Knitting Zeal

Recipe of the week: Taco pizza

On Fridays I most often make pizza, or we order out pizza or go to our local pizza shop for dinner.  Basically, by the end of the week, a pizza and salad is the perfect meal to start the weekend.  The kiddo likes what he calls "plain pizza" which is really white pizza.  If we are out, it's simple to order a slice of white for him.  At home, I make a small white pizza for him with just mozzerella cheese, a pinch of garlic and a sprinkle of parm cheese.  For the adults, I like to make different flavors.  Buffalo chicken pizza, BBQ chicken pizza, mushroom, etc.  At a local pizza shop, I noticed that they make a taco pizza.  I've never ordered a slice, but it looked good and like something my husband would love.  I decided to experiment at home and came up with this version of taco pizza.

Taco Pizza

• 1/2 lb ground turkey
• taco seasoning packet
• 1/3 cup taco sauce (jarred kind)
• 2 cups of shredded cheese (blend of cheddar, mozzerella and jack cheese)
• 1 cup of shredded lettuce
• 2 diced tomatoes
• Ranch dressing to taste
• pizza dough (I either make my own or use Trader Joe's dough)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F.  If using a pizza stone, preheat that too while assembling ingredients.

In a pan, brown ground turkey and drain.  Add taco seasoning and cook according to directions of taco packet. (I used Trader Joe's taco seasoning this time, since I ran out of my Penzey's blend.  For 1/2 pound of meat, use half the packet.)

I used a rimmed cookie sheet/jelly roll pan for this pizza because I had browned a pound of ground turkey so I needed to make a bigger pizza.  I sort of liked the square shaped slices, but it would work just as well as a round pizza.  For the cookie sheet sized pizza, I used one and a half balls of pizza dough and the other half for my son's white pizza.  

Spread/shape the pizza dough onto the pan.  Add about a 1/3 cup of taco sauce (eyeball it!)  Spread seasoned, cooked ground turkey evenly on top, then top with the shredded cheese.  Bake for aproximately 12-15 minutes, or until cheese is evenly melted and crust is starting to brown.  

After removing the cooked pizza from the oven, top with the shredded lettuce, chopped tomatoes.  I added a swirl of ranch dressing to the top as well, but that is optional.  

My husband declared it to be great!  The kid wouldn't touch it!  

 

Menu plan Monday for the week of November 26, 2012

Thanksgiving 2012 is in the books and now onto planning and decorating for the winter holidays that will sneak up on us.  We finished up most of the leftovers from our Thanksgiving feast on Friday, then attended Thanksgiving part deux on Saturday at my sister's house.  I think we've had our fill of turkey, for now.  

Menu Plan for dinners:

Monday: Buffalo-Chicken mac and cheese, made with lowfat milk; salad

Tuesday:  Baked chicken, cous cous, broccoli

Wednesda: leftovers, salad

Thursday: Pasta night

Friday: Pizza night

Weekend: TBD

Have you decorated for the holidays yet?  I can't bear to think of the clutter yet that comes with decorating.  Maybe once it's really December!

Linking up to Organizing Junkie!

Winter lips need Carmex lip conditioner

As a member of the Carmex blog squad I had the chance to try out a new product this past week, Carmex lip conditioner.  It's not waxy like a balm, or sticky like the little Carmex jars.  Instead it's more of a lotion for lips that has 13 moisterizers that absorb quickly.  It has a smooth, matte finish, that makes it perfect for layering with lip color (lipstick or gloss.)  

I've been using the lip conditioner for about a week and so far I like it.  It has a very light organge scent and flavor that is not overpowering and a slight tingle when applied.  It doesn't seem to last as long as the lip balm products from Carmex, but that's because it isn't a thick layer on my lips.  I like that it isn't sticky.  I have long hair that when it's windy out it gets stuck in my lip balms or glosses.  My hair doesn't stick to the Carmex lip conditioner!  The true test of this new Carmex product will be how it helps during the winter when my skin dries out.  I'm glad I'll have this product to use!

 

Disclosure: Carmex provided me samples of their product for the purpose of this review.  My opinions expressed here are my own.  

Apple-cranberry pie

Hope you had a fun-filled Thanksgiving. We had a nice dinner with our family and the kiddo loved having all three of his grandparents here.  I tried two new pie recipes this year.  The pumpkin pie I usually make was from the back of the can of pumpkin.  It was a perfectly fine recipe, however, I really wanted to try a different version.  The one I made this year used cream instead of canned condensed milk.  I'm not sure if it made much of a taste difference, but it was great!

My husband requested an apple-cranberry pie.  Real Simple magazine had a really easy recipe in their November issue and the recipe is also online.  The only change I made to the recipe was the topping.  I made it more of a crumble topping, mixing the butter into the granola with a couple of spoonfuls of brown sugar.  The toping came out nice and crunchy.  The pie was a mess to serve, falling apart a bit, but was good anyway.  I was concerned that the cranberries would be too tart, which is why I changed the topping to include some sugar.  Luckily, they added a nice touch to the overall taste.  

This year I also made my own crusts using the basic pie crust recipe from Simply Recipes.  It is a really easy crust to make and has turned out great each time....much better than store bought!  

Now time to plan Christmas meals!!

Happy Thanksgiving

Hope you have a great Thanksgiving! The preschool art that decorates our house is just one of the things I'm thankful for this year!

Wordless Wednesday

Preparations....

Grooving with the Imagination Movers!

On Sunday we went to see the Imagination Movers in concert at Sesame Place.  This was the third Movers concert we saw this year!  The kiddo loves them, and quite frankly, so do his parents.  Being at Sesame Place means it was a really small venue and the guys were really nice and hung out after the show to meet all the kids and pose for photos.  My kiddo is still photo-reluctant, but thankfully Mover Rich didn't give him a choice about posing!  I tried to explain to the kiddo that when he is older and looks back at the photos he will realize just how cool it was to meet his favorite rock stars!  I was excited to hear that the Movers will be back at Sesame next May, so we could potentially see them again!  

 

Fun time at a Very Furry Christmas at Sesame Place!

 

We had fun playing at the park too.  They really outdid themselves with the holiday decorations.  What was pretty during the day became dazzling at night!  We had the chance to see the daytime parade and the nightime parade. It wasn't crowded, so the kid got to ride the roller coaster 6 times!  It was really nice not having to deal with the crazy crowds like the rest of the season, even though it was colder than expected.  Our season pass means we will get to go back a couple more times before the end of the year.  

Menu plan Monday for the week of November 19, 2012

Thanksgiving week!  This year has zoomed by!  We have been busy trying to fit in all of our holiday preparations and plans.  

We are hosting our parents (the grandparents) for Thanksgiving and the kiddo is looking forward to having all that attention!  He'll be helping me make the pumpkin pie and the apple-cranberry pie on his day off from school on Wednesday.  We picked up some apples from a farm on Friday so that our pie will have local apples. I'm afraid that will be the last of the local apples until next summer.  It's just too cold here now.  We also bought some frozen farm corn.  One of our area farms that grows yummy corn mentioned on Facebook that they froze some for Thanksgiving.  The kiddo LOVES corn on the cob, so we headed over there to pick some up.  Turns out it was cut corn, frozen in a giant zipper bag.  He still wanted it, so we'll make some of that on Thanksgiving for him. (The rest I think may become soup!) 

I also plan to make cranberry sauce, and still serve the canned kind for those who prefer it.  I found a raw cranberry relish recipe that looks really good, except I don't have a grinder to make it.  I'm debating using my food processor for it, as it sounds like it would be really tasty, expecially on a turkey sandwich!

Menu plan for dinners this week:

Monday: Slow cooker pulled pork tacos, black beans

Tuesday: Applesauce Barbeque Chicken, cous cous, broccoli

Wednesday: Something simple and light...probably salad as a main course with leftover chicken or pork?  

Thursday: Turkey, gravy, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, green beans, corn, salad, and pies!  Pumpkin and appple-cranberry.  

Friday: Leftovers!!  My favorite part of Thanksgiving.

Saturday: visiting family

Sunday: visiting family

What's on your Thanksgiving menu?  

I'm linking up to Organizing Junkie for this week's menu plan.

The mouse king battles the Nutcracker

Before I had a kid, I had a lovely social life that included arts and culture events often.  One of my favorite subscriptions  I had was to the Pennsylvania Ballet.  Copelia was the first ballet I ever saw at the Academy of Music.  With my subscription I got to see Dracula as a ballet!  And almost every December I saw a performance of the Nutcracker.  To me, the music of the Nutcracker is my holiday soundtrack.  It's beautiful to listen to and to see the dancers interpret the music into dance is amazing.

When I had my son I knew my budget and lifestyle would be altered.  I made a mental note that when my son was five he would be old enough to see a performance of the Nutcracker.  Not only would he be able to handle the theatre atmosphere, but he would be young enough to not think ballet is only for girls.  To me, the Nutcracker was all about Marie, the young ballerina who received the Nutcracker as a gift and danced with the Sugar Plum Fairy.  I have changed my outlook on the Nutcracker and am focusing on the Mouse King's battle with the Nutcracker and his victory, in order to show my son that this ballet is for everyone, not just girls.  I think he will be mesmorized by the entire experience.  From the stage, the live orchestra, the Philadelphia Boys Choir singing, and that amazing growing Christmas tree, it will definitely be entertaining to him.

I am excited to have been invited to attend a performance of  George Ballachine's The Nutcracker by the Pennsylvania Ballet with my son in December.  This is the 25th year the PA Ballet has been perfoming this particular ballet and I know it will be just as magical as ever. I've learned that tickets to the Nutcracker start at $20, so it is possible to make this a special gift for a child to experience the Ballet and Theatre.  I can't wait to see his reaction and find out if this could be a new tradition for us, for at least a few years!

 

Artists of Pennsylvania Ballet in George Balanchine's The Nutcracker™, choreography by George Balanchine © The George Balanchine Trust. Photo: Alexander Iziliaev

 

Wordless Wednesday