Bruschetta

At this point, I think everyone has heard of bruschetta. It's one of those foods that has really picked up in popularity over the last decade or so. In its simplest form, bruschetta is made of diced tomatoes, minced garlic, basil, olive oil, and salt. That's it. You might see some folks make it their own by adding something special like red wine vinegar, scallions, or something else. But sometimes I really like the classic. Just very basic - and delicious - flavors.

Bruschetta is usually served on top of crostini. That's just a piece of toasted bread, usually with some garlic rubbed on there. Crostini can be served with all kinds of great toppings including bruschetta, olive tapanade, or other meats, cheeses, and vegetables.

 Bruschetta
Makes: 4 servings

4 ripe tomatoes, cut into a 1/2" dice
2 cloves garlic, very finely minced
1 tbsp fresh basil, minced
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/4 tsp sea salt

Crostini:
1 baguette, ciabatta, or other crusty bread
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cloves garlic

• Make the crostini by slicing the bread on a bias (that means at an angle). Toast the bread pieces either on a grill or under a broiler.
• Remove the bread from the heat, immediately rub each piece with the garlic while the bread is still hot. Then brush with a small amount of the olive oil.
• Now make the bruschetta. Mix together the tomatoes, garlic, basil, olive oil, and salt.
• Serve the bruschetta on the crostini pieces right before serving. If you do this too early, the bread with get soggy.

Some people like to serve their bruschetta with a little sprinkle of shredded parmesan or asiago cheese. I'm a firm believer that not everything can be improved with the addition of cheese. I think this recipe is just the right balance of flavors as is. That being said, if you're a cheese fiend, go ahead and sprinkle some on there.

Bruschetta can also be used to top a piece of grilled chicken or fish or even mixed in with some hot pasta. Go ahead and get creative!

I was so excited to use the fresh tomatoes and basil from my container garden in this recipe. It stinks living in an apartment sometimes but I won't let that stop me from growing fresh veggies!

Pizza Chicken Roulade

A chicken roulade, in case you were curious, is just a piece of chicken that has been stuffed and then rolled up. With pizza chicken roulades, I stuffed them with the big slices of sandwich pepperoni that you get from the deli and fresh mozzarella and then braised them in tomato sauce. Braising refers to a process where you sear the meat or vegetable either on a grill or in a hot pan, then you finish the cooking process gently by simmering or baking in liquid, usually a sauce.

Pizza Chicken Roulade
Makes: 4 servings

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
12 slices of sandwich pepperoni
8 oz fresh mozzarella (not the aged kind)
2 tbsp canola oil
1 jar of pasta sauce
4 pieces of fresh basil

• Cut the chicken breasts in half length-wise so that you have four thinner pieces of chicken.
• Place one piece of chicken between two pieces of plastic wrap. With a meat tenderizer, rolling pin, or other heavy instrument, pound the chicken flat. It should be about 1/8" thick. Repeat with the remaining pieces of chicken.
• Lay out a piece of chicken, layer 3 slices of pepperoni onto the chicken. Top with 1/4 of the mozzarella cheese, cut into slices. Roll the chicken up. To keep it together, you'll need to place about four toothpicks in there. Repeat with the remaining chicken, pepperoni, and cheese.
• Heat the oil in a stainless steel skillet over medium high heat.
• Place the chicken in the pan and sear on both sides for about 2 - 3 minutes per side. The chicken will still be raw in the middle.

• Pour half of the sauce in the bottom of a 13" x 9" glass baking dish. Place the chicken on top of the sauce in a single layer. Top the chicken with the remaining sauce.
• Bake at 400° F for 25 - 30 minutes until the chicken is thoroughly cooked and no longer pink.

• Serve on top of rice, pasta, or even roasted vegetables. Garnish with fresh basil.

B.L.A.T.

That stands for Bacon, Lettuce, Avocado, & Tomato - in case you were curious! This is a classic sandwich that's great for a picnic, entertaining, or even just a lazy Saturday. For this sandwich, I used some ciabatta sandwich rolls, but you could also use a nice crusty bread cut on a bias. Most people like to put avocado slices on this sandwich, but I like to make an avocado spread to take the place of mayonnaise. As for the lettuce, I chose romaine lettuce because it's a little bit better for you than iceberg. Lettuce tends to be pretty nutritionally devoid, but in general the darker ones usually have more nutrients - romaine, green leaf, etc.

B.L.A.T.
Makes: 2 sandwiches

1 ripe avocado
1 tsp lime juice
1 small clove garlic, finely minced
1 tbsp olive oil
pinch salt
2 ciabatta rolls
4 strips bacon
2 roma tomatoes
4 leaves romaine lettuce

• Make the avocado spread. With a fork, mash together the avocado, lime juice, garlic, olive oil, and salt. Set aside.
• Cut the ciabatta rolls in half. Toast the rolls either on the grill or under the broiler.
• Spread some avocado spread on both halves of the rolls. From the bottom up, layer the lettuce, tomatoes, then bacon.

If you have any left-over avocado spread, feel free to dip some tortilla chips in there!

Grilled Pizzadillas

In case you hadn't guessed, a Pizzadilla is a glorious combination of pizza and quesadillas. I first came across this concept on Pinterest - surprise surprise! Then Matt actually had a Pizzadilla at East Coast Wings and Grill. He loved it so much that it was set in stone - I had to try to make them! I thought I would make this recipe my own by making them on the grill. The weather has been warming up here in the Carolinas and I am so ready for spring and grilling and flip flops!

I made a few pepperoni pizzadillas and a few veggie ones. The veggie ones had olives, mushrooms, and green peppers and they were really delicious. I don't like raw veggies on my pizza/in my quesadillas so I sauteed the veggies first with a little garlic. You can do the same if you want or just throw them on there raw, whichever you prefer.

Grilled Pizzadillas
Makes: 6 pizzadillas

6 large burrito sized flour tortillas
6 oz pizza cheese (mozzarella and cheddar blend)
Toppings such as pepperoni, sausage, bacon, mushrooms, olives, peppers, onions, etc
14 oz jar of plain pizza sauce

• Preheat the grill on high with the lid down.
• Once the grill is nice and hot, open the lid. Place 3 - 4 tortillas on the grill at a time, depending on how many will fit on your grill.
• Carefully top each tortilla with 1 oz of cheese (about 1/4 cup) then add desired toppings. I quickly learned that I couldn't keep my hand over the grill for longer than about 2 seconds because of the heat. So you should expect to have to add the cheese and toppings in short bursts. If it's easier for you, you can make two at a time so that they don't burn by the time you're able to get all of the toppings on.
• Leave the lid open and allow the pizzadilla to cook. Once the cheese is melted, about one minute, use a grill spatula to fold the pizzadilla in half. Then remove from the grill.
• Cut the pizzadilla into thirds then serve with warm pizza sauce for dipping.

On the grill!

As I was adding the labels to this post, I asked Matt if this was T1D friendly and he said, "No! God no!" Haha whoops, I guess that answers that question...

Baked Stuffed Tomatoes

Matt isn't terribly fond of vegetables. But tomatoes are one thing he will eat. And he loves baked stuffed tomatoes. So, I would say this recipe is kid tested and kid approved. But it's actually husband tested and husband approved which is a more rigorous standard of testing ;-)

When I was trying to decide between getting Boursin or Alouette cheese, I was looking at the labels. Alouette said "all natural!" So I thought I would get that one. But when I looked at the ingredients, it had a bunch of weird stuff like xanthan gum and guar gum. The Boursin didn't have any of that. It was all real ingredients; despite the fact that it didn't do any advertising about how natural it was. Go figure! Anyways, that's just my two cents...

Baked Stuffed Tomatoes
Makes: 3 tomatoes

3 medium tomatoes
pinch of sea salt
1 package Boursin or Alouette herb and garlic cheese
3 tbsp panko bread crumbs

• Wash the tomatoes. Cut a very small slice off the bottoms (this will help them to stand up straight). Cut off the tops.
• With a spoon, scoop out the seeds and fleshy membranes so that you have three hollow tomatoes.
• You don't have to throw away the part that you scoop out. You could cook it down and make it into sauce or dice it up and put it in a salad or an omelette.

• Sprinkle a little bit of sea salt inside each tomato. Then place the tomatoes in a glass baking dish.
• Stuff as much cheese as you can get into each tomato. Depending on the size of your tomatoes, you may end up using the whole package of cheese or you may have some left overs. I used up about 2/3 of the package.
• Very carefully sprinkle one tablespoon of panko on top of each tomato.
• Bake at 350° F for 20 - 25 minutes until the tomatoes are soft and the bread crumbs are lightly golden brown.

Tip: Store your tomatoes on the counter top instead of the refrigerator to prevent them from developing a bitter flavor.

Chicken Parm

Chicken parm is a really simple dish that I like to make during the week. It's fast and everyone loves it. It might seem like something fancy because it's the kind of dish you would order at a restaurant, but trust me it's a lot easier than you think. I guarantee you'll be adding this to your weekly line-up.

Looking back through my posts, I've realized we eat entirely too much chicken haha! What can I say. It's cheap, easy, and everyone likes it.

Chicken Parm

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

3/4 cup panko bread crumbs

1/3 cup parmesan cheese

1 clove garlic, minced super fine

1/2 tsp Italian seasoning

1 tbsp olive oil

1 egg, beaten

6 oz shredded cheese (I like the pizza cheese blend)

1/2 lb pasta

1 jar tomato sauce

• Preheat oven to 400° F.
• Trim any excess fat off the chicken breasts. Then cut each chicken breast in half length wise so that you have 4 pieces of chicken. This will make the pieces thinner which will help them cook faster and more evenly.
• Combine the panko bread crumbs, parmesan cheese, garlic, Italian seasoning, and olive oil. Make sure that the garlic is minced super fine so that it actually cooks while in the oven. You don't want to bite into raw garlic!
• Dip the chicken breasts into the egg, then the bread crumb mixture. Place in a single layer on a greased baking sheet. If there are any extra bread crumbs, sprinkle them over top of the chicken breasts.
• Bake for 20 minutes until the chicken is no longer pink.
• Meanwhile, cook the pasta and heat up the sauce.
• Once the chicken is cooked, remove from the oven. Top each piece with some shredded cheese. Place back in the oven for 2 minutes until the cheese is melted.
• Remove from oven and serve over top of pasta and sauce.

Classic Guacamole

I've got to be honest, there is absolutely nothing special about this recipe. It is just like the hundreds of guacamole recipes you'll find if you just Google the topic. However, sometimes a classic is just what you need. No fancy additions or spins on the original. Just pure and unadulterated. I love guacamole and it's super easy to make. There's no reason to buy the store bought stuff with all the salt and preservatives.

My guacamole is a mild recipe. I know what you're thinking, and no, I haven't lost my mind. I actually prefer a  mild guacamole. I like the avocado to be the star of the show, not the heat.

Guacamole
2 Ripe avocados
1 Clove garlic
1 Roma tomato
1 Jalapeno pepper
2 Tbsp lime juice
Salt

• Cut the avocados in half. Give the pit a good whack with your knife then twist. This is the easiest way to remove the pit. If this method makes you nervous, you can always just give the avocado a good squeeze instead.
• Scoop out the avocados with a spoon and drop them into a bowl.
• Toss the avocado halves with the lime juice so they don't start to oxidize and turn brown.
• Mince the garlic super fine - you don't want to bite into a large chunk of raw garlic!
• Cut the top off of the jalapeno then cut it into quarters. Scoop out the seeds. Lay each quarter flat on your cutting board then cut out the fleshy membrane that was holding the seeds. All of these steps will remove a significant amount of the heat. If you like spicier guacamole, leave the seeds and membranes on the pepper.
• Cut each section into 1/8" match stick size strips. Then finely dice so that you have a 1/8" dice.
• Add the garlic and jalapeno to the avocado and lime juice mixture. Mash up the mixture with a fork. You can make it chunky or creamy, depending on your preference.
• Cut the tomato in half. With a spoon, scoop out the seeds and fleshy membranes in the center of the tomato. You'll be left with two hollow shells basically.
• Cut each section into 1/4" strips. Then dice so that you have a 1/4" dice.
• Add the tomatoes to your guacamole.
• Add salt to taste. Matt and I prefer only a little bit of salt so I add about 1/8 tsp. You may need more, depending on personal taste.
• Run and hide so you can eat it all before anyone realizes you've made guacamole!

Note: you may want to put on gloves to cut the jalapeno. If you don't wear gloves, make sure that you thoroughly wash your hands afterward and for the love of God, don't touch your eyes or nose for several hours after cutting the jalapeno.