Happy Friday lovebugs!
Here are my favorite recipes from the week.
Skinny Pizza Logs
Ingredients
8 egg roll wrappers (larger than wonton wrappers)
8 teaspoons store-bought pizza sauce
1 teaspoon Italian seasoning
24 turkey pepperoni slice
4 light Mozzarella string cheese sticks, each cut in half horizontally to make two shorter sticks
Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425. Lightly mist a large baking sheet with cooking spray and set aside.
2. Pour some water into a small dish and set aside. On a flat surface, place an egg roll wrapper, corner facing toward you (like a diamond) and spread a teaspoon of pizza sauce horizontally across the center of the wrapper, leaving ½ inch or so of space on each side. Sprinkle a pinch of Italian seasoning across the sauce and add a row of 3 pepperoni slices over the sauce. Place half a cheese stick on top of the pepperoni. Fold the bottom corner closest to you up over the ingredients and give it a 90 degree roll. Fold the side corners in and tuck them as you give the filled section another 90 degree roll. Dip your finger in the dish or reserved water and lightly wet the edges of the remaining top corner of the wrapper. Finish rolling the filled pizza log over the wet corner so that it adheres. Place wrapped pizza log onto the prepared baking sheet. Repeat with remaining ingredients.
3. When all of the pizza logs are wrapped and on the baking sheets, mist the tops with cooking spray. Bake for 10-14 minutes, flipping once halfway through, until the wrappers are golden brown.
JalapeƱo Popper Smashed Potatoes
Ingredients
3 to 4 pounds red potatoes, chopped
1/2 pound bacon, chopped
2 jalapenos, seeded and diced
5 tablespoons butter, softened
1 8-ounce package cream cheese, softened
1 cup shredded cheddar cheese
Salt and pepper to taste
Directions
1. Add chopped potatoes to a large pot and cover with water. Bring to a boil and continue to boil until potatoes are fork tender. Drain the potatoes and return them to the pot.
2. Meanwhile, cook the bacon in a skillet over medium-high heat until crisp. Remove from skillet, reserving drippings, and set aside on paper towels to drain. Add the jalapenos to the bacon drippings and cook until softened and fragrant. Add the jalapenos to the reserved bacon.
3. Add butter and cream cheese to the potatoes and use a potato masher to mash. Stir in the cheddar cheese, bacon, and jalapenos until the cheese is melted. The potatoes shouldn't need any additional liquid, but if they do, add milk until desired consistency is reached. Add salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.
Linguine with Alfredo, Asparagus, Peas and Poached Egg
1lb linguine or spaghetti
1 bunch asparagus, cut into 1-inch pieces
1 cup frozen peas
4 tablespoons butter
1 1/2 cups half & half
salt and ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese, grated (this is about an ounce)
4 large eggs, poached
Directions
In a large pot of boiling salted water, cook pasta according to package directions. In the last two minutes add the asparagus to the pasta water to cook. Drain pasta, reserving 1 cup of the pasta cooking water. Add pasta back to the pot and stir in the peas.
While the pasta is cooking, melt the butter in a pot, then add the cream, salt and pepper. Allow to thicken slightly, then turn off the heat and add the Parmesan cheese. Add the sauce to the pasta and vegetables and toss to coat. Thin with some of the pasta cooking water, if necessary.
Remove the pasta to plates, creating a nest in the center for the eggs. Reheat poached eggs for 15 seconds in hot (but not boiling) water and remove with a slotted spoon to the top of the pasta. Garnish with more Parmesan cheese and freshly ground black pepper.