GOAT CHEESE, SPINACH, BACON, SWEET POTATO AND WALNUT ARTISAN PIZZA

Its winter and I find myself making more and more comfort types foods for dinner and lunch. Yesterday I cooked up a chicken with mashed potatoes and gravy!  Oh gosh, I forget how awesome gravy tastes!  Anyway, I am still thinking comfort food sounds like a good idea, and it's time for pizza.  And you know me - regular ol' pizza will never do, I have to have "good food" pizza. Made with the best, fresh ingredients I can find and if I grow them myself - even better. Well, I had some of these ingredients I grew myself, like the sweet potatoes, but the rest I bought from the Farmer's Market or the Good Food Store. Now I'm thinking I need to challenge myself to make the "Artisan Pizza of the Month." I've been eying up those beets I bought a while back that might need to be used up soon….

So how did I come up with this kind of pizza?  My step-daughter told me how her brother-in-law made a pizza very similar to this one when they were visiting once.  So I made it and never looked back!  Best pizza - EVER!  I get a craving for this pizza at least once a month, and I don't know what it is, maybe its the salty taste from the goat cheese and bacon and the sweetness of the sweet potatoes, or the ton of garlic I add to it, but it is so darn good, I can't help but eat half of it!  and then eat the other half for breakfast.

GOAT CHEESE, SPINACH, BACON, SWEET POTATO AND WALNUT ARTISANAL PIZZA

8 oz goat cheese (use herbed goat cheese if you dare)

2 cups chopped spinach

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (use candied or spiced ones if you are really in for a taste sensation)

1/2 lb bacon ( I've been known to use a whole pound - shh!  don't tell my doctor)

2 medium size sweet potatoes - baked

1 tbs garlic

1 tbs garlic salt

1/2 cup milk

1 tbs butter

1 12" pizza crust - Gluten-free if you prefer.

Bake the sweet potatoes until soft and once cooled, remove skin and place in a bowl.

Add milk, garlic, garlic salt, and butter.

Make into mashed sweet potatoes.  This will be your 'sauce.'

Spread onto the crust (I added rosemary to the crust for even more flavor)

Chop the spinach and toss onto the pizza pie.

Chop the walnuts and add to the awesomest pizza ever.

Cut the bacon into small strips and fry it up in a pan (and never ever let you forget you're a maaannn - oh! sorry) until semi-crispy or to your liking. Drain on paper towels.

Add to the pizza.  At this point you will be salivating heavily.  Find a napkin and wipe your chin.

Add the goat cheese.  Unless you are like me and want to eat half the goat cheese by licking the soft cheese off your fingers the whole time as you are trying to break it up and put it on the pizza, freeze the cheese while you are making everything else and it should crumble better.

If using a regular crust, bake in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until crust is browned and toppings slightly brown.

If using a gluten-free crust, which will be partially baked, cook under the broiler for 5-8 minutes, again until top is lightly browned.

And there ya have it!  The best, most incredible, taste tantalizing, awesome, drool inducing pizza in the world.  I shared this with you.  You will be forever grateful.  You are welcome.  I take credit cards. And cash.

GOAT CHEESE, SPINACH, BACON, SWEET POTATO AND WALNUT ARTISANAL PIZZA

8 oz goat cheese (use herbed goat cheese if you dare)

2 cups chopped spinach

1/2 cup chopped walnuts (use candied or spiced ones if you are really in for a taste sensation)

1/2 lb bacon ( I've been known to use a whole pound - shh!  don't tell my doctor)

2 medium size sweet potatoes - baked

1 tbs garlic

1 tbs garlic salt

1/2 cup milk

1 tbs butter

1 12" pizza crust - Gluten-free if you prefer.

Bake the sweet potatoes until soft and once cooled, remove skin and place in a bowl.

Add milk, garlic, garlic salt, and butter.

Make into mashed sweet potatoes.  This will be your 'sauce.'

Spread onto the crust (I added rosemary to the crust for even more flavor)

Chop the spinach and toss onto the pizza pie.

Chop the walnuts and add to the pizza.

Cut the bacon into small strips and fry it up in a pan until semi-crispy or to your liking. Drain on paper towels and add to pizza.

Add the goat cheese.  

If using a regular crust, bake in a 400 degree oven for about 25 minutes or until crust is browned and toppings slightly brown.

If using a gluten-free crust, which will be partially baked, cook under the broiler for 5-8 minutes, again until top is lightly browned.

A GOOD FRIEND, LOTS OF GOOD WINE AND TONS OF GOOD FOOD = ONE HAPPY DAWN!

Awhile back I helped my friend Cathy with a little healthy cooking.  She just wanted someone to guide her through cooking some food with the whole bunch of dietary limitations she has.  She knows how much I love food and good food for that matter so she gave me a call.  I was happy to help.  We went shopping at the local co-op, good, all fresh, organic, gluten free and dairy free food.  The challenge for me was to cook without cheese!  I know, right?  No one should eat meals without cheese.  Just sayin'.

So I cooked up some incredible chicken broth from the chicken carcass that I baked, made some enchiladas with ground turkey, my grandma's recipe for stuffed peppers made with ground up bison meat, eggplant parmesan without the parmesan but with homemade marinara sauce, and a braised pork loin. Nummy!

Well, because Cathy is just this awesome person, she wanted to treat me to a night out.  A local winery here, called Four Daughters,  had a Chef's dinner night, so Cathy said we had to go.  Who could turn that down?  They were offering a tour of the winery, a three-course meal and wine tasting.

We took a cab so we could really enjoy ourselves and had just the best time chatting with the cabbies.  I never took a cab here in Rochester, didn't know they were so friendly and fun, them cabbies.

We got there about 7 and sat at the bar to wait, there were supposed to be a few more signed up for the dinner.  About 7:15 they assumed they weren't coming so we got started with the tour.

Our first course was a scallop with bitter greens and balsamic redux.  We got that while having the tour.  Then our next course was a peice of artisinal pizza.  At this point I'm thinking this is great!  But the best part is when the two Chef's announced that they were 'practicing' tonight and were gonna serve us more like 8 courses, which turned out to be 9.  Yeehaaa!  Glad I wore my leggings instead of my jeans. Seriously.  And don't forget wine poured with every course!  Yeehaa!  Dawn's living it up tonight!

We didn't get pics of the first two courses, we were still in a state of shock from the sumptuous taste of the them.

Next came a baby pear, goat cheese and beet …. I guess you can call it a... salad.

Then it was duck proscuitto and housemade grape jelly.

Then the Chef loves to use a noodle.  One long noodle.  And a shrimp with some house pickled pepper pepita salsa. Chef said he likes redundancy.

Then there was the potato soup with bacon - yes, BACON!  (Bacon should always have an exclamation point)

And then… it was the pan seared roasted duck breast with sauteed kale and this bread pudding made with housemade driend grapes and andiuolle sausage. I think… it was getting a little fuzzy by then and I didn't write all this down.

then the intermezzo was a house made pita chip with 5 year old cheddar.  Cheese!

Well, now that we are ready to roll out of the room, dessert arrives. It's two ginger pancakes stuffed with this amazing cream filling that tasted like heaven!

Now that's what I call a good time.  Great food, good wine, good friends and just an overall great night out.  I just really love my life.  Of course it wouldn't be this great without my really great friends. : )

And Marilyn.

CHORIZO STUFFED DATES WRAPPED IN BACON

There's this great restaurant in town, that I love, because they serve food that's Farm To Table.  Meaning, they shop at the farmer's market like me and they buy locally, they call that a locavore. That's me, that's this restaurant.  5 Stars, in my opinion. Sontes. And they also have my art hanging up in there. : )

So when they first opened 6 years ago, they had on their menu Chorizo Stuffed Dates.  They were wrapped in bacon and served with a simple tomato sauce.  They took them off a few years ago and brought them back on on their anniversary date this year.  Well, since I had some left over dates from the Date, Goat Cheese, Proscuitto and Caramelized Onion pizza and some Chorizo and Enchilada Sauce from the Chorizo and Bison Enchiladas, I thought I would try my own version.

CHORIZO STUFFED DATES WRAPPED IN BACON

8 oz chorizo
8 Medjool Dates
8 slices of bacon
1 cup leftover (or not) enchilada sauce

Cook chorizo in a frying pan.

Cut dates in half.

Remove pit and separate.

Fill date with cooked chorizo.

Wrap with bacon and secure with a toothpick.

Place a little sauce in a baking dish and place filled dates in.  I put some sauce on top and then after baking it realized it would be better to pour some heated sauce over the top after broiling.

Broil in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until nicely browned.

Enjoy!

 CHORIZO STUFFED DATES WRAPPED IN BACON

8 oz chorizo

8 Medjool Dates

8 slices of bacon

1 cup leftover (or not) enchilada sauce

Cook chorizo in a frying pan

Cut dates in half.

Remove pit and separate.

Fill date with cooked chorizo.

Wrap with bacon and secure with a toothpick.

Place a little sauce in a baking dish and place filled dates in.

Broil in the oven for 5-10 minutes or until nicely browned.

Pour some heated sauce over the top after broiling.

Enjoy! 

CHICKEN LEFTOVERS

I love using leftovers and creating new dishes from them.  A couple days ago, I took some leftover chicken, sautéed some julienne cut zucchini and topped it off with some of the leftover enchilada sauce from the Chorizo and Ground Bison Enchiladas I made the other day and added some cheese.  This is what lunch looks like in my house:

CHORIZO & GROUND BISON ENCHILADAS

I felt a little like I needed some more comfort food the other day.  It's winter. It's 10 degrees outside.  Comfort food is the way to go when it's like this, don't you think?

I wanted something kinda quick too. So I pulled out some packages outta the cupboard.  Like packaged enchilada sauce and Spanish rice.  I always encourage looking at ingredient labels.  I did for the rice and enchilada sauce and neither had anything in it I couldn't pronounce so we're good.

I was thinking that enchiladas are filled with just one ingredient or two, but I like my veggies and added them as well.  The more veggies you can consume the better off you are.  GO VEGGIES!

But I did some research an look at all the varieties of enchiladas there are:

Varieties include (from Wikipedia):

• Enchiladas con chile colorado (with red chile) are made with traditional red enchilada sauce, composed of dried red chili peppers soaked and ground into a sauce with otherseasonings. However, red enchilada sauce may also be tomato-based with red chilis added.^[15]
• Enchiladas con mole, instead of chili sauce, are served with mole,^[16] and are also known as enmoladas.^[17]
• Enchiladas placera are Michoacán plaza-style, made with vegetables and poultry.^[18]
• Enchiladas poblanas are soft corn tortillas filled with chicken and poblano peppers, topped with oaxaca cheese.^[19]
• Enchiladas potosinas originate from San Luis Potosi, Mexico and are made with cheese-filled, chili-spiced masa.^[20]
• Enchiladas San Miguel are San Miguel de Allende-style enchiladas flavored with guajillo chilies by searing the flavor into the tortillas in a frying pan.^[4]
• Enchiladas suizas (Swiss-style) are topped with a white, milk or cream-based sauce, such as béchamel. This appellation is derived from Swiss immigrants to Mexico who established dairies to produce cream and cheese.^[21]
• Enchiladas verdes (green enchiladas) are made with green enchilada sauce composed of tomatillos and green chilis.
• Enfrijoladas are topped with refried beans rather than chili sauce; their name come from frijol, meaning "bean".^[22][23]
• Entomatadas are made with tomato sauce instead of chile sauce.^[1]
• Gravy-style enchiladas are the dominant variety found throughout South and Central Texas. These have a gravy-like chili sauce over either cheese-filled or beef-filled corn tortillas, and are topped with a layer of cheese.^{[citation needed]}
• Enchiladas montadas, stacked enchiladas, are a New Mexico variation in which corn tortillas are fried flat until softened but not tough, then stacked with red or green sauce, chopped onion and shredded cheese between the layers and on top of the stack. Ground beef or chicken can be added to the filling, but meat is not traditional. The stack is often topped (montada) with a fried egg. Shredded lettuce and sliced black olives may be added as a garnish.[24]

So here we go:

CHORIZO & GROUND BISON ENCHILADAS

Ingredients:
4 oz chorizo
4 oz ground bison
1 can of refried beans (I went with the no-fat kind - since cholesterol seems to be my problem lately)
8 oz shredded cheddar cheese
8 oz shredded pepper jack cheese (Ok, no comments on the fat filled cheese!)
1 red pepper - chopped (or I used those tiny little sweet red and yellow peppers)
1 onion - chopped
6-8 corn tortillas

1 package enchilada sauce - made to package directions
1 package Spanish rice - made to package directions

first add some oil to the skillet and saute the chopped peppers and onions

 add the chorizo and ground bison.  Cook thoroughly.  Remember, some chorizo does not brown like ground bison/beef, so it will stay red.  Why?  That's a mystery yet to be solved.

Layer some refried beans on the tortilla.

Then some of the chorizo/bison/pepper mixture.

then some of both cheeses.

roll up and place into a baking dish.

add some more cheese



pour some enchilada sauce on top

then some more cheese (if you already ate most of the cheese like I did, grate some more)

and more cheese

Bake in a 375 degree oven until heated through and cheese is all melted and gooey.

Serve with rice and extra sauce on top if you like.

and eat lots of guac with corn chips while waiting for the enchiladas to bake.

CHORIZO & GROUND BISON ENCHILADAS

Ingredients:

4 oz chorizo

4 oz ground bison

1 can of refried beans

8 oz shredded cheddar cheese

8 oz shredded pepper jack cheese

1 red pepper - chopped (or I used those tiny little sweet red and yellow peppers)

1 onion - chopped

6-8 corn tortillas

1 package enchilada sauce - made to package directions

1 package Spanish rice - made to package directions

1.    First add some oil to the skillet and sauté the chopped peppers and onion.

2.    Add the chorizo and ground bison.  Cook thoroughly.  Remember, some chorizo does not brown like ground bison/beef, so it will stay red.  Why?  That's a mystery yet to be solved.

3.    Layer some refried beans on the tortilla.

4.    Layer some of the chorizo/bison/pepper mixture.

5.    Top with some of both cheeses.

6.    Roll up and place into a baking dish.

7.    Add some more cheese.

8.    Pour some enchilada sauce on top

9.    Then sprinkle some more cheese on top.

Bake in a 375-degree oven until heated through and cheese is all melted and gooey. About 20 minutes.

Serve with rice and extra sauce on top if you like.