Quick & Easy Weeknights: Margherita Pizza

I love to meal plan. It means I only grocery shop once every 3 weeks, I spend less, and I have quick meals planned for those nights you don't feel like spending a lot of time in the kitchen. This recipe is adapted from a cooking light recipe, uses refrigerated pizza dough, and fresh ingredients. 

Quick Margherita Pizza (Adapted from Cooking Light)

What you need
1 (10-ounce) can refrigerated pizza crust dough
Cooking spray
1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, halved
5 plum tomatoes, thinly sliced (about 3/4 pound)
1 cup (4 ounces) mozzarella cheese, sliced
1/2 cup thinly sliced fresh basil
Salt & Pepper, to taste
Baking Sheet
Rolling pin
Pizza cutter

What you do
Preheat oven to 400° F. Unroll crust dough onto a baking sheet coated with cooking spray; roll out to the edges of baking sheet using floured roller. Bake at 400° for 8 minutes.

Remove crust from oven, and brush with 1/2 teaspoon oil. Rub crust with cut sides of garlic. Arrange tomato slices on crust, leaving a 1/2-inch border; top with mozzarella slices. Bake at 400° for 12 minutes or until cheese melts and crust is golden.

Sprinkle pizza evenly with sliced basil, salt, and pepper. Cut and serve.

Wine Pairing: Make it an Italian night with Barbera - a red wine with some acidity to cut the fattiness of the mozzarella cheese.

Simple & Delicious Panzanella Salad

After spending the last few months dealing with recovering for two broken wrists, I'm finally starting to cook again. I love my husband, but I can only take so many chicken patty sandwiches and frozen pizza nights. You may think it's nice to have a break from cooking, cleaning, and taking care of the house (not to mention working full time and attending grad school -- oh and the puppy is always a handful too), but I really missed cooking after a while. In fact, after about 3 weeks, I was trying to figure out how to clean this house again too. Being a type A sort is tough with two broken arms.

The colors of this dish are also pleasing for the eye

So, getting back into the swing of things meant making something simple but delicious. How do garlicky chunks of bread, fresh tomatoes & basil, tangy onion, and a simple balsamic vinaigrette dressing sound? Yeah, amazing. I thought so too. Panzanella salad is a classic Italian dish, usually enjoyed in the summer. While it's not quite summer yet, a girl can be optimistic.The simple ingredient list and fresh taste make it a light side that pairs well with almost anything. Make it as a dish for you and a date, a cookout, a potluck, a picnic - it's very versatile and not to mention quick and easy to make. I would pair it with a light Pinot Grigio, which perfectly suits the summer-iness of this meal.

Chicken Parmigiana

If you haven't figured it out yet, I love cooking Italian dishes, though I'm not Italian. There's something very comforting about these Italian classics, not to mention they're easy to make. This recipe for Chicken Parmigiana is loosely based off of Bobby Flay's, though I use more spices and seasonings, and it is the best I've ever had. I think what makes this recipe particularly delicious is the thinness of chicken breast, so if you trim and pound out chicken breast halves, make sure they're thin. Or, you can also buy a package of thin sliced cutlets and I would recommend pounding them out a little more so they're extra thin.

My wine pairing for Italian dishes is becoming pretty predictable as well, I love an Italian sangiovese or chianti, but you can mix it up by trying different red Italian wines in your local wine store and you'll almost always have a good pairing.

I also served up this dish with a simple caesar salad with romaine lettuce, croutons, shredded carrots, tomatoes, and light caesar dressing (my favorite is Ken's).

Fettuccine & Roasted Garlic Alfredo

Another classic Italian dish that you can easily make at home: fettuccine alfredo. Alfredo sauce is so easy and inexpensive to make at home (and tastes so much better than anything you get in a jar when you do so). To add color and extra nutrients, I used Ronzoni Garden Delight fettuccine. Throw in some chicken breast for lean protein, some broccoli for extra crunch, and roast some garlic for extra yumminess.

Want some wine for this meal? Make it Pinot Grigio or Chardonnay.

Meatball Subs

Previously, I posted a recipe to spaghetti & meatballs which gave my recipe for home-made meatballs. Again, we're using this same recipe, but to make meatball subs, another great classic. I used whole wheat bolilo rolls from my local grocery store's bakery section, which fit about three 2-inch meatballs. This recipe makes about 18 recipes, so count on about 6 subs, and adjust accordingly for your needs. Enjoy this simple and delicious recipe and enjoy getting your hands messy!

Again, I will make the same wine recommendations I did for the spaghetti & meatballs: This meatball recipe could be matched with either a white, due to its herb-y nature, or red. Avoid Chardonnays, as they do not like to be paired with tomatoes, and match up with acidic red such as Malbec or Sangiovese.

Spaghetti & Meatballs and garlic toast

The other night, I revisited a classic: spaghetti & meatballs. Spaghetti & meatballs is actually one of my favorite comfort foods, there's nothing like a big fork-ful of pasta and a carmelized meatball. I try to make this a bit healthier with the use of lean ground turkey and whole wheat spaghetti. Many "light" recipes call for only using the egg white instead of the whole egg. If you want to watch your fat and cholesterol, you may, but I hate being wasteful (and I have nothing against the egg yolk). Rolling into about 2 inch meatballs, you will yield approximately 18 meatballs that will fit nicely into a 12 inch cast iron skillet. The whole meal should feed about 4 hungry people, or if you serve with a caesar salad (which I originally intended to but filled up a bit too much on spaghetti and garlic bread), you can stretch it to feed 6.

This meatball recipe could be matched with either a white, due to its herb-y nature, or red. Avoid Chardonnays, as they do not like to be paired with tomatoes, and match up with acidic red such as Malbec or Sangiovese.

Mediterranean Pasta Salad

Summer time is approaching, which means picnic, pot-lucks, cook-outs, and bikini season. Don't just go to the grocery store and pick up a pound of pasta or macaroni salad when you can make it at home and know exactly what ingredients are going into the salad and what fat and calories you are keeping out. By mixing distinct flavors of Italy and Greece, you'll have a delicious, fresh tasting Mediterranean pasta salad that's quick, easy, budget-friendly and healthy.

Pepperoncini peppers add a little kick here and there, so add more if you like a little extra spicy-ness and tangy-ness or a little less if that's not for your palate. I am not a fan of olives, but if you are, they would make a great addition to the Mediterranean flavors of this pasta salad. This recipe yields about 9 cups of pasta salad

Chicken Piccata & Roasted Balsamic Asparagus

Chicken Piccata, a lemon-garlic Italian chicken specialty, is one of my favorite dishes. However, I don't get an opportunity to cook it often, as my husband particularly dislikes lemon-y chicken and even more so capers, so I waited until I was home alone and indulged. When I was in college, chicken piccata was one of the first things I learned how to cook for myself that wasn't from a box. I partnered this dish with asparagus, because it is in season and complements nicely with lemon flavors. So in this posting, you'll be getting 2 delicious recipes: Chicken Piccata and roasted balsamic asparagus. Enjoy!

Chicken Piccata is very agreeable and will pair well with most dry or semi-dry white wines. I love a buttery Chardonnay with the lemon and garlic flavors of this dish.

Pasta Lasagna

This recipe to me, is like the lovechild of baked ziti and lasagna, taking the best notes from each of these classic culinary creations. Moreover, it's easy, affordable, and can easily be health-ied up without sacrificing taste. Feel free to cut this recipe in half if you're only a cooking for a few, as this recipe made about 8 nice-sized portions. The meaty, tomato-y sauce in this recipe is best paired with red wine. I would recommend Chianti or Sangiovese (they come from the same grape), as these also pair well with the mild flavors of mozzarella cheese.

(can you say yum?)