Mozzarella | It's Great To Be Home

Last week I confessed to you guys my homemade pizza obsession. Yes, it’s a full-fledged obsession – and from the feedback I got, it sounds like you guys are hooked, too!!

Let me tell you, once you try homemade pizza you will totally be a die-hard fan forever. My half always has sausage & jalapeno, and I swear that our pizza tastes exactly like my favorite ones from Campisi’s and I Fratelli – not that I’m biased (ahem). And on top of being delicious, we can make our pizza from scratch faster than a delivery guy can bring us one, and our pizza is cheaper! (We calculated it at about $6 per pizza – a total bargain when compared to other gourmet pizzas).

Here’s a quick rundown of how to add a delicious pizza recipe to your arsenal. It looks a little intimidating but it is seriously easy!!

1. Gather what you need:

Basic Ingredients { for a 2-person pizza }

~ 1 ball of frozen pizza dough { We use individually packaged frozen dough from Central Market, but any frozen dough will do. There are all sorts of instructions about letting the dough “proof” and expand, etc., but we ignored all that and just defrosted it in the fridge the night before we wanted to use it. We are rebels, and it worked out just fine. If you want to make your own, this dough recipe is supposed to be delish. }

~ 2-3 T pizza sauce { we use this one, also from Central Market }

~ 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese { we buy a big bag from Sam’s, divide it into little ziplock bags and freeze most of it }

Toppings { this is what we use, but you could vary the toppings as you like - olives, fresh basil, chicken and artichokes are a few other yummy options }

~ 1/2 lb. ground Italian sausage, cooked & drained { make sure any meat you use is cooked before you put it on your pizza }

~ minced, canned jalapenos

~ pepperoni slices { we use the Wilson’s brand, found near the bacon }

~ feta crumbles { for some reason, a few feta crumbles on top of the pizza are totally yummy – but optional, of course! }

Garlic Butter – optional { spread over the crust, you could also for dipping Papa John’s-style }

~ 1-2 T melted butter or margarine

~ 1 clove garlic, minced { we use the jarred garlic – so easy! }

~ 1 t dried oregano

Prep Stuff

~ rolling pin

~ 1/4 cup flour { to prevent dough from sticking }

~ pizza stone or baking sheet

~ basting brush

2. Get the dough ready. Preheat your oven to 450 degrees (and if you’re using a pizza stone, stick it in the oven to preheat for a few minutes – this will make the crust crispier). By this point, your dough has already thawed and it ready to be fiddled with. We’ve found that it’s best to roll out your dough on the pizza stone or baking sheet – otherwise, transferring the floppy dough from the counter to the baking sheet is a serious disaster (or at least it was for us!).

To roll out your dough, dust a thin layer of flour on your baking sheet (if using a hot pizza stone, be careful not to touch it!), plop the dough on the baking sheet, and then dust the top of the dough with a little more flour. Roll out the dough with your rolling pin until it’s the size and shape that you want (remember that thicker dough will lead to softer pizza). If you don’t have a rolling pin, just evenly push and pull the dough with your hands, but be careful to keep the thickness of the dough even and not to tear any holes in the dough.

3. Put on the goodies. Spoon a small amount of pizza sauce in the middle of the dough and spread it around with the back of your spoon – go as close to the edges as you’d like, and this will determine how much crust you have. Start with a small amount of sauce and add more – you’ll need less than you think (we usually use about 2 – 2.5 large spoonfuls). Next, sprinkle your pizza with mozzarella cheese and add all of your favorite toppings. The last step is to brush the crust with your garlic butter mixture using the basting brush. You don’t have to do this last step but it definitely gives the crust more flavor!

4. Bake your pizza. Throw your pizza in the 450 degree oven for about 10 minutes (keep an eye on it since each oven cooks a little differently). Your pizza is done when the crust is golden brown & the cheese is melted – then cut it into slices and enjoy it!!

YUM!! Ready to whip up a pizza? What toppings are you going to put on it? Mmmm, I’m already dreaming of our next pizza fest . . .

P.S. You guys shared some awesome recipes last week – I can’t WAIT to try them out! In fact, we’re trying Sara S’s lime chicken soft tacos tonight . . . so excited!

This post is shared with The DIY Show Off.

I don’t know about you, but when I think of lasagna I think of big squares of layered noodles and other goodies. Well, that is like so 2009 (insert valley girl accent here).

Let me introduce you to my new friend – lasagna rollups.

If you’ve met one before, you surely remember its gooey deliciousness, handy single-servingness (yes, I made that up), and awesome freezability. Ahhh, freezability – every girl’s best friend. I got this recipe from this lovely lady, and I know you’ll love it!

Here’s how you can get your hands on one (or 10):

1. Be prepared. Go ahead and preheat your oven to 375 and start boiling a ginormous pot of water (the lasagna noodles are really long). Once the water is boiling, boil 1 box of lasagna noodles according to the package directions. Once the noodles are done, take them out of the water with tongs and lay them on a pre-greased cookie sheet (if they overlap, drizzle them with a little olive oil to keep them from sticking). While all this is going on, cook and drain a 1/2 pound of ground beef for the filling.

2.. Assemble the goods.

~ 1 box of lasagna noodles – see above (we like the whole wheat ones – and they’re pretty tasty)

~ 1/2 lb. ground beef, cooked and drained – see above

~ 6 T parmesan cheese

~ 3 C ricotta cheese (feel free to go low-fat on this)

~ 1 C frozen spinach, defrosted and squeezed

~ 12 oz. package shredded mozzarella (set some aside to sprinkle on top)

~ 4 eggs (we use Egg Beaters)

~ 1 1/2 t salt

~ 1/4 t pepper

~ 1/2 t dried oregano

~ 1 jar marinara sauce

~ a little bit of olive oil to grease the pan and noodles

3. Assemble the filling. Grab a big bowl and mix everything together, except for the lasagna noodles, marinara sauce and the olive oil.

4. Roll along. This is the messy part. Take each noodle 1 by 1 and fill them up with the filling. Typically, about 3 spoonfuls will be the right amount. Place the filling at one end of the noodle and then roll it up. {If you want to freeze the rollups, this is the point where you would wrap each rollup in waxed paper and put it in a ziplock bag to freeze. Later, when you’re ready to eat them, just take them directly from the freezer and follow Step 5.}

5. Cook those bad boys. Spread a little of the marinara sauce on the bottom of your greased baking dish, then line up the rollups inside the dish. Cover the rollups with marinara sauce and then sprinkle the entire dish with your reserved mozzarella cheese (you can add a little parmesan, too, if you want). Cover with tinfoil and stick the dish in your 375 degree oven for 40 minutes. If you want your cheese browned, remove the tinfoil and cook for another 5-10 minutes.

I love these guys even more than traditional lasagna because you don’t have to cook a giant casserole and eat leftovers for the rest of your life – freezing them is so convenient!! Jason and I polished off our last frozen ones the other day and the pictures from this post are of the ones we (and by “we“, I mean he) made last night to replace them (we made a double batch and froze the other ones – and don’t worry, we haven’t even come close to finishing the first batch . . . yet).

I hope you love’em – let me know if you try them out!! What’s your favorite go-to, easy meal?

This post is shared with A Soft Place to Land, The DIY Show Off and Tip Junkie.