Creole Pizza

Lately, I’ve been in the mood for a shrimp boil. Jumbo gulf shrimp, corn on the cob, sausage, new potatoes, Old Bay… Get out! That sounds good, doesn’t it? However, with school starting back, I haven’t had time! Tonight’s dinner took literally 15 minutes to make so it was a big winner in my house, especially with the first day of school looming overhead.

My inspiration for this pizza came from that craving and spun off into a delicious direction. I didn’t have shrimp but it sure would have been good as an additional topping so feel free to play around if you make it.

Creole Pizza

Time: 15 minutes
Servings: 4
Level: Easy

1 pre-made whole wheat pizza crust (I never use these but what a time saver!!!!)
1/4 block of cream cheese
1 tsp. Old Bay seasoning
1 small green bell pepper, chopped
1 jalapeño, seeded and chopped
1/3 c. corn, fresh or frozen
1/2 c. smoked turkey sausage, sliced into bite-sized pieces
1/2 c. cheese, shredded
hot sauce, to taste

Preheat oven to 450°. Spread cream cheese over crust and sprinkle with Old Bay. Top pizza with remaining ingredients, except for hot sauce. Reduce oven temperature to 425°. Bake pizza, either directly on oven rack or on cookie sheet, for 7-10 minutes. Top with hot sauce, as desired. Yum!

Tips
-Add shrimp during the last 3 minutes of baking.
-You can use various cream cheeses with different fat contents. I used fat-free and it was still just as creamy.
-Try using different colored bell peppers.
-Add red onion if you want.

The BEST Breakfast Pizza You’ll Ever Eat (And You Don’t Have To Eat It For Breakfast!)

Upon the  suggestion by a fellow foodie and friend, we recently went to brunch at Hi-Tone in Memphis. Hi-Tone is not a typical place you would ever think of going to brunch. When you walk in, you get the instant vibe that the night before (well, probably even that very morning) the stage was rocking and the dance floor was packed with young hipsters having a great night.

How do you know they had a great night? Well they are still there, sipping on mimosas and bloody mary’s, and eating the most delicious brunch I’ve had in a while.

I can’t attest to anything else (besides the bloody mary’s…yum!) on the menu at Hi-Tone, but the breakfast pizza is legit. So legit, that I decided to try to recreate it at home. The result? Straight up awesomeness.

We ate this pizza for dinner and then ate the leftovers the next day for breakfast. I wish we still had some…

Breakfast Pizza

Servings: 4-6
Time: 30 minutes
Level: Medium

1 box pizza dough mix, made according to package directions (I used Jiffy)
1 package of peppered gravy, made according to package directions (you won’t use all of the gravy)
1/2 c. sharp cheddar, shredded
5-6 slices of bacon, crumbled (I used turkey bacon)
1/3 c. peppers and onions, frozen
5 eggs
1 tbsp. milk
salt and pepper, to taste

Preheat oven to 425°. Roll out dough as thinly as possible. Bake for 3-4 minutes. Remove pizza dough from oven and top with prepared gravy, enough to cover like regular pizza sauce would.

Top with 1/2 of the shredded cheese and all of the bacon.

Bake pizza for 15-20 minutes until golden brown on the edges and cooked in the center. Meanwhile, whisk eggs, milk, and salt and pepper in a small bowl and set aside. In a skillet over medium heat, sauté peppers and onions until thawed. Add whisked eggs and scramble. When pizza is done, top with scrambled eggs and then with remaining cheese. Bake for an additional 3-5 minutes, until cheese melts. Yum!

Tips
– Try using sausage or ham instead of bacon.
– The peppered gravy package can be found on the same isle and section as taco seasoning packets, chili starters, and pesto/other pasta sauce starter packets.
– You WILL have left over gravy… stay tuned to see what I made with mine!
– Use egg whites to make it healthier.
– Make it vegetarian by leaving off the meat or adding Morning Star sausage.

Hoppin’ John

This is a perfect recipe for one of those days when you seriously have no time or energy  to spend on dinner. We just got back  from an amazing weekend in good ‘ole bulldog country and I was looking for something quick and easy to make so I could spend my time on more important things… like unpacking and convincing myself that waking up for work tomorrow isn’t going to be totally miserable.

Hoppin’ John

Time: 10 minutes
Servings: 4
Level: SUPER easy

1/2 c. bell peppers and onion mix, frozen
1/2 c. ham or smoked sausage, chopped into bite-sized pieces
1 can crowder peas, drained but reserve 1/2 of the liquid
1 tbsp. hot sauce
2 c. rice, cooked
sour cream, optional topping
salsa, optional topping

In a pan, over medium high heat, sauté peppers and onion and ham or sausage, about 4 minutes.

Add crowder peas, reserved liquid, and hot sauce. Cook for an additional 5-7 minutes.

Serve over cooked rice and top with sour cream and salsa, if desired. Yum!

Tips
– Try using black eyed peas instead of crowders.
– Serve over cornbread instead of rice.

Sausage Balls

Are sausage balls a Southern thing? I’m guessing they are… but I’m not really sure. Southern or not, sausage balls are amazing. Typically, they are made around the holidays and served as an hors devour.

But, I make them all year round… and I eat them for breakfast. You will change your mind altogether about these little delights when you add the condiment that screams sausage ball’s name. JAM!

You have to try it. Sausage balls freeze incredibly well so they make for a great quick breakfast when you are on the run. Just grab a few from the freezer, pop them in the microwave for 1 minute, slather on some jam, and you’re done. Breakfast is done in under 2 minutes. Can’t beat that.

Make some this weekend. You’ll have a few breakfasts lined up for awhile. These balls save in the freezer for up to 3 months. WORTH IT!

Sausage Balls

Time: 15 minutes
Level: Easy
Servings: 2 – 2 1/2 dozen balls

1 pkg. Black Label cheese
2 c. Bisquick
1 roll hot breakfast sausage

Preheat oven to 375°. In a medium sized bowl, melt the cheese in the microwave. Put it in 1 minute at a time. Keep checking on the cheese until it is gooey enough to stir. Add all other ingredients to the melted cheese and combine.  Roll the mixture into 1 1/2 in. balls and place on a cookie sheet about 1 in. apart. Bake until slightly golden brown, about 10 minutes. Yum!

Tips
– Seriously, try the jam. Blackberry is my favorite complement but all others taste just as good.
– If you want to freeze these guys, put them back on the cookie sheet once they have cooled and then put the cookie sheet in the freezer for about 20 minutes. Transfer the slightly frozen balls to a zip-loc bag for easier storage. Freezing them a little before bagging will help them not stick together in the bag. This will help you out tremendously when you only need to thaw out a few at a time.
– The breakfast sausage in the recipe is the kind that comes in a roll/tube type thing. You can find it next to the bacon.
– Black Label cheese can be hard to find sometimes. You can buy the Cracker Barrel brand from the grocery store or you can buy any brand of good sharp cheddar.
– If you want to add a little water to the recipe (maybe 1/4 c. or so) it will make your sausage balls a but lighter and fluffier. Mine are very dense and solid and some people like theirs a bit airier. Either way, they are great!