Pizza Made With Love…

Happy National Pizza Day!

Am I blindingly busy right now? Oh yes. But that isn’t going to stop me from paying homage to PIZZA! This is a photo of the best pizza I have ever eaten in Marselle France. It was hands down the best, too. And I’ve eaten pizza in Naples. I sure do love a fork and knife kind of ‘Za and that is exactly what I’m trying to recreate today. I know I won’t get the crust as good as this was but I’m going to give it a whirl.

While Theo Shane was living his best life at school and enjoying his Valentine’s Day party, I decided to utilize my pizza loving Coco. She. Loves. Pizza. Like in her soul. So, when I asked her if she wanted to have a pizza day, she just about lost her mind. To the store we went…

Now it was time to make the dough! This girl loves to get her hands dirty so she was very ready for all of the flour.

Like I said this is just how I made my dough. I’d love to go back and get a lesson from a chef in Europe but for now here is how we did it…

We were very excited to get all of the fixin’s for our pizza. She wanted cheese and tomatoes on hers. Don’t worry it only takes us twice as long in any kind of store because my social butterfly really needs to talk to…everyone.

what you do:

1. Add flour, salt, and yeast to Kitchen Aid and mix well.

2. Slowly add in water until well combined.

3. Cut dough into six pieces and form into rounds.

4. Drizzle with olive oil and cover for about an hour or so.

5. Sprinkle the counter with flour and keep pressing down until you have about a 10 inch pie.

6. Add your toppings and throw into the oven for about 5-7 minutes. These are small pizzas they don’t take too long.

How about her very satisfied chef’s pose here?

Colette went with a classic fresh mozzarella, parm, tomatoes, and spinach. She was very pleased with the her decision.

To recreate my French pizza, I brushed the crust with olive oil and garlic, then I used greens, cherry tomatoes, assorted olives, fresh parmesan and mozzarella. Was it as good as it was in Marselle? Nothing ever will be, but it was indeed very delicious!

To finish our girl’s pizza day, we of course had a little cheers! We had the best day, and I can’t wait to continue teaching The Kilgore Kids all about good food and their way around the kitchen.

Carbs don’t count today!

I hope you find yourself with a delicious slice in your hand on this fine Thursday!

Fancy & Fast

Let’s feel fancy on this lovely Wednesday shall we?

Not only are we getting fancy we are doing it quickly and with much ease. So grab a bottle of bubbles and let’s get to it. The hardest part of my (mostly) plant based diet is seafood. I love it in my soul so on weekends if I really want it, I make it and I make it worth it.

One of my very favorite things is finding something I can make better. My whole vibe this year is to elevate everything. Now, me being a seafood lover and seeing this sad box of seafood in the grocery store truly evoked me to add some love to it. Surly it had a better fate than just being dipped in subpar cocktail sauce.

So, what’s fast, elegant, and most importantly deserving for this poor neglected seafood? A bake of course!

First, get everything out and measured for speed. Here is what you need for the sauce:

what you do:

It’s very simple!

1. Add two tablespoons of butter and since I used some scallops along with this I sautéed for about a minute or so on each side.

2. Remove the seafood and splash the pan with white wine for a little deglazing action. Then throw in milk, broth, seasonings, and mustard.

3. Add two more tablespoons of butter and two tablespoons of flour to the mixture (beurre manié, see fun fact below). This will thicken the sauce. Simmer until it’s nice and thick.

4. Turn off the heat and add it to an oven safe dish.

5. I did mine on 350 degrees for about 10-15 minutes.

That’s it! I made this sad box of seafood a meal worth eating and gave it the love that it deserved. I also made my sauce dairy free by using almond milk and plant based butter but you can use whole milk to make it more creamy.

fun fact: Beurre manié is just a dough that is equal parts butter and flour. It’s used to sauces and soups to make them thick.

Hope you’re feeling extra fancy today and I hope no one effs with your good vibes!

Let’s Bowl

Hey, hey, Friends! Happy Wednesday!

It might seem a little cliché to eat healthy at the start of a new year but it’s more of a lifestyle for me and I’ve been seeing a lot of bashing at the moment online about already not making the goals you set. Rude. Every single day is a new day and if you’re at least trying then good for you.

Two things about me: I’m typically a very healthy eater and I’m an over preparer. I also discovered last year that eating a mostly plant based diet makes me feel so good for a number of reasons. I experimented a lot with that way of living last summer. I have one day a week where I eat whatever I feel like. But I think dairy is out to get me.

Anyway. I meal prep on Sunday’s much of the time. If you’re trying to get a little healthier or would just like to save time, throwing together a lunch bowl is a very easy way to eat a healthy, fast lunch. Today I’m sharing one of my absolute favorites.

what you do:

1. Roast sweet potatoes and broccoli in the oven on about 400. Let them cook until the sweet potatoes are tender.

2. With the edamame, I took the easy way out and just made a frozen bag of them.

3. For the chickpeas, I used some that were already roasted to save time. But you can always roast them yourself too.

4. Lastly throw everything together and split up evenly if you’re meal prepping. Add the avocado right before eating.

   Life hack? I always have avocado cups in the fridge for things such as this.

This meal is very filling and easy to throw together. Which is what we all need, right? Healthy and fast is the name of my game. Except when it’s decadent and slow. Ha. Typical Gemini here.

Thanks for stopping by today!