A Very Happy Valentine's Day

We had a wonderful Valentine's Day yesterday! Evan and I went on a date last night but we wanted to do something special with Seth during the day so we had a fun Valentine lunch!

We had heart shaped pepperoni pizzas and caesar salad (and Seth had grapes :))

For dessert, we had heart shaped brownies!

I love the excitement on Seth's face in this picture!

After lunch, Evan read Seth the new book that we gave him...

And Seth got a surprise Valentine package from his Nanny and Pop!

Then, we got ready and I took Seth to therapy. When we got home from therapy, there were even more surprises waiting on us! My grandparents were at our house (Evan had asked them to come spend the night with us and babysit Seth!) with a gift for Seth and cupcakes for Evan and me AND a Valentine package was waiting on our front porch from Gigi and Papa!!

And last night, my grandparents took Seth on a date to Chuck E. Cheese while Evan and I went to dinner and a movie! :)

It was a great day and Seth LOVED getting to spend the evening with his great grandparents and he was even more excited that they were still here this morning! I love this picture of Seth and my grandpa watching cartoons together this morning :)

I hope you had a fun Valentine's Day too!

Caramelized Onion, Sausage and Basil Pizza

I made this pizza (from Giada on Food Network) several weeks ago and I keep forgetting to share the recipe! It was pretty simple to make and tasted delicious!

Caramelized Onion, Sausage and Basil Pizza

Ingredients:

Cornmeal, for dusting

3 T. extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for drizzling

1 T. unsalted butter

2 onions, thinly sliced

1/4 t. kosher salt

1/4 t. freshly ground black pepper

1 lb. spicy turkey or pork sausage, casings removed, crumbled

1 pkg. refrigerated pizza dough

3/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola or blue cheese

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil leaves

Directions:

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Sprinkle a heavy baking sheet or stone with cornmeal and set aside. In a large skillet, melt olive oil and butter over medium-low heat. Add the onions, salt and pepper. Cook, stirring occasionally, until golden and caramelized, about 20 minutes. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the sausage. Using a wooden spoon, break up the sausage and cook, stirring constantly, until cooked through, about 8 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.

Roll out pizza dough on prepared baking sheet and drizzle with olive oil. Spread the onion-sausage mixture evenly over the dough, leaving a 1-inch border. Sprinkle the cheese on top. Bake until the crust is golden and the cheese has melted, about 15-17 minutes. Remove from the oven and sprinkle with chopped fresh basil. Cut pizza into wedges and serve.

Tomato-and-Corn Pizza

This past weekend, our air conditioner decided to stop working and when the temperature in our house reached around 80 degrees, we decided to move in with my parents for a few days!! While we were there, we basically cooked through the July issue of Southern Living magazine... delicious!

This pizza recipe is definitely a keeper!!

Ingredients:

3 small plum tomatoes, sliced

1/4 tsp. salt

1/8 tsp. freshly ground pepper

1 (14 oz.) package prebaked Italian pizza crust

Parchment paper

1/3 cup refrigerated pesto

1/2 cup fresh corn kernels

1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese

1 tsp. sugar

8 oz. fresh mozzarella, sliced

3 T. fresh whole or torn basil leaves

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Place tomato slices on paper towels. Sprinkle with salt and pepper; let stand 20 minutes.

2. Place pizza crust on a parchment paper-lined baking sheet; spread with pesto. Stir together corn, Parmesan and sugar. Top pizza with corn mixture, tomatoes and mozzarella slices.

3. Bake at 450 degrees for 14 minutes or until cheese is melted and golden. Remove from oven, and top with basil leaves.

**********

Did I mention that this recipe is a keeper??? ;)

Oh, and don't worry! Our air conditioner is back up and running and we are no longer melting!!

It's a takeout night...

Tonight is most definitely a takeout night at our house. Aside from both of us being exhausted from work and school, I just got home from getting a spray tan for my friend's wedding weekend... which means that I can't wash my hands... which makes cooking a bit difficult! haha We are also dog sitting tonight and Evan's mom is coming in a little later to spend the night with us before she flies to New York in the morning! I don't know if that sounds like a lot but it sure does feel like a lot. So, we just placed an order at Chi's Chinese Express.

However, we did cook last night so I still have a recipe to post about!

Last night we made Pesto, Prosciutto and Pine Nut Pizza. It was SO easy to make.

Here's the recipe:

Pesto, Prosciutto, Pine Nut Pizza

Ingredients:

1 pkg. thinly sliced prosciutto

1 pre-baked pizza crust or 1 can Pilsbury refrigerated pizza dough

1 jar pesto

1 jar pine nuts

1 pkg. shredded mozzarella cheese

Directions:

Note: all of the above ingredients are listed in "jars" or "packages" but you definitely won't need the whole package. It's completely up to you how much you use of each ingredient! First, crisp up the prosciutto in a skillet (much like frying bacon- but faster). Then spread a thin layer of pesto on your pizza crust or dough and top with pine nuts, cheese and crispy prosciutto. If you are using a pre-baked pizza crust, put your pizza in a 350 degree oven until the cheese is hot and bubbly. If you are using the refrigerated pizza dough, follow the directions on the package for baking.

SO easy and fast. Basically your oven does all of the work! :)

Here's what ours looked like:

This pizza is also great with cooked, chopped chicken instead of prosciutto.

******

Don't forget to come back tomorrow for our second "Pray For Us Friday!"