Keto Pizza

Delicious pizza recipe for those following a Keto diet, or anyone looking to cut carbs.

Crust ingredients: *1.5 cup mozzarella *1.5 cup cheddar *1 egg *3/4 cup almond flour

Crust prep: * Melt cheese in a big, microwave safe bowl. Wait for it to cool enough to work it with your hands. * Mix in the egg, by hand. * Mix in the almond flour, by hand, a little bit at a time.

Spread dough onto greased baking sheet or pizza pan.

Bake in oven at 450 degrees for 6 minutes. Let crust cool to room temperature.  Add preferred sauce and toppings and bake another 6-8 minutes or until cheese and toppings are melted.

This was the best "crust" like recipe I tried and overall the best tasting pizza I've ever made!

Rosemary Onion & Focaccia Bread

This recipe is courtesy of Food Network's Tyler Florence. For my first attempt at bread, I wanted to do something that wasn't just plain white bread. I found that most of the ingredients you need for white bread are also found in focaccia (minus the rosemary, onion garlic and olives) which made this the perfect experiment.  I found the process extremely easy and the result was absolutely delicious! While I'm sure other types of bread are a little more technical and time consuming, tonight's results will keep me at the baking table through the new year... I guess I'll have to postpone my New Years resolution, but honestly, who cares when the house smells like it does and I have fresh made bread just a few steps away.

Recipe at:

http://m.foodnetwork.com/recipes/15536

Winter Fruit Salad

Winter Fruit Salad
Ingredients

4 tangerines-peeled and separated
1-8oz package fresh blackberries
1/2 a pomegranate-seeded
1 tangerine peel-julienned and candied with sugar
3 Tbsp rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup pomegranate blackberry juice

Combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl until all the ingredients are coated with the juice and sugar.

Enjoy :)

Tis' the Season for Baking

So, I'll admit it... I have a bit of a man crush on Gordon Ramsay. The dude can cook just about anything and his 15 Michelin Stars are testament to that. Plus, his food always looks AMAZING! I recently stumbled upon his Ultimate Cookery Course on YouTube (thanks bojmenyek) and have been addicted to cooking my way through these amazingly simple recipes. I say simple because He makes it so. His philosophy on food and his approach to teaching make for easy learning. So, if you haven't seen these courses yet, do yourself a favor and check them out!

A Pomegranate Dates a Chicken

Chicken Stuffed with Dates, Tangerine Peel and Almonds in a Balsamic-Port Wine Reduction with Pomegranate 

Ingredients

Chicken

2 boneless chicken thighs-skin on

10 dates-pitted 

1 tangerine peel-julienned

4 Tbsp sliced almonds

Salt + Pepper

Olive Oil

Balsamic Reduction

1/4 Cup Balsamic Vinegar

Splash of Port Wine

1/4 Pomegrante Seeds

2 tsp Sugar

Heat a frying pan to medium hight heat and oven to 350ºF. Peel half the skin back from each chicken thigh and leave attached. Lay flat on a cutting board (skin side down) making sure to fold the loose piece of skin underneath the other skin-on side and season with salt and pepper. Add the dates, tangerine peel, almonds and 1 Tbsp olive oil into a food processor and pulse until it's roughly chopped into 1/8 inch pieces; not quite a paste. Spread a generous amount of the date mixture onto the inside of the chicken thigh and roll tightly starting from the edge that has had the skin peeled back to the other. Wrap the loose piece of skin around the entire thigh and tuck tightly. Generously season with salt and pepper.

Add 2 Tbsp of olive oil to the hot pan and place thighs in seam side down to keep them from unrolling when you flip them. Cook until crisp then flip and repeat until all sides are crispy. Remove from heat and place in oven for 20 minutes or until chicken is cooked all the way through, then let rest.

Add the Balsamic vinegar, port wine and sugar to a sauce pan on Medium heat and bring to a simmer. Stir constantly until a syrup consistence is reached. Poor in pomegranate seeds and stir until combined then remove from heat.

If the chicken skin has lost its crispy texture, add a little more oil to your frying pan and cook until that crunch returns (only a couple mintes). Poor most of the liquid from the balsamic reduction onto a plate with some of the seeds and swirl to coat base of plate evenly. Slice Chicken into 3/4 inch medallions and place on top of the balsamic reduction. Top with remaining liquid and the rest of the seeds and serve.

Enjoy :)

Chicken Breast & Winter Veg

Blackened chicken breast with a lemon-caper beschamel sauce over sautéed yellow squash, zucchini and persimmon garnished with italian parsley. 

Ingredients

Chicken
2 chicken breasts-skin on
1 large garlic clove diced into almond sized slivers
2 Tbsp Butter
4 sprigs of thyme
Salt & pepper
1 Bottle of Pinot Grigio (Most of this will be used for drinking)

Veggies
1 zucchini-halved lengthwise and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
1 yellow squash-halved lengthwise and chopped into 1/2 inch pieces
2 fuyu persimmons-topped, quartered and chopped into 1/2 pieces
1 large garlic clove diced into almond sized slivers
1 sprig rosemary pulled off stem
1 tsp nutmeg grated
4 Tbsp olive oil

Beschamel
2 Tbsp Butter
2 Tbsp all-purpose flour
1/3 cup half and half
1 lemon-zested and juiced
4 Tbsp capers

Heat frying pan to medium high heat. Season chicken breasts on both sides liberally with salt and pepper. Lift the skin up gently from breast meat and place the slivers of garlic underneath. Place 2 Tbsp of olive oil into the hot pan and immediately lay chicken in skin side down and cook until golden brown. Flip and add 2 Tbsp butter and whole thyme sprigs to pan. Once melted add a splash of the wine and baste the chicken while continuing to cook.

Meanwhile heat another skillet over medium heat. When hot, add 1Tbsp olive oil to pan and toss in zucchini, squash, persimmon, garlic cloves, rosemary and nutmeg. Season with salt and pepper and sauté for 5-10 minutes until just fork tender. Add the remaining olive oil and 1/2 Tbsp lemon zest. Combine then remove from heat and set aside.

The butter-wine mixture should now be starting to thicken up. If it starts to get dark, add another splash of wine. Flip chicken again to blacken the skin and cook for several more minutes until chicken is cooked through and skin is nice and crispy. Remove from pan and set aside.

Heat a small sauce pan on medium heat and add the last 2 Tbsp butter to pan. Once melted add the flour and cook for a few minutes while whisking constantly. Add the half and half to create a beschamel. Add the lemon juice and enough wine to create a thick, yet runny sauce. Add the capers and a bit of their liquid. Stir and salt and pepper to taste.

Assemble and garnish with the chopped parsley.

Enjoy.