Inspired by my realization while washing the dishes a few minutes ago…
(Source)
How many spatulas do you have?
I have 5 red ones, 1 green one, 2 white ones. I think this might be bordering on obsession?
But I bet there are foodies out there that have more, eh? Come on. ‘Fess up!
I rarely say that I’m “inspired by” someone when I post my credits for a recipe. I’m more likely to say “adapted by” because I’m not one to stick with a recipe to the T so there are always gonna be adaptations to fit my budget or my pantry limitations. Also “inspired by” can have so many interpretations depending on the person and I don’t want to get into an discussion over semantics.
Right or wrong “adapted by” works for me. What works for you?
But this time I definitely couldn’t deny my inspiration.
I was looking for an asparagus inspired side dish for my dinner last night and since I have a twitter trigger finger, I asked my followers. Within 1 minutes I got 10 replies. No wonder I love Twitter! I got some great ideas (here), (here), (here), (here), (here) and (here). <--- Hey, Sarah I'm still waiting on that email! HA HA!
(Will post my dinner later but the asparagus needed a post all its own.)
Everyone knows… everything’s better with bacon. THANKS LINDSEY!
Bacon Wrapped Asparagus
Recipe inspired by Lindsey (twitter@lindseymgardner)
Ingredients:
1lb bacon (Mine came with 14 thick cut bacon strips)
14 asparagus stalks (Quantity depends on how much bacon you use)
toothpicks
balsamic vinegar, drizzle (optional)Instructions:
Preheat oven to 400F. Line 2 baking sheets with foil.
Trim the ends of the asparagus stalk. (I usually break one with my hands to give me a guideline to cut the rest of the bunch.) Wrap (roll) each asparagus stalk with 1 strip of bacon and secure with 1-2 toothpicks perpendicular to the asparagus. Repeat with remaining bacon and asparagus.
Bake for 8-10 minutes and then rotate baking sheets from top to bottom shelf (vice versa) and bake for another 8-10 minutes or until asparagus is tender and bacon is at your preferred crispiness.
ENJOY!
Husband rating: A+
He loves vegetables so I really don’t need to do anything extraordinary to get him to eat his veggies but there’s no denying that he loved asparagus wrapped in bacon. I always know it’s a winner when he eats more of the veggies than the chicken part of the meal. Score!
Wifey rating: A+
I’m not a huge veggie person. I like it in moderation. (Too bad I can’t say that about cupcakes.) I have my favorite veggies: broccoli, asparagus, bell peppers. But I bet you could wrap your least favorite veggie in bacon and you’d be eating them like candy. Then again. That might defeat the purpose, eh? HA HA!
Where do I begin? My head is so full of information I want to share that it’s about to explode.
I hope you’re sitting down. You’re gonna be here for a while.
I don’t even remember how I got to Gallery 1018 located in an eclectic part of Downtown LA. I know my husband drove me (I suck at parallel parking in LA! Hold the Asian driver jokes, please.) and I remember for a split second as he was driving away that I wanted to chase after him and leave Runaway Bride style. But then I remembered I was in heels and I’d probably fall and bring more unnecessary attention to myself.
There’s a reason this is my first foodie conference. I’m easily intimidated talking about my blog. You won’t see me handing out blog business cards in the middle of the produce aisle. Most people that meet me can tell you that I’m not shy though. But I kind of see blogging as my alter ego. I keep my blog ego and my IRL ego separate. Like church and state. It’s not necessarily what I intended to do though. It’s just how I feel right now. I think that’s why blogging is so appealing to me. It’s the anonymity. I can express myself without being completely vulnerable.
Before I had time to check out my swag bag, introduce myself to 3 bloggers or contemplate the vulnerable thing any further, it was time to begin.
Living in California has it’s privileges. There’s the gorgeous weather, the diverse people/personalities, the fabulous shopping and California Pizza Kitchen (CPK). Sometimes I forget that there are people that have never heard of CPK much less eaten at one. Poor things. They don’t know what they are missing.
One of the first pizzas I ever ate at CPK was the bbq chicken. At first it didn’t sound very appetizing but my BIL insisted it was the BEST pizza. So I made him a deal that he should get the BBQ and I’d get the Wild Mushroom and we’d trade a couple slices so that I’m not stuck with a whole pizza that I didn’t wanna eat. Hey! We’re family. We barter our food. And HOT DOG was that first bite AH-MAZING!
Since then I’ve had a fascination with BBQ chicken pizza. So when my Adopt-A-Blogger newb, Melissa of My McDonald Meal, posted about her BBQ chicken pizza I knew that would be the recipe I’d have to try from her blog. I admit I was a little skeptical. It seems more complicated than it should. Wouldn’t it be easier to go out and buy bbq sauce in a bottle?
Boy was I wrong.
BBQ Chicken Pizza
Recipe adapted from Simply Recipes and My McDonald Meal
Ingredients:
FOR PIZZA DOUGH
1-1/2 cups warm water (105°F-115°F)
1 package (2-1/4 tsp) of active dry yeast
3-1/2 cups bread flour
2 tbsp olive oil
2 tsp salt
1 tsp sugarFOR SAUCE
1 can salt free organic tomato sauce
1 tsp organic Worcestershire Sauce
1 tsp yellow mustard
1/4 cups apple cider vinegar
1 tsp garlic powder
2 tsp chili powder
1 tbsp agave nectarTOPPINGS
pre-cooked grill chicken strips, chopped (I buy Foster Farms from Costco)
cilantro, rough chop, garnish
cherry tomatoes, chopped, garnish
red onion, thinly sliced (I used sweet onion)
shredded cheddar cheeseInstructions:
TO MAKE PIZZA DOUGH
In a stand mixer, fitted with a flat beater, add warm water and yeast. Let sit for about 5 minutes until the yeast is dissolved. Mix in the olive oil, bread flour, sugar and salt for about 1 minute. Exchange flat beater for dough hook. On low-medium speed, knead the dough until smooth and elastic about 10 minutes. (Mine took about 5 minutes.)Prepare a large bowl that has been lightly coated with olive oil. (I sprayed with PAM olive oil.) Place pizza dough into large bowl and move it around the bowl so that dough is coated with olive oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and let sit in a warm place until dough doubles in size about 1-1/2 hours (or more depending on the temperature). Punch the dough down so it deflates. Let rest for about 10 more minutes. Roll out to desired shape and set aside.
TO MAKE SAUCE
Combine all ingredients in a large saucepan over medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add chopped chicken and stir. Cook for about 10 minutes.TO ASSEMBLE PIZZA
Preheat oven to 350F.Brush pizza dough with olive oil. Spread BBQ chicken mixture over the pizza. Scatter onion and cheddar cheese evenly over the pizza. Bake for about 15-20 minutes until preferred doneness. Let cool for about 5 minutes and add chopped tomatoes and cilantro.
ENJOY!
Husband rating: A
He really enjoyed this pizza even though he’s not a bbq fan.
Wifey rating: A
The sauce was easy to make and had so much flavor. Not quite as tangy as a BBQ sauce in a bottle but the fresh-not-pre-made-sitting-on-a-shelf-for-who-knows-how-long flavors are unmistakable. I heart chili powder. It was also my first time using agave nectar and I can’t wait to try more recipes with it!
My Hubs is an overachiever. He likes school. He likes to learn. He tells me that if we ever won the lottery, he’d quit his job and go back to school to get multiple degrees in all the subjects that he wants to learn more about. He really needs to get on Jeopardy. I swear he’s the next Ken Jennings.
Me? If I had 1 million dollars (yes, I have my pinky near my lips when I say it) school would be the LAST thing I’d do. Ironically I was good at school. But it wasn’t for the learning. I studied for the test NOT for the quest for knowledge like my Hubs. Not to get all preachy but personally I think it’s a flaw in the education system. Because we all know that *I AM* flawless. *wink*
Even though we haven’t won the lottery (yet), my Hubs is still on his quest for knowledge. I thought for sure when he finished his Masters Degree, he’d take a little time off. Just enjoy being a teacher and not a student anymore. But I was wrong. He decided to take a Spanish class at our local community college. Not for another degree. Not b/c it increases his pay. But for the sheer desire to learn to speak, read and write Spanish with his students. He teaches one class of SDAIE (Specially Designed Academic Instruction in English) b/c he has some additional credential that allows him to do so. I told you. O-V-E-R-A-C-H-I-E-V-E-R. Back in my day (gosh I feel old all the sudden) it was called ESL (English As a Second Language).
Long story short.
Hubs came up with the title for my post. That’s his idea of a little Spanglish humor.
This week the Tuesdays With Dorie Bakers are adding some “sweet milk” to cookie dough hosted by Jodie of Beansy Loves Cake. You can find the complete recipe on her blog. Also check out her cake-ing pictures too. I could spend all day looking at her cake pictures.
I knew as soon as I read the title, Dulce De Leche Duos, that this wouldn’t be a week I could skip. Most ppl that know me know that I’m not a cookie person. I like cookies. But I don’t LOVE cookies. My heart belongs to other desserts before cookies. But seeing dulce de leche as an ingredient to this cookie definitely caught my eye!
What I learned this week:
I really SUCK at taking cookie pictures. I won’t tell you how many pictures I took of these damn cookies. It’s hard to make cookies look appetizing when the cookie and the filling are the same color. Maybe it’s just me. *shrugs
I decided to increase the salt from 1/4 tsp to 1 tsp per the Queen of Salt, Bridget of The Way The Cookie Crumbles. I concur. I’m glad I did. Ironically I think the salt enhances the sweetness.
You can buy store bought dulce de leche but I was so intrigued when fellow TWD baker, Tia of Buttercream Barbie, suggested making dulce de leche from sweetened condensed milk in a crockpot. So that’s what I did. Took the label off, filled crockpot with water and cooked on low for 8 hours (or was it 10 hours? I can’t remember.) This method is pretty forgiving time wise. Only complaint? Can got a little rusted so next time I’ll cover the bottom of the can with foil so it doesn’t stain my crockpot. But lemme just tell ya. It totally works!
You know the cookie’s gonna be good if you are adding BOTH white sugar and brown sugar. (L) Can’t forget the egg(s) to bind everything together! (R)
After I added the flour mixture I used a rounded tsp with the help of a 1/2 tsp to scoop out the cookie dough onto the baking sheet. I really should get a cookie dough scoop. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to Sur La Table, had it in my hand and then decided I didn’t need it b/c I really don’t bake that many cookies. The cookie dough kinda reminded me of cake batter. Hmmm… I might have to experiment with a cupcake?
I baked my cookies for 6 minutes and then turned the baking pan around and baked for another 5 minutes. A tad flat for my tastes but perfect golden brown. *happy sigh* It’s the little things…
Again I was indecisive about THE picture. Got milk? or no milk?
ENJOY!
Husband rating: A
He’s not a caramel or dulce de leche freak like me but he really enjoyed the cake-like texture of the cookie and the sweetness from the filling. I can’t remember how many he ate. But let’s just say he ate his fair share.
Wifey rating: B (with chocolate+dulce de leche filling)/A (with dulce de leche only filling)
What do you know? You CAN have too much of a good thing. I was all gung ho to love the chocolate+dulce de leche filling together in a cookie sandwich but the chocolate was too overpowering for the dulce de leche IMO. I preferred the cookie sandwich with just the dulce de leche filling. Go figure!
Next week: Coconut Tea Cake pages 194-195
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