Cheese-Stuffed Bread Sticks

I love my Quick Pizza Dough recipe but sometimes I don't want to heat up the kitchen with the oven for just me. One day I flattened the dough like a pizza and cooked it in my pan so I could dip it in the Roasted Marinara.  Then I realized I was missing out on the cheese. I decided to wrap a cheese stick up in the dough and then cook the dough.  Yum!  It's ooey gooey!  Quick and easy to make!

Cheese-Stuffed Bread Sticks                                                   Printable Recipe

3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
3/4 teaspoon  sugar
1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)
1/2 Tablespoon olive oil
couple dashes salt
1-1/2 cups flour plus more for dusting/kneading
6 cheese sticks (mozzarella or colby jack are best)

Add yeast and sugar to water.  Let set for 5 minutes.

Add olive oil, salt, and flour. 

Stir until completely mixed.  It is OK if it is a little wet.  You are going to add to a floured surface and knead. This will add flour and help complete your dough.

It should take you less than 5 minutes to get a nice smooth ball.  Cover with a towel and set aside for 15 minutes to rest/rise.

Divide dough into 6 pieces. 

Roll out into a rectangle that is large enough to cover your cheese stick.  Dampen the edge of the dough so when you fold over last edge it sticks.  Do the same on the end.  I lightly roll it all to be sure the are not holes for the cheese to seep out of as it melts.

Lightly oil a non-stick pan and heat to medium.  Add dough wrapped cheese to pan and cook until light brown. 

Flip each side and continue to brown/cook the dough.  If you want all edges brown you will need to gently hold the bread stick and hold the part of the dough you want browned to the pan.  I have learned that if you go too long they can leak but not as easily as when I did them in the oven.

Remove from pan and allow to cool for just a bit while you warm up your marinara sauce. I topped my sauce with Parmesan for extra cheesy flavor!  These are great to send in lunches too.

Check out that melty cheese!

I think next time I will make extra and freeze some.

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Pizza Zucchini Boats

I have to give credit to my husband for this one.  He came up with the idea on his own.  I helped him carry it out.  We used small zucchini here but you can use larger ones.  You will need to cook them longer to get them soft.  Change up all the toppings as you like them.   I will give you a guide as to how we put our tasty dish together.

Pizza Zucchini Boats

Small Zucchini
Pizza or Marinara sauce
Ground Beef
Pepperoni Slices
Shredded Mozzarella Cheese or Italian Blend Cheese

Deep Dish Pizza, a New Tra-Dish with Ragú

Ragú challenged bloggers to put their own spin on one of their classic dishes and create, what they call, a New Tra-Dish. I was given their Upside-Down Deep Dish Pizza Recipe and I decided to flip it back!  It's easy to make and you can change up your fillings with different meats and add veggies if you like.  Each are complimented nicely by the delicious sauce Ragú has made.  I know this is a dish we will make often!

Each jar of Ragú® Old World Style® Traditional Sauce is made with 11 juicy tomatoes making it its richest, thickest recipe.* 

For more easy and delicious Authentic Italian recipe ideas visit Facebook.com/RaguSauce. 

Deep Dish Pizza, a New Tra-Dish with Ragú

1 pound ground beef
1 - 24 oz jar Ragú® Old World Style® Traditional Sauce
1 Tablespoon olive oil
1 Tablespoon cornmeal
1 - 13.8 can refrigerated classic pizza crust
2 cups shredded Italian Blend cheese (or mozzarella)
1.75 oz of sliced pepperoni
1 Tablespoon grated Parmesan

Heat oven to 400 degrees.  In a skillet, cook ground beef until no longer pink.  Drain meat and add sauce. 

Quick Pizza Dough (oven ready in under 30 minutes)

Quick Pizza Dough (oven ready in under 30 minutes)             Printable Recipe

3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

3/4 teaspoon  sugar

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)

1/2 Tablespoon olive oil

couple dashes salt

1-1/2 cups flour plus more for dusting/kneading

Add yeast and sugar to water.  Let set for 5 minutes.

Philly Cheesesteak Pizza

I'm always looking for a change up in our pizza routine.   One of our favorite toppings lately has been sweet caramelized onions.  They add so much flavor! I made a "wit whiz" with a little variation on "Cheez Whiz" but  you could certainly use it instead.   

Philly Cheesesteak Pizza

1 small onion
1-1/2 Tablespoons olive oil
1-1/2 Tablespoons flour
1 cup milk
4 ounces Velveeta
4-6 ounces of Medium Roast beef from the deli, sliced thin and chunked
shredded mozzarella or Italian blend cheese
grilled pizza dough

Drizzle some olive oil in a non stick pan and add your onions.  Sprinkle a little salt on.  Cook slowly until nice and brown.  This is just the beginning color they start to get.  As you cook your onions you can a little broth or water to keep it from burning but continue the cooking and browning process.

While you onions are cooking make the cheese sauce.  Add olive oil to a saucepan and stir in the flour.  Cook for a little bit to remove raw flour taste.  Slowly pour in milk a little at a time.  Whisking to keep the lumps away. When it is thickened add Velveeta in hunks and stir until melted.  It may seem a little thin but it will thicken some as it cools. You could skip the homemade cheese sauce and use warmed up Cheez Whiz if you want it more authentic.

 Have your oven and pizza stone preheated to 450 degrees. Place pre-grilled pizza dough on the paddle or flat cookie sheet.

 Top with cheese sauce and chopped roast beef.

Sprinkle on the cheese, then the onions. 

Bake for 9-10 minutes until golden brown.

Pizza Casserole

After I made this, my husband said it reminded him of a pasta dish a popular pizza place makes.  I hadn't thought of it but now that he had mentioned it, yes it does.  It was never one I ordered since the veggies were always still crunchy.  We like soft veggies.  If you like the add ins be sure to cook them first unless you like them crunchy. They also used assorted pasta. Mix and match as you like!

Pizza Casserole

8 ounce box of pasta (I used gluten-free elbow macaroni)
2 - 14 ounce jars pizza sauce (or 3 cups of homemade)
1 pound cooked ground beef
1/2  of a 7 ounce package pepperoni slices (use 2/3 cut in half for in the casserole and 1/3 cut into quarters on top)
2 cups shredded mozzarella (or Italian Blend Cheese)

Other options for stir ins:
mushrooms
green peppers
onions
sausage

Cook and drain pasta.  Mix together all of the ingredients except for the cheese and 1/3 of the pepperoni slices.

 Dump into 9 x 13 pan (you can grease if you want - I never seem to remember to.) If you want to freeze it, slide it into a bag, when ready to use, thaw, dump in dish and bake.

Sprinkle on mozzarella.  I made two dishes, one with and one without mushrooms.

Top with pepperoni slices.

Bake at 350 degrees for 25-30 minutes or until heated through and the pepperoni is nice and crispy on top.

Grilled Flatbread

Careful, this bread is so quick and easy to make you'll find yourself making it often.  Not good if you are a carbivore like me!

Grilled Flatbread                                                                                      Printable Recipe

3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast

3/4 teaspoon  sugar

1/2 cup warm water (110 degrees)

1/2 Tablespoon olive oil

couple dashes salt

1-1/2 cups flour plus more for dusting/kneeding

optional: more olive oil and flavored salt

Add yeast and sugar to water.  Let set for 5 minutes.

Add olive oil, salt, and flour. 

Stir until completely mixed.  It is ok if it is a little wet.  You are going to add to a floured surface and kneed. This will add flour and help complete your dough.

It should take you less than 5 minutes to get a nice smooth ball.  Cover with a towel and set aside for 15 minutes to rest/rise.

Roll out or hand toss until it is as thin as you like it. The thinner it is the crispier it will be. Using a pastry brush brush on olive oil.  Sprinkle with a flavored salt if you like.  I used a rosemary salt.  Not too much or it will be overpowering.

Place oiled side down on a medium heat grill for a minute or so, turn 1/4 turn to get pretty criss cross marks.  Flip and continue to cook the other side.  It doesn't take long to cook your bread so do not step away.  A little burn adds to the flavor, a lot doesn't.  :)

You can hand tear and serve or

cut like a pizza and serve. This one I served with hot marinara sauce to dip in.

You could also use this as a base to a fresh pizza. I plan to try some of these to freeze sometime to use with my oven and stone. I'll let you know when I do!

Pin it:  http://www.pinterest.com/pin/273593746085930888/

Foodie Friends Friday Linky Party #58

Welcome to Foodie Friends Friday PIZZA Party!!

Last week's recipes that received the MOST CLICKS.  You were happy clickers and liked my Piña Colada Mix! The others look great too!

Please take a moment to read through the rules before getting started, Thank You!

*By linking up you agree that you read these rules and all photos/recipes are original and belong to you. You agree to allow Foodie Friends Friday and any of it's affiliated websites or publications (Social Girls Media, LLC) to use photos, links, and recipes for reprint and/or republishing and distribution without monetary compensation to you. If photos & recipes are used, proper link backs to you will be included.

Adding Links back to Foodie Friends Friday and our Button is our only form of advertising to bring in more people to see YOUR recipes.

Please remember to do this. It benefits you! To thank you, we will continue to feature those with links throughout the year on various outlets.

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An InLinkz Link-up

Thank you to everyone for making last week's Foodie Friends Friday Fruit Party a huge success. Did you see all the recipes that caught OUR attention last week? Check out the Host Favorites on the Daily Dish for links to all the recipes.

An InLinkz Link-up

Rosso Verde Pizza

Pistachios on pizza?!  No way!  I thought the same thing when my husband brought it home from the pizza place.  But between it, the sweet red peppers, and the pesto, it works.  You must try it!  This is my version. We came up with a fun name, it means Red Green Pizza in Italian.

Rosso Verde Pizza

grilled pizza dough or quick pizza dough

pesto

shredded mozzarella (or a blend of your favorite pizza cheeses)

sauteed diced red peppers

pistachios 

For this recipe I used pre-grilled pizza dough and cooked it in the oven.  For fresh grilled pizza follow instructions on the grilled pizza dough page.  You can also use the quick pizza dough recipe and top it.  

Preheat oven and stone to 450 degrees.  Place frozen pizza dough or rolled our fresh dough on a pizza paddle or flat cookie sheet. Frozen pizza doesn't need cornmeal, it won't stick but the fresh DOES.  Spread on the pesto. Use as much or as little as you like. 

Sprinkled on your grated cheese.

Add the red peppers.

Now, on to adding the pistachios.  We left ours whole but you could chop them up a little bit if you want but don't obliterate them.  You want the crunch.

Slide it onto the pizza stone. 

Bake for 8-10 minutes or until golden brown.  Careful to watch your crust.  Brown is nice but at the end can quickly be too brown.

Slice and enjoy!