Nemo’s Pizza Meatloaf

Vote for my nephew Nehemiah Arndt in the St Louis Post Dispatch's Kid Chef Contest.  Nemo is 12, and makes a killer meatloaf in his video submission!

Please click the badge on my blog page and vote, you may vote once per day and registration is easy and can be done through Facebook...

(The following has been copied from the St Louis Post Dispatch web page)

Recipe:	Nemo’s Pizza Meatloaf Hello, my name is Nehemiah Arndt – my friends call me Nemo. I am twelve years old and I live in Collinsville, IL. Today, I am making my pizza meatloaf. I came up with this signature dish so I could have two of my favorite dishes at the same time. Ingredients 1 lb of fresh ground chuck 1 lb of fresh Italian sausage 1 t. salt 1 t. pepper 1 med finely chopped onion 3 cloves of garlic, minced 2 eggs ½ c. milk 2 c. Italian bread crumbs 1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese, with ½ c. in reserve for garnish 3 c. marinara sauce with 1 c. held in reserve 30 slices of pepperoni optional ingredients may include chopped green peppers, mushrooms, olives, or other favorite pizza toppings Directions 1. In a large bowl, combine the first set of ingredients. Hand-mix until fully mixed. Divide the meat mixture in two. 2. Place the first half of meat and gently press into 7 x 11 dish. 3. Spread 2 c. of marinara sauce over the meat. 4. Layer the cheese over that and then top with pepperoni and other pizza toppings. 5. Top with a little more cheese 6. On a clean surface, smooth out the second portion of meat and then lay it over the pizza toppings. 7. Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes. 8. Top with remaining sauce, cheese and other toppings as desired. 9. Bake for 15 more minutes. Serve with side salad and garlic bread. Enjoy Nemo’s Pizza Meatloaf!
Your Kid Chef's First Name:	Nehemiah
How old is your Kid Chef?:	12

South of the Border Shepherd's Pie (Mexican Shepherd's Pie)

Gather your ingredients

Rough dice on a mix of peppers

Rough dice jarred Jalapenos

Store brand medium salsa worked

Rough dice Red Onion

Shredded Carrots and Black Beans

I used this but you can make your own

Shredded three Roasted Chickens

Shred Cheddar for the top

Jalapeno rings for garnish

Sprinkle Bacon Crumbles on the top

Ready to bake

Baked and ready to eat!!!

Enjoy!

So where I work we usually have left over rotisserie chickens and are looking for ways to use them.  That and this week we had some extra mashed potatoes.  I was thinking of what we could do with them and thought why not make a "Mexican Shepherd's Pie" or South of the Border Shepherd's Pie.  Shepherd's Pie is traditionally made with Mutton (lamb), beef, or sometimes pork... it usually topped with mashed potatoes and sometimes has vegetables mixed into the meat mixture.  It is made from Ireland to Australia and worldwide and is thought to be the origination of a way to use left overs???

So this really works well into what we needed where I work.  We have leftovers and serve mainly comfort foods.  I for one do not like leftovers but have a love for comfort foods that are loaded with tons of flavor.  This dish that I am sharing with you, I think you shall find loaded with flavor and you can add as much or as little heat as you wish!  I also prepared this the day before I cooked it and it can be prepared ahead and frozen if so desired.  It will take additional baking time when frozen, times given in this recipe reflect a refrigerated pie... enjoy...

South of the Border Shepherd's Pie 

(Mexican Shepherd's Pie)

Filling

2-3 Roasted Chickens (cooled and de-boned, shredded)
2 cups Red Onion (diced)
1 cup Bell Pepper (Small dice, medley - red. yellow, green)
1 cup Carrot (shredded or small dice)
1/2 cup Black Beans (prepared)
1/2 cup Jarred Jalapenos (diced) 1-2 packets of Taco Seasoning (as hot as you want it)
+/- 1/2 cup Salsa (as hot as you want it!)
10 cups of Mashed Potatoes (prepared)  You can use your favorite mashed potato recipe!

Topping

2 cups Cheddar Cheese (shredded)
1 cup Bacon Crumbles
1/4 cup Jarred Jalapeno Rings for garnish (whole)

Preparation:

1. Shred your chicken and remove all bones, would hate to be choked on a small bone!
2. Dice and prepare your vegetables.
3. Mix Chicken and Vegetables, mixing in seasonings and salsa.  You want it to be just wet but not to dry.  If it is too wet, it will not set up after baking.
4. Cover with a smooth layer of Mashed Potatoes about and 1" thick.
5. Apply toppings in this order - Cheese, Bacon, Jalapeno Rings
6. Bake in 350 degree F oven for 12-15 Minutes, loosely covered.
7. Take out of oven and remove cover, return to oven for another 10 minutes, checking after 5 minutes to ensure the cheese has not burned.
8. Remove from oven when cheese is melted to desired done-ness.
9. Tent to hold heat and let it rest for 20-30 minutes to set up.
10. Serve in squares and enjoy!!!

Steps to make a grilled pizza with the recipe for THIN CRUSTED PIZZA W CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

Steps to make a grilled pizza with the recipe for THIN CRUSTED PIZZA W 

CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

by Skip Graden on Wednesday ·

This is a pizza that I made in American Regional Cooking with Chef David Rell last semester.  We grill marked and par-cooked the crust and finished them in a 450 degree BKI Oven. 

You can top a pizza a lot of ways:  Follow this recipe, Sausage, Peperoni, Cheese, Pepperoni & Sausage, Vegetables,  Pesto Red Onion Shrimp & Baby Bella's, etc...

THIN CRUSTED PIZZA WITH CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

THIN CRUSTED PIZZA WITH CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

Yield:  4 8-inch Pizzas

For the Dough: (Best to make the day before.)

INGREDIENTS

1 ea          Envelope active dry yeast

1/2 tsp      Sugar

2/3 cup      Warm water

2 to 3 cup  All-purpose flour

1 tsp          Kosher salt or Sea Salt

1 tsp          Freshly ground pepper

2 tblsp       Olive oil, plus olive oil for brushing crust

For the Topping:

INGREDIENTS

3 cups   Thinly sliced grilled chicken meat

3/4 cup  Sliced, pitted kalamata olives

4 cups    Shredded fontina cheese

1 cup      Thinly sliced red onion

2 tblsp    Finely chopped fresh parsley

THIN CRUSTED PIZZA WITH CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

METHOD:

1. For dough: In a medium bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and water. Stir briefly and let stand until foamy, 5-10 minutes. Add 2 cups flour, the salt, pepper, and 2 tblsp olive oil. Stir together with your fingers, until the dough holds together. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured work surface and knead until smooth, 8 to 10 minutes. Shape into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl. Turn the ball to cover the surface with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in warm place until the dough doubles in size, 1 to 1 1/2 hours.
2. Punch down the dough in the bowl. Transfer it to a lightly floured work surface and cut into 4 equal pieces. Roll out each piece into an 8-inch round about an 1/8 inch thick. Lightly brush both sides of each round with olive oil and place rounds on baking sheet.
3. Gently slide crust from baking sheet and cook, uncovered, directly over medium heat until grill marks are clearly visible, about 2 minutes. Don't worry if the crust bubbles; they will deflate when you turn them over. Transfer the crust to the baking sheets, with grilled marks facing up.
4. Distribute the chicken, olives, cheese, onion, and parsley evenly among the crusts. Transfer the pizza again from the baking sheet to the grill and cook, covered, directly over medium heat until the crusts are crisp and the cheese is melted, 3 to 4 minutes.

THIN CRUSTED PIZZA WITH CHICKEN, KALAMATA OLIVES AND FONTINA CHEESE

Steps to follow:

Make the Pizza Dough 24 hours before you are going to par cook them.

Once it is par cooked, you can use right away or refrigerated/freeze them wrapped tightly in Saran Wrap or vaccuum packed 3-5 days  refrigerated and 2-3 weeks frozen...

Top of Crust

Bottom of Crust

Top Of Crust, Time to Sauce it...

Add and spread a thin layer of sauce or Sun-Dried Tomato Pesto

Add Pepperoni, start with Thin Flat items

Then add Pre-cooked Sausage

Next is cheese

Evenly spread cheese across top

Looks like enough, time to cook it...
(Can be wrapped in Saran Wrap at this point...
Frozen or Refrigerated)

Put it on the grill...

Cover it with a large lid or a stainless steel bowl with a handle.

Checking it and getting ready to turn it...

Turn it every 3-5 minutes a 1/4 to a 1/3 of a turn...

Turn it every 3-5 minutes a 1/4 to a 1/3 of a turn...

Bottom looks about done....

Remove from the grill...

Put on a surface to cut...

Get into position to cut in smooth continuous strokes

Cut in 6-8 pieces...

Cheese is nice and melty...

Check it out...

Bottom looks great...

Enjoy with a beverage of your choice!

Menu board at Schnuck's on Clayton Road in St Louis MO....

Menu board at Schnuck's on Clayton Road in St Louis MO....

Redskin Mashed Potatoes

Today at work, had a customer asking about how to make mashed potatoes.  These were the potatoes we served at the restaurant where I was GM.

Redskin Mashed Potatoes


5 pounds Redskin Potatoes, quartered or halved
2 sticks Unsalted Butter, softened room temp
1 cup Whipping Cream, warmed (more if needed)
1/3 cup Green Onion, small dice, loosely packed
1 tsp Sea Salt
1/2 tsp White Pepper, fresh ground
1/2 Cup Sour Cream (optional)

1. Quarter the potatoes and place in a large pot with salted water and bring to a boil. Boil for about 25 minutes or until fork tender. Drain the potatoes and dry on a sheet pan in a 350 F oven for about 10 minutes to remove any moisture from water.
2. Return the potatoes to the pot they were boiled in and place over low heat. Begin to mash the potatoes and add the butter, and then the cream little by little until you reach the desired consistency you wish to have.
3. Fold in the Green Onion and sauteed Garlic if desired.
4. Adjust Salt & Pepper to taste.
5. Finish with Sour Cream. (optional)
6. Serve or hold hot until ready for service.
   

Prepare ahead: You can prepare the day ahead and reheat slowly over low heat adding whole milk or more cream slowly to keep them from being too firm and stiff.

Variations:  You can add, cream cheese instead of sour cream or grated parmesan cheese when finishing by folding in, even a sharp cheddar could be used.

White Chilli

This is from my mother's family cookbook... Enjoy!

WHITE CHILLI

1 # navy beans or 2 jar of prepared beans – drained and rinsed
Cook 3 cups cut up chicken breast in water – save broth (will need 6 cups of broth later)
Cook 1 Tbl olive oil, 2 onions, 2-3 garlic cloves, 1 ½ oregano pepper, 1 tsp. Cumin, dash of Tabasco sauce and 2 4 oz. of chopped chili peppers 1-2 cans chicken broth (approx. 40 oz)

Put in slow cooker. 1-2 hours. Optional – add 1 ½-2 cups braided Monterey jack cheese till melted. This can be added when serving and can be left out.

Note: You could use prepared Roasted Chicken with bones removed. I use the bones and what I have left after deboning along with other vegetables such as Carrots, Corn Cobs, Onions, Celery, etc when making broth.

Italian Seasoned Cheesy Hashbrowns with Proscuito

So my friend came back from a trip and said how she loved this dish that the chef at a place she visited fixed. I promised her that I would make it for her. Here is my version of what she told me that he made for her party.






Cheesy Garlic Hashbrowns & Prosciutto

Bag of Frozen Hashbowns
Cracked Black Pepper (to taste)
Riley's Seasoning Salt (to taste)
Granulated Garlic (to taste)
Italian Seasoning Blend (fresh ground)(to taste)
4 TB Olive Oil (reserve half)
4 tsp Butter (half reserved)
1/2 Onion (chopped)
2 TB Fresh Minced Garlic
8 oz Prosciutto (diced)
2 C Italian Cheese Blend

Prepare Frozen Hashbrowns as directed on package by pre-heating a pan with olive oil then placing hashbrowns in a flat layer on bottom of pan. Season with Black Pepper, Seasoning Salt, Granulated Garlic, and Italian Seasoning Blend. Cook til browned on one side and turn.
Then, saute' Onion and Prosciutto in a small saute' pan with olive oil and reserved butter. Once onions are translucent and fragrant, add fresh minced garlic.
Second side of hashbrowns should be browned at this time. Spoon onion and prosciutto mixture on hashbrowns and cover generously with cheese blend.
Season to taste and put in oven set on warming setting to melt cheese and hold.
Remove from oven and plate with garlic cheese toast.
Serve and enjoy!



You can add mushrooms to the Onion and Prosciutto if you wish and before adding the cheese blend, top with warm pizza sauce, then top with cheese. Great as breakfast or a dinner entree!

Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe

Buffalo Chicken Dip Recipe

Prep:15m Cook:30m Servings:20

Ingredients

3 cups cooked, cubed chicken (Grilled Chicken or boil in Chicken Broth)
1 cup buffalo wing sauce (mild, medium or hot)
2 (8 oz.) pkgs cream cheese, softened
1 cup blue cheese dressing
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese or Cabot (white cheese)

Directions

1. Heat chicken and buffalo wing sauce in a skillet over medium heat, until heated through.
2. Stir in cream cheese and blue cheese dressing. Cook, stirring until well blended and warm.
3. Mix in 1 cup of the shredded cheese and transfer the mixture to a slow cooker.
4. Sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup cheese over the top, cover, and cook on low for 30 minutes or until hot and bubbly.
5. Serve with celery sticks and crackers.

I made this last December for a party at D'vine Wines, it was a hit loved by all!

Southwest Breakfast Bagel

Southwest Breakfast Bagel

4 Egg Bagels

4 Large Eggs

4 Slices of Bacon (thick cut)

8 Cheese Slices

Southwest Sandwich Spread (Recipe follows)

Cut 4 Bagels in half, toast lightly before assembling sandwich. One at a time, lightly beat eggs and cook like an omolet, season to taste with salt & pepper. Your bagel should be popping up about the time the egg is completed. Spread a heaping teaspoon of Southwest Sandwich Spread on each bagel half. Place a slice of cheese on the bottom. Fold a third of the egg over on itself and then fold once more in half.

Layer on top of the bagel and cheese then place second piece of cheese on top of egg. Rip one piece bacon in half and layer both halves on top.

Then top with Bagel top and enjoy!

Southwest Sandwich Spread

makes 4 to 6 servings

2T Hellmans Mayo

2T Koop's Arizona Heat Mustard

2T Cilantro (Chopped)

2T Green Onion (Minced)

Put all ingredients into a small bowl and fold together with a spoon. Hold any spread not used in an airtight container upto a week.