There is a little known fact about me; I have the extraordinary talent of being able to kill any plant that has the misfortune of coming home with me.  I don't know how I do it, it just happens.  My talent was recently unleashed on my sons preschool flowerpot that was sent home.  Little did his teacher know the fate she was sending the poor thing to.  I present the remains of what would have been a Marigold....I think?

(recipe by Giada De Laurentiis)

18-20 store bought ravioli (cheese, spinach, or mushroom)
6 Tbsp butter, unsalted
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp salt

In a medium skillet cook the butter over medium heat, stirring constantly.  After about 3 minutes, the foam will go away and the butter will begin to turn golden brown.  Remove from heat and let cool for 1 minute.  There will be tiny brown specks at the bottom of the pan, this is what you want.  Stir in the balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper. Transfer the cooked ravioli to the pan of balsamic butter, and stir to coat.  Sprinkle the walnuts and grated parmesan on top.  Serve immediately and enjoy.

I experimented with my pizza stone also, baking one batch an a cookie sheet, and the other on my stone.  The only differences I could detect, was the batch baked on the stone took a few minutes longer to cook, and those baked on the cookie sheet spread out a tiny bit more.  As far as taste and texture went they were the same.

I invited my brother over for dinner last night.  There is something about having a bachelor little brother, that creates the urge to want to feed him and fill him up with good food.  Because he couldn't possibly be eating decent food on his own, right? I decided to make Pizza Rustica, which basically means meat pie in Italian.  It is a sweet crust pie filled with many different types of cheese and meat.  I made mine with mozzarella, ricotta, parmesan, bacon, and pepperoni, thinking the requirements for a man's dish would be met.  Lots of melty cheese?  Check.  Red meat?  Check.  We're good to go....or so I thought.  When I was making the recipe, it called for quite a few eggs and I wondered if my aspiring meat-cheese man's dish was actually going to turn out like a quiche.  Oh well, I plunged forward and went for it anyway.

Pulling it out of the oven it looked good, it smelled good, it would be fine.  When I took my first bite it tasted great, but very similar to a quiche.  My son and I liked it, I knew my husband would be so-so, then I asked my home cooked-meal-challenged little brother what he thought.  He turns to me, looking thoughtful, and says, "It's good.  But I would add more meat, more cheese...and a little rosemary".  Who would have thought he even knew what rosemary was?  So there you have it.  If you like quiche type foods, you will like this.  If you're a man and like meat, then follow my brothers advice.


1/2 tsp baking powder
1/4 tsp salt
The Filling:
16 oz ricotta cheese (or cottage cheese, blended until smooth)
3 large eggs
1/4 cup parmesan cheese, grated
4 oz mozzarella cheese, grated
4 slices of bacon, cooked crisp and crumbled
4 oz pepperoni, sausage, or prosciutto
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper

Take the smaller dough ball and roll it out into a 9 inch square.  Using a pizza or pastry cutter, or a thin sharp knife, cut 12 even strips.  Lay 6 of the strips across the pie, spaced 1 1/4 inches apart, then crisscross the strips by placing the other 6 strips diagonally across the first.  Trim the edge of the strips even with the edge of the plate, and pinch to seal the edges.

Plum Pizza


Shredded mozzarella
1 ripe plum, sliced
1 onion, sliced and caramelized
2 pieces of bacon, cooked crisp
Dried oregano
Salt, to taste
Balsamic Vinegar, to taste (optional)

For the onions:  In a large heavy bottom pan, add some olive oil to cover the bottom and about 1 teaspoon of butter.  When butter is simmering, add the sliced onions and stir to coat.  Cook on medium high for 10 mins, stirring occasionally.  Lower heat and continue to cook for about another 10 mins, stirring just when the onions start to stick to the pan, but not burn.  If you stir too often the onions will not brown.  You can add some sugar if needed to help the onions caramelize. When the onions are a deep caramel color, remove from heat and set aside.

I think my blogging experience is rubbing off on my son.  My husband was trying to eat some cheese and crackers today, and my son walked up with his "camera" and said, "Wait, Dad.. put the cheese on the crackers like this, now let me take a picture."  I guess the sight of me with camera in hand, taking an endless amount of pictures of the food I make, has left an impression in his little brain.  We may have a little chef in the making.  He was along side me again today while I prepared dinner for tonight.  He had taken the leftover frozen vegetables and made his own "soup" at his little kitchen.  He calls it Doodleberry Soup.
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Being the loving mom that I am, when he asked if I would like to taste it, I had to agree.  My stage face really came into play, because he had poured a copious amount of garlic powder and chili powder on top. While his version of Poor Man's Stew might need a little tweaking, mine is tried and true and completely satisfying.

Poor Man’s Stew

1 lb. hamburger meat, cooked and drained
Season salt
2-3 Cups frozen vegetables (or 2 cans mixed vegetables, drained)
1 can whole new potatoes, drained and cut into bite sized pieces.
1 can red kidney beans, drained
4 small cans tomato sauce or 2 large cans
1 tablespoons ketchup
¼ cup picante sauce or salsa (optional)
1 chopped onion (optional)
1/2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Salt and pepper to taste
water or beef broth (optional)

Brown the hamburger with some season salt, and drain off the grease.  Place the meat in a large pot or crock pot.  Add the vegetables, cut up potatoes, beans, tomato sauce, ketchup, onion, and spices.  Depending on how thick you want it you can add a little water or beef broth to thin it down if desired.  I usually add about a cup of water or broth.  Cook on high for 4 hours, or low for 8 hours. The longer you let this simmer before eating, the better it will be. The flavors soak into the vegetables and it tastes even better.

You can do a lot of different variations with this recipe.  I have used many different types of vegetables and beans.  You can also play around with the proportions, it is a very forgiving recipe.  You can even add some cooked elbow macaroni for a different variation.  Taste and season as desired, I use less chili powder because my husband doesn't like spicy food.  But you can add more to taste. This keeps very well for several days in the refrigerator, and tastes even better heated up the next day.  We may have to change the name of this soup in our house, since my son will only refer to it as Doodleberry Soup now.