Mini Pizzas

How many of you had to take Home Economics in Junior High School?  

I'm kinda dating myself, although it really wasn't all that long ago!  It was a class girls could take that combined cooking and sewing skills.  Boy, times have changed and I don't think that they even offer a course like this any longer.  We also had International Cooking courses as an elective in High School.  Maybe they should bring them back?  Seems like the art of cooking is getting lost in a world of electronics.  


That's why I love blogs.  It's so great to see so many of the younger generation of men and women cooking.  The talent out there...OMG amazing!! It's heartwarming to see that the interest is there because cooking is actually fun!  I love that people are passing down family recipes and teaching their young children how to cook.  Sharing family treasures is the best way to keep traditions and memories alive.


This super simple easy dish is a great memory for me.  I've been making these Mini Pizzas since Junior High where I learned them.  They are a knock off of a "real" pizza.  They are great for kids, an afternoon snack, or as adults that love them too, you can serve these as appetizers.  Say...New Year's Eve is coming up...what a great idea! hehe!


The best part is that you can create any type of pizza that you want.  The toppings are all up to you, so create to your hearts content. Keep them simple...or make them elegant.   I'll provide you with the basic recipe and you can take it from there, the variations are endless!


Here you go....step by step pics.


Making the sauce...simple.  Just a can of tomato sauce with some Italian seasoning added, stir and heat it up to blend the flavors.  You can jazz it up if you want!.

Shaping the pizzas...simple.  Place the biscuits on a cookie sheet sprayed with cooking spray.  Spread them out with your fingers to form the pizzas.  Note:  don't use the flaky layered biscuits for this, they don't work so well.  The buttermilk old time regular biscuits work the best!

Add the sauce...

Add your toppings...

 




Pop them in the oven and let them bake at 450 fro about 8 to 10 min.  They should puff a little and turn golden brown.  Voila....mini pizzas!  Dig in!

Mini Pizzas


serves 10


1 8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 tsp. Italian seasoning 
1 small can of biscuits (not the flaky layered kind)


Toppings:
shredded cheese
turkey pepperoni, sausage, olives, peppers, diced ham, etc.


Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Open the can of tomato sauce and put it in a small saucepan.  Add the Italian seasoning.  Place over medium heat and bring the sauce to a bubble.  Turn the heat down to a simmer.


Open the can of biscuits and place them on a baking sheet that has been sprayed with cooking spray.  Using your fingers spread out each biscuit to flatten the dough just a bit.  Add some warm sauce to each biscuit, leaving a small edge around the biscuit.  Top with shredded cheese and any other toppings.

Bake at 450 degrees for 8 - 10 minutes or until golden brown.

Seeded Breadsticks

New Year's is upon us already.

The year has gone by so fast!  What happened?  It's been like a whirlwind of activity since October!  Onward and upward...and I'm looking forward to a bright and shiny 2012.   For New Year's Eve I love to make an array of appetizers, or finger foods that people can munch on while socializing.

One easy dish is my Seeded Breadsticks.  They are perfect with soup, salad, or along side your lunch or dinner.  Cut cut these babies in half and your have "mini" breadsticks...perfect for appetizers!  The best part, they are easy and quick to make!

 

 






Try my seeded breadsticks and let me know what your favorite appetizer to serve is.

Seeded Breadsticks

Serves 12

1  14 ounce can refrigerated pizza dough

1 ½ teaspoons each: pumpkin seeds, poppy seeds, flax seeds, plain sesame seeds, and black sesame seeds

Preheat oven to 425 degrees.  Spray a large baking sheet with cooking spray.  Unroll pizza dough on a lightly floured surface.  Gently roll dough into a 12x9-inch rectangle. Sprinkle with seeds.  Using a pizza cutter cut dough crosswise into 12 strips.  

Twist dough several times and place strips on prepared baking sheet. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes or until golden brown. Cool on a wire rack. Makes 12 breadsticks.  Note:  As an appetizer cut breadsticks in half before baking, making 24 mini breadsticks.

Candy Cane Joe Joe’s Cheesecake

Merry Christmas

and

a Happy 1 year anniversary

 to the start of my blog!

I'm amazed that a year has gone by since the start of my blog.  It's been an amazing experience, cooking so many tasty dishes, meeting so many bloggers, and having you as my audience!  I am truly honored to be able to bring my family's recipes to life and to share them all with you.

I think this calls for a celebration and the best celebrate is with a decadent dessert!

I got this idea talking to my mom about cheesecakes, and the recipe that she used for years.  Since it's holiday time I wanted to make one that had a hint of peppermint.  I love peppermint, it's so refreshing in a dessert!  Mom and I discussed peppermint options, and both of us mentioned the ice cream in the stores this time of year that has the chunks of hard peppermint candies in it.  Neither of us like that...nope.  One thing I don't like is to bite into a hard piece of candy in a soft ice cream, or cake.  Nope, can't do it.

So then I light bulb went off...Trader Joe's sells peppermint flavored Oreos, called Candy Cane Joe Joe's. Yippee!  Have you had them?  They are awesome.

So this was my inspiration to make an oreo type of cheesecake that is peppermint in flavor.  It is a chocolate lover dream, with a chocolate crust, and topped with a chocolate ganache.  Rich...rich...rich...and decadent!

 

 

For those that want a more lower carb cheesecake or to just reduce the carb count you can substitute the sugar for Splenda, and you can use Sugar free oreos for the crust.  You will still have some carbs with the Joe Joe's and the chocolate, however, the overall count will be reduced.  I've also added neufchatel cheese instead of the cream cheese to keep the fat grams down as well.  But trust me, this is still a very rich dessert!

Enjoy your holiday season and try a slice of my cheesecake!

Candy Cane Joe Joe’s Cheesecake

A Slice of Southern original

Crust:

2  cups Oreo cookies, crushed

2  tablespoons butter, melted

Filing:

4 (8-oz.) pkg neufchatel cheese, softened

1 ½ cups sugar or Splenda equivalent

1/3 cup whipping cream

2 T flour

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

4 large eggs

2  cups coarsely chopped Candy Cane Joe Joe’s cookies

1/3 cup whipping cream

Ganache:

1 ¼ cups semi-sweet chocolate morsels

1 tsp. vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 325 degrees.  In a medium bowl, combine the crushed cookies and melted butter.   Firmly press the mixture (use the base of a glass) evenly in bottom and up the sides of a lightly greased 9-inch spring form pan. Bake for 12 minutes and set aside.

In a large bowl beat cream cheese at medium speed until creamy. Gradually add the sugar, beating well. Add the whipping cream, flour and 1 tsp. vanilla beating well. Add the eggs one at a time beating well after each addition.

Pour 3 1/2/c. of batter onto prepared crust. Top with coarsely chopped cookies. Pour in remaining batter. Bake for 1 hour and 15 minutes. Turn oven off, and leave cheesecake in oven with door closed 45 minutes. Remove from oven and cool completely on a wire rack. Cover and chill for 8 hours. Run a knife along the edges of the pan.  Remove sides of pan.

For ganache topping, combine whipping cream and chocolate morsels in a small saucepan.  Stir over low heat until chocolate melts. Stir in vanilla. Remove from heat. Carefully spread mixture over cheesecake, allowing it to drip down sides. Store the cheesecake in refrigerator. Top with a dollop of whipped cream if desired.