Stephanie's Slice Of Life

Category: Dinners

• 

  Italian Cold Cut Calzone

  Posted at 12:07 pm by StephMo

  Oct 17th

  When you think of calzone you probably think of Italian Cold Cut Calzone. It is one of those classic calzones you always see on a menu where calzones are sold. It is also a calzone that tends to differ depending on who is making it. My version is a very simple combination of Italian meats and cheese. I have tried different variations but in the end this is the way we like it.

  Calzone is something people often only think about serving for a party or gathering, but calzone can be a wonderful dinner if you serve it with a side salad. If you can make homemade pizza, you can make homemade calzone.

  Ingredients:

  Pizza Dough

  1/4 lb. Capocolla Ham

  1/4 lb. Genoa Salami

  1/4 lb. Black Forest Ham

  1/4 lb. Provolone cheese

  If you would like to make your own pizza dough you can find my recipe here https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/?s=pizza+dough, or you can use store bought dough if you prefer.

  Roll out the dough into an oval.

  

  Start layering your ingredients while leaving some space on the edges.

  As I mentioned you can use whichever Italian cold cuts and cheeses you like, this is the combination that my family and myself prefer. It’s a really good combination! Trust me!

  

  

  

  

  Gently fold the long sides of the dough inward, then fold the edges in. Press the seams to ensure the dough is sealed. Putting a little water on your fingers will help with sealing the seams.

  Flip the calzone over onto a greased cookie sheet. If you like you can brush with an egg wash, which is a slightly beaten egg combined with an equal amount of water. I also like some sesame seeds sprinkled on top.

  

  Bake at 450 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the calzone is brown and hard when tapped. I personally prefer a softer calzone so I don’t cook mine as long as you may want to.

  

  Oh my goodness, so yummy!

  Posted in Breads, Dinners, Recipes | Tagged calzone, calzone recipe, food blog, food blogger, homemade calzone, italian calzone, italian calzone recipe, italian cold cut calzone, stephanies slice of life
• 

  Spinach Artichoke Calzone

  Posted at 10:51 am by StephMo

  Oct 17th

  This calzone is one of those foods where you find yourself saying “Wow this is good” while you are eating it. I have been making this recipe for years and it never disappoints. It tastes like spinach artichoke dip in a calzone, it is just delicious. It is also a healthier and lower fat version of calzone if you can believe that.

  Calzone is something people often only think about serving for a party or gathering, but calzone can be a wonderful dinner if you serve it with a side salad. If you can make homemade pizza, you can make homemade calzone.

  If you would like to make your own pizza dough you can find my recipe here https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/?s=pizza+dough, or you can use store bought dough if you prefer.

  Ingredients:

  Pizza Dough

  1 cup feta cheese

  3 oz. 1/3 fat cream cheese, softened

  1/2 tsp. oregano

  1/4 tsp. salt

  1/8 tsp. pepper

  1 (14 oz) can artichoke hearts, drained and chopped

  10 oz. fresh spinach

  1 tsp. minced garlic

  1 egg white

  1/4 cup parmesan cheese

  1 tbsp. olive oil

  1 egg and sesame seeds (optional)

  Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over low/medium heat. Cook the spinach until it wilts while stirring frequently.

  Once the spinach is cool enough to touch, squeeze out all of the liquid and set aside.

  Combine the cream cheese, feta, oregano, salt, pepper, garlic, parmesan cheese, and egg white in a large mixing bowl.

  

  Add the artichoke hearts and cooked spinach, and mix well.

  

  

  Doesn’t that look like spinach artichoke dip? The smell is amazing!

  Roll out the dough into a rectangle and spread the filling over most of the dough while leaving room at the edges.

  

  Gently fold the long sides of the dough inward, then fold the edges in. Press the seams to ensure the dough is sealed. Putting a little water on your fingers will help with sealing the seams.

  Flip the calzone over onto a greased cookie sheet. If you like you can brush with an egg wash, which is a slightly beaten egg combined with an equal amount of water. I also like some sesame seeds sprinkled on top.

  

  Bake at 450 degrees for about 15 minutes or until the calzone is brown and hard when tapped. I personally prefer a softer calzone so I don’t cook mine as long as you may want to.

  Makes a perfect dinner with a side salad. Enjoy!

  

  Posted in Breads, Dinners, Recipes | Tagged calzone, calzone recipe, food blog, food blogger, homemade calzone, pizza dough, spinach artichoke calzone, spinach calzone, stephanie's slice of life
• 

  Lemon Arugula Pasta

  Posted at 11:58 am by StephMo

  Oct 14th

  This pasta dish is absulutely delicious! Whenever I find a recipe that my somewhat picky son asks for I know it is a winner. It minics alfredo except for the fact that there isn’t any butter, so maybe it’s a little healthier? It’s not low fat but you know what they say, everything in moderation.

  As I have stated before, any recipe with cream in it is something I am going to love. I believe this recipe is originally from Ina Garten so you know it is going to be good. This recipe has such a wonderful flavor with the fresh lemon and arugula. I have tried it with spinach before when I was out of arugula and I will say although it was good, it is much better with arugula.

  Ingredients:

  1 lb. of pasta

  2 lemons, juiced

  1/2 cup – 1 cup of cherry tomatoes, halved

  4 oz. of fresh arugula

  1 cup broccoli florets

  2 cups heavy cream

  1 tsp. minced garlic

  1 tbsp. olive oil

  1/2 tsp pepper

  1/2 tsp. salt

  3/4 cup parmesan cheese, plus more

  I was out of fresh broccoli last night and had to use frozen which is not ideal, but my family didn’t notice. Shhhh, don’t tell. Fresh is preferable, but we do our best and make do with what we have right?

  Juice two lemons and put the juice aside. Halve the cherry tomatoes and cut the broccoli into bit size florets.

  

  With fresh broccoli, cook in boiling water for about 3 minutes. Drain in a colander and run under cold water stop the cooking. Set aside.

  When you start boiling the water for the pasta you can start making the sauce.

  Heat the olive oil in a saucepan over low/medium heat. Cook the minced garlic for 1 minute while stirring constantly. Garlic burns very easily so be careful.

  Add the cream, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Bring to a boil while whisking frequently. Reduce heat to a simmer and whisk in the parmesan cheese. Continue simmering and whisking frequently for about 15 minutes.

  

  Once the water is boiled cook your pasta as directed on the package.

  Drain the pasta when ready and return to the pan. Add the sauce and combine well until you see that it is thickening and absorbing into the pasta. You may choose to add more parmesan if you so desire. You can never have too much cheese!

  Add the arugula and stir until it is wilted.

  

  Add the tomatoes and broccoli and you are ready to serve.

  Enjoy!

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged cream sauce recipe, food blog, food blogger, lemon arugula pasta, lemon arugula pasta recipe, lemon pasta, lemon pasta recipe, pasta recipe, pasta recipes
• 

  Chicken Fried Rice

  Posted at 8:22 pm by StephMo

  Aug 4th

  Chicken Fried Rice is a quick, healthy, delicious meal that you don’t have to get at a restaurant. Even though it is not even remotely like Southern Fried Chicken, every time I make this meal I have the song “Chicken Fried” by the Zach Brown Band on repeat in my head. Maybe they could sing a different version “You know I like my chicken fried… rice”. Yeah, maybe not.

  Anyway, you can use brown rice or white rice, or even leftover rice. What is great is you can cook the rice ahead of time and then just whip up the rest when you are ready. Super easy.

  Ingredients:

  4 cups of cooked rice

  1 lb. boneless chicken breast

  1 tbsp. toasted sesame oil, divided

  1 tbsp. canola oil, divided

  1 1/3 cups frozen peas

  1 1/2 tsp. of minced garlic

  2 large eggs lightly beaten

  4 – 5 tbsp. soy sauce

  salt and pepper

  Cook rice as directed on package. Set aside.

  Clean chicken and cut into small pieces.

  In a large frying pan heat 1 1/2 tsp. of sesame oil along with 1 1/2 tsp. of canola oil over medium heat. Add chicken, season with salt and pepper and cook about 5 minutes or until no longer pink.

  

  Once the chicken is cooked transfer to a plate and set aside.

  Add remaining 1 1/2 tsp. sesame oil and 1 1/2 tsp. canola oil to the pan and keep at medium heat. Add peas and cook for 1 minute, then add garlic and cook for an additional minute.

  Push the peas to the edge of the pan and add eggs in the center. Cook to a scramble.

  

  Return the chicken to the pan and add the cooked rice. Add soy sauce and salt and pepper to taste.

  

  Serve and enjoy! You know I like my chicken fried…..

  

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged chicken fried rice, chicken fried rice recipe, chicken recipe, easy chicken recipe, easy dinner, easy dinner ideas, easy dinner recipe, food blog, food blogger, fried rice, fried rice recipe, healthy meal, healthy meals, healthy recipe
• 

  Dijon Baked Halibut

  Posted at 5:12 pm by StephMo

  Jun 12th

  I can be a very finicky eater especially when it comes to fish, and I will never try anything new. I basically only eat Haddock and no matter how many times my husband said I would love Halibut, I still wouldn’t try it. Recently we were given Halibut instead of Haddock at the grocery store and after I cooked it for my husband I gave in to his coaxing and tried it myself. There aren’t that many instances where I like having to tell my husband he was right, but this was one instance that I was happy he was. Not only was he right, but Halibut is now my favorite fish. If you have never had Halibut, it is a delicious white fish that is actually much better than Haddock.

  The first time I made it I baked it with my normal Haddock topping which is seasoned breadcrumbs, melted butter, and seasoned salt. As I said, it was delicious. Then the second time I made it I used this Dijon crumb recipe and it was extra delicious. Amazing, trust me.

  I used about a pound and a half of Halibut filets, which I removed the skin, rinsed, and put on a baking sheet.

  

  I mixed together all of the ingredients for Topping #1 in a small bowl and spread evenly over the filets.

  Topping #1 recipe:

  1/4 cup mayonaise

  1 tbsp. dijon mustard

  1 tbsp. prepared horseradish

  1 tbsp. lemon juice

  1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs

  1 tbsp. parmesan cheese

  

  Then I combined the ingredients for Topping #2 in another small bowl and sprinkled it evenly over the first topping.

  Topping #2:

  1 tbsp. butter, melted

  1 tbsp. parmesan cheese

  1/4 cup panko breadcrumbs

  

  Then you just bake at 350 degrees for about 18 minutes or until the fish is flaky. So, so good!

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged dijon fish, dijon fish recipe, dijon halibut, fish, fish recipe, food blogger, halibut, halibut recipe, mustard halibut, mustard halibut recipe
• 

  Pesto Cream Sauce

  Posted at 11:22 am by StephMo

  Apr 24th

  Last night I had intended on just making pasta with pesto for dinner, but then had a craving for something a little more creamy. I decided to add a little cream sauce spin to my homemade pesto and it was absolutely delicious! If you are like me and love cream sauce, you will love this creamy pesto. The addition of the cream is subtle and not as heavy as an alfredo sauce, but satisfies that craving for creaminess you may be having.

  First I will give you the recipe for my pesto, then further down the blog you will see how to make it into a cream sauce.

  Here are the ingredients for my regular pesto:

  4 oz. of fresh basil

  1/2 cup olive oil

  1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

  2 tsp. minced garlic

  Pepper to taste

  Add basil, cheese, garlic, and pepper to a food processor.

  

  Turn on the processor and add the olive oil slowly.

  

  Let it run until the basil is finely chopped and all the ingredients are combined.

  

  Oh that smell, wow!

  Since nothing goes better with basil than tomatoes, I decided to cut up some grape tomatoes to add to the pasta and pesto.

  

  This is where I would usually stop and be so happy with this meal. I love fresh pesto on pasta.

  But I didn’t stop, and this is where things started getting crazy and I decided to bust out the heavy cream.

  Heat 1/2 cup of heavy cream and 2 tbsp. of butter in a saucepan until the butter is melted and the cream is starting to boil while being careful not to let the cream burn. Whisk in a 1/2 cup of grated cheese and simmer for a few minutes until it starts to thicken slightly.

  

  Whisk the pesto into the cream sauce mixture and cook for a few minutes.

  

  Doesn’t that look pretty?

  Pour the sauce over your pasta of choice, add the tomatoes, stir, and serve.

  

  If your family is anything like mine, you will be listening to happy eating sounds and praises through the entire dinner. Yum!

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes, Sauces | Tagged alfredo sauce, basil recipes, cream sauce, food blog, food blogger, nut free pesto, nut free pesto recipe, pasta with pesto, pasta with pesto cream sauce, pesto, pesto cream sauce, pesto cream sauce recipe, pesto recipe, pesto recipe no nuts
• 

  Homemade Flour Tortillas

  Posted at 4:44 pm by StephMo

  Apr 9th

  Now that running to the store for every little thing isn’t an option, I have been making my own tortillas instead of buying them. These are easy to make and you will look very impressive on your next Taco Tuesday. This recipe makes eight good size tortillas, but you can double the recipe if you would like more than that.

  I could say that I intended to make them the shape that they are in, but I will admit I was going for a circle. They tasted just as good regardless of whatever shape that actually is lol.

  You only need four ingredients to make your own tortillas and they are:

  2 cups of flour

  1/2 tsp. salt

  3/4 cup water

  3 tbsp. olive oil

  Combine flour and salt in a medium size mixing bowl. Add the water and oil and mix well.

  

  Put the dough on a floured cutting board and knead for a minute or so.

  

  Cut your dough into eight even portions.

  

  Roll each portion into a very thin circle. Yes, circle. That is the goal anyway. Actually, the one shown below is kind of a circle.

  You will need to keep flouring the board and rolling pin because they tend to get sticky.

  

  Heat your skillet a little higher than medium heat. Make sure your skillet is hot before putting in the tortilla. Cook for only about 1 minute or so, the tortilla should bubble as seen.

  

  What shape is that actually? It’s not even close to a circle lol. I think i need to practice my rolling skills.

  Flip the tortilla and cook the other side.

  

  Keep them warm until serving and fill them with fish, chicken, pork, or whatever. You’ll love them!

  

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged flour tortilla, flour tortilla recipe, food blog, food blogger, taco recipe, taco tuesday, tacos, tortilla, tortilla recipe
• 

  Homemade Pizza

  Posted at 5:10 pm by StephMo

  Apr 1st

  In my opinion pizza is one of the best comfort foods, I absolutely love it and could eat it all the time. The first thing I made when I finally got around to getting a new food processor was pizza dough! I have been craving homemade pizza like crazy, and I decided to go all out and make many different kinds. If you have never made dough, it was super easy to make.

  Here are the ingredients you need:

  1 tbsp. active dry yeast

  1 tsp. sugar

  1 cup of warm water

  3 cups flour

  1 tsp. salt

  Olive Oil

  Dissolve the sugar and yeast in a small bowl with the warm water for about 5 minutes.

  Add the flour and salt to your food processor and pulse a few times to mix together.

  

  Once your yeast and sugar have dissolved, turn on the food processor and add a little bit of the liquid at a time through the top until it is mixed, then continue with a little more, etc.

  Once the dough is formed and is no longer sticking to the sides, mix for another minute or so.

  

  Coat a large mixing bowl with olive oil and add the dough to the bowl.

  

  Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel for an hour and a half and then once it has risen it looks like this.

  

  You are now ready to make pizza! Flour a cutting board and rolling pin and roll out the dough into pizzas. Spray your pans before topping with the dough.

  For the pizzas I made I topped the dough with a little tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella, my toppings, a little more mozzarella, a sprinkle of Italian Seasoning and pepper, then a drizzle of olive oil. Delicious!

  Bake at 450 degrees until the bottom turns slightly brown.

  The pizza shown in the blog header is topped with homemade turkey meatballs.

  

  This pizza has slices of fresh tomato, ricotta (mixed with parmesan, garlic powder, pepper, and parsley), and homemade turkey meatballs on half.

  

  This pizza is half cheese, and half mushroom and onion.

  Yum, yum, yum!

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged food blog, food blogger, food processor pizza dough, homemade pizza, homemade pizza dough, homemade pizza dough recipe, pizza, pizza dough, pizza dough recipe, stephanies slice of life
• 

  Simple Homemade Pasta

  Posted at 10:40 am by StephMo

  Mar 15th

  Making pasta is simple, but making it by hand without a pasta maker is quite a workout. Wow. This was my first time making pasta, and even though I just purchased a pasta maker and can’t wait to try it, I wanted to try it the old fashioned way first. All I can say is those little Italian grandmothers must be strong enough to lift a car!

  To make pasta all you need are four ingredients; flour, eggs, salt, and water.

  Mix 2 cups of flour with a tsp. of salt in a bowl, or on a board, and make a little well in the center. Add two eggs into the well.

  

  Start mixing the eggs into the flour with a fork by stirring only in the center and gradually taking more flour from the sides into the center.

  

  Add small amounts of water until it becomes a manageable dough. Use your hands while it is in the bowl to do this.

  Then put the dough onto a board and start kneading.

  

  Knead the dough for quite some time until it really starts to look and feel like the right consistency. I think I kneaded for about 10 minutes.

  

  Cover the dough lightly with plastic wrap and let it rest for about 30 minutes.

  Now if your arms aren’t already tired from kneading, they are going to get tired now. I cut the dough into three parts because I was rolling on a cutting board and only had so much room.

  Roll the pasta out as thin as you can get it. If your dough is springing back when you roll it, it needs to rest more. As you can see, I wasn’t able to get it all that thin. I did my best.

  

  I decided to gently roll the flattened dough, and cut it with a knife into thin strips. I know it isn’t perfect, but not bad for my first try!

  

  I then let the pasta dry on cooling racks for about an hour until I was ready to cook it.

  

  And that was it! Homemade pasta! I added some of my homemade pesto and it was delicious!

  Here is the link to my pesto recipe:

  https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/2020/03/05/homemade-pesto/

  

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes | Tagged food blog, food blogger, homemade pasta, nut free pesto, pasta, pasta from scratch, pasta making, pasta recipe, pesto, pesto recipe
• 

  Spinach and Cheese Arancini

  Posted at 5:57 pm by StephMo

  Mar 13th

  Every now and again when I am in the North End of Boston I will treat myself to an arancini. If you are not familiar with arancini, it is an Italian stuffed rice ball coated in bread crumbs and fried. It is always served with a little bit of red sauce. The most common types of arancini are spinach and cheese, and hamburger and peas. My favorite kind is spinach and cheese, so of course that is the kind I make.

  I am not going to lie, these are very time consuming and take hours from start to finish. They are completely worth it and these taste like you ordered them in a restaurant. I use my own homemade sauce with them, and you can find my sauce recipe by following this link:

  https://stephaniessliceoflife.com/2019/12/30/feeling-saucy/

  

  Yes, my sauce tastes as good as it looks!

  Ingredients for Arancini:

  1 1/2 cups arborio rice

  1 cup white wine

  Pinch of salt

  4 cups chicken broth

  2 cups chopped fresh spinach

  1 cup grated parmesan cheese

  2 tbsp. butter

  Pepper

  2 eggs beaten

  1 cup seasoned bread crumbs

  1 cup flour

  Mozzarella cheese

  Canola or vegetable oil

  One thing that makes these arancini so delicious is you cook the rice like risotto, so you need to keep adding, and stirring, etc. The creaminess of the rice is well worth the extra effort.

  Cook white wine, salt, and rice over medium heat for 5-10 minutes while stirring often.

  Once you get the rice started, heat the chicken broth in a pan on low/medium heat and keep it heated until you need to use it.

  

  After the 5-10 minutes, add 2 cups of the heated chicken broth and stir into the rice. Cook for 10 minutes.

  Then add the remaining 2 cups of broth, stir into the rice and cook for another 10 minutes while stirring often. Turn off the heat.

  Add the 2 cups of chopped spinach, grated cheese, butter, and pepper to taste. Stir well.

  

  Spread the rice mixture on to a parchment lined cookie sheet and refrigerate until the rice is cool. This while take some time.

  

  Once the rice is cool, cut it into squares. Put either a cube of mozzarella, or a little shredded mozzarella in the center of each square and use your hands to form the rice into a ball around the cheese.

  

  Use three separate bowls for the flour, beaten eggs, and bread crumbs.

  Roll the rice ball into the flour, then in the eggs, then in the bread crumbs.

  Drop the balls into a pan of oil that is heated to 350 degrees. Use a slotted spoon to keep moving them around in the oil and remove to a paper towel lined plate once they are brown.

  Serve warm with red sauce. Mangia!

  Posted in Dinners, Recipes

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