The BLT pizza is a variation of the classic BLT sandwich, which is made with bacon, lettuce, and tomato, and is often served on toast.
The BLT is believed to have originated in the U.S. restaurant industry in the 1940s, when waitstaff used the initials ‘BLT’ as shorthand to convey orders to the kitchen.
The BLT pizza is made with the same ingredients as the BLT sandwich, but with the addition of pizza dough and cheese. Some pizza places add a top layer of crust to make the pizza more like a sandwich.
You’ve likely eaten naan bread at some time. The tasty Indian flatbread is traditionally cooked in the tandoor, carries a slight smoky aroma, and has a soft texture with pillow-like pockets studded over the top. Puffed flatbread has the power to move beyond a dinner accompaniment. It’s worthy of a role far better — like actually being the main course.
It proves to be super versatile — naan is soft and sturdy enough to take the place of bread, thin enough to be used as a flatbread or pizza dough, and pliable enough to work as a tortilla. It can be soaked, baked, fried, and folded to take on some surprising and delicious forms such as French toast, savory bread pudding, paninis, nachos or even as a dessert naan bread with bananas, strawberries & chocolate.
Ever since Brion & I got ‘tuned in’ to savory naan bread pizzas, we love them no matter what the topping is. Using Smoky Bacon Mayo on the naan bread is such an added bonus in the allover flavor. This BLT Pizza will remind you of the classic Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwich that we all love, just in pizza format!
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BLT Naan Bread Pizza
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Instructions
Cook bacon in a skillet or in the microwave until slightly crispy. Drain on paper towel. Chop & set aside.
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On a small foil lined baking pan place halved tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt & pepper & drizzle with golden Italian dressing. Place in oven & roast until starting to soften. Remove from oven.
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Spread top side of each naan bread with a generous amount of Smoky Bacon mayo. Sprinkle each with chopped bacon then transfer partially roasted tomatoes on top of bacon. Sprinkle each with Italian seasoning & salt & pepper to taste.
Place on a parchment lined baking sheet & place in the oven for about 10 minutes to heat everything through & finish roasting the tomatoes.
Remove from oven & sprinkle baby arugula over pizzas then drizzle with ranch dressing. Serve immediately.
These simplified perogy stuffed pasta shells have all the delicious flavor of homemade perogy but without the fuss of making dough! So, when you feel like having perogies but don’t have the time to make them from scratch and don’t have any left in the freezer, these stuffed perogy shells are a great shortcut.
Use the same potato and cheese filling that you use to make homemade perogies, then fill pasta shells with it instead of making pasta dough.
For the perfect finishing touch, top them with onions that have been sautéed in butter. After they come out of the oven garnish the ‘perogies’ with a bit more chopped bacon and green onion. Of course, don’t forget the sour cream (and sausage)!
Perogy dough and pasta dough differ in a few ways but in the name of convenience give pasta shells a try!
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Perogy Stuffed Pasta Shells
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Rating: 5
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Votes: 1
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Instructions
Place the potatoes in a medium pot & cover with cold water. Bring to a boil over high heat, add salt to taste & cook until the potatoes are fork-tender, about 10 to 12 minutes.
In another pot of salted boiling water, cook the pasta shells according to the package directions. When finished cooking, drain the pasta shells then spread them out on a large baking sheet or tray & allow to cool.
In a skillet, (or the microwave) cook bacon until done but not real crisp. Drain on paper towels & chop fairly small. Set aside. Wipe out skillet then melt the butter over medium heat. Add the onions & sauté, stirring occasionally, until they are just starting to turn a light golden brown, about 5 minutes; turn off the heat & set aside.
Chop green onion & grate cheese. When the potatoes are done cooking, drain them & return them to the hot pot; let them sit for a few minutes ( with heat off) to allow the excess moisture to evaporate out.
Place the potatoes in a food processor & add the grated cheese to the potatoes; mash until they are well-combined & smooth. Remove from processor & add bacon, green onion, salt and pepper, combining well by hand. Set aside to cool slightly for a few minutes.
Make sure your potato/cheese mixture is well-seasoned with salt & pepper. It shouldn't be salty, just really flavorful.
Preheat oven to 350 F. Spray a 9 x 13-inch baking dish with cooking spray; set aside.
Evenly fill the pasta shells with the potato/cheese mixture; place the shells in the prepared baking dish, filling side up. Spoon the onion & butter mixture evenly over the stuffed shells.
Bake, covered, for 25 to 30 minutes or just until heated through. I placed the covered pan of shells over another pan with a small amount of water in it (like a bain marie) to prevent the shells from becoming hard since they do not have a sauce to cook in.
Remove from oven & garnish with more green onion. Serve with sour cream if you wish.
Oktoberfest is an annual festival which began in Munich. It actually begins in September, ending on the first Sunday in October.
The festival originated on October 12, 1810, in celebration of the marriage of the crown prince of Bavaria, who later became King Louis I, to Princess Therese von Sachsen-Hildburghausen.
Of course, as with any celebration, there are many foods associated with the occasion, ‘spätzle’ being one of them. The first name that comes to the mind when one thinks of pasta is Italy, however, the Germans too love pastas. Spätzle is a cross between pasta, an egg noodle and a dumpling, a kind of ‘German mac & cheese,’. It originates from the Baden-Württemberg region of southwest Germany and is a common dish at any beer hall or beer tent during Oktoberfest.
Celebrating Oktoberfest doesn’t have to be all about the German beer. So I thought, why not take the spätzle idea one step further and make it into lasagna?! Classic German staples come together in this lasagna to make a very unique version of the classic dish.
There are six main ingredients in this recipe. The first is spätzle. The second is onion. By caramelizing the diced pieces you turn it into little velvety pieces of heaven that add incredible depth and sweetness to the dish. Third is Bratwurst, a fresh link sausage characterized by its many different spices and seasonings. Fourth is sauerkraut, bratwurst’s classic sidekick. Fifth is bacon and the crowning touch and grand finale is the Emmentaler cheese.
Compared to traditional pasta dough, spätzle is softer and quite moist. The dough is quite basic, made from flour, eggs, water and salt. Although these little ‘dumplings’ can be eaten with almost anything, I thought they added something real special to this German lasagna.
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Oktoberfest German Spätzle Lasagna
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Rating: 5
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Instructions
Spätzle
1. In a large bowl, mix the flour with salt & make a well in the center. Add eggs to the well & whisk the flour into the eggs. Gradually whisk in the water until a very thick batter forms. Cover with a damp cloth & allow to rest for 30 minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Place spätzle dough maker above the pot with the water. Load with dough & slide back & forth or press to squeeze the dough through & form the spätzle noodles.
Once the spätzle begins to float to the surface, scoop with a large, slotted spoon & transfer to a colander placed inside a bowl for the drained water to collect. Continue the process until all of the dough is used.
Caramelized Onions
Heat oil in saucepan, add onion & sprinkle with salt. Cook & stir about 15 minutes or until moisture is evaporated & onion is soft. Reduce heat, sprinkle with cider vinegar. Cook & stir until golden. Stir in brown sugar; cook & stir until caramel brown in color. Set it aside.
Sauce
In the saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, bouillon, garlic powder & salt until smooth. Gradually stir in milk & broth. Bring to a boil; cook & stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat to a bowl & set aside.
In the saucepan, cook bacon (not too crisp); remove to a cutting board to coarsely chop. Add bratwurst sausage meat (which has been removed from casings) to saucepan & scramble fry until cooked. Drain on paper towel. Add chopped bacon, bratwurst & caramelized onions to your prepared sauce.
Cotage Cheese & Other Ingredients
In a small bowl, beat eggs; add cottage cheese & pepper. Set aside. Drain sauerkraut & rinse. Squeeze dry. Grate cheese
Assembly
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
Spread 1 cup sauce mixture over bottom of pan. Layer with 1/3 of the spätzle noodles, 1/3 of sauce mixture, 1/2 of the cottage cheese mixture, 1/2 of the sauerkraut & 3/4 cup grated cheese. Repeat layers (spätzle, sauce, cottage cheese, sauerkraut, spätzle, sauce). Save grated cheese for the last 5 minutes of baking.
Cover & bake for 50-60 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining GRATED CHEESE; bake 5 minutes longer until cheese is melted. Allow to stand 15 minutes before cutting.
Recipe Notes
- If you do not have a spätzle dough maker, just drop spoonsful of dough into the boiling water to form spätzle noodles. Dip your spoon into water to prevent it from sticking on the spoon.
It’s hard to get bored of pizza, but sometimes you want to change things up a bit. In addition to trying new toppings and cheeses, consider using an alternative to tomato sauce on pizza.
Pizza night is a cherished tradition in many households, but sometimes, it’s good to break away from the routine and experiment with new flavors. One of the easiest ways to do this is by trying out different alternative pizza sauces.
The other day Brion & I were in a Winners/Homesense store. Of course, my favorite spot is always the area where they have all the cookware and specialty food items. I saw bottled sauce made with artichokes and garlic. Immediately my thoughts were as to how I could use it. It was quite pricey, so I opted to try and make a copycat version at home.
While tomato sauce has long been associated with traditional pizza, there is a whole new world of flavors waiting to be discovered by breaking from tradition. Tradition of course has its place—there’s a reason classic tomato-topped pizza has been a staple for generations. But there is more to pizza sauce than regular tomato. There are exciting flavors, interesting textures, sweet things, spicy things, cheesy things, even exotic things!
Here are some ideas for making pizza without tomato sauce:
- White pizza – Make a white sauce with olive oil, garlic, parsley, and a dash of salt and pepper. Spread it on the pizza dough instead of tomato sauce. Top with cheeses like mozzarella, ricotta, or feta, and veggies.
- Pesto pizza – Spread pesto sauce on the dough instead of tomato sauce. Top with veggies and cheeses.
- BBQ chicken pizza – Use BBQ sauce as the base instead of tomato sauce. Top with chicken, red onion, cheddar cheese, etc.
- Mediterranean pizza – Make a tahini sauce base. Top with artichoke hearts, kalamata olives, feta, red onion, etc.
- Breakfast pizza – Scramble eggs with veggies and meats. Spread it on the dough. Sprinkle with cheeses.
- Buffalo chicken pizza – Spread buffalo wing sauce on the dough. Top with chicken, blue cheese, mozzarella, celery, onion.
- Thai pizza – Make a spicy peanut sauce base. Top with chicken, carrot, onion, cilantro, mozzarella.
- Carbonara pizza – Spread an alfredo sauce base. Top with bacon, onion, Parmesan, egg, parsley.
The best thing about pizza is that there are endless ways to enjoy it. So here you have it … shrimp pizza with artichoke & garlic sauce. Yum!
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Shrimp Pizza w/ Artichoke & Garlic Sauce
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Rating: 5
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Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Instructions
Sauce
Place all ingredients except oil in food processor. With motor running, Add olive oil in a slow stream to make an emulsion. Place in a dish & set aside.
Pizza Toppings
Fry bacon until done but not crisp. Drain on a paper towel then chop into bite-sized pieces. In the same skillet, sauté shrimp until just cooked & remove it from skillet.
Sauté sliced mushrooms & sliced onions until just cooked.
Slice cherry tomatoes in halves & prepare fresh herbs.
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Assembly
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Spread each naan bread with artichoke & garlic sauce.
Top pizzas with onions, mushrooms, shrimp & bacon. Sprinkle shredded cheese over all then dot with halved cherry tomatoes & herbs.
Bake 10-15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly & tomatoes are roasted. Serve.
Recipe Notes
- You will no doubt have extra artichoke & garlic sauce. Store it in an air-tight container for up to one week. Enjoy it on toasted bread or swirl into cooked pasta.
Classic German staples come together in this lasagna to make a very unique version of the classic dish.
There are six main ingredients in this recipe. The first is spaetzle, the German equivalent of pasta. The second is onion. By caramelizing the diced pieces you turn it into little velvety pieces of heaven that add incredible depth and sweetness to the dish. Third is Bratwurst, a fresh link sausage characterized by its many different spices and seasonings. Fourth is sauerkraut, bratwurst’s classic sidekick. Fifth is bacon and the crowning touch and grand finale is the Emmentaler cheese.
I would like to talk a bit more about spaetzle which, in my opinion, elevates this lasagna to a whole new level. Compared to traditional pasta dough, spaetzle is softer and quite moist.
Native to Germany, ‘spaetzle’ is made all over the world now, having a different name in each country. The lines have become blurred between what is a spaetzle and what is something else.
The dough is quite basic, made from flour, eggs, water and salt. Although these little ‘dumplings’ can be eaten with almost anything, I thought they added something real special to this German lasagna.
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German Lasagna
Votes: 6
Rating: 4.17
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Votes: 6
Rating: 4.17
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Instructions
Spaetzle
In a large bowl, mix the flour with salt & make a well in the center. Add eggs to the well & whisk the flour into the eggs. Gradually whisk in the water until a very thick batter forms. Cover with a damp cloth & allow to rest for 30 minutes.
Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Place spaetzle dough maker above the pot with the water. Load with dough & slide back & forth or press to squeeze the dough through & form the spaetzle noodles.
Once the spaetzle begins to float to the surface, scoop with a large slotted spoon & transfer to a colander placed inside a bowl for the drained water to collect. Continue process until all of the dough is used.
Caramelized Onions
Heat oil in saucepan, add onion & sprinkle with salt. Cook & stir about 15 minutes or until moisture is evaporated & onion is soft. Reduce heat; sprinkle with cider vinegar. Cook & stir until golden. Stir in brown sugar; cook & stir until caramel brown in color. Set aside.
Sauce
In the saucepan, melt butter. Stir in flour, bouillon, garlic powder & salt until smooth. Gradually stir in milk & broth. Bring to a boil; cook & stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Remove from heat to a bowl & set aside.
In the saucepan, cook bacon (not too crisp); remove to a cutting board to coarsely chop. Add bratwurst sausage meat (which has been removed from casings) to saucepan & scramble fry until cooked. Drain on paper towel. Add chopped bacon, bratwurst & caramelized onions to your prepared sauce.
Cottage Cheese / Other Ingredients
In a small bowl, beat eggs; add cottage cheese & pepper. Set aside. Drain sauerkraut & rinse. Squeeze dry. Grate cheese
Assembly
Preheat oven to 350 F. Grease a 13 x 9-inch baking pan.
Spread 1 cup sauce mixture over bottom of pan. Layer with 1/3 of the spaetzle noodles, a 1/3 of sauce mixture, 1/2 of the cottage cheese mixture, 1/2 of the sauerkraut & 3/4 cup grated cheese. Repeat layers ( spaetzle, sauce, cottage cheese, sauerkraut, spaetzle, sauce). Save grated cheese for last 5 minutes of baking.
Cover & bake for 50-60 minutes. Sprinkle with remaining GRATED CHEESE; bake 5 minutes longer until cheese is melted. Allow to stand 15 minutes before cutting.
Recipe Notes
- If you do not have a spaetzle dough maker, just drop spoonfuls of dough into the boiling water to form spaetzle noodles. Dip your spoon into water to prevent it sticking on the spoon.
Hunter’s chicken is a dish consisting of a chicken fillet wrapped in bacon, smothered in barbecue sauce then topped with cheddar cheese. This particular ‘style’ of chicken was originally adapted from a classic British pub food favorite.
Before I could give it a try, I saw a video of someone making lasagna by tucking these same ingredients into small folded ‘pockets’ of pasta instead of layering everything in a large pan. It seems there is always something unique about having your own individual serving as opposed to a chunk of the whole.
Lasagna is simple to eat but intricate in its appeal. Satisfying on three accounts …. pasta, gooey cheese and a savory sauce. In many ways, lasagna is the result of the interaction of cultures across generations …. an organized combination of different ideas and flavors.
No matter how you slice it, making lasagna is a big production. These lasagna pockets take a bit of work to make, but they are totally worth it!
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Hunter's Chicken Lasagna
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Rating: 3.67
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Votes: 3
Rating: 3.67
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Instructions
Chicken
Preheat oven to 350 F. Season chicken breasts with salt & pepper. In a small roasting pan, melt butter & brown chicken slightly on both sides. Add water, & herbs & roast until cooked thru. Shred the cooked chicken breasts with two forks.
Cook bacon in microwave until done but not crisp; coarsely chop. In a bowl, combine bacon, BBQ sauce, crushed tomatoes, sliced green onion & shredded chicken; mix well.
Pasta & Sauce
Boil lasagna noodles, shred cheeses & prepare the béchamel sauce.
In a a saucepan, melt butter, stir in flour & cook until bubbly. Slowly add milk, stirring until sauce is smooth. Add shredded mozzarella cheese & salt.
Assembly & Baking
Spread a dollop of béchamel sauce in the middle of a cooked lasagna noodle. Place another noodle on top of the first noodle so that it is perpendicular & spread béchamel sauce in the middle of the second noodle.
Spoon a portion of the BBQ chicken mixture on top of the béchamel sauce in the center of the noodle & sprinkle some shredded mozzarella & cheddar cheese on top.
Fold the ends of the two noodles over the filling to create a lasagna 'pocket'. Repeat the process with the rest of the lasagna noodles until you have 4 lasagna pockets.
Place 2 lasagna pockets next to each other in a 9 x 5-inch casserole dish, cover with béchamel sauce, sprinkle with shredded cheddar & mozzarella cheese over the top. Place the other 2 lasagna pockets on top of the shredded cheeses, followed by another layer of béchamel sauce & more shredded cheese,
Bake for about 15 minutes or until cheese is bubbly.
The best thing about quiche is their ability to taste just as good reheated as they do fresh from the oven. I love quiche, which of course, if you are following my blog you already know that. A classic dish made popular in the 1970’s, is so simple and yet can be the star of an elegant brunch or quick mid week supper.
Very often, quiche is thought of as ‘taboo’ due to all the fat it may contain. When you think about it, pizza is full of fat and we certainly don’t stop eating it. Quiche is totally customizable in terms of how healthy you want to make it.
As far back as I remember, I have always enjoyed ‘all things vegetable’. My mother grew a large garden on the farm, so vegetables always played a big part in our family meals.
Brussels sprouts seem to be an unlikely ingredient for quiche. It is one of those vegetables most people either love or hate. My husband, Brion, kind of ‘sits on the fence’ when it comes to both quiche and brussels sprouts. So I derived a plan to help make it work. I thought if I make the crust from rice, which he loves, that would be a good start. The sliced brussels sprouts, wild mushrooms and onions are all sauteed first to bring out the natural flavors. Add some bacon and Gouda cheese — what’s not to love?!
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Brussels Sprouts & Wild Mushroom Quiche
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Instructions
Rice Crust
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Preheat oven to 350 F. Blend crust ingredients. Using the back of a large spoon, press into a baking dish & bake for 15-20 minutes.
Filling
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In a saucepan, cook bacon until nearly crisp. Remove bacon to a paper towel. Add sliced brussels sprouts, mushrooms & onions to bacon drippings; saute until until tender-crisp. Blot veggies on paper towel.
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Preheat oven to 350 F. Layer bottom of rice crust with vegetables, bacon & cheese. Whisk together eggs, half & half & seasonings. Pour egg mixture carefully over veggies, bacon & cheese. Bake 40 minutes. Quiche should be puffy & golden & set in the middle.
Recipe Notes
- For extra flavor you may prefer to roast the brussels sprouts instead of sauteing them.
- Don't hesitate to use the cheese or cheese combo of your own choice instead of the Gouda in this recipe.
