Beer Pizza Crust I

I made this a few weeks ago, and just never got around to transferring the photos from my camera...now that I've done that, here is the recipe...

Beer Pizza Crust I

2 1/2 c. flour 

1 1/2 c. wheat flour 

2 t. instant yeast (1 pkt. active dry yeast) 

1 t. baking powder 

1 1/2 t. salt 

2 T. olive oil 

1 1/2 c. room-temperature beer (one bottle of beer)*

Measure out all ingredients carefully...

If the beer was in the fridge, like mine was, warm it up in the microwave for about 60 seconds to take the chill off, so it'll activate the yeast...

Mix and knead together all of the dough ingredients by hand until you’ve made a smooth, soft dough.

Cover the dough, and allow it to rise for 30 minutes, or for up to 2 hours.

Instead of pizza sauce, I made a garlic-Parmesan white sauce and added some chopped artichoke hearts...


Preheat the oven to 425°. Once the dough has risen, divide it in half. Shape each half into a 10" to 12" round. (NOTE: I used a large cookie sheet to make one big pizza.)


Pre-bake for 3 to 4 minutes. Remove from the oven, top as desired...


sliced yellow tomatoes from our garden...mmmmm....

Bake for an additional 15 to 20 minutes, until the bottom crust is crisp and the cheese is bubbly and browned.


I like it when the cheese gets slightly browned...


*NOTE: I used Dundee Honey Brown beer for this recipe, which is in the "Craft Pack":

Useful Tools: Slotted Turner

Useful Tools: Slotted Turner

For turning delicate fish filets, or scooping items of of frying oil.

I've used this tool for many purposes. I've only used it in pans, and have not tried it when grilling items outside, but I think it'd probably work fairly well on burgers. It also makes a nice whisk-like motion for beating pancake batter. But the reason I had originally bought it was for flipping over salmon filets.

The price range on these items can be extreme. I think I got the one pictured above at Kitchen Collection for around $5; but, you can also get the name brands and pay more, if you so choose.

Here are some links for products I've found online:
Cooking.com $7.95
Chef's Catalog $14.95
Sur La Table $18
Kitchen Collection $4.99
Bed, Bath & Beyond OXO $11.99
Bed, Bath & Beyond Paderno $19.99

Parmesan-Crusted Salmon

This was dinner, recently...I couldn't think of what else to do with the salmon, so I heated up some butter in a pan, and got inspired!

Parmesan-Crusted Salmon Filets

2 salmon filets (about 4 oz. each)
2 T. butter (please use real butter!)
1 to 2 T. grated Parmesan
salt, pepper, dash of garlic powder

1) Heat butter in pan; get it nice and hot:


2) Place the seasoned salmon filets into the pan, carefully; top with a little pile of Parmesan. Allow them to cook about 3-4 minutes:


3) Flip onto other side, and allow to cook for about 2 more minutes. You don't want to over-cook salmon, so watch it closely. Make sure the Parmesan sears onto the fish nicely.


4) Gently remove salmon from pan...

...and place on serving plate.

No Title Needed

This is an older photo (above) of my cousin (Army Reserves) when he was in Iraq. I've actually been trying to locate this photo for a long time, and I'm glad that today was the day I found it.

There is no title for today's post. Not because I can't think of one, but on the contrary, because there are too many things to say, and I cannot possibly come up with an appropriate title.

Rather than to go on about loss (9/11 loss; NOT my cousin, just to clarify), though, I want you to think of important things that are in your life today. Look around you. Everything you see...some day it won't be there. Understand the blessings that you have in front of you; the things you can hold, touch, and love. Treasure them. Don't fear the loss of them; just be certain to honor and appreciate them. Right now.


Remember to thank a soldier for the freedom you're enjoying.

random amusements

Why are we out of cheese slices AGAIN?!!

Banana Bread

I borrowed this recipe from my lovely friend Jules. Thanks, Jules!

Banana Bread by Jules

2 1/2 c. sifted flour
3 t. baking powder
1/2 t. salt
1 c. sugar
1/4 c. soft butter
1 egg, beaten
1 c. mashed bananas - (at least 3)
1/2 c. milk

Heat oven to 350˚.
Grease a 9 x 5" loaf pan; set aside.

In a small bowl, mash up bananas...


Sift flour, baking powder, and salt into another bowl; set aside...


In a separate mixing bowl, beat sugar and butter until smooth...


Mix in egg, and beat until light and fluffy...


Add the bananas and milk; mix well...


Stir in flour mixture...



I split the batch between two pans (8 x 4" each) because I was taking one to our niece...


For the 2 pans, I baked them for about 35-40 minutes, or until browned on top and a sharp knife inserted in the center comes out clean.
In one large loaf pan (9 x 5"), bake for 60 minutes.

random amusements

Well, it's not "free candy" but it's a good representation of patriotic spirit. :)

Twice-Baked Potatoes

I decided to make these spur-of-the-moment with no recipe, and I just kinda mixed stuff together until it tasted right, but I will try to tell you what I did in each step...

Twice-Baked Potatoes

4 baking potatoes
sour cream
garlic salt
chives (either fresh of dried)
butter
feta cheese

1) Bake, or microwave, some good-sized potatoes until done; they should have some 'give' when you squeeze them (use your oven mitt!).

2) I used a melon ball scooper to excavate the insides, leaving some of a "shell" behind...


3) Using a potato masher, break up potato chunks that you scooped out...


4) Mix in other ingredients until it is smooth and creamy...


5) Spoon filling back into potatoes...



6) Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes, until filling is hot and begins to brown a tiny bit on top...

(in the photo above, I had added some feta cheese on 3 of them)

random amusements

French Silk Chocolate Pie

Sorry, but this is the only photo I have of the completed pie; it was taken with Casey's iPhone, and the quality leaves a bit to be desired. But you can tell it's chocolate, and it's fluffy. :)

French Silk Chocolate Pie

1 prepared pie crust
3 oz. unsweetened chocolate, chopped
1 c. butter, softened (no substitutes)
1 c. sugar
1 t. vanilla
4 pasteurized eggs (OR 1 cup fat-free cholesterol-free egg product)

1) Make pie crust as directed on box, using 9-inch glass pie plate. (Or buy a frozen crust already made in a tin, and bake as directed.) Be sure to cool the crust thoroughly, about 30 minutes. (I actually put the finished crust in the freezer, because I was pressed for time. It worked very well!)


2) Melt chocolate in microwave, stirring often; allow to cool to room temperature.


3) In a mixing bowl, beat butter on medium speed until fluffy. Beat in sugar, a little at a time, until light and fluffy.


4) Mix in chocolate and vanilla; blend well.


5) Add eggs 1 at a time (or egg product, a little at a time), beating on high speed for at least 2 minutes after each addition.
This is important: beat until mixture is smooth and fluffy.



6) Spoon into cooled baked shell. Refrigerate for 2 hours, or longer, before serving.




We served this with Cool Whip on top, but again, I didn't get photos, unfortunately.


NOTES:
I used pasteurized egg product, because salmonella is NO FUN!


Also, I think in the future, I'd substitute powdered sugar in place of the granulated sugar. This basically turned out tasting like a pie made out of chocolate frosting. Not that that's wrong. But, when you put the first forkful into your mouth, you get a little bit of a "grainy" texture from the sugar. Then, it kinda melts on your tongue. Not something to really complain about, but it just wasn't quite what I was expecting. I also think I'd put a heap of whipping cream into it, to thicken up the texture. We shall see what happens the next time I decide to make this.