Caprese Sandwich Recipe

My Caprese Sandwich is a simple recipe that is big on flavor! The softest, most delicious ciabatta roll topped with fresh basil pesto, tomatoes, and creamy mozzarella cheese all drizzled with balsamic glaze just might be my new favorite sandwich! My mouth is watering just thinking about it!

Tomato Vinaigrette Dressing

Tomato Vinaigrette Dressing is a light and tangy dressing to coat just about any green salad deliciously. Loaded with fresh herbs and tomatoes in a simple oil and vinegar emulsion, this vinaigrette will have you craving salads!

Chicken Florentine Pasta Recipe

Chicken Florentine Pasta is similar to a Chicken Florentine dish, but it is served over pasta...just like it says in the name, so I have no idea why I felt the need to explain it, but I did <grin>.

Florentine recipes typically feature some kind of protein served on a bed of spinach and smothered in a deliciously cheesy Mornay sauce.

Chicken Florentine is a bit boring to me, so to change it up I added the pasta. Plus I've been on a kind of pasta kick recently. Late at night I've been getting hit with ideas for fun new pasta dishes such as Chicken Pot Pie Pasta, Spinach Artichoke Pasta, Spicy Chicken Pasta, Chicken Fajita Pasta, and the list could go on, but you get the idea! Check out my pasta page for more yummy pasta recipes.

This pasta dish has bite sized pieces of pan seared chicken, sauteed garlic baby spinach, and grape tomatoes on a bed of linguine. I topped it all off with a Green Onion and Parmesan Mornay Sauce that is out of this world! The sauce has a little bit of Swiss cheese in it which gives it just a hint of tang. I like that! I'm not a huge fan of Swiss cheese but it sure works in this sauce!

Easy Caprese Personal Pizzas

Easy Caprese Personal Pizzas

Ingredients (makes 2 personal pizzas)

1 (8 oz) package Pillsbury crescent rolls

2 teaspoons fresh garlic, minced

1 tablespoon good quality Olive Oil (I like Lucini)

2-3 tablespoons fresh basil leaves, chopped

2-3 roma tomatoes, sliced thinly

1/2 cup shredded Sargento Mozzarella Cheese (more to your liking)

pinch of salt
balsamic vinegar (optional)

Directions

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.
• Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper
• Using 1/2 of the crescent rolls, press 4 triangles into a rectangle shape and press seams together firmly. Do the same with the other 1/2 of the crescent rolls, so you have 2 rectangular pizzas.
• Mix the Olive Oil and Garlic together and brush evenly over both pizzas. Bake in oven for about 4-5 minutes until they just start to brown.
• Remove from oven and top with tomatoes, Sargento Mozzarella Cheeese, basil, and a pinch of salt. Divide toppings among both pizzas. Drizzle with a little balsamic vinegar if you like.
• Bake topped pizzas in oven for another 3-4 minutes until cheese melts. Enjoy!

Don, Madison, and I created this recipe years ago, when we were all young :),  we took a family vacation to a secluded mountain cabin in Murphy, North Carolina. It was perfect!

We did some hiking...

Found some interesting critters....

 

Relaxed on the porch overlooking a peaceful creek...

 

and made delicious treats in the fully stocked kitchen!



Some folks stopped by to welcome us with some fresh tomatoes and basil straight from their garden, and we decided that called for a pizza night! We went to the grocery (which was miles away!!) and picked up some garlic, olive oil, and our favorite shredded mozzarella. Sargento Cheese melts perfectly every time and tastes so fresh and delish!

Because we were on vacation, we decided to go with an easy crust and picked up some crescent rolls.  Then we headed back to our special retreat and got creative in the kitchen! We ended up with what we crowned as Easy Caprese Personal Pizzas! A wonderful little treat that we enjoy time and time again! I hope you  enjoy this recipe as well! It is fun to make with the family!

Sargento published my recipe in their cookbook! Check it out Sargento CookBook

You might also like this pizza recipe from my friend KC The Kitchen Chopper - Chicken Fennel Smoked Gouda Pizza, Chopped

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Insalata Caprese Balsamic Chicken

Insalata Caprese is basically a simple salad made with fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil.  It is dee-lish! and one of my favorite flavor combos!  When I found the recipe Balsamic Chicken and Fresh Mozzarella on allrecipes.com I knew right away it would be a winner!

I made some changes to the recipe as written. I don't use store bought dressings any longer, so I made the dressing using Mama's Balsamic Vinaigrette recipe I found on allrecipes.com  (imagine that).  This is easy to make and a delicious vinaigrette as written, but you can adjust the flavors to your liking. If you prefer it to be more sweet then add some sugar. If you like it more tangy - add some more vinegar. I always play around with flavors by adding a little of this and a little of that and just tasting after each addition until it's the way I like it.  I've found this is a good way to develop your palate too. By tasting after adding each ingredient you will learn how that ingredient affects the flavor of the dish. I always do this with salt, especially. It is amazing how a little salt can enhance flavors! Give it a try!

Ingredients (serves 4)
4 Skinless Boneless Chicken Breast Halves
1 cup Mama's Balsamic Vinaigrette (or purchased dressing)
2-3 Roma Tomatoes, sliced
8 ounces fresh Mozzarella, sliced (not the bagged stuff)
8 large Fresh Basil Leaves
salt and pepper to taste

Directions
Place chicken in a 9x13" dish, salt and pepper with just a pinch on each, and pour 1 cup Mama's Balsamic Vinaigrette over chicken.  Cover and let marinate in fridge for a few hours or overnight. Mine marinated for about 5 hours and it was very flavorful.  I like to remove from fridge about an hour before cooking to bring to room temperature.

When ready to cook, preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Bake for 30-40 minutes until an instant read thermometer registers between 150 and 155 degrees F. when inserted into the thickest part of the chicken. Cook time will vary according to the size of your chicken. Remove from oven and cover with foil. Let rest 10 minutes.

To serve, top with sliced mozzarella (I used 2 slices per chicken), 2 basil leaves, and tomatoes (I used 3 slices of tomatoes).  You want to cover the top of the chicken with the salad so you can enjoy the flavors in each bite, so choose the amount of cheese, basil, and tomatoes according to the size of your chicken. Season with salt and pepper to taste and enjoy! Discard the marinade

That's it! No need to melt the cheese in the oven or warm the tomatoes. The heat from the chicken will melt the cheese slightly. This dish is designed to be enjoyed this way. We found it very refreshing and so full of flavor! Give it a try and let me know what you think!

HomeMade Pizza

We love pizza!  We used to order pizza from a nearby pizza place quite often.  That was until Madison made her first homemade pizza!  Madison spoiled us with her culinary creations before she left for college - we weren't quite sure how we would get along without her!  It seems like just last week I was crying my eyes out heading west on I-16 after leaving my only baby alone in a strange city for her first year of college!  Now she's gearing up for finals week and saying goodbye to her Freshman year!
She survived! and, more importantly, so did I

Madison always used Bridgford Ready Dough for her homemade pizza, and it is a very good choice for the dough! Easy to use and very tasty!

Publix carries it in the freezer case

For this recipe I used the the Homemade French Bread.

This is the first time I used this dough to make pizza, and we liked it a lot.  I did not use a breadmaker - I made the dough by hand. After punching down, I spread the dough out on a large pizza pan.  Then I set it aside to rise. I like a thick crust, so I let this rise a couple hours to get it nice and puffy. You can let it rise until it looks good for your tastes.  Here is what mine looked like after rising a couple hours

Pre-heat your oven to 350 degrees. When the dough is nice and puffy, poke some holes in the center of it with a fork. I try to leave the edges nice and puffy, so I don't attack them with the fork! Now you want to mince up some garlic in a small bowl and pour some olive oil over it - about a tablespoon will do - whatever looks good! Use the back of a spoon to crush the garlic a bit, and then gently brush the garlic olive oil all over the pizza!  Then put it in the oven for about 10 minutes. You just want to get it lightly browned.

Once your pizza is a little toasty you are ready to top it as you like. Here's what I did...

While the dough was toasting in the oven, I sauteed some fresh baby spinach in garlic and olive oil.  I used about 1-2 teaspoons olive oil with a clove of garlic (sliced). When that was warmed, I added a 10 oz bag of baby spinach and sauteed until it just started to wilt. It doesn't take long. I also sliced up some fresh plum tomates and set them aside until ready to top the pizza.

I topped the pizza with about 6 slices of Mozzarella first. Then I added the spinach and tomatoes. After that, I topped with about a cup of shredded Mozzarella and some shaved Parmesan cheese.

Now that my pizza is topped just the way I want it, I put it back in the oven for another 8-10 minutes. Take the pizza out of the oven when the cheese is melted and the crust is nicely browned.  Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing! ENJOY!

Red Sauce

This is my go-to Red Sauce I use in a variety of recipes, but always for spaghetti and meatballs.

I love how easy this sauce is to make! It uses canned tomatoes, fresh herbs, and loads of heavenly garlic. Everything gets tossed into the slow cooker and cooks all day. The house always smells amazing on Red Sauce day! No slow cooker? No problemo! This sauce can also be made in a large pot on the stove-top with good results!

I prefer using fresh instead of dried herbs in this recipe. If you have the dried and want to use them, no worries, it will still be yummy.  The fresh herbs take it to a new level, so I highly suggest them! I know, I know! You don't want to do all the chopping, right? I completely understand. I used to feel the same way, but now that I chop ALL! THE! TIME! I've gotten pretty quick at it, and it actually is very therapeutic.