BBQ Chicken Pizza Rollup

This dish was super simple to put together! I could see making this again with different pizza combinations. I highly recommend making this if you are a beginner or something to do with kids. 

Ingredients:

1 refrigerated pizza crust

½ cup BBQ sauce

1 ½ cups shredded rotisserie chicken

½ red onion, finely chopped

1 cup shredded cheese 

¼ cup parsley, chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 425°F/220°C. 

2. Roll out the pizza crust into a rectangle. Spread on the BBQ sauce. 

3. Top with chicken, onion, cheese, and parsley. Roll it up longways, and cut into slices. 

4. Bake face-up for 15 minutes. Enjoy!

Mediterranean Orzo Salad

This is a great make ahead dish because the longer it sits, the more the flavor melds together. You could mix it up with any veggies you like. I added a little extra cheese when serving mine so feel free to customize this dish to your tastes!

Ingredients
1 box orzo
1 bell pepper, medium dice
1 container cherry tomatoes, halved
1 English cucumber, peeled, seeded, and sliced
1 container pearl mozzarella balls, drained

Dressing:
1/2 cup red wine vinegar
1 lemon, zseted and juice
1 TBS chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp Dijon mustard
1 tsp honey
2 tsp salt
1tsp pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

1. For dressing: combine all ingredients in a jar. Put lid on tightly and shake to mix. Taste for seasoning and adjust if needed.

2. Boil water and cook orzo to package directions.

3. While water boils, cut up vegetables.

4. Drain pasta and add orzo to a bowl. While orzo is warm add half of the dressing (mix dressing before adding). Toss gently to combine.

5. Allow orzo to cool on the counter for 5 minutes so you don't cook the veggies when you add them.

6. Add veggies and rest of dressing and mix. Serve now or better yet let it marinate in the fridge overnight and serve at room temp the next day!

Grilled Skirt Steak and Arugula Salad with Lemon Shallot Vinaigrette

I wanted to start off the new year trying to eat healthy but I know it needs to be satisfying and flavorful if I'm going to stick with it. I came up with this salad because I wanted meat and potatoes but in a way that was better for me. I've already made this dish again since the first time I made it and it's really great. The roasted tomatoes are a great way to add flavor and moisture to this dish and I plan to add this to more recipes!

Ingredients:

Dressing:
1 shallot, thinly sliced
1 clove of garlic, minced
3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Zest and juice of 1/2 large lemon, about 2 tbsp.
1 tbsp. champagne vinegar
1 tbsp. Dijon mustard
1 tbsp. chopped fresh thyme
1 tsp. kosher salt
1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
Zest and juice of 1/2 large lemon

Salad:
2 pounds skirt steak, grilled and sliced
1 pounds baby yukon gold potatoes, sliced
2 large tomatoes, sliced into eigths,
salt and pepper
4 cups arugula (about 4 ounces)
parmesan curls, optional
1/4 cup chopped walnuts, toasted, optional


Directions:
1. Place an oven rack in the center of the oven. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Line a heavy baking sheet with foil. Set aside.

2. Arrange potatoes on 1/2 of the sheet tray in an even layer. Arrange the tomatoes on the other 1/2 of the sheet tray in an even layer. Season with salt, pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil. Roast until cooked through and browned about 30 minutes.

3. For the dressing: Put garlic and shallot into a small sauce pan over low heat and add olive oil. Cook stirring occasionally for 3 minutes to slightly cook the shallots and flavor the oil. Do not let garlic get too dark. In a large bowl, whisk together the olive oil mix, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, thyme, salt, pepper and lemon zest until smooth.

4. In a large bowl, toss together 3 tbsp. of the dressing with the arugula. Arrange on a platter. Place the roasted potatoes, tomatoes, and steak on top and sprinkle with the parmesan cheese and chopped walnuts if using.

Strata with Tomatoes -Make Ahead Brunch

For Christmas we normally do a family brunch. I always like to find a make ahead dish so I can just enjoy hanging out with everyone instead of being stuck in the kitchen the whole time. This dish turned out really awesome! It had so many veggies that I felt like I was eating healthy and it would be a great way to sneak some veggies to your kiddos. 

Ingredients:

6 plum tomatoes, quartered lengthwise
1 tablespoon chopped fresh thyme
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 cups whole milk
8 large eggs
10 ounces Italian fontina cheese, grated (about 3 cups)
1 cup grated parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 1 -pound loaf sourdough bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 8 cups)
4 cups chopped greens, such as spinach or arugula
1/2 lb bacon, cooked until crispy

Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Toss the tomatoes with the thyme, olive oil and 1/2 teaspoon each salt and black pepper in a bowl. Spread on a baking sheet lined with foil and roast, stirring once or twice, until the tomatoes are slightly dried and browned in spots, about 30 minutes. Cool completely.

2. Whisk the milk, eggs, fontina, 3/4 cup parmesan, the cayenne, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon black pepper in a large bowl. 

3. Add the bread cubes,bacon and greens and toss to coat. Pour into a buttered 3-quart baking dish, then top with the roasted tomatoes. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

4. The next day, preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Sprinkle the strata with the remaining 1/4 cup parmesan and bake, uncovered, until golden brown and almost set, about 45 minutes. Turn off the oven, but keep the strata inside 10 minutes before serving. You can serve this dish at room temp but it's best warm. 

Cheese Fondue

I got this recipe from an old college friend of mine who made it, shout out to John Bessolo. It came out really well and I plan to make it again! Make sure to preheat the fondue pot as you're melting the cheese so the fondue doesn't cool down once you've finished it, you want it to stay warm and bubbly.

Ingredients:

3/4 cup fontina
1/4 cup gruyere
2 - 4 tbsp. flour
1/4-1/2 cup white wine
4 tbsp. chicken stock
1 tbsp. butter
1 garlic clove
Pretzels, green apple slices, toast sticks with garlic, salami (prep before making fondue)


Directions:
1. Shred the two cheese and put into a bowl. Coat them with a light layer of flour (this will help them from sticking together).

2. Melt butter in a medium saucepan over low heat. You want a pan with a rounded bottom so no cheese gets stuck in the edges and burns.

3. Add clove of garlic to pan and allow to cook slightly until it is just browned, don't let butter get too brown. Discard garlic.

4. Add in 3tbs white wine and stir. Add a small pinch of cheese (about a tbsp) and whisk until cheese is melted. Add more cheese and whisk until melted. Repeat adding cheese in small bits until all of the grayed cheese is gone. If the mixture gets too thick, add a splash of wine or chicken stock to thin out.

5. Pour fondue into a preheated fondue pot so cheese stays warm. Place on the table with dipping choices and serve! 

Grilled Ribeye with Agrodolce Sauce

I wasn't able to take a pic of this dish but the sauce was really good! It was a nice balance of tart and sweet and since Brian loves vinegar, I will definitely make this again!

Ingredients:
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
4 sprigs thyme
3 tbsp. honey
3 tbsp. butter, at room temp

Directions:
1. Combine the vinegar, garlic, and thyme in a small saucepan. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Continue to simmer until reduced by half, about 5-10 minutes. Add the honey and simmer until mixture has thickened slightly, about 3 to 4 minutes. Make sure to stir every once in a while so the sauce doesn't burn. Stir in the butter and set sauce aside.

2. Cook meat of your choice, beef and pork are the best choice. Once the meat is rested and sliced, drizzle the sauce over top and serve!

Salt Crusted Beef Tenderloin

 

I've heard about using a salt crust to cook a whole fish, but never for beef so I was intrigued. The meat ended up being so tender I could almost cut it with a fork! I made this as a special treat and I would definitely serve it to company at my next party! You could use top sirloin roast or top round roast instead of the expensive beef tenderloin. 

Ingredients:
2 lbs. beef tenderloin (for a larger piece of tenderloin, you'll need more salt crust to cover it)
pepper

Salt Crust:
3 cups kosher salt
1 cup water
1 tbs. chopped rosemary

Directions:
1. Cover beef tenderloin in black pepper. Heat a large pan oven high heat and sear the outside of the beef. Place in pan and allow to brown on one side for 4 minutes until beef is browned nicely, rotate tenderloin and repeat until all sides are browned.

2. While beef is searing, combine all ingredients for salt crust in a bowl and stir until combined. Mix should look like damp sand. (If you have any small cuts on your hand, make sure to wear gloves!)

3. Put 1/3 of the salt crust in the middle of a sheet pan covered in foil. Spread out the salt to make a level platform about 1/2 inch thick and about 2-3 inches loner than the tenderloin. Place tenderloin in middle of salt layer. Put rest of salt crust on top of the beef tenderloin, using your hands, make a dome of salt around the beef so it is completely encapsulated. Stick in a prob thermometer into the beef by sticking it through the end and into the middle of the tenderloin so you can make sure you get an accurate temp reading.

4. Preheat a 250 degree oven. Bake uncovered for 45-60 minutes or until beef has reach 135 degrees Meat will continue to cook slightly in salt crust. My final temp was around 145 which is normally high for me but the meat was perfectly medium rare!)

5. Allow meat to rest for 20 minutes in the salt dome. This is a great time to reheat any sauce or sides you plan to serve with it. (I did my Irish Whisky Gravy with baked potatoes and sauteed broccolini with lemon.)

6. Using the back of a spoon tap the salt crust to crack it. Use the spoon and remove the salt crust. Move beef to a cutting board wiping off all excess salt (if you skip this step final dish could be too salty). Slice and serve!