Pepperoni Pizza

You can use store bought pizza dough or make your own. I used Trader Joes whole wheat pizza dough. Also, you can make your own sauce or use a store bought version. This was a weekday dinner, so I opted for the easiest way to make this pizza. This works best with a pizza stone, although you could use a baking sheet too. What makes this pizza unique is using a cheese blend....not just your normal mozzarella cheese.

pizza dough (make your own or use store bought)
pizza sauce (make your own or use store bought)
shredded cheese blend to include; mozzarella, jack and cheddar cheese
pepperoni
garlic powder
pepper
italian seasoning blend
crushed red pepper

Heat oven to 450 degrees

Flour surface and roll out dough into desired pizza shape. Heat pizza stone or baking sheet in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove and lay pizza dough down on it. Top with sauce, then sprinkle with garlic powder and italian seasoning. Sprinkle with cheese blend, and then add pepperonis. Finish by seasoning with pepper and crushed red pepper.

Place in the oven and cook for about 10 to 12 minutes, or until starting to brown and cheese is bubbling. Keep an eye on it. Pizza can burn really fast if you are not careful.

Remove and keep on the pizza stone or baking sheet for about 5 minutes. Then transfer to a large cutting board. Cut in to pieces, serve and ENJOY!!!!!

Wine pairing......Chianti or Barbera.

Shrimp Tacos

shrimp, deveined, cleaned and patted dry

1 tsp lemon juice
olive oil
southwestern seasoning
salt and pepper for seasoning
2 garlic cloves, minced
1- 14.5 oz black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 red onion, finely diced
1/2 yellow red pepper, finely diced
1 tsp hot sauce
1/4 cup chicken stock/broth
tortillas
avocado for garnish
cilantro for garnish
tomato for garnish
salsa

Season shrimp with salt, pepper, southwestern seasoning and add half of the minced garlic and drizzle with olive oil and lemon juice. Toss to coat.

While shrimp is marinating. Drizzle sauce pan with olive oil. Sauté onion, bell pepper and the other half of the garlic until soft. Season with salt and pepper. Add black bean, chicken stock and hot sauce. Keep under a low simmer, stirring frequently. Most of the broth will reduce and this is what you would like to happen.

Heat grill. Wrap tortillas in foil. Once grill is heated, grill shrimp until cook completely through. While shrimp is grilling, place tortillas on the grill. Keep flipping so that both sides of the tortillas get warm.

Once shrimp are cooked. Top tortillas with black bean mixture, shrimp and garnish with avocado, cilantro, tomato and salsa. Serve and ENJOY!!!

Wine pairing......Pinot Gris.

Bacon Chipotle Burgers

This was great served with grilled corn on the cob.  You can always make this with ground turkey or ground chicken and eliminate the bacon if you wish.

ground beef
salt and pepper for seasoning
roasted chili seasoning
chipotle chile in adobo sauce (just enough to season your mayonnaise)
mayonnaise
bacon
sliced red onion
sliced tomato
pepper jack cheese
cilantro sprigs
sliced avocado
crusty bun (sliced)

Cook and crisp up enough bacon for how many burgers you are serving (I used two pieces of bacon per burger). Once cooked, set on a paper towel to rest and absorb the fat.

Season ground beef with salt, pepper and roasted chili seasoning. Shape burgers.

Begin to heat the grill.

While grill is heating up, mix mayonnaise with as much chipotle sauce (just the adobo sauce, not the chilies – reserve the rest for another use) as you would like. Taste along the way. Start off with a little and add as needed.

Grill burgers until just about done. Top with pepper jack cheese and lay bun sides down on the grill to toast. Once cheese is melted and buns are toasted, remove. Spread chipotle mayonnaise and on each side of the bun. Top with burger, bacon, then tomato, onion, cilantro sprigs and avocado. Finish with the other side of the bun. Serve and ENJOY!!!!!

Wine pairing......Zinfandel.

Chili Glazed Ribs

I served these with roasted potatoes, bell peppers and onions.

2 racks baby back ribs
3 tbsp brown sugar
3 garlic cloves minced
italian seasoning, for seasoning
ancho chili powder, for seasoning
cayenne pepper, for seasoning
salt and pepper for seasoning
2 cups apple cider
3 tbsp ketchup
2 tbsp dijon mustard
2 tsp worcestershire sauce

Marinade ribs with brown sugar, garlic, italian seasoning, ancho powder, cayenne pepper and salt and pepper. Allow to marinade for at least two hours.

Pre-heat oven to 300 degrees. Wrap baby back ribs in foil (tightly) and place on a baking sheet. Bake for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours, until meat is tender.

During the last hour of cooking the ribs, bring cider, ketchup, dijon and worcestershire sauce to a light boil in a sauce pan. Reduce down until you have the consistency of a sauce.

Once meat is cooked, pull back foil and baste ribs with sauce every 10 minutes until the sauce has started to caramelize on the ribs. Baste and then place back in the oven, then baste again and so on. You can also finish the ribs on a hot grill. Just about the same method. Baste ever 10 minutes or so. Serve and ENJOY!!!!!

Wine pairing......Syrah.