Nutella Pizzas

I made a few dessert pizzas with fruits and Nutella. For the apples I used eastern (Philadelphia) empire apples which are perfect for pies because they are so tasty, sweet and tart and they retain their shape when cooked. I made the pizza dough and baked it the same day instead of chilling it overnight in the fridge. I used half of the dough and 5 apples, sliced into 16 pieces, then fried in 2 T butter and 2 T sugar until soft and caramelized. The other half of the dough I made into Nutella and dried blueberry pizza. Both are sooo good. Nutella is great with a lot of different fruits. We also love it on toast with sliced strawberries on top.

drizzle more Nutella on the apple pizza before serving

gust the blueberry pizza with powdered sugar, with a dollop of Nutella on the side

Pizza Dough
3 to 3½ cups bread flour
1 teaspoon instant yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1½ teaspoons kosher salt
1¼ cups very hot water

• In a bowl, mix together 1½ cups flour, sugar and yeast. Stir in the hot water and beat for 2 minutes. Add the salt and oil, then gradually add more flour. Knead for 6 minutes. Transfer to a slightly oiled bowl, cover and let rise, about 1 hour. Punch dough down, divide in half. Pat each half in 13 x 9 inch pans. Spread Nutella on both, thick or thin depending on how much you love Nutella. Arrange apple slices, slightly overlapping on top of Nutella. On the other dough, slightly press dried sweetened blueberries evenly on top (do not use fresh or frozen blueberries). Let rise for 30 - 40 minutes. Bake in a pre-heated 425°F oven for 25 minutes.

Beef Saute & Lentil Soup

I won't call this dish beef salpicao, I don't know why Filipinos call it such. There isn't a Spanish dish called salpicao and salpicon is a beef salad. There is a Portuguese meaty sausage called salpicao, though. I'll just call this dish garlic beef saute.

1 pound New York strip steak, cut into 1½ x 1½ inch cubes
5 cloves garlic, chopped
¼ cup Worcestershire sauce
2 teaspoons sea salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
extra virgin olive oil for frying
crispy fried slivered garlic

• Mix well first 6 ingredients, transfer into a Ziploc gallon bag and marinate overnight in the fridge. The next day, remove the meat, discard the garlic and reserve the marinade liquid. Pat the meat dry and fry in hot oil until brown or desired doneness. Transfer to a serving dish. Cook the reserved marinade in the same pan, let boil for 2 minutes, taste and adjust seasoning. Drizzle onto the cooked meat. Sprinkle with fried garlic.

Lentil Soup

8 ounces lentils, cleaned of foreign materials and rinsed
1 cup chopped smoked ham
1 carrot, diced
1 medium onion, chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 celery stick, chopped
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 cup chicken broth
2 cups water
1 bay leaf
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil plus extra for drizzling

• Put all ingredients in a medium saucepan and let boil, turn the heat to medium-low and simmer for 40 minutes. Remove bay leaf before serving. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil.

The Departed - Aaargh!

Can someone tell me why this mediocre movie won many awards and why lots of reviewers gave it a 5 star rating? Can someone please explain to me because I just wasted 2 and a half hours of my life watching Leonardo DiCaprio's lousy acting. This remake of the superb Hong Kong movie INFERNAL AFFAIRS is just terrible. Everything about The Departed is contrived, it is not as taut, stylish, smart nor exciting as the original, and what is up with the stupid ending? The writer and the director certainly in my opinion did not get the original's whole concept and had to rewrite the ending to satisfy the American audience, but it does not make sense. And the overuse of the F-word is simply tiring, if not annoying, and did not work effectively in this movie as it did in the hilarious dark comedy MADE (which has the most number of times the F-word was uttered). I know majority of people will disagree with me but it is MY honest opinion: 1 star. No one deserves any awards in this stupid remake.
Now I have to watch any of the movies in our dvd library that has Tony Leung in it to erase this disappointing movie from my memory. Mm, let's see, HERO or DAYS OF BEING WILD? Oh, I know IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE. Happy Valentine's Day!:D

S'mores Bars & Cheesesteak-wich

I'm homebound today, no I'm not sick, I just don't have my car and it's snowing. So there's nothing else for me to do but bake.:)

S'mores Bars

1 cup butter, softened
¾ cup each white and dark brown sugar
1 large egg
1 tablespoon pure vanilla extract
2 ¼ cups flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
½ teaspoon salt
2 cups milk chocolate chunks or chips
1 ½ cups mini marshmallows

• In a medium bowl, stir together flour, baking soda and salt, set aside. With an electric mixer, beat butter, sugars, egg, and vanilla until fluffy, gradually stir in flour mixture. Stir in by hand marshmallows and chocolate chips. Press into a 13 x 9 inch pan. Bake in a pre-heated 375°F oven for 25 minutes. Cool before cutting into bars. Sooo gooey good with milky chai or cafe latte.

Cheesesteak-wich

3 to 3½ cups bread flour
1 package active dry yeast
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot water (140°F)
1 tablespoon soft butter
12 ounces thinly sliced roast beef evenly sprinkled with 2 tablespoons Knorr seasoning or soy sauce
1 large onion, chopped
1 tablespoon olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
4 ounces sliced Swiss cheese
1 egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water

• In a large bowl, combine 1½ cups flour, yeast, sugar and salt. Mix in hot water and butter and beat with electric mixer for 2 minutes at medium speed, beat another 2 minutes at high speed. Gradually add enough flour to make soft dough. Knead for 6 minutes, transfer to an oiled container, cover and let rise for 1 hour.
• While dough is rising, cook onion in olive oil till soft, add ½ teaspoon salt. Let cool.
• Punch dough down, roll into a 14 x 10-inch rectangle on a silpat or a piece of foil. Layer roast beef, onion and cheese over center-third of dough. With sharp knife, make cuts from filling to dough edges at 1 inch interval along sides of filling. Alternating sides, fold strips at an angle across filling. Place on baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap and let rise until double in size, about 45 minutes. Brush with egg wash and bake in a pre-heated 400°F oven for 40 minutes.