Lasagna Soup

Last night I tried the Lasagna Soup recipe from Janice's blog. It's definitely a keeper in my house! Everyone enjoyed it and I know I'll be making it again and again. I altered the recipe a tad. In the store I couldn't find the mafalda pasta. I used Pastene's mafaldine 5 instead. I also couldn't find a 10 3/4 can of tomato sauce so I used the same sized can as the stewed tomatoes. Then we used shredded mozzarella. I also added about a can's worth of extra water. The soup is really delicious! This is definitely a soup you can serve to company. Enjoy :)

P.S. Janice always has great recipes on her blog. She also has a blog dedicated to her recipes. Her chicken and gravy recipe has become a staple in my house. We have had it with or without green beans. We like it best served over rice. I have made it so many times now that I can't even tell you. It's great with leftover cooked chicken or even turkey. I make it with leftover store-bought rotisserie chicken, as well as chicken cooked in my crockpot. When I use the crockpot chicken I use the broth that forms in the cooking process. How do I cook my chicken in the crockpot you ask? Well I buy a big roasting chicken (I have a large crockpot). Wash and dry the chicken well and put into a dry crockpot. I season the chicken with salt (Kosher), garlic powder, and onion powder and some butter or margarine. Cook on high for 1 hour then turn to low and cook all day until the chicken falls apart. Refrigerate the broth that forms and remove the fat after it gels. This is the best chicken to use in recipes calling for cooked chicken like chicken pie, chicken in gravy, chicken enchiladas, chicken salad, chicken soup etc.

Grilled Pizza

Summer time is the best time to make homemade pizza. At least it is in my house when we make grilled pizza. Now mind you these are not the prettiest pizzas you will ever see, but they sure taste good. Nice and crispy!!!

I make pizza dough in my bread machine. The recipe is the one that came with the machine. The only thing I do differently is that I use half all-purpose flour and half white whole wheat flour.

Then for the sauce I use a can of crushed tomatoes, 1 teaspoon of garlic powder, 1 teaspoon of oregano and 1 clove of garlic crushed.

For the cheese you can use mozzarella, provolone, cheddar or any other cheese you enjoy. As far as I'm concerned the sky's the limit! Top with your favorite toppings.

This website has the best tutorial for the ins and outs of how to actually go about grilling the pizzas.

Try it, it's easy and delicious :)

Ginger Scones

A few days ago I tried another one of the recipes from the Martha Show. Ginger Scones with cardamom. Click here for the recipe. They turned out great.
I made them without the aid of a food processor and they came out just fine. I didn't use the parchment paper as was suggested and it was quite difficult scubbing my cookie sheet. The egg wash really cooks on the pan and it is a bear to remove. I used ground cardamom and not the pods. Next time I probably would increase the cardamom to 1 teaspoon since I did not use the pods. I love cardamom. Another thing I would like to try is adding raisins instead of the ginger for something different!

Enjoy :)

Edited 12/17/07 Since the link to the Martha Stewart website is a dead link a new search for the recipe was fruitless I am posting the recipe that was originally published on Martha's website date unknown.

Small World Coffee's Ginger Scones with Cardamom

Ingredients

Serving: Makes 12 scones

• 3 Cups all-purpose flour
• 2 Teaspoons baking powder
• 1/2 Teaspoon baking soda
• 1/2 Teaspoon salt
• 3/4 Teaspoon cardamom pods, crushed and inner seeds ground
• 1/2 Cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, cut into small pieces
• 1/4 Cup crystallized ginger, chopped in 1/4-inch pieces
• 3/4 Cup sour cream
• 1/2 Cup sugar
• 4 teaspoons sugar
• 2 large eggs

Directions

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper and set aside.
2. Place the flour, baking powder, baking soda, and salt in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, the bowl of a food processor, or in a large bowl, and mix by hand. Sift ground cardamom seeds into mixture; stir to combine. Add butter and mix until crumbly.
3. Add ginger, sour cream, 1/2 cup sugar, and 1 egg. Mix, blend, or pulse, just until combined; do not overmix.
4. Form 1/3 cup dough into a ball or use a large ice cream scoop, and place dough on prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining dough, spacing scones about 2 inches apart.
5. In a small bowl, mix together remaining egg with a dash of water. Brush scones with egg mixture and sprinkle evenly with remaining 4 teaspoons sugar. Bake until golden brown, 25 to 30 minutes.