiling water for 12 minutes.  Drain, rinse, and cool.

Preheat a large pan coated in olive oil.  When the oil begins to sizzle, add the onion & 3 cloves of the garlic, then sauté until the onion turns a light golden brown.

Add the mushrooms and 1 tsp salt, then sauté for 15 minutes until the mushrooms are golden brown and meaty in texture.

Remove the casings from all 5 sausages, then add them to the pan along with a splash of white wine and use a wooden spoon to break them up into small chunks.

Sauté until the sausages are browned all over and cooked through.

Add the bell peppers and sage to the sausage along with some salt and pepper.

Cook until the bell peppers are slightly softened, then transfer the sausage mixture to a large bowl.

In the same pan you used for the sausage mixture, cook the tomatoes along with the remaining 2 cloves of garlic.

Cook until the tomatoes are bubbling in their own liquid and have slightly reduced, then add the cream and chicken stock.

Put the sausage mixture back in the pan with the tomato sauce, turn off the heat, and mix.

In the same large bowl used earlier for the sausage mixture, thoroughly mix the pasta with the tomato/sausage mixture.

This pasta is ideal served with steamed artichokes and salad, the flavors of the artichoke really meld well with the creamy sauce and pasta.  Try cutting up the artichoke heart on your plate and mixing it with the pasta dish, trust me, it's delicious!

 

To see more of my pictures you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.

Belgian Waffles

A few years ago, we got an electric belgian waffle iron (a waffle iron made especially for waffles that rise).  Most of the time it sits in the cupboard not getting used, but when it does get used on birthdays or holidays, I'm so glad we have it!  The basic difference between normal waffles and belgian waffles is that the belgian waffles are a lot lighter and crispier, since they have yeast and whipped egg whites in the batter.  Usually you are supposed to let the batter sit in the fridge over night, but mine only sat for 15 minutes and it was fine.

1 TBSP active dry yeast
¼ cup warm water
2 cups flour (you can use the gluten free mix from Trader Joe's)
¼ cup sugar
¼ tsp salt
¼ cup butter, melted then cooled to room temperature
2 TBSP vegetable oil (I used coconut oil)
½ cup water
½ tsp vanilla extract
2 egg yolks
2 egg whites


Sprinkle the yeast over the ¼ cup warm water and let it sit for 5 minutes.

In a large bowl, mix together the flour, sugar, and salt.

Add the butter, oil, water, and vanilla to the flour mixture and mix until there are no lumps.

Add the yeast mixture and egg yolks, then mix thoroughly into a smooth batter.

In a sterile bowl, whip the egg whites until they form stiff, glossy peaks.

Gently fold the whipped egg whites into the batter until there are no white streaks.  Cover the finished batter and let it rise in the fridge for at least 15 minutes, preferably over night.

Cook the batter in a seasoned belgian waffle iron, following the manufacture's instructions.  Every waffle iron is a little different in terms of how much you fill it, how you season it, and when the waffles are done.

Top your waffles with yogurt, berry sauce, fresh fruit, and any other desired topping (you can pretty much use anything).  Waffles are great for when you have lots of people over for breakfast or brunch, because they are very customizable and everybody can make their own!

To see more of my pictures you can find me on Instagram at @audreygracephotography.