Mac n Cheese Pizza Pleez!

My neck of the woods

It’s the first “official” day of summer but here it hasn’t been very summer-y! For many of you I’m sure you’ve seen plenty of hot weather but I’m waaay up here in Northwestern Minnesota. We’re the last MN gas station in the US before you hit Canada! Our days have been filled with rain, wind, rain, clouds, rain, a tiny bit of sunshine, rain…well you get the idea. ;D

Needless to say, I’m a little envious of you guys with better weather. I would LOVE to turn on the sprinklers for the kids to run wild or take a nice long bike ride but at least the garden doesn’t need any watering! Too bad it washed away a lot of my seeds. :(

With the kids home for the summer, getting something on the table tasty and fast isn’t always easy. We don’t have pizza delivery or fast food in our small town – not that I’d buy it anyway because it’s just too darn expensive and unhealthy! My kids love mac n cheese and they love pizza! Enter homemade mac n cheese pizza!

Ingredients

• 2 cups all purpose flour
• 2 TB sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 1 package of instant yeast (not active, INSTANT)
• 1 cup of warm water (115 to 125 degrees)
• 1 cup flour reserved
• your favorite macaroni and cheese recipe (plus 1 TB milk)
• shredded mozzarella & parmesan or other shredded cheese

Directions

Blend all 2 cups flour, sugar, salt and INSTANT yeast together in a large bowl. Slowly add enough warm water to combine all ingredients. Lightly flour surface and knead in the extra cup of flour until you get a pliable workable dough. (Depending on the moisture in the air and flour you may need less or more flour). Roll with a floured fingers or rolling pin into an 1/4” thick 12 x 9 rectangle or any shape you like. Place dough onto a greased baking sheet. Prick or dock with a fork. Brush the top of the dough with EVOO and sprinkle with herbs like basil, oregano, garlic powder, thyme, etc. Spread prepared macaroni and cheese pizza evenly over pizza crust. Top with shredded cheese and sprinkle with chopped parsley or basil.

Yummy Mac N Cheese Pizza!

 

Jenn is a stay at home southern mom raising her kids in Northwestern Minnesota with her trucker hubby. Living on one income isn’t easy but it can be done with a little creative thinking and budget savvy strategies. Read more at Frugal Front Porch.

Be sure to check out my latest giveaway! Win 2 free bottles of All Free Clear laundry detergent with a fabulous bonus!

Fast Mini Memorial Day Desserts!

I hope your enjoying a safe, dry and warm Memorial Day weekend!

We are NOT! It’s safe but it’s not warm or dry!

Saturday started beautifully with sunshine and an unusually warm humid 93 degree day. During our peak July summer time heat, we barely read 90 so this was VERY unusual!

We took full advantage of the day driving into the great city of Grand Forks for some fine Chinese dining (I say ‘fine’ because we only have one sit down restaurant which isn’t really great!), grocery shopping (you’ll be glad to know I saved 50% on our grocery bill w/coupons and in-store sales!), then back home for an afternoon of graduation parties!

First we saw it! Off in the distance, low dark gnarly looking clouds slowly, VERY slowly moving our way. The humidity is through the roof but it’s still gorgeous and 93.

Then we heard it! The low grumble of an angry storm!

Then we felt it! A SUDDEN drop in temperature along with some high winds. Just like that, the humidity disappeared and the rains came!

Along with lightening, thunder, intermittent satellite signals and sporadic power flickers. Graduation parties were over…ironically except for the die hard adult party goers!

Today I awoke to lots of standing water in the backyard and a high of 63 degrees but thankfully nothing else worse for the wear. Friends of ours to the east were drenched with thunder and lightening storms coupled with golf ball sized hail! HAIL! Thankfully we had no tornadoes in the area! (BTW, tornadoes are EXTREMELY uncommon in this part of the Midwest!) They’re talking more rain tonight but hopefully it will sweep around us.

I think the bad weather rained on my culinary mojo too!

We’re attending a BBQ later today and was asked to bring a side dish or dessert plus any alcoholic beverages we’d planned to drink. I had planned on taking a mini dessert of some sort. Something easy to eat while you walk around socializing or chasing kids. Suddenly, my mind went blank! I reached out to my new friends at the Momdot Forum for some inspiration and those ladies quickly came through.

I’m altering my original Cheaty Cheesecake recipe making mini version with a pie pastry instead of graham cracker crust. I also plan to make an American version of the Sopapilla. I’m shortcutting the process a bit by using store bought pie dough and puff pastry but it’s a holiday so forgive me! ;)

Sopapillas are really easy and I’m simply putting a twist on Pepperidge Farm’s recipe. Cut sheets of thawed puff pastry into 2” squares and bake according to package directions till golden. Toss warm pastries with a cinnamon-sugar mixture in a paper bag till thoroughly coated. Instead of honey. I’ll drizzle simple icing made with powdered sugar and milk and topped with a sliced strawberry!

Mini Cheaty Cheesecake Recipe

Ingredients

• pie dough
• 1 (8 ounce) brick of cream cheese softened
• 1 cup of whipped cream plus another cup reserved
• 1 package of instant pudding (either vanilla or lemon flavored)
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 2 tsp of lemon extract
• fresh berries for topping 

Directions

Make mini pie shells. Cut pie pastry into circle large enough to fit inside a muffin tin without any excess sticking out of the top. Score with a fork so it doesn’t bubble while it bakes. Bake at 350 till golden, about 15-20 minutes.

Prepare your filling while mini pie shells are cooking and cooling. Whisk sugar and pudding mix and blend well with softened cream cheese and lemon extract! Fold in 1 cup of whipped cream. Spoon into completely cooled mini pie shells. Top with whole or sliced berries and garnish with a sprig of mint.

*Click to view my original Cheaty Cheesecake Recipe pictured above.

Jenn is a southern girl raising her family with her husband in NW Minnesota. Living on one income doesn’t mean we have to live without! Find coupons, freebies, recipes, parenting strategies, homemaking tips, product reviews, and giveaways at her blog, Frugal Front Porch.

Technorati Tags: Memorial Day,desserts,recipes,cooking,pie

How To Make Ricotta Cheese

One of the other MIFS contributors, the fabulous Liss of Frills In The Hills, has a great tutorial about making one's own ricotta cheese from scratch - but I thought it would be good to have it right here, too.

This is how I made mine:

David Lebovitz's Ricotta Cheese
Simply Recipes
Makes 2 cups

2 quarts (8 cups) whole milk
1 cup plain whole milk yogurt
1/2 cup heavy cream
2 teaspoons white vinegar
1 teaspoon salt

In a large pot, bring milk, yogurt, heavy cream, vinegar and salt to a boil. Gently boil for one to two minutes until milk is curdled.


Line a strainer with a few layers of cheesecloth and set it over a deep bowl.

Pour milk mixture into the strainer and let it drain for 15 minutes. Gather cheesecloth around the mixture and squeeze gently to extract any remaining liquid.



Can be refrigerated up to 3 days.

And that's it! Easy, right? My only suggestion is to ensure you have a very deep bowl. I started the draining using a trifle bowl, my deepest vessel that was not a stock pot, and it broke from the hot liquid. Therefore, I recommend using a deep enough heat proof bowl or pot right off the bat to avoid my silly mistake.

I blog regularly at Gotta Little Space (life, family & food) and Suitable For Consumption (solely food). Come visit!!