this dish is a hybrid of mexican food and italian.   it was another pinterest find and it has definitely found a permanent spot on our dinner rotation!  i originally halved the recipe (as shown in the pics below) but now make a full batch, because it is great for lunch leftovers.

source: the way to his heart 

• 1 lb. ground beef (or turkey)
• 1 pkg taco seasoning
• 6-8 oz. cream cheese
• 16 jumbo pasta shells
• 1 1/2 c salsa
• 1 c taco sauce
• 1 c cheddar cheese
• 1 c pepper jack cheese
• garnish (green onions, sour cream, olives, onions)

1. preheat oven to 350°.
2. in a large pot, bring water to a boil for shells.
3. in a medium pan, brown the ground beef, drain and add taco seasoning.  cook according to package directions.  add cream cheese and stir until cheese is melted and evenly distributed.  set aside and allow to cool.
4. when water reaches a boil, add shells and cook, according to package directions.  drain and rinse with cool water.  lay shells out individually, so they do not stick together.
5. pour salsa into the bottom of a 9×13″ basking dish.
   
   
   
6. stuff each shell with the meat mixture.  place the shells in the pan, open side up.
   
   
   
7.  cover shells with taco sauce.  cover with foil and bake for 30 mins.
   
   
   
8. after 30 mins, add shredded cheese and bake for 10-15 additional minutes, with the foil removed.  garnish with any condiments/veggies you’d like.

enjoy!

this cheese sauce is great.  it is great with chili cheese fries, can be used for dunking pretzel bites, smothered on top of nachos… i’ll bet that it would be great mixed up with some pasta.   the evaporated milk gives it a very smooth texture and the cheese can easily be changed, based on what you’re serving.  try pepper jack with your pretzel bites or nachos.  white cheddar for pasta.  the possibilities are endless!

source: seriouseats

• 8 oz. cheese, grated
• 1 tbsp cornstarch
• 1 12 oz. can evaporated milk
• 2 tsp (or more) frank’s red hot sauce
• cayenne pepper, to taste

1. in a small bowl, toss cheese and cornstarch, until the cheese is evenly coated.  put in a medium sauce pan.
2. add 2/3 of the can of milk and hot sauce.  add the cayenne pepper, if you’d like.  cook over low heat, whisking until melting, bubbly and thick.
3. thin to desired consistency by adding additional milk.
4. serve immediately.

enjoy!

i missed out on a lot of awesome food growing up, due to my excessive pickyness.  food was too spicy, too meaty, too sour, yadda yadda yadda.  i think i could have lived on mac and cheese, chicken patties from the freezer and ice cream.  i’m so glad that i’ve expanded my food horizons so i can try new things!  this is another pinterest find, i believe and it will definitely be making an appearance on our weekly menu sometime soon.  it goes well with salad or a bowl of brothy soup.

this dish combines my favorite food, cheese, with jalapeño poppers.  it all goes together with tasty fashion in a grilled sandwich.  once the peppers have been roasted, you can throw it all together pretty easily on a week night.  make sure to have a pair of disposable cooking gloves on hand, as the jalapeño juice can burn your skin and eyes!

source: simplyscratch

on my first trip to chicago in 7th grade, i had a slice of chicago style pizza.  it was love at first bite.   years later, i discovered that my mom had a stonewear chicago style pizza pan and have been making my own chicago style pizza ever since.  (thanks for giving me your pan, mom! )

i have been through a few different recipes for dough.  it all started with freezer section bread dough, which was great, but difficult to find in stores that are not vg’s.  then, i tried a variety of box mixes, and none had the same texture or flavor.  this most recent recipe is the closest that i’ve found to a true chicago style crust.  it’s full of cornmeal and is very buttery.  it’s the perfect pizza crust!

also, as a side note… i’m very excited about my new wa kitchen because it has a skylight and helps with making great pics for the blog!  this is one of my first blogs with sky-lit pics and hopefully there will be plenty more to come!

source: pizzamaking.com

• 3 1/2 c flour
• 1 1/2 c water
• 1/2 c cornmeal
• 1/2 c canola oil
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast (i’m a fan of fleischmann’s pizza crust yeast, it is designed just for kneading out pizza crust)
• part-skim mozzarella cheese
• assorted toppings
• pizza sauce
• parmesan cheese
• oregano flakes

1. you’ll want to get started the day before you want the pizza.  greatness takes time!
2. in a bowl of your stand mixer, fitted with a dough hook, add water, sugar, yeast, flour, cornmeal and salt.
3. mix on low speed for a few minutes until the dough comes together and then add the oil.  mix dough for 5 more minutes.
   
   
4. form the dough into a ball and place into a bowl.  (use the stand mixer bowl, if you don’t have any other plans for it.)  cover loosely with plastic wrap and then a dish towel.
   
   
5. place in the fridge overnight to rise.
   
   
6. one hour prior to baking, remove the dough from the fridge and pre-heat the oven to 450°, about 30 min before you put your pizza in the oven.
   
   
7. coat your baking pan with some evoo.  after resting for an hour, start kneading your dough out into your pizza pan. press it out until it covers the bottom of the pan and then begin to press the dough up the sides of the pan.  this may require some pulling, make sure the dough reaches the top of the pan.
8. cover the bottom of the dough with slices of cheese.
   
   
9. add your toppings.  tom is a meat lover, so we added ham, pepperoni and sausage.
   
   
10. top with another layer of cheese.  i am the cheese lover, so that’s how we roll around here.
    
    
11. spoon pizza sauce on top of the cheese.  don’t be shy, the more the merrier.  you don’t have to worry about making your crust overly soggy, since it is on top.
    
    
12. top with grated parmesan cheese and dried oregano.
    
    
13. bake for 20-25 minutes, until the crust is golden brown.  remove the pizza from the oven and allow to cool for a few minutes before slicing and serving.
    
    

i wish that i could be italian… making meatballs, homemade pasta and cannolis filled with marscapone cheese.  but i’m not.  i was, however, elated when i received “the italian issue” of the food network magazine a few months back.  it was full of all things italian and made me a very happy italian wannabe.

anyways, this is a really fun dish to throw together.  i thought that i was making it for two, by significantly cutting down the original amounts listed in the article.  let’s just say that moderation isn’t my strong suit when cooking.  i was going for a 8″ square dish, but it made enough for a 9×13″ pan and we had it for leftovers and lunch.  a few times.  it was still very delicious!  this dish is also very customizable, based on your own personal tastes.  my choices are in bold, below.

slightly adapted from: food network magazine

• 2 c pasta: farfalle, cavatappi, rigatoni, penne

sauce:

• 1 tbsp evoo
• 2 tsp minced garlic
• red pepper flakes, to taste
• 14 oz. can whole tomatoes
• tomato paste
• 1/4 c water
• 2 tsp basil
• 2 tbsp sugar

sauce mix-ins:

• 1/2 c of one of the following:
  herb sauce: freshly chopped basil and parsley
  creamy sauce: ricotta
  meat sauce: diced and browned pancetta

mix-ins:

• 1 1/2 cups of pretty much anything you’d like:
  pre-cooked meat/poultry: italian sausage, pepperoni, chicken, eggs
  veggies: roasted red peppers, artichokes, zucchini, mushrooms, eggplant, spinach

cheese:

• 1 c melting cheese and 1/2 c grating cheese
  melting cheese: mozzarella, provolone, fontina, asiago
  grating cheese: parmesan, pecorino, ricotta salata

1. pre-heat the oven to 450°.
2. bring a med pot of water to boil.  cook pasta for 2-3 min. less than the label directs.  drain.
3. in a large skillet, heat evoo over med heat.  add garlic and a pinch of pepper flakes.  cook until garlic is golden.  add the tomatoes/paste, crushing tomatoes with your hands as you add them.  (it is messy, but adds a nice chunky tomato taste that is worth it!)   invest in a red apron.  add water, basil and sugar and simmer, uncovered until the sauce is thickened for about 15 min. or the amt. of time it takes to prepare the mix-ins.
4. prep your mix-ins.
5. add your choice of mix-ins to the sauce.
6. toss the pasta with sauce and half of each cheese.  spread in a greased 8″ square baking dish.  sprinkle remaining cheese over pasta.  bake, uncovered for about 15 min. or until browned.

buon appetito!

zucchini was on sale at publix a few weeks ago.  i get a lot of from the sale ads which incidentally, makes tom happy because i spend less on groceries each week.  thinking about zucchini took me back to summer and out of the icy winter that we’ve been having down here in nashville.  so i found this recipe online.

it’s a recipe that needs a bit of tweaking, but was pretty tasty for a first try.

slightly adapted from: allrecipes.com

• 1 8 oz. can refridgerated crescent rolls
• 2 tbsp honey mustard
• 2 c sliced zucchini
• 1/2 onion, sliced
• 1/8 c butter
• 2 c cooked, shredded chicken meat
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 c milk
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• 2 c shredded mozzarella cheese

1. preheat oven to 350°.
   
   
   
2. open the can of crescent rolls, unroll the dough and place the dough into the bottom of a 9″ x 9″ baking pan.  do not separate the rolls.  press the edges of the dough up the sides of the pan to make a crust, spread the honey mustard over the dough.
3. place the zucchini and a few tbsp of water into a saucepan over medium heat, cover and bring to a boil.  reduce heat to medium low, and cook the zucchini until tender, about 15. min.  drain and set the zucchini aside.
   
   
   
4. place the onion in a large skillet with butter over medium heat, and cook and stir until the onion is translucent, 5-8 min.  stir the cooked zucchini and chicken into the onion and mix well.  let the mixture heat for about 5 min., stirring occasionally.  spread the zucchini mixture in an even layer over the crust.
5. in a bowl, beat the eggs with milk and seasonings; pour the egg mixture over the zucchini.  sprinkle the cheese over the top.
   
   
   
6. bake until the egg mixture is set and the cheese is browned and bubbling, about 20 min.  broil if needed.

enjoy!

i tried to think of a food related to 100 for this 100th post.  100 grand cookies.  something shaped as 100.  100 calorie servings.  i wasn’t feeling it.  so i decided a site revamp would be a lot more fun than foods related to 100.  well, fun for me to pick out what i wanted, and a lot of work for tom to make it happen.  thanks, babe!

i also realized last weekend that i had not blogged about this dish.  how have i not blogged about quiche?!  this is one of those recipes that was the reason that i created shoebox.  when you try it, you have to have the recipe for it…  and then i say: “visit my blog!”

so, without any more delay, here is the perfect recipe for my 100th post.

much like french toast casserole, this is a breakfast dish that you can make the night before.  it’s perfect for company and christmas.  it travels well and tastes amazing, no matter what you put in it.  there are plenty of variations to this recipe.  seafood.  southwest.  vegetarian.  ham.  bacon.  it’s definitely a dish that you can make your own.  it’s pictured above with bob evan’s breakfast sausage (thanks publix for stocking this!) and co-jack cheese.

• 6 slices white bread, crusts removed
• 1 lb. meat, veggie, seafood  (or any combination of the three)
• 3 c shredded cheese (i prefer co-jack)
• 6 eggs
• 2 c milk
• 1 tsp ground mustard
• 1 tsp salt
• pepper, to taste

1. prepare your 1 lb. of filling.  (brown your breakfast sausage, drain off excess grease.  chop up veggies.  cook seafood, if needed.)
2. spray a 9×13″ pan with pam.  arrange bread slices in one layer in the pan.
3. top with 1 lb. of filling.
4. top with cheese.
5. in a medium bowl, whisk together eggs, milk, ground mustard, salt and pepper. pour over top of casserole, distributing evenly.
6. cover and refrigerate overnight.
7. in the morning, remove casserole from the fridge.  pre-heat oven to 350°.  bake for 45 min or until cheese is brown and bubbly.

enjoy!

the perfect compliment to gumbo is this cornbread.  this is another dish where tom and i had to negotiate.  i love sweet cornbread; tom calls sweet cornbread “cupcakes” and asks for a side of frosting.  i cut back on the sugar in the recipe and added cheese…  two kinds!  definitely a win-win for the shoemaker household.

slightly adapted from: allrecipes.com

• 1 1/2 c cornmeal
• 1/2 c flour
• 2 tbsp sugar
• 2 tsp baking powder
• 1 tsp salt
• 3 jalapeño peppers, seeded and finely chopped.  (leave the seeds and the white parts in for kicked up cornbread)
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 c buttermilk
• 1/4 c evoo
• 1 1/2 c shredded cheese (i used mild cheddar and pepper jack)

1. in a bowl, combine the first seven ingredients.  in another bowl, whisk the eggs, buttermilk and oil.  add to the dry ingredients and stir until just moistened.  fold in the cheese.  pour into a greased 9″ square baking dish or a muffin pan, divided in 12 parts.
2. bake at 400° for 15 min (muffins), or 20 min (square pan) or until a toothpick inserted near the center comes out clean.

enjoy!