Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

 Can you believe there is a recipe for this? 

INGREDIENTS:

For the Dough: 

3¼ cups all-purpose flour 

½ cup yellow cornmeal 

1½ teaspoons salt 

2 teaspoons sugar 

2¼ teaspoons instant yeast 

1¼ cups water, room temperature 

3 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted 

4 tablespoons unsalted butter, softened 

1 teaspoon + 4 tablespoons olive oil, divided 

For the Sauce: 

2 tablespoons unsalted butter 

¼ cup grated onion 

¼ teaspoon dried oregano 

½ teaspoon salt 

2 garlic cloves, minced 

1 (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes 

¼ teaspoon sugar 

2 tablespoons coarsely chopped fresh basil 

1 tablespoon olive oil 

Freshly ground black pepper 

For the Toppings: 

1 pound mozzarella cheese, shredded (about 4 cups) 

(Pepperoni) 

¼ cup grated Parmesan cheese

DIRECTIONS:

Make the Dough: Whisk together the flour, cornmeal, salt, sugar, and yeast in a large bowl. Add water and melted butter and mix on low speed, using a dough hook, until fully combined, 1 to 2 minutes, scraping sides and bottom of bowl occasionally. 

Increase speed to medium and knead until the dough is glossy and smooth and pulls away from sides of the bowl, 4 to 5 minutes. (You can easily make this by hand, mixing in the water and butter with a spatula and then kneading by hand.) Coat a large bowl with 1 teaspoon olive oil. 

Using a greased spatula, transfer the dough to the bowl, turning to coat the dough in oil; cover tightly with plastic wrap. Let rise at room temperature until nearly doubled in volume, 45 to 60 minutes. 

Make the Sauce: 

While dough rises, heat the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until melted. Add onion, oregano, and salt; cook, stirring occasionally until liquid has evaporated and onion is golden brown, about 5 minutes. 

Add garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Stir in tomatoes and sugar, increase heat to high, and bring to a simmer. 

Lower heat to medium-low and simmer until reduced to about 2½ cups, 25 to 30 minutes. 

Off the heat, stir in the basil and olive oil, then season with salt and pepper. Laminate the Dough: Turn the dough out onto dry work surface and roll into a 15×12-inch rectangle. 

Using an offset spatula, spread the softened butter over the surface of the dough, leaving a ½-inch border along the edges. Starting at the short end, roll the dough into a tight cylinder. 

With seam side down, flatten the cylinder into an 18×4-inch rectangle. 

Cut the rectangle in half crosswise. Working with one half, fold into thirds like a business letter; pinch seams together to form a ball. Repeat with the remaining half. 

Return balls to the oiled bowl, cover tightly with plastic wrap and let rise in refrigerator until nearly doubled in volume, 40 to 50 minutes. 

Meanwhile, adjust oven rack to lower position and preheat oven to 425 degrees F. 

Bake the Pizzas: Coat two 9-inch round cake pans with 2 tablespoons of olive oil each. 

Transfer 1 dough ball to dry work surface and roll out into a 13-inch circle. Transfer dough to the pan by rolling the dough loosely around a rolling pin and unrolling into the pan. 

Lightly press dough into the pan, working into corners and 1-inch upsides. 

If dough resists stretching, let it relax for 5 minutes before trying again. 

Repeat with remaining dough ball. For each pizza, sprinkle 2 cups mozzarella evenly over the surface of the dough. (If you’re using any meat or veggie toppings, add them now, on top of the cheese.) 

Spread 1¼ cups tomato sauce over the cheese (or toppings) and sprinkle 2 tablespoons Parmesan over the sauce. 

Bake until crust is golden brown, 20 to 30 minutes. 

Remove pizza from the oven and let rest 10 minutes before slicing and serving. 

ENJOY!

Cajun Shrimp Pasta with Sausage

 I don't eat Shrimp...but this looks delicious....I'll pick the shrimp out!

INGREDIENTS:

½ pound large shrimp, peeled and deveined, tails removed 

1 andouille sausage, about ½ pound, sliced into rounds 

1 – 2 tablespoons cajun/creole spice mix, adjust to your spice/heat level Olive oil 

½ medium yellow onion, thinly sliced 

½ red bell pepper, thinly sliced 

1 teaspoon dried thyme 

1 teaspoon smoked paprika 

1 tablespoon cajun/creole spice mix 

1 teaspoon brown sugar 

1 – 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (1 large or 2 small) 

½ cup crushed tomatoes 

¾ cup chicken broth 

1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce 

¾ cup heavy cream, or ½ & ½ (I prefer heavy cream!!) 

12 ounces fettuccine or farfalle (bowties) 

Kosher salt and fresh cracked black pepper 

Grated Parmesan and chopped parsley, for serving.

DIRECTIONS:

Bring large pot of water to boil for pasta. 

Toss shrimp with 1 – 2 tablespoons of cajun seasoning and coat well. 

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and drizzle bottom of pan with olive oil. 

Add shrimp and cook for 2 minutes or so until starting to curl. 

Flip shrimp over and cook another minute or two and then remove to a plate and set aside. 

Drizzle pan with a little more olive oil, add sausage and brown until nicely caramelized, about 4 – 5 minutes. 

Remove to plate, set aside. Add pasta to salted boiling water and cook until al dente, a minute less than package instructions. 

Lower heat to medium and add another good drizzle of olive oil to the pan, add the onion, red bell pepper, thyme, smoked paprika, 1 tablespoon cajun seasoning, brown sugar and a generous pinch of salt.

 Sauté until onion and pepper have softened a bit, scraping up any browned bits that you can. Add the garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Add crushed tomatoes, chicken broth and Worcestershire sauce and bring to a simmer, stirring and scraping up any brown bits from bottom of pan, simmer a couple minutes.

 Add cream and stir to combine, bring to a simmer. Once simmering, add cooked pasta and andouille sausage and stir to combine and heat through, 2 – 3 minutes.

 Add more chicken broth or cream if it seems dry or you’d like more sauce (I added ¼ cup of each). 

Salt and pepper to taste and then lastly, add blackened shrimp and combine, or place shrimp on top of pasta. 

Sprinkle with some more freshly cracked black pepper, grated Parmesan and chopped parsley. 

Enjoy!

Fried Potatoes and Onions with Sausage and Peppers

 This is what it claims to be...Some good eating.. Check out the recipe-

INGREDIENTS:

 2 lbs baby red potatoes (you can also use regular red potatoes or gold potatoes), cut into 1 – 1 1/2 inch pieces 

1/2 Tsp Seasoned salt

1/2 Tsp Italian seasoning.

2 Tsp- Olive oil

1 onion, sliced into thick half circles 

1 Red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch pieces 

1 Green Bell Pepper

8 oz smoked sausage or kielbasa (I use smoked Polish kielbasa), cut into 1-inch pieces 

Black pepper to taste

Shredded Parmesan Cheese to garnish (Optional)

8 oz fresh mushrooms (baby Bella, white button, etc.), cut in half or quarters

DIRECTIONS:

Step 1: In a large pan, saute the onion in a large spoon of butter over medium heat until the onion is translucent. 

 Step 2: Secondly, cook the onion until it is soft. Take the onion out of the pan and put it aside. 

 Step 3: And in a large skillet, heat 1 tablespoon butter and 1 tablespoon olive oil until the butter is melted, and add Combine the potatoes, seasoned salt, Italian seasoning, and pepper. 

 Step 4: After that, cover and simmer, turning occasionally, for 15 minutes, or until the vegetables are somewhat softened. 

 Step 5: Then, cook for another 10 minutes after adding the sausage. Combine the onions and peppers in a large skillet and sauté until the peppers are soft crisp.

Step 6: And finally, If using parmesan cheese, sprinkle it over top. 

 Don't Sweat the Techique: 

 Cook the sausage in a separate pan over medium-high heat until it is crisp, while the potatoes are cooking if you like a crisper sausage.

ENJOY!

Rhubarb Pie

 I've heard this term used on television shows like "The Waltons" and "Matlock" for as long as I can remember and I always thought this was a fictional pie.. I googled it and found out that it is indeed real...There is such a thing as a Rhubarb Pie... And I have a recipe for it.  Enjoy!

INGREDIENTS:

1 cup white sugar

 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour 

 1 egg 

½ teaspoon vanilla extract

 ¾ cup all-purpose flour

 ½ cup brown sugar 

⅓ cup butter, softened 

2 cups 1-inch pieces rhubarb 

1 (9 inch) unbaked pie crust

DIRECTIONS:

Step 1 Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

 Step 2 Mix white sugar, 2 tablespoons flour, egg, and vanilla in a small bowl until combined. 

 Step 3 Place 3/4 cup flour, brown sugar, and butter in another small bowl; mix until crumbly. 

 Step 4 Place rhubarb into pie crust. Pour white sugar mixture over the rhubarb. Sprinkle with brown sugar mixture. 

 Step 5 Bake in the preheated oven until filling is bubbly and crust is golden brown, 30 to 40 minutes.

ENJOY!

Butter Rum Pecan Pound Cake

 Another Sweet Treat for the people!

INGREDIENTS:

 2 sticks salted butter soften

 ½ cup canola oil 

3 cups of white sugar 

6 eggs large eggs 

3 ½ cups sifted cake flour 

1 tsp baking powder

 ¼ tsp salt 

1 tsp butter extract 

1 tbsp rum extract 

1 cup of half and half (For best results all ingredients room temperature)

DIRECTIONS:

Blend sugar, butter and oil with mixer about 15-20 minutes, scraping bowl several times until sugar is dissolved and mixture is light and fluffy. 

Add eggs one at a time making sure well blended, add rum and butter extract. Gradually add flour, baking powder and salt (I start with a cup and a half, of flour, mix well, then another cup, mix well, and then last cup). 

Gradually add half and half about ¼ cup at a time blending well and scraping bowl about half way through.

 Pour into a grease tub or Bundt baking pan. Place in a cold oven, set temperature to 300 degree, and timer for 1 hour 30 minutes. Depending on what type of oven it may take 1 hour 45 or a little longer so do check by inserting a tooth pick, (I use shish kabob straws because they are longer), if clean when removed, remove from oven and cool on wire rack for about 20 minutes. 

Gently remove from pan and cool for additional 30 minutes. Glaze 2-3 cups confectioners sugar Bacardi White Rum Sift sugar or loosen with a wire whip in a bowl.

 Gradually add rum until you have a very thick glaze (sorry I don’t measure, but I start with about 2 cups of sugar). 

Using a soup spoon carefully glaze from the outer edge to the center, if your glaze run down too quickly, mix in more confectioners sugar to thicken.

 Lightly or heavy the choice is yours. 

Be creative, place Pecans halves on top before glazing or pecan pieces on top after glazing or if you’re southern both. 

Note: Salted butter will keep several days on counter top so you’re always ready to bake.

 If you forget to take eggs out put in a bowl and run warm water over to take the chill off. 

Swann Down cake flour is my first choice of baking flour. 

Half and half can be warmed in the microwave to take the chill off. 

Use this receipt and change the extract favor and make wonderful lemon, vanilla, orange or whatever flavor pound cake you like. 

Glaze for these cakes use water or milk and same extract you flavored the cake with, 1 tsp.

Yummy!

ENJOY!

Home Made Chocolate Chip Cookies

 Here is something you can make...The next time you decide to NETFLIX and CHILL or HULU and CHILL or PEACOCK and CHILL, or whatever.

INGREDIENTS:

3 eggs 

1 cup of  sugar 

1 cup of packed brown sugar 

3 sticks of  real butter 

3 cups of  flour 

2 tsp vanilla extract 

Walnut pieces (Optional). 

1 1/2 tsp baking soda 

1/4 Tsp Salt

DIRECTIONS:

Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). 

 In a bowl, cream together the butter, white sugar, and brown sugar until smooth. 

 Add eggs and vanilla and beat till light and fluffy. 

 Dissolve baking soda in hot water, 

Mix flour, salt then add chocolate chips and nuts 

If you want,   USE A SMALL COOKIE SCOOP. 

 Cook 8- to ten minutes, until lightly brown. 

 ENJOY.