Wednesday, April 20, 2011

Cajun Alfredo

I ordered an amazingly tasty cajun alfredo dish while I was in New Orleans and attempted to recreate it at home (with a few lower-fat changes). It came out tasting pretty close to the real deal.

INGREDIENTS

4 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 (8 ounce) container of tofutti

2 c. milk

2 tsp crushed garlic or garlic paste
1/4 c. grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp ground black pepper
1/8 tsp ground white pepper
1/8 tsp ground red pepper
1/8 tsp paprika
1/8 tsp onion powder

1 c. corn
1 c. finely diced carrots
1/2 diced red bell pepper

5-6 c. cooked pasta

DIRECTIONS

Heat olive oil in saucepan over medium heat. Add tofutti and stir with wire whisk until smooth and creamy. Add milk a little at a time while stirring with whisk. Stir in spices (garlic, parmesan, the three ground peppers, paprika, and onion powder).

Continue stirring over medium heat until sauce thickens. Add corn, carrots, and bell pepper. Toss with hot pasta and done.

My pasta was served with grilled chicken.

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Pizza Dough from Rachel's Blog

Neo-Neapolitan Pizza Dough (makes 4 - 10 oz pizza doughs)
5 cups bread flour
1 tbsp sugar
2 tsp salt
1 tsp yeast
2 tbsp olive oil
1 3/4 cups water, room temperature

Directions: In a standing mixer, stir all ingredients together.  Switch to dough hook and knead for 4 minutes.  Let dough rest for 5 minutes, then knead again for 2 minutes. Dough should clear the sides of the bowl but stick a little to the bottom. Add more bread flour or water as necessary. (I have successfully done this by hand as well - just use a spoon or your hand to mix/knead the dough and add a couple minutes to the kneading time.)

Divide dough into 4 pieces, round into balls, and brush with olive oil.  Place into ziplock bags and let sit at room temperature for 15 minutes, then refrigerate overnight.  If you're using it in the next day or three, just remove from fridge 2 hours before shaping and baking.  You can also freeze it the next day and return it to the fridge for defrosting a day before you want to use it.