Sophistimom Tartines

I saw these on Sophistimom's blog a few years ago and made them not too long after that.  They are so delicious!

Granny Smith Tartines with Black Forest Ham and Brie

french bread
1 Granny Smith apple
6 oz Brie cheese
4 or 5 slices of Black Forest Ham

Preheat the oven to 400.  Then start slicing, first the bread.

And give the bread a nice little toast in the oven.

Now, the apple and cheese.

Now, you're ready to build.

Place them in the oven for 8-10 minutes.  And have a snack while you wait...with the dog looking longingly at your food.

When done, the cheese will be all melty and yummy-looking.

Enjoy!

Ham and Cheese Mac 'n' Cheese

So, I know I'm just about the worst blogger in the world since I never post on my blog, but hey, I'm a busy girl.  And Pinterest is my one Internet weakness that keeps me from just about everything else.

Anyway, I have something delicious to share.  However, I don't have a recipe- I made it up as I went along.  I have ingredients for you, though.  And I'll give you an estimate of how much I used.

Ham and Cheese Mac 'n' Cheese

1/4 c butter
4 tbsp. flour
5 or 6 slices of mild cheddar cheese
5 slices of ham, cubed
1/2 c milk
1- 1 1/2 c elbow macaroni pasta
1/2 c Panko bread crumbs

First start your water to boil for the pasta then once it's bubbling, add your pasta.

While that's cooking, start your sauce by melting your butter in a saucepan.

Then your going to make a roux by adding the flour to your melted butter.

It's going to thicken and darken quickly, so add the milk next and whisk well so it's not lumpy.

Now add the cheese.  I like cheddar and I use the real stuff not the processed cheese like Velveeta.

Salt and pepper to taste.

In this time your pasta has cooked, so drain it **I cook mine a little al dente**  Next, add the pasta to the sauce.

Now, add the cubed ham.  You can use the ham steak as well, I just happened to have the slices in the fridge, so I decided to use them.

Grab a baking dish, mine was a glass 8 x 8 dish, and spray it with a little cooking spray.

Pour in the mac 'n' cheese and spread it out.

Now, sprinkle the top with the Panko bread crumbs.  I love the Panko because they're light and just add a little crunch without any extra flavor.

Warm up the broiler and broil the mac 'n' cheese for about 5 minutes.  Yes, only 5 minutes!

Then enjoy!  And maybe have seconds... and thirds ;)

And I had a little of this with mine:

 

Delish!

Grilled Chicken Alfredo Pizza on Whole Wheat Crust

My sister has a recipe for Chicken Alfredo Pizza that she loves.  It's from a Weight Watchers Cookbook, so, of course, it's good for you.  She asked me to make it the other night for her husband, me and her to eat for dinner.  Well, when I make dinner I usually have to tweak it a little.

Here's my version:

Whole Wheat Crust:

• FOR THE CRUST (MAKES TWO CRUSTS):


• 1 teaspoon Active Dry Or Instant Yeast or 1/2 a packet


• 2 cups All-purpose Flour


• 2 cups of Whole Wheat Flour


• 1 teaspoon Kosher Salt


• ⅓ cups Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Add the yeast to a 1 1/2 cups of warm water.

In a mixer, combine flour and salt. With the mixer running on low speed (with paddle attachment), drizzle in olive oil until combined with flour. Next, pour in yeast/water mixture and mix until just combined.

Coat a separate mixing bowl with a light drizzle of olive oil, and form the dough into a ball. Toss to coat dough in olive oil, then cover the bowl with a moist towel and set in a warm dry place to let the dough rise.  I like to put mine in the oven (random, I know, but it works).  Let it rise for a couple hours.  When the two hours are up, punch the dough and cut into two pieces.  **It’s best to make the dough at least 24 hours in advance, and 3 or 4 days is even better.

Now for the good stuff!

Chicken Alfredo Pizza:

1 cup of grilled chicken, about 3 or 4 thin pieces of chicken coated in olive oil and salt and pepper, I grilled mine in a grill pan

1/3 cup of light Alfredo sauce

half of a ball of mozzerella, sliced

10 oz of frozen or fresh spinach (I actually didn't use this on my pizza because I don't really like it)

1 clove of garlic, minced

-Preheat the oven to 500 degrees.  Spread the crust in a rimmed baking sheet or on a pizza pan, pushing it to the edges.  Mix the chicken, spinach, and garlic in a bowl.  Spread the Alfredo sauce over the crust.  Add chicken mixture then lay the slices of cheese on the top.  Bake for 10 to 12 minutes.  And ENJOY!

Yes, it looks tasty AND it's good for you.  Granted, I'm not a wheat bread person, so I wasn't too keen on the pizza.  Those of you who like wheat bread will love it I'm sure.

Coming soon...

Homemade Ice cream without the machine or rolling a can on the sidewalk.