Ma Whats For Dinner?» pizza

Quick and Easy Dinner – Baby Pizza Pies

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Fri, 21 Oct 2011 11:00:20 +0000

Ok, so this was a direct result of watching too much TV.

The boys and I were lounging around last weekend and we caught a Pillsbury biscuit commercial.

They made little pizzas out of the biscuit dough.

We were all over it!

Now we’ve taken our biscuit dough and turned them into

Upside Down PIzza

Always a crowd pleaser…

But they were all over this new idea they saw on the commerical.

When hockey practice runs late and there’s still homework to do…

This is a great and quick go-to!

Baby Pizza Pies

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 tube Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce

1 cup grated mozzarella cheese

WHAT TO DO:

Preaheat your oven to 350 degrees.

Break open your biscuit tube and separate the biscuits.

Pat out each one a bit to flatten out and spread evenly on a baking sheet.

Top each pizza with a spoonful of spaghetti sauce and a handful of shredded cheese.

Bake at 350 for 15 minutes.

Dinner is served.

With applesauce in this case.

On paper plates!

Totally WTing it this evening…

I told you hockey practice ran late!

Time Saving Week – Quick Chicken Calzones

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 11:00:10 +0000

What to make when you arrive home late from soccer and still have to do homework?

Toss this in the oven and dinner is on the table in 20.

Not only that, get the kids involved and let them make their own.

WHAT YOU NEED:

Whole wheat pizza dough (store bought or picked up from your local pizzeria)

8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, chopped

1 cup shredded mozzarella (or 1 cup ricotta – I can’t stand ricotta but the fam loves it)

1 cup shredded rotisserie chicken

1 cup broccoli florets

2 garlic cloves chopped

2 cups marinara sauce (I like Rao’s)

WHAT TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 450 degress.

Stretch out your pizza dough to a large circle on a cookie sheet.

Place all the ingredients except the sauce on 1 half of your dough.

Stretch the empty half over the top and crimp the edges to seal.

Bake at 450 for 20 minutes.

Serve with sauce on the side.

Finish homework.

Leftover Pizza Pie

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 11:00:26 +0000

So last week we were grilling up a storm.

But we didn’t get through everything.

So faced with a fridge full of leftovers…

We threw ‘em together on a pizza.

One word…

YUM!

WHAT YOU NEED:

Leftovers from Chicken Kabobs

Leftovers from Veggie Kabobs

1 whole wheat pizza dough (try grabbing one from your local pizzeria)

1 jar of Francesco Rinaldi Pasta Sauce

3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

WHAT TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees.

Lay your pizza crust down on a pizza stone or baking sheet.

Top pizza crust with your pasta sauce.

Cover the pizza with your leftover chicken and grilled veggies.

This is the fun decoration part.

Cover with cheese and cook for 15-18 minutes at 425.

Don’t have any pizza dough?

Don’t worry!

Try some whole wheat pitas or english muffins!

Don’t have any leftover chicken?

Make ‘em plain cheese or use what you have!

I left this one half cheese…but it’s all about options!

Bacon and Pineapple…

Pepper and Mushroom…

Pepperoni and Olive!

Whatever is in the fridge just toss it on.

Most important is to get in the kitchen with the kids and have fun!

Easter Week – Easter Egg Pizza

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Thu, 21 Apr 2011 12:18:50 +0000

The boys have been asking for Pizza…

They love to make the pizza.

And since we’re coming up on Easter

They decided to make and Easter Egg Pizza.

So we grabbed some healthy toppings…

ok, and some pancetta too.

And formed our crust into an egg shape.

Voila!

The Easter Bunny is going to LOVE this one…

WHAT YOU NEED:

1 pizza dough or whole wheat pizza dough (I picked mine up from our local pizzeria)

1 cup pizza or spaghetti sauce (I use Francesco Rinaldi ToBe Healthy Tomato Sauce)

2 cups shredded part skim mozzarella cheese

1 red pepper sliced into rings

1 green pepper sliced into rings

1 orange pepper sliced into rings

Pineapple cubes

1/4 cup pancetta diced

WHAT TO DO:

Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.

Roll out your pizza dough on a floured surface. Work into the shape of a giant egg. Place onto a baking sheet or pizza stone.

Add your sauce and cover the dough leaving and inch surface around the edge. Cover with cheese.

Now grab your toppings and let the kids at it and decorate their giant easter egg.

You’ll notice that the red peppers didn’t quite make it to our pizza…they went straight into Cooper and Brady’s mouth.

Now bake at 400 degrees on a low oven rack for 20 minutes.

Enjoy!

And the winner is…

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Fri, 04 Feb 2011 11:00:32 +0000

The winner of our Superbowl Recipe Contest and proud new owner of the Bento Box Lunch Box is…

KATE!

at If you can make that you can make this

For her awesome

Crispy Fried Wonton Pizza Bites (serves 8 )

These wonton pizza bites taste fried, but are actually baked, which keeps the kitchen smelling good, and makes life much easier if you’re feeding a crowd. They can be made a day or two in advance and heated up on Game Night.

30 wonton wrappers (I’m guesstimating 3 or 4 per person)
2 large balls of mozzarella cheese
8 – 10 tbsp marinara sauce (shop bought is fine)
30 small slices of salami
1 egg
Vegetable oil

* Pre heat the oven to 400
* Spoon a blob of marinara sauce into the center of the wonton.
* Top with a cube of cheese and a slice of salami
*Crack the egg, and give it a quick whisk.
* Use a pastry brush (or your fingers) to dab a layer of egg around the edges of the wonton wrapper, then fold over into a triangle (try to seal out air pockets)
* Repeat for the rest of the wontons
* Brush both sides of each wonton with vegetable oil and place on a baking tray
*Bake for about 10 – 15 minutes until the parcels are golden and crispy – keep an eye on them
* Season with salt and pepper then serve
They can be made in advance and warmed through in a low oven to re-heat, or forzen, then baked from frozen (15 – 17 mins)

She also has other great variations on this….

Switch out the salami for pineapple chunks and sliced ham
Or mushrooms and a drop of truffle oil
Or chopped black olives
Switch out the mozzarella for goat cheese
Or Cheddar
Replace the tomato sauce with pesto and add chopped cherry tomatoes and mozzarella
Or pine nuts, goat cheese and black olives

Great recipe Kate! Thanks for entering everyone.

Come back for a new Contest starting Monday!

We’re Styling – Connecticut Style

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Fri, 17 Sep 2010 15:49:52 +0000

Look at Team Fitz!

We’re hanging out on our local ABC station WTNH Channel 8 on Connecticut Style.

If you just found us from the show, welcome!

Grab a cup of coffee and pull up a seat the Fitzpatrick’s kitchen table…

We had an awesome time hanging out with the gang there in New Haven and we made some great recipes!

If you missed the live show or are looking on how you can make these with your kids, take a look!

So Chic Sushi Rolls

2 whole Spinach sandwich wraps

1 c cooked white rice

1 c grilled chicken thinly sliced

½ c carrots thinly sliced

½ c red peppers thinly sliced

½ c alfalfa sprouts

½ avacado sliced

Mayonnaise or mustard (for sticking)

Lay out the wraps on your cutting board. Spread just a thin layer of mayo or mustard over the wrap to help everything stick. Lay half of the rice down into the center of one of the wraps and press it out so it thinly covers the the wrap. Do the same for the second. Evenly distribute your chicken between the two wraps laying it in a straight line through the center of the rice. Follow suit with your carrots, red pepper, sprouts and avacado. Now fold in the right section of your wrap over the ingredients and slightly pull back toward you, then continue to roll over and make your self a tube.

Cut your tube into sushi roll looking slices. You can cut them straight or on an angle then arrange them on a plate. Serve these with edamame or even edamame chips! You’ll have your kids yelling, “Arigato.”

I’m a Hungry Caterpillar – Dinner Style

1 tube refrigerated pizza dough (or buy some from the local pizzeria)

1 c pizza sauce

1 c pesto sauce

1 8 oz package mozzarella cheese

1/2 c sliced mushrooms

1/2 c sliced peppers, red yellow and green

1/4 c sliced olives

1/2 c chopped tomato

1/2 c sliced onions

shredded lettuce

basil leaves

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Cut your pizza dough into different shaped circles using a cookie or biscuit cutter. Arrange the circles in a long curving line so it looks like a caterpillar. Alternate each circle between the pizza sauce and the pesto sauce. Top each with cheese and allow the kids to decorate each part of the caterpillar with the toppings.

Bake on 425 degrees for 15 minutes or until cheese is nice and melty. Take it out of the oven and arrange your caterpillar on a bed of shredded lettuce and basil so it’s sitting in the “grass.”

Last up, the awesome after school snack that we didn’t have enough time for…

Nacho Mama’s Nachos!

1 c peanut butter

½ c cream cheese

2 T honey

1/4 c orange juice

2 large apples, sliced

2 large pears, sliced

½ c strawberries, sliced

1 large banana, sliced

1 kiwi, sliced

1/2 cup blueberries

1/2 cup raspberries

1/4 c walnuts

½ c shredded coconut

Heat a small saucepan over medium heat. Add peanut butter, cream cheese, honey and orange juice. Mix together and allow to simmer over low heat.

Arrange apple and pear slices on a plate (like corn chips in regular nachos). Pour the peanut butter mixture over the apples and pears (like nacho cheese sauce). Arrange strawberries kiwi and banana on top (like nacho toppings) and sprinkle with blueberries, raspberries, and shredded coconut. These are definitely not your Mama’s nachos!

If you have a nut allergy household you can make this with sunflower seed butter instead of the peanut butter!

If you just found us on Connecticut Style, we’re so glad you stopped by to have a look around.

While you’re here check out some features of our site.

Watch our hysterical Webisodes

Check out some of our Recipes of the Day

Pick up a copy of our Ma Whats For Dinner Cookbook – 15% of all proceeds go to Fight SMA

We hope you enjoy your time here and come back often.

Please sign up to keep up to date with all thing Fitz here at Ma What’s For Dinner…we wouldn’t want you to miss a thing!

Lots of yummy love,

Alex aka Ma What’s For Dinner

Fitzpatrick Pizza Party

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 07 Sep 2010 11:00:28 +0000

Oh I can feel, coming in the air tonight…

It feels like fall!

It’s coming!

This is my first fall back east in over 12 years. I’m sooooooo excited. So as the weather cools down we decided to heat up the kitchen.

You all know how we love our pizza.

Well, really, who doesn’t?

We do all kinds of pizza around here

We do BBQ Chicken Pizza

We do Grown Up Date Night Pizza

We do Pizza Puffs

We do Potato Pizza I mean we are Fitzpatricks after all

We do Muffin Man Pizzas

We even do Upside Down Pizza

For tonight I decided to use up the dough I had frozen from when I made the Date night pizza and slapped in on the pizza rock and we made pizza two ways…

Tomato

and Pesto

Both of which were great. Why? Because we topped them both with sauteed mushrooms, garlic, fresh mozzarella and wait for it…

PANCETTA!

Turns out I’m the only one who really likes the pesto. Bummer, guess I’ll just have to eat it all myself.

They’re both delicious, here’s how you make them.

2 pizza dough (you can use store bought, from your local pizza joint, or try this recipe for homemade dough here)

1/4 cup prepared pesto sauce

1/4 cup pizza sauce (try the organic san marzano sauce from Whole Foods…YUM!!!)

2 large balls fresh mozzarella, sliced into thin discs

1/4 lb pancetta cut into large slices

8 oz sliced button mushrooms

8 oz sliced portobello mushrooms

3/4 cup shredded mozzarella

4 cloves garlic chopped fine

2 T olive oil

S&P

Preheat your oven to 425 degrees. Heat a large skillet over medium high heat. Heat up 1 T olive oil. When it’s hot add in your pancetta. Cook until crispy. Remove with a slotted spoon and set aside. Add in an additional T of oil if needed. Toss in your sliced mushrooms. Saute until soft, about 8 minutes. Add in your garlic and cook for an additional minute. Turn off the heat and set aside.

Next stretch your dough to the desired size. We went for small pizzas. Slather one dough with your red pizza sauce, the pesto to the other. Or you can mix your sauces and get a yummy basily good tomato sauce. Sounds like another recipe brewin’… Top the sauce with mushrooms. Top each with fresh mozzarella, then shredded mozzarella. Top the cheese with the pancetta and bake each pizza for 15 minutes or until nice and bubbly.

Serve with a side salad. Trust me, there’s no leftover pizza for the next morning on this one. Yes I eat leftover pizza for breakfast. Don’t judge, always have, always will. Also eat leftover chinese for breakfast.

It’s my fave. What’s yours?

Date Night Dinner

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 11:00:57 +0000

I’m just going to come right out and say this…This is not a meal for the kiddos. This is a put the kids to bed early, pour yourself a glass of vino, light some candles, and pick up a movie date night dinner for you and your sweetie. These are the kinds of dinners you need from time to time, ya know what I mean?

This is a date night dinner by a different Alex. It’s by Alex Guarnaschelli, she’s the host of the Food Network’s Alex’s Day Off, oh yeah, you know I’m going to like a show called that. Anyway I watched her make it and while it took me a couple of hours I followed her recipe word for word, and if you’ve been following along, you know that NEVER happens. Yes I do have recipe ODC. But this was a good one. Trust me, it’s a really good one. What is it?

Skillet Fried Pizza with Roasted Mushrooms and Charred Broccoli Rabe Pesto recipe courtesy of the other Alex
Pizza:

2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast 1 1/2 cups warm water (about 110 degrees F)
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour plus extra for dusting and rolling
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 scant tablespoon honey

Pesto:

1 pound broccoli rabe, washed and the ends trimmed
8 to 10 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Salt
2 teaspoons paprika
2 cloves garlic, peeled
1 1/2 cups grated Parmesan
1/2 cup basil leaves, stemmed, washed and dried
Mushrooms: 1 pound white button mushrooms, washed and the stems trimmed
Salt
Garlic powder
1 pound fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

For the dough: In a bowl, combine the yeast and warm water. Stir to dissolve the yeast and allow the mixture to rest for 5 minutes. Using a sieve or strainer, “sift” about half of the flour over the yeast mixture and blend until smooth with your hands. Add the salt, pepper and honey and mix to blend. Sift in the remaining flour and mix to blend. Lightly flour a cutting board or flat surface. Turn the pizza dough onto the floured area and knead for 3 to 5 minutes. The flour should feel smooth and the ingredients fully integrated. Add the dough to a lightly oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it “rest” in a warm place until it has doubled in volume, about 1 1/2 hours. Press gently on the dough and turn it onto a floured surface. Divide the dough into 4 equal parts, rolling each quarter into a loose ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow the dough to “rest” for an additional 15 minutes. Flatten each ball, 1 at a time, and roll into a 6-inch round. Make the pesto: In a medium bowl, add the broccoli rabe, 2 tablespoons of the olive oil and salt and the paprika to taste; stir to combine. Heat a large saute pan over high heat and add the broccoli. Keep the heat high, allowing it to brown and char on the edges. When the broccoli rabe is tender when pierced with the tip of a knife, remove from the heat and allow it to cool. Put the broccoli rabe on a cutting board and finely chop. Transfer to a bowl. Put the garlic through a garlic press and add to the bowl. Stir in the Parmesan, 2 more tablespoons of the olive oil and the basil leaves. Taste for seasoning. Cook the mushrooms: In another saute pan, over medium heat, add the mushrooms and a tablespoon of the olive oil. Season with salt and garlic powder, to taste. Cook until they release their water, 8 to 10 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. In a cast iron skillet, large enough to hold a pizza round, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium heat. When the oil begins to smoke lightly, shut the heat off under the skillet and add 1 of the pizza rounds. Use a spatula to press gently on the top of the round to keep it relatively flat as it cooks. When you see it is slightly brown on the underside, season the top lightly with salt and pepper and flip the round to its second side. Season with salt and pepper. Repeat with remaining dough. Finish the pizzas: Arrange all of the browned rounds on baking sheets and layer with the mozzarella slices, broccoli rabe pesto and a sprinkling of mushrooms. Bake in the oven for a few minutes until the cheese melts. Season with salt and serve.

I loved this dish. I really loved it. I knew I couldn’t get the munchkins to go for it because let’s be honest, the whole damn thing is green. Also broccoli rabe tends to be a bit bitter and coupled with the mushrooms, well, let’s just say I figured I’d be making them a PB&J if I put this one in front of them. That makes it all the more special to share it with just the hubs…Happy Date Night!

Pizza puffs & B2B

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Wed, 05 May 2010 17:40:41 +0000

So the other day I’m returning some wonderful comments and I stumble upon a delightful little blog known as My Pink Flip Flops, cute little name huh? Well I’m surfing around her site and come across a recipe that I had to make right away! So smart and easy and now you can make it too. I made mine a bit differently but what an awesome idea. Here it is.

1 tube refrigerated crescent rolls

1/2 cup shredded mozzarella

1/4 cup fresh mozzarella

1/2 cup spaghetti sauce

16 pepperoni slices

1/4 cup baby spinach

1 T parmesan cheese

1 t garlic powder

cooking spray

Heat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray a baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside. Unroll your crescent roll triangles and lay them on a cutting board.

Add a dollop of sauce to the long fat side of the triangle. Top with cheese and two pepperoni slices. Roll into a crescent. Place on tray. I made 4 this way then four with just fresh mozzarella, pepperoni, and baby spinach.

Switch up your ingredients and have fun with it!

Once the puffs are all rolled up on the baking sheet spray with a bit of cooking spray and sprinkle on garlic powder and parmesan cheese. Bake at 375 for 12-15 minutes. Serve ‘em hot. Make a lot, they go quick!

Ok now on to business, Business 2 Blogger that is. Have you all heard of them? You can check them out right HERE. I just signed up with these guys and so far it’s been great. They send you an email every morning with a whole bunch of opportunities to get in touch with business who are looking for bloggers to try new stuff for them. It’s only my first day but so far, I like what I see. I’ll keep you all posted. In the meantime, you should swing on over and check them out for yourself.

Supreme Upside Down Pizza

Alex aka Ma, What's For Dinner — Tue, 27 Apr 2010 16:13:55 +0000

In the mood for something quick hearty and satisfying? Put down that phone and save yourself the delivery charge…no, I’m not talking DiGiorno, I’m talking about a homemade delight that will have your kids (and you) jumping for joy.

Serves: 6-8 Prep time: 10 minutes Cook time: 30 minutes

1 lb ground beef

3/4 bulk italian sausage

1 c mushrooms, sliced

1 small onion, chopped

1 t dried oregano

2 cloves garlic, chopped

S&P

1 28 oz can chopped tomatoes

1 8 0z can tomato sauce

1 ½ c shredded mozzarella cheese

1 tube refrigerated pizza dough

1 8 oz container fresh mozzarella cheese

In a large skillet brown ground beef and sausage over medium high heat. Once browned add in mushrooms, onions, and garlic. Season with oregano and S&P and stir to combine. Cook for 5 minutes or until veggie start to soften. Stir in tomato sauce. Bring to a boil, then turn down to a low simmer. Cover and let cook for 10 minutes on low heat.

Pour meat mixture into a 13×9 baking dish. Top with shredded cheese. Open up pizza dough tube, unroll and top cheese with it. Bake for 15-17 minutes. Top with dollops of fresh mozzarella and bake for an additional 5 minutes or until cheese is melted. Serve with a side salad and your kids will stand on their heads for this one time and time again.