Proud Italian Cook

French Bread Pizzas Kicked-Up a Notch!

January 28, 2019 by Marie 10 Comments

When was the last time you had a french bread pizza? Back in the day they were pretty popular, some of you might remember the frozen ones you could buy and heat up for a quick dinner, they still sell them but they’re pretty basic with lots of unknown ingredients.

It’s so easy to make your own, grab a nice baguette, get creative and customize it with whatever toppings you want, add some sauce and cheese and you’re good to go!

Times have changed and now it’s fun to go a little gourmet with your french bread pizzas. Here’s a few ideas that might give you some inspiration and maybe something you might want to serve up at your upcoming Super Bowl party this weekend.

You’ll want to have all your toppings prepped and ready to go, you can even use leftover veggies and protein you might have in the fridge. Here I swiped my bread with a red pepper sauce then added some roasted shrimp, roasted tomatoes, feta, a little shredded mozzarella, oregano and parsley.

The crispy crust makes every bite super scrumptious!

For another version I placed shredded mozzarella on top of the bread, added caramelized onions, roasted mushrooms, parsley and thyme.

One of my favorites!

I had some leftover chicken so I added that to the base of shredded mozzarella, then tucked in some jarred artichokes hearts, fresh wilted spinach and olives.

Top them off with a drizzle of olive oil, place on a parchment lined baking sheet in a 400 F oven for around 15 minutes or so, you’ll know when they’re done because the top will be golden, the cheese melted and the crust nice and crispy.

Of course I had to make one with cheese, sausage and peppers. The sausage and peppers were already pre-cooked, so again I swiped the bread with a red pepper sauce then added shredded mozzarella, sausage and peppers.

Don’t forget to garnish your french bread pizzas with fresh and dried herbs, red pepper flakes and a drizzle of good olive oil, salt and pepper.

This is the perfect party food, get a sharp knife and make slices for everyone to share, perfect for game day. It’s also a quick and very economical weekday meal for your family, kids can make their own with their favorite toppings and you can go ahead and kick it up a notch for yourself, and everyone will be happy!

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10 Comments Filed Under: Party Foods, Pizza, Sandwiches Tagged: french bread pizza, pizza, superbowl eats

Stuffed Rainbow Colored Peppers with Cauliflower Rice and Italian Sausage

January 16, 2019 by Marie 15 Comments

Who doesn’t love stuffed peppers? It’s old school comfort food at it’s best. It’s a weeknight family meal that’s simple to make with flavorful fillings packed into a rainbow colored edible vessel. They can be stuffed with starches, meats, cheese, beans or all veggies showcasing even different ethnic cuisines.

Needless to say the combinations are endless and for that reason stuffed peppers will be around for a long long time.

I love using an assortment of rainbow colored bell peppers, they still maintain their color and sweetness after baking, and the different colors make for a pretty presentation.

Cutting the peppers lengthwise allows for more of the filling to be packed into them. These peppers are packed tightly with Italian sausage, onions, garlic, mushrooms, chopped kale and I swapped out of white rice ( which you don’t even miss) for healthier cauliflower rice.

Of course some cheese is involved along with marinara which gives these stuffed rainbow colored peppers a delicious depth of flavor with a nice Italian twist!

Did I mention how good the leftovers are? Be sure to make enough so you can heat one up for lunch the next day you’ll be happy you did.

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5.0 from 3 reviews

Stuffed Rainbow Colored Peppers with Cauliflower Rice and Italian Sausage

Author: Marie

Ingredients

4 rainbow colored bell peppers, cut lengthwise in half, then scoop out seeds and membrane
1 lb. Italian sausage, casings removed and crumbled into small pieces
2 cups frozen or fresh chopped riced cauliflower
1 onion diced
4 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 handful kale or spinach, chopped
6 large cremini mushrooms chopped
a handful of cherry or grape tomatoes, sliced
¾ cup shredded mozzarella plus a little extra for garnishing the tops
½ cup of grated pecorino
½ cup marinara sauce for the filling and enough extra sauce to cover the bottom of a 9x12 baking dish
salt and pepper to taste
1 tablespoon each, chopped basil and parsley

Instructions

Heat oven to 375
Oil the bottom and sides of a 9x12 baking dish.
Pour enough marinara sauce on the bottom of the baking dish to cover it all over.
Place the 8 raw halves of the peppers into the baking dish.
Brown the crumbled sausage in a pan until you see no pink at all, then remove and drain on paper towels.
Wipe out pan of excess grease then add the onion, garlic and chopped mushrooms, riced cauliflower and cook til slightly soft then toss around and add the chopped kale to let it wilt.
In a bowl add the drained sausage, cauliflower, cooked onion, garlic, mushrooms, kale, grated cheese, mozzarella, the sliced cherry tomatoes and the ½ cup of marinara sauce and herbs tossing well to incorporate everything.
Fill each raw pepper with the filling, packing it in.
Cover pan with foil and bake for 30 minutes then remove pan and change oven temp to 400
Take the foil off, sprinkle the tops with a tablespoon or 2 of shredded mozzarella and some grated cheese.
There will be a lot of moisture at the bottom of the pan from the foil being on but the higher temp will reduce it all.
It's finished when you can say the peppers are nice and tender , test with the tip of a sharp knife and cheese is a little golden.
Spoon some sauce on top of each and serve.

15 Comments Filed Under: Meats, Vegetables Tagged: bell peppers, cauliflower rice, Italiansausage, rainbow colored peppers, stuffed peppers

Winter Citrus Salad Guaranteed to Brighten Your Day

January 4, 2019 by Marie 2 Comments

Start the new year off right with this bright, winter citrus salad. It’s a welcome change from all the holiday and comfort foods we’ve been indulging in. Winter citrus is definitely a bright spot I look forward to when it finally arrives.

Not only is it refreshing but it perks up our taste buds and it’s also loaded with vitamins. For this salad I strictly used cara cara oranges, they’re my favorite and I always buy a bunch when I see them. I would have used a blood orange in this salad as well but it seems they’re hard to find in my neck of the woods this year.

You can use any citrus of your choice to make this salad, the brighter the color the better!

This salad is composed on a platter and is easy to assemble but first you need to slice up your citrus really pretty, removing as much of the pith as possible for a lovely presentation.

I use a serrated knife and cut off the top and bottom of the orange so it can stand flat. Then proceed to take off the peel by slicing from the top to the bottom following the curve of the fruit.

Take off only the peel and the white pith, as much as you can see leaving the flesh naked, then turn the fruit on it’s side and carefully slice crosswise.

There are no exact measurements here, your aim is to fill and arrange your platter with all the ingredients dispersed all around starting off with fresh arugula as the base. This salad is all about color!

Then thinly sliced fennel and radish rounds, the slices of citrus, small sized rings of red onion, nicoise olives, toasted hazelnuts, pomegranate seeds and some fennel fronds for garnish.

The vinaigrette is made with equal parts olive oil, fresh squeezed orange juice, a tablespoon or two of white balsamic vinegar, a dollop of dijon to thicken it up a bit and salt and pepper.

Whisk it up and spoon it all over the salad right before you serve it.

There’s a bounty of citrus all around so now is the time to make good use of it!

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