I would make homemade pizza dough with my Great Aunt Anna all the time! She didn’t measure anything or have a recipe. She just dumped some flour on the table, bloomed some yeast, mixed it all together, and then put it in a bowl to rise. Basically, she could do it with her eyes shut. Even though I did it with her all the time, I didn’t even know where to start when I wanted to try making my own pizza dough. Unfortunately, I never observed well enough to see exactly what she did and came to the upsetting realization that in the nearly 18 years that my Great Aunt is no longer with me– I have never tried to make my own pizza dough. Making this brought back some really happy memories and reminded me of why cooking is such a wonderful thing.

So, I went to Sally’s Baking Addiction and sure enough she had just what I was looking for. A recipe for a quick and easy pizza dough. This dough came together 1,2,3…and in a matter of minutes my dough was ready to rest. Remember, you will need to let the dough rest for at least an hour or two. You could also even make it the day before and let it rest overnight in the fridge.  I just posted the recipe below, but if you would like all of Sally’s tips and tricks…check out her post here. I highly recommend it!!

Honestly, there is nothing better than making dough from scratch. It’s easy, so delicious, and you know exactly what went into it. I also got to use my pizza stone for the first time which helped create an amazing crust. I do dream of visiting my favorite Pizza Shop in Soho again, but alas, we are still quarantined due to COVID-19 here…sooo those of you craving pizza, I’m telling you, THIS IS EASY TO DO! Go have some fun in the kitchen!  — crack open a bottle of wine… it’s the perfect night.

Homemade Pizza Dough (from sallysbakingaddiction.com)

• 1 and 1/3 cups warm water (between 100-110°F)
• 2 and 1/4 teaspoons yeast (1 standard packet)
• 1 Tablespoon granulated sugar
• 2 Tablespoons  olive oil
• 3/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 and 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for hands and surface
• sprinkle of cornmeal for dusting the pan

Directions:

1. Prepare the dough: Whisk the warm water, yeast, and granulated sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Cover and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
2. Add the olive oil, salt, and flour. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. With lightly floured hands, knead the dough for 3-4 minutes. The dough can be a little too heavy for a mixer to knead it, but you can certainly use the mixer on low speed instead. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger – if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading.
3. Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray– just use the same bowl you used for the dough. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 60-90 minutes or until double in size.
4. Preheat oven to 475°F . Allow it to heat for at least 15-20 minutes as you shape the pizza. Lightly grease baking sheet or pizza pan with nonstick spray or olive oil. Sprinkle lightly with cornmeal, which gives the crust extra crunch and flavor. Highly recommended.
5. Shape the dough: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release any air bubbles. Divide the dough in half. (If not making 2 pizzas, freeze half of the dough for another time– see freezing instructions below.) On a lightly floured work surface using lightly floured hands or rolling pin, gently flatten the dough into a disc. Place on prepared pan and, using lightly floured hands, stretch and flatten the disc into a 12-inch circle. Lift the edge of the dough up to create a lip around the edges.
6. Cover dough lightly with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for a few minutes as you prepare your pizza toppings.
7. Top & bake the pizza: Top with your favorite toppings and bake for 12-15 minutes.
8. Slice hot pizza and serve immediately.

with  love and sugar, Kristen xo.

Hi All! I hope you are all doing well and finding comfort with family during this time.

I am trying to be creative in the kitchen with cooking from my pantry and this meatless enchilada bake from SkinnyTaste fits the ticket.

I love veggies! I honestly can’t think of a veggie I don’t like or wouldn’t try.  I also love a good piece of meat or a nice juicy burger which is why when I try a meatless meal that packs tons of flavor and doesn’t make me miss the meat, I know it’s a keeper.

I am trying to incorporate more meatless meals that aren’t pasta in my daily dinner routine and using quinoa is always a good place to start.

…and incase quinoa isn’t your thing…I was scrolling back through the archives and noticed I have another meatless meal that you could give a try, that actually is another take on meatless enchiladas! It’s black bean, Swiss chard and butternut squash enchilada bake ! so yummy!

My meat loving husband loved this as well, but did say how good it would be if I put some chicken or shrimp with it haha …so however you choose to make it, I know you’re going to love it!

Below is the original recipe from the Skinny Taste web site. I didn’t have everything, so I just used what I had in my pantry — My version is in bold =)

Quinoa Enchilada Bake

• 1/2 tsp. olive oil
• 1 clove crushed garlic
• cooking spray
• 1 1/4 cups quinoa (rinsed and drained)
• 1 8 oz can tomato sauce
• 2 cups reduced-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
• 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin
• 1 tbsp chipotle en adobo sauce (or more) – I used a can of diced tomatoes instead
• kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
• 1 4 oz can diced green chiles – Didn’t have these, so I just omit it
• 3/4 cup canned black beans (drained and rinsed)
• 3/4 cup fresh or frozen thawed corn – Didn’t have corn
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro (plus 2 tbsp for garnish)
• 1 1/2 cups part-skim shredded Mexican cheese blend (divided*)
• 1 medium (4 oz haas avocado, diced)
• 2 tbsp chopped scallions
  ** Since I took out some of the spicy components, like the chipotle and green chilies, I added about 2 tbsp of chili powder which I always have ** 

Instructions

1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly spray a 9 x 12 baking dish with oil.
2. In a medium saucepan cook the quinoa with 1 3/4 cups broth according to package instructions; when cooked, fluff with a fork and set aside.
3. Meanwhile in a small saucepan heat the oil over medium low heat. Add the garlic and saute until golden, about 1 – 2 minutes. Add the tomato sauce, 1/4 tsp kosher salt, cumin, 1/4 cup broth and chipotle en adobo. If it’s too thick, add 2 tbsp water to thin out. Bring to a boil and simmer 3 to 4 minutes. (This is to make the enchilada sauce, which I didn’t do — I just mixed everything and then baked )
4. In a large bowl combine the cooked quinoa, green chiles, corn, black beans and 1/4 cup cilantro. Stir in 1/2 cup of the cheese and mix will. Place into the baking dish and spread out. Top with the enchilada sauce and remaining cheese.
5. Cover with foil and bake until hot the cheese is melted, about 20 to 25 minutes.
6. To serve, top with avocado, scallions and remaining fresh cilantro. Cut into 6 pieces and serve right away.

With love and sugar,

Kristen Xo.

I know, I know…it’s been way too long, and honestly, I’ve started this post so many times, and still can’t figure out where or how to start or what to share first, so bear with me as we “Ketch-Up” …see what I did there? hahaha anywayyy…I do have a recipe to share in this post as well — a great lemon pound cake recipe from Sally’s Baking Addiction so read about what I’ve been up to and then go bake some pound cake!

• Remember that really amazing boyfriend who bought me my first Le Creuset pot that I talked about in this post ? Well, he asked me to marry him in April of 2018!! I have a pretty awesome engagement story to fill you in on too!!

• Following our engagement, we started planning a wedding and bought a house, so things got busy to say the least, but you can bet that food was a big priority in all of the planning which I hope to share as well!

• I also started working in a new school district which has been fantastic!

• Oh, and my husband ( gosh, I love saying that) and I traveled to Italy and Ireland for our honeymoon and ate to our hearts desire! I wish I had documented the food better, but I do have some tidbits to share! =)

So there you have it, I am getting myself back in the kitchen and have some great foodie finds to share as well! The first thing I baked in quite some time was this lemon pound cake from Sally’s Baking Addiction (She’s the best!) …and it was sooo yummy and easy…you probably have everything you need to make it right now which was another reason why I loved it!

You can find her recipe here https://sallysbakingaddiction.com/iced-lemon-pound-cake/ I also wrote it out below. I followed it exactly and thought about maybe not icing it, but let’s be honest, who doesn’t want icing and in my opinion the icing made it!

Iced Lemon Pound Cake (Sally’s Baking Addiction)

Ingredients

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 unsalted, room temperature butter

1 cup granulated sugar

3 large eggs, at room temperature

1/4 cup sour cream, at rom temperature

3 tablespoons, freshly squeezed lemon juice ( about 1 lemon)

zest of 1 lemon

1 teaspoon pure vanilla extract

Lemon Icing 

1 cup confectioners’ sugar, sifted

1  1/2 Tablespoons  lemon juice

1 Tablespoon heavy cream or milk

Directions

• Lower the oven rack to the lower third position and preheat the oven to 350°F (177°C). Grease a 9×5 inch loaf pan.
• Make the cake: Whisk the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a large bowl. Set aside.
• With a handheld or stand mixer fitted with a paddle or whisk attachment, beat the butter on high speed in a large bowl until smooth and creamy, about 1 minute. Add the granulated sugar and beat on high speed for 2 minutes until creamed. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed.
• With the mixer running on low speed, add the eggs one at a time, then beat in the sour cream, lemon juice, lemon zest, and the vanilla extract. Beat on medium-high speed until combined. Scrape down the sides and up the bottom of the bowl as needed. With the mixer running on low speed, slowly add the dry ingredients just until combined. Turn the mixer up to high speed and beat for 10 seconds to rid any large lumps. Do not overmix.
• Pour the batter into prepared loaf pan and bake for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Pound cakes are dense and, therefore, take awhile in the oven. This takes about 48 minutes in my oven. Baking times vary, so keep an eye on yours. The cake is done when a toothpick inserted in the center comes out mostly clean. A couple moist crumbs may remain.
• Remove the cake from the oven and set on a wire rack. Allow to cool for 1 hour, then carefully remove from the loaf pan.
• Make the icing: Whisk all of the icing ingredients together and pour over slightly warm cake. Allow cake to cool completely before serving.
• Cover and store leftover cake at room temperature for up to 5 days.

With love and sugar,

Xo. Kristen

Happy Belated New Year! A lot has happened since my last post, I mean A LOT! …I got a new job, engaged, bought a house, and planned a wedding!! I hate to admit, but this is not the first time I have gone many, many months without posting and I am working on changing that in this new year so I hope you will continue to check in and see what I am up to in the kitchen!

Photo by cottonbro on Pexels.com

Love and Sugar,

Kristen xo.