White Pizza with Peppered Salami

Last weekend was game time.  What better food for the game than pizza?  Seriously, as if I need ANY Excuse to eat pizza?  It is probably one of my favorite foods in the world.  I wanted to make something pizza-y, and wanted it homemade.  I started flipping through cookbooks and ran accross a White Pizza Recipe in Claire Robinson's 5 Ingredient Fix.  My baby brother bought me this cookbook forever ago, and I really love it.  I've barely made anything out of it, but intend to change that in the coming months.

So back to pizza.  yeah.  I heart it.  totally.  Guilty Pleasure.  But I'm also picky about it... and there is no rhyme or reason to my pickiness.  I gave it a whirl... I used Claire's recipe as a starter and modified as I saw fit. 

Ingredients
1 package Trader Joe's pizza crust dough
a little flour(for rolling out dough)
garlic infused olive oil.
2-2.5 cups mozzarella cheese
1/2 small package of ricotta
oregano
salami

After preheating the oven to 400F, I started by tossing a little flour on the counter and rolling out the dough until it was nice and thin (I like my crust skinny thin or super deep dish, told you I'm picky).  I gave the pizza pan a  quick spray with the olive oil and spread the crust on the pan.  To keep the pizza white I took some tuscan herb/garlic olive oil blend and spread it over the top of the crust.  I spread the mozzarella evenly over the surface.  Then I dropped ricotta randomly over the surface and topped generously with oregano.

The final, special, ending involved 5 strategically placed slices of the really good, peppered salami.  Bake for 25 min and enjoy.

A--maaaa--zing.  Seriously, I really enjoyed this pizza.  The salami and ricotta brought some good salty flavors together.  It was so simple, and tasty.  Plus, I really enjoyed using the garlic oil to get the flavor without using actual chunks of garlic on the pizza.  This is definitely a keeper.  I had intended to make a second one using spinach rather than salami, but decided we didn't need more food. I'll keep that one in mind for next time.  

Seriously, TJ's, I also love you, although not as much as I love pizza.  I'm so glad you are in the south hills now.  I've used the dough several times over, making pizzas or for super calzones.  TJ's, you made this all possible.  Between your pizza dough and varietals of hummus and your close location to my future home, I see this as a long term relationship.

Spinach Torellini Bake

So I read about this yummy Tortellini Bake on Our Best Bites.  I do enjoy their blogs.  I'm not sure if its because the food is normal, its simple, or because its Kate and Sara blogging.  Either way, cheese, pasta, bacon, spinach:  sold.  I had been planning to make this since reading the recipe.  My original intent was to veggie it up with some asparagus I had in the fridge, but it was used in another manner.  I wound up pretty much following the recipe as it published, although i didn't really measure much - just the roux ingredients.  I still like the idea of throwing more veggies in there.  Serious win.  Definitely a re-do.  I could see prepping this the night before and just popping it in the oven when getting home from work for a quick and easy weeknight meal.  Looking forward to leftovers for lunch.

Ingredients
4-6 pieces of bacon,
1 bag spinach and cheese tortellini (12 oz)
4 cloves garlic, minced
2 tbl flour
1 tbl olive oil
2 cups fat free milk
roughly chopped spinach -- about two handfuls
about 1.5 cups cheese -- mozzarella and parmesan mixed.
1 lemon
basil, pepper, salt to taste

Methods
1. I started off frying the bacon at a nice heat to make some tasty crumblies.  Meanwhile the pasta was cooking and the oven preheating.

 

2. After removing the bacon from the pan i wiped up most of the bacon grease and cooked the garlic for a minute or two in the leftover drippings in the bacon pan.  I used the leftover bacon grease and flour to make a roux.  (I actually took out too much grease, hence the added olive oil).  After adding milk, lemon juice, basil, salt, and pepper the sauce simmered until thickened slightly.

3. Meanwhile, with the oven preheating to 350F, I mixed the cooked pasta, chopped spinach, crumbly bacon, and cheese up in my pasta stockpot.  Finish by tossing and coating with the sauce and transferring to a baking dish.  I reserved a little cheese and bacon and threw them on the top before baking for about 25 minutes.  it was awesome, as shown below.

 T

Chicken Rollatini with Proscuitto and Provolone

I know.. it has been a while.  The whole moving thing throws off the whole cooking thing.

however...

i'm back.  and i made some kicking chicken the other night!  and I have some good stuff on the menu this weekend already :)

I saw this recipe on Gina's Skinny Eats several weeks ago and have been planning to make it since!  Seriously.  I pretty much followed her recipe, although it has given me a bunch of ideas on spins.  Here is my slightly modified version.

Ingredients
6 chicken tenders
italian breadcrumbs
3 cheese grated blend
lemon juice
olive oil
6 slices proscuitto
3 slices provolone

Methods
I took the chicken tenders and gave them a few wacks with the meat mallet, mostly just because i could :)  Meanwhile I mixed up a couple of tablespoons of lemon juice with a tablespoon or so of olive oil in one bowl and a 2:1 mixture of breadcrumbs and grated cheese in another bowl.  I took each chicken tender and washed it and patted it dry.  The tender was dipped into the lemon-oil mixtue followed by the breadcrumb mixture.  I placed a slice of proscuitto and half a slice of provolone in  middle and rolled the chicken up around it. 

The chicken baked in a lightly greased (Olive oil) pan for 30 minutes at 450.  since I was using tenders it probably could have cooked for 25 min. 

Note:  this looks a little more crunchy and whatnot because its from reheating the leftovers today... I forgot the camera in my other bag on Thursday when i made these.  oops.  but look at that crispy cheesy hammy goodness.mmm

Verdict - Win
It really was good!  I like this idea of the double breaded rollatini rather than trying to wrap a chicken breast around a bunch of filling and securing with toothpicks.  it was soo much easier.  We each ate to tenders and were full, leaving me 2 for lunch today :)

I had actually intended to take a couple of them and wrap a couple of asparagus spears in the middle of the proscuitto-cheese center rather than the onion that Gina used.  I still plan to do that... I think it would be awesome.  Other people suggested a basil leaf, but i like the asparagus idea, I just didn't follow through.  I also meant to spray the tops with olive oil so the breading would be crunchier during baking.  Either way it was a win.  the proscuitto was nice and salty and crispy from baking and it made my tummy happy :)

Plus, this was surprisingly easy -- far easier than David thought it was.  The hardest part is the tiny kitchen at the new house.

Asparagus with Balsamic Tomatoes

I saw this recipe in this months cooking light, and knew it was a go. It was in their quick and easy category, i love asparagus, and I love tomatoes, what wasn't to like.  It really was a quick cook, and quite easy.  The original recipe has actual measurements associated with it, however, you know I don't believe in measuring unless absolutely necessary (how very un-engineer of me).  it was quite yummy, although sauteing the asparagus would possibly have been a little more yummy (and less healthy).  I really loved the balsamic tomatoes with goat cheese.  I could see just doing the tomatoes and goat cheese with some pasta sometime.  that would be fantabulous. 

Ingredients
Asparagus, trimmed

Extra-virgin olive oil
Halved grape tomatoes
Minced fresh garlic
Balsamic vinegar
Crumbled goat cheese
salt and pepper to taste
Methods
First, steam the asparagus for about 2-3 minutes until just barely tender and still firm.

Next, heat a little oil in a pan and saute the tomatoes and garlic for about 5 minutes.  Add a couple of tablespoons of balsamic vinegar and salt and pepper to taste and cook for 2-3 minutes longer. 

Serve the tomatoes over the asparagus and top with a little goat cheese.

Veggie Pizza

 Ingredients
1 tube frozen pizza dough
olive/canola oil/spray
~1.5 cups mozzarella cheese shredded
tomatoes
spinach
mushrooms
balsamic vinegar
italian seasonings

Method
First I preheated the oven according to the directions on the pizza dough.  I spread the dough out on a baking sheet that was prepared with a little bit of oil.  I added a light sprinkling of the shredded cheese and baked for 7 minutes.

 


Meanwhile, I chopped up two tomatoes, sliced half a package of mushrooms, and grabbed a couple of handfuls of spinach. I tossed these with a little bit of balsamic vinegar.  Take the vegetable mix and top the pizza with the veggies and sprinkle with italian seasonings.  Bake for 7-10 minutes longer until the crust is baked and the veggies are heated up.  Slice and enjoy!

Verdict
Win.  Pizza is one of my favorite foods in the world.  This was a semi healthy version of it.  It makes me happy :)

Green Pasta

Ingredients
2 cups spinach
1/2 cup parsley
1/2 cup basil
2-3 cloves garlic
1/4 cup Parmesan/Romano cheese mix
1/4 cup water
2 tbl olive oil
3/4 box angel hair
1 bag petite peas

Methods
Mix the spinach, parsley, basil, garlic, cheese, water, and oil in the food processor and blend!  Meanwhile cook the angel hair.  During the last few minutes of cooking the pasta throw in the peas and cook.  Mix it all and have at it!

Verdict
Excellent.  I enjoyed adding the spinach to the pesto.  It was nice and different.  I also enjoyed it.  I stole the idea from my favorite Kashi meal - adding peas to a pesto pasta.  Win.  it was super appropriate for St. Patricks lunch :)

Irish Eggrolls

A few weeks ago we went to the Irish Pub, Claddah, with the Illini Club to watch the basketball game.  One of the guys in the club introduced us to Corned Beef and Cabbage Eggrolls.  They were beyond absolutely amazing.  I decided I had to re-create these, so this is my take. 

Materials

1/4 lb deli corned beef, cut thick.

1/2 cabbage, chopped

4 slices swiss cheese, chopped
Salt and pepper.
Eggroll wrappers

oil.

Methodology
I chopped up the corned beef into chunks.  I heated them up in my nonstick pan with a little bit of oil.  I added the chopped cabbage an salt and pepper to my taste.  I cooked up this mixture until the cabbage was softened.  At that point I mixed in the cheese.  I took a spoonful or two of the corned beef an cabbage mixture an placed it in the middle of the eggroll wrapper an wrapped up the eggroll, placing it seam side down on a greased cookie sheet.  I  repeated this until running out of corned beef an cabbage.  I sprayed the tops with oil and baked until crispy on the outside.

Verdict

Amazing!  It was definitely good stuff!!!  You could extend this with more cabbage (I probably would next time... it was actually a little heavy on the corned beef).  You could also use it as a delivery method for leftover corned beef with St. Patty's coming up soon.  These were a total win!!!!  I would eat them with a coarse ground mustard or a thousand island dressing dipping sauce.  Definitely enjoy the concept of doing non-traditional eggrolls!

Zucchini Fries

I saw this recipe for baked zucchini fries on Our Best Bites a couple of weeks ago and mentally bookmarked it as worth trying.  It was a particular go since I heard a rumor that certain people liked baked/fried zucchini loaded with breadcrumbs.
Materials
1 zucchini
1/2 cup italian seasoned panko bread crumbs
1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese
2 eggs

Methods
Cut the zucchini into strips- I used my handy dandy veggie cutter! 
I whipped up the two eggs in a bowl and mixed the panko bread crumbs and parmesan in another bowl.  I took the zucchini, dipped it in the egg and dipped it into the panko mix and laid them out on a baking sheet (I forgot to spray the pan with non-stick spray, I recommend not doing that).  I baked them for 12 minutes at 425, flipped them, and baked for another 12 minutes.

Verdict -- Success.  The fries were yummy.  I would definitely re-create these during summer when the zucchini is plentiful and dip them in some ranch!  I think 'someone' might eat them again next time!

Chicken Pockets

Some history....  I used to go to Washington DC every year for a conference in January.  A couple of years ago I had a club sandwich at the restaurant/coffee shop up the street from our hotel, except it was a club sandwich made using puff pastry.  Absolutely Amazing. We talk about it to this day, 2 years later.  Kate was there for that amazing meal, so she fell in love with the concept -- she started making puff pastry roast beef sandwiches.  It was fabulous.  I saw a recipe for cooking a chicken breast in puff pastry, which reminded me of "the sandwich".  I had to modify it and try my hand at "the sandwich"

Materials
Shredded cooked chicken (~ 1.5 chicken breasts)
1 sheet puff pastry dough, defrosted
Vermont white cheddar, shredded or in chunks
bacon
1 apple, chopped
Ranch sauce for dipping

Methods
We started out with David cooking several slices of bacon.  Once cooked I chopped it up into pieces.

Meanwhile, I took the puff pasty dough and cut it into four square pieces and rolled each one out to make a larger square.  One one half of each pastry square I mixed together chicken, bacon, cheese chunks, and apples (for mine). I wrapped the other end of the pastry over to form a turnover pocket and brushed the top with a little Oil.  I cooked the pockets for about 20 min at 350 until the middle was warm and the pastry was cooked and golden brown.

I served with Ranch sauce for dipping for David.

In terms of thoughts... it was good, seemed to pass everyone's tests.   I would think about using a semisoft cheese that was better for melting, or just more of the cheddar next time. 

Grove Dip

We caught the Steelers-Bengals Game a couple of weeks ago at our friends place. I wanted to bring something, and dip came up. I immediately thought of Grove Dip, from the Moo Groceries Cookbook for the Vicksburg Historical Society.

Materials
2 11-oz cans corn, drained and rinsed
1 4-oz can chopped green chiles
3 green onions, chopped
1 red bell pepper, chopped
1 tbl sugar
1 cup mayonnaise
1 cup sour cream
2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese

Methods
Drain and rinse the corn. In a bowl mix mayonnaise, sour cream, and sugar. Add corn, chiles, green onions, red peppers, and cheese. Mix and Chill for several hours before serving with tortilla chips.

Verdict
It was delicious! I had a sample of this once before, and it was about as good as I remembered.

Things to note about the recipe -- it makes a ton of dip, and I mean a ton!!! I would definitely recommend halving it if you aren’t feeding a crowd. Likewise, I’ve actually considered two substitutions -- I would consider omitting one can of corn for a can of black beans. I would also consider subbing some strained non-fat yogurt or some greek yogurt for the sour cream, mayonnaise, sugar combo. Corn, beans, and yogurt would mean you could eat as much as you wanted!

Enchilladas... and a return to cooking

I would like to apologize for the dearth of posts lately, however you can really blame Uncle Sam.  I've spent most of the last two months out of town... which didn't lead to much cooking... only to lots of eating out.

This week I made some simple chicken enchilladas as part of my return to cooking

- 2 cups chopped/shredded chicken (i used rotisserie chicken)
- 1 1/2 cups shredded Mexican cheese, divided
- 1/2 cup Ranch Dressing
- 1/4 cup Sour Cream
- 2 tbl Diced Green Chiles, rinsed and drained
- 4 (9 to 10-inch) Flour tortillas, warmed

Combine the shredded chicken, 3/4 cup of cheese, ranch, sour cream, and chiles.  Mix well and split into quarters.  Take one quarter of mixture and place in each tortilla.  Roll up and place seam side down in baking pan.  Repeat with the remaining tortillas and chicken mixture.  Place remaining cheese on top of tortillas.  Bake for 20 min at 350F or until cheese is bubbly and melted.

Verdict:  I've made these before and enjoyed.  David approved pending removal of chiles.

026/027 -- Chili Lime Steak Salad

I decided to return to carnivorous cooking in a rather simplistic way. During my vegetarian phase I found a yummy sounding recipe over at Our Best Bites that called for a little bit of beef. I'm cheating and considering this two recipes -- the Chili Lime Rubbed Steak and the Creamy Lime Cilantro Dressing. I made a few modifications to the OBB recipe. My version (which is 97% their version) is below. I used a flat iron steak for this recipe. Let me wax on about how I enjoy the flat iron steak. It is fairly affordable so far as beef goes, and it is not too fatty and gross, AND it cooks up pretty quickly/easily on the grill or under the broiler. For the longest time I hadn't tried the flat iron as I'm a patron of the NY strip, however, Lulu convinced me to give the flat iron a try. I'm sold. I'm still a NY strip girl when going out to restaurants, but I'm sold the flat iron for my own cooking purposes.

I started out making the rub for the steak

Materials

1 tsp chili powder

1 tsp garlic salt

1/2 tsp cumin

1/2 tsp coriander

1/2 tsp oregano

1/4 tsp cayenne

1/4 tsp black pepper

1 lime, juiced

1 tbl olive oil

Steak, (I used a flatiron cut)

Methods

Mix all ingredients together. Pour mixture over steak and press into sit. Allow to sit for about 15 minutes. I cooked my steak on my George Foreman :) Cut into thin slices against the grain.

While the steak was marinating I made the salad dressing

Materials

1 cup plain fat free greek yogurt (I like fage or oiknos best)

1 packet ranch dressing mix

about 1/2 cup milk

about 1/2 cup cilantro

4 garlic cloves, roughly chopped

juice of 1 lime

Methods

Combine ingredients in food processor and process until smooth! Keep cool and enjoy!

Finally, I used the dressing, slices of the steak, romaine lettuce, grape tomatoes, avocado, and black beans to make an awesomely yummy meal. The steak was really good -- and totally easy. This rub was definitely worth repeating. The salad itself was really yum-tastic. The original dressing recipe called for a green salsa and hot sauce -- which i totally forgot while at the store. The recipe was pretty good as it was, although it wasn't quite so green. definitely a good score -- fairly lightweight, filling, easy, and yummy.

024 -- Spanakopizza

The weekends are pizza time at my house. It harks back to childhood and growing up in Chicago. I had some feta cheese left over from last week's lentils, so I decided I wanted to do something with them. I had been reading some recipes on the web and decided to make a Greek spanakopita inspired pizza. MMMM pizza and spanakopita -- a combination that can't go wrong, right? I feel so Rachel Ray in naming my dish :)

Materials
Olive oil spray
1 Can refrigerator pizza dough
3 Cloves garlic, minced
1 Green pepper, chopped
1/4-1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
Spinach
Feta cheese
Oregano
Dill
Salt
Pepper
1 Lemon


Methods
First, spray the surface of a baking sheet with olive oil. Roll out the pizza dough to the desired thickness and spray the surface with olive oil again. Bake at 400 (or temperature on can) for about 7 minutes.


Pull the pizza out of the oven and start topping. I put the minced garlic down first, followed by peppers and onions. The spinach took the place as the top veggie. Spread the feta over the spinach. Top with dill, oregano, salt, and pepper to taste. Finally, sprinkle with lemon juice.

Bake for about 8 minutes longer and enjoy!

Verdict

Winner! This was excellent, definitely one to enjoy again. I adore dill and feta, making this a yummy combo! Plus it was pretty darn healthy. I thought that the lemon brought out the dill and oregano and made it pretty darn tasty!! Warning, since there isn't a lot of cheese (its really more of a flatbread...) the toppings like to slide here there and everywhere.

022 -- Asparagus and Artichoke Quiche

After beer and crawfish this weekend I wanted something light tonight. A veggie quiche seemed like just the ticket. This asparagus and artichoke quiche is based on a recipe from the American Heart Association uses brown rice for the crust. I liked this idea! It was something different!

Materials
2 1/4 cups vegetable broth and/or water
1 tsp all-purpose seasoning
1 cup brown rice
Egg substitute equivilent to three eggs
12 spears, asparagus trimmed to about 1/4 in. pieces
1 cup chopped artichoke hearts
2 medium plum tomatoes, thinly sliced
1 cup half and half
1 cup shredded swiss cheese
1/4 tsp pepper
Methods
1. Cook rice according to directions, using water and broth. After cooking rice, place in a bowl in fridge for about 10 minutes to cool off. Mix cooled rice with your seasoning of chioce and egg subsitute equivilient to one egg.

2. Spray bottom and sides of deep dish pie pan with vegetable oil spray. Pat rice mixture onto bottom and sides of the pan to make crust. Bake at 400F for about 7 minutes until rice is golden brown.

3. Layer asparagus, artichokes, and on crust.

4. Mix substitute equivilent to two eggs, half and half, pepper, and 3/4 cup cheese together. Pour over the veggies. Place tomoatoes on top of quiche. Push down to partially cover with egg mixture. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup of cheese over quiche. Bake at 325F for about 45 minutes until egg mixture in center is set and does not jiggle.

ENJOY!

EDITED TO ADD:

This was great! I loved it!!! I really liked the layering of the vegetables. The cruchy rice instead of pie crust was a unique twist, and i liked it. I'm going to try one with cous cous sooner or later too.

If you are in my family, you know that I detest eggs.. but i'm learning if you throw enough crap in with them i'll happily eat them! Just don't ask me to consume a fried egg.

021 -- Zucchini, Corn, and Black Bean Quesadillas

I had big plans for dinner tonight. Then I went and forgot my shopping list at home. So, I improvised. Rebecca at EzraPoundCake has a Meatless Monday thing going on. In an effort to be more cost effective, sustainable, and healthy she eats meatless one day a week, so I knew she would have some more good meatless recipes for me to choose from. She didn't disappoint. These Quesadillas are based on one of her zucchini and corn quesadillas.

I added black beans and used the super fiber reinforced tortillas that I get from the Fresh Market. This was definitely yummy! I'm not always a huge fan of cilantro, but this hit the spot. I'm not actually sure the beans were needed, especially since i used the aforementioned tortillas. This was definitely high on the yum meter anyways. I look forward to eating leftovers tomorrow.

It really is amazing how the meatless thing works out. I love the fact that its got me new vegetables, eating beans, and feeling good. Post Lent, I would like to try to do the Meatless Monday thing. I think it will be AWESOME when Farmer's Market Goodies start to come in!

Materials
olive oil
1 onion, coarsely chopped
salt
5 cloves garlic, minced
2 medium zucchini
1 cup frozen corn
1 can black beans, drained and rinsed
1/2 cup chopped cilantro
olive oil spray
4 tortillas
2 cups grated cheddar-jack cheese

Methods
1. Preheat oven to 400F. In a large skillet heat 3 tbl oil over medium heat. Cook onion and salt, stirring occasionally, until softened. Add garlic, cooking for about 1 minute.

2. Cut zucchini in half lengthwise and slice thinly. Add zucchini and corn to skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally until zucchini is soft and corn has thawed. (I added beans at this step, but I would hold off to step 3 next time)

3. Remove from heat. Stir in cilantro and beans.

4. Spray one side of two tortillas with oil. Place tortillas oil-side down on a baking sheet and top with 1/2 filling apiece. Cover each tortilla with half the cheese. Top with remaining two tortillas. Spray with oil and press down with spatula to seal.

5. Bake for about 10 minutes until cheese is melted and quesadillas are golden brown. Remove from oven and slice. Makes 4 meal-size servings or a bunch of appetizer-y goodies.

020 -- Southwest Veggie Eggrolls

While scouring the food blogs I ran across this recipe at Ezra Pound Cake. It spoke to me and I've been thinking about it ever since I read this recipe. After a great day of springtime fun it was definitely what the doctor ordered -- and at 2 WW points per eggroll it isn't too shabby on the health side. Taste-wise this was absolutely A-Ma-Zing! Plus it was good and filling. I would serve with greek yogurt or some guacamole if I had one of them on hand.

Materials
2 cups frozen corn, thawed
1 can black beans, rinsed and drained
10 oz package chopped spinach, thawed and dried
1 1/2 cup colby jack or mexican cheese
4 oz can of diced green chiles, drained
4 green onions, chopped
1 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
dash cayenne pepper
20 eggroll wrappers

Methods
Combine everything except the eggrolls and mix well.


Place about 1/4 cup of mixture on top of an eggroll wrapper.

Wrap eggrolll up. Roll one corner towards center. Continue rolling and fold sides over center. Wet final corner and roll up to seal. This recipe should make about 20 eggrolls in this manner.

Spray baking sheet with vegetable oil spray. Place eggrolls seam-side down on baking sheet. Spray top of eggrolls with vegetable oil spray. Bake for about 15 minutes at 425 F, until crispy and brown. Turn eggrolls once during cooking.

Serve and ENJOY!

Broiled Italian Eggplant

From the New American Heart Association Cookbook
Materials
1/2 cup italian dressing
1 tsp dried rosemary
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1 large eggplant
1 oz can tomato sauce
pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

Methods
Combine italian dressing, rosemary, and oregano. Meanwhile slice eggplant in 3/4 in. slices.

Place eggplant and dressing mixture in a baggie or bowl and mix to cover. Allow to sit for 1 hr to marinate.

Preheat Broiler and place eggplant on a baking sheet. Broil 5 minutes per side until browned.

Layer eggplant, tomato sauce, and pepper to taste in an 8 in. baking dish. Place cheese over top layer and broil for an additional 2-3 minutes until melted and browned. Enjoy!

Results

This was super easy. It took a while just because of the marinade time. Otherwise it was a no muss, no fuss sort of supper. It was also pretty yummy, particularly for an easy meal. During the summer I would consider making this using some farm fresh eggplant and chopped up tomatoes rather than the sauce. I think that could give it some awesome texture and flavor layering. Still easy peasy! And if you were trying to think economically, it was less than five dollars for 4 servings!