Chipotle Steak Pizza is my absolute favorite pizza at the best pizza place in Alaska, Mooses Tooth Pizza in Anchorage AK.  To bad Anchorage is over 6 hours away, so I cant just call in for take out.

I had this pizza for the first time abut 5 years ago, and it was awesome.  I remember the first time I had this, I woke up in the middle of the nite and snarfed down the leftover under the cover or darkness so I didnt have to share any 🙂  My two favorite food groups combined, Pizza and Steak.  Heaven on dough 🙂  Its the chipotle spiced sour cream on top that makes this pie stand out. Spicy and good. 

Here is my version of the classic.

Here are the ingredients you will need

Pizza dough (i use home made, its the easy recipe that came with my kitchen aid mixer)
Mozzerella Cheese and unsmoked Provolone (optional)
1/4 to 1/2 cups of sour cream (depending on the size of your crust)
chiptole in adobe, half or 1/4 a small can
green onions
mushrooms
thin slices of steak ( I like grilled tenderloin)
Roma tomato
Pizza Sauce
Parmesan cheese for serving

To make the chipotle sauce:

In a small food processor or blender puree your desired amount of chipotle and sour cream.  Blend/process until smooth. Set aside.  Remember the longer you let it set the hotter it will be 🙂

To make the pie:

Roll out the dough to desired shape and size.  I tend to make smaller personal sized pies. I use for my pizza sauce some of my red pasta sauce that has been pureed until smoth.  Any red sauce, jarred or homemade will work fine.  I use about 1/4 a cup for my 8-10 inch pizza.  Just enough that it wets the crust.  I dont like to much sauce.

Top with Cheese then steak, and then veggies.  When dealing with the tomatos, i like to seed them as I dont want all the juice, it makes the pizza soggy.  I like to use tenderloin that has been grilled or broiled to medium rare, cooled and sliced thinly.  You want the most tender meat you can have, since chewy meat on pizza is not good eats!  I use about 1/2 a very small tenderloin for my 10 inch pizza.

After your topping are on, sprinkle with parmesan.  Bake in preheated 425 oven for about 14-20 minuted depending on size and what you are cooking on.  I used to have a pizza stone, but it broke in half.  This time I cooked on foil lined sheet pan.  This worked out just fine.  Though  pizza stone will make a nicer bottom crust.

Remove pie when crust is desired color and cheese is all melted.  Now its time to top with the sauce.  I like to use a make shift piping bag.  Which is a zippy bag with the end cut off (very high tech and fancy).  This makes it easier to dress the top of the pie with out globs of sauce.  Drizzle sauce on top. As you can see from this photo, I was out of bags and ended up with clumpy sauce, but it was still super tastey. You can also top with finely chopped cilantro (this is how they do it at Mooses Tooth) but I leave it out, as my husband doesnt particularly like the taste.  I give this pie a two thumbs up!!!!

My newest quest is to make perfect southern style butter milk biscuits.  Like the ones from Hardees, Bojangles, and my old Favorite Biscuitville.

This is the closest I have been able to come, so far.  My only problem is uneven rising.  I have read that if you put a dent in the middle of the biscuit it will rise evenly.  I will try this next time.  I may next time use a smaller sheet pan and place the biscuits close together and maybe they will not fall over on each other.

Even though lopsided, these were light fluffy and buttery and oooo so good with honey 🙂

Heres the recipe

2 cups all purpose flour
1 tbls sugar
1 teaspoon baking powder (i used a little more, as I did not level off the spoon, same for the baking soda)
1/2  tsp regular salt
1/2 tsp of baking soda
1/4 cup cold quartered butter
3/4 to 1 cup cold buttermilk

Mix and sift all dry ingredients.  Add cold butter and mix with pastry tool, fork, or use a food processor to incorporate the butter into the flour.  Mix till butter is crumbly with the dry ingredients.  Then add the buttermilk.  Add in slowly and mix with your hands ( you gotta get down and dirty with these) add until the dough comes together. Somewhere between 3/4 and a cup depending on the flour….

Then lightly knead 5 or 6 times.  When you do this fold the dough over itself to make nice layers.  Wrap in paper or plastic wrap and let rest in the ‘fridge for about 10 minutes.

Roll dough out to about 3/4 of an inch and cut with cutter, assemble scraps and lightly knead and roll out to make the remaining biscuits. Makes about 8 biscuits.

Brush tops with melted butter if you choose and bake for about 10-12 minutes at 425.  Until golden brown!  You can also brush with better right after they come out of the oven instead of before.

 

These were awesome!  I cant wait to make more.

Its Holiday Buffet time at work 🙂  I decided to take my favorite salad, Greek Salad.  I love the combo of fresh veggies with the salty feta cheese. Mmmmmmm good.

1 english cucumber, sliced and quartered
1 flat of grape tomato
1 small red onion small chopped or sliced in thin slices
1 cube of feta cheese, cubed
1 can black or kalamata olives, whole

1 cup of greek style vinaigrette, store bought or fresh.
     1/2 cup Olive Oil
     just shy of 1/2 cup red wine vinegar
     dash or two of balsamic
    1/2 tsp oregeno
    1 crushed garlic clove
    salt and pepper to taste
 
   mix all ingredients well and let sit for 1 hour or so for flavours to meld.

Combine all veggies and add vinaigrette about 30 minutes before serving so everything doesnt get to soggy!

pple pie is one of my favorite things to make around the holidays.

I decided to make this one a little early.  I will cool it and freeze it for Thanksgiving.  I dont have enough oven space to do this on the big day. Maybe I should invest in a Turkey Roaster so that I can free up more oven space during the holidays.

I like to mix apples in my pie, i like the combo of sweet and tart

2-3 Granny Smith Apples
2-3 Jonagold or Cameo Apples
1/4 cup of flour
3/4 cups of sugar
2 tsp. apple pie spices
2 tbls unsalted butter
Lemon Juice for the apples
Prepared Pie Crust or Puff Pastry Sheets

Then I prepare the sugar,flour, and spice in a bowl and stir to incorporate then mix in with the apples.  Set aside while preparing the crust.

I use a prepared pie crust, its easy and tastes just as good as the ones I make, with less hassle.  Prep the bottom crust.  Then begin to carefully layer the apples.  I like to fill the crust nice and full.  Then arrange small pieces of the butter along the top.  You can also melt the butter and add to the apples and spice mix.

We just got back from Maui.  I miss the islands.  The warm sun, the ocean, and all the wonderful fresh fruit and fish.  We came back to Fairbanks to find snow and minus 0 temps.  Booooo.  Winter is here to stay this time.

I thought I would make a nice cake to remind me of the Islands.  And my hubby loves pineapple!

Here goes

Topping

1 cup brown sugar
3/4 stick of butter
4-5 pineapple rings
Marachino Cherries

Cake
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
3/4 stick unsalted butter, softened
1 cup granulated sugar
2 large eggs
1 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 cup pineapple juice (i used the juice from the can of pineapple rings)

Melt butter and pour in bottom of the pan. I like the bundt cake pan, but any will do. Add pineapple rings and put the cherries in the center.

Prepare cake

Add all dry ingredients and sift. Combine all wet ingredients in a separate bowl and lightly wisk. Add dry to the wet ingredients. Use a hand mixer and mix on med for about 2 minutes. Poor over the pineapple.

For bundt pan, bake for about 35-40 minutes at 350. I have a dark colored non stick pan, so it brown to fast, so I pull the heat down to about 310 and bake and check at 30 minutes and adjust cooking time. For light colored or glass pan use 350. Round or square cakes should be done in about aprox. 25 minutes depending on size of pan used.

Cool cake for 5 minutes and remove from pan onto serving platter. Serve and enjoy!