Middle Eastern Pita Pizzas

This is one of our favorite summer recipes. It's also versatile - you can use homemade or store-bought pitas and hummus, and you can use canned or deli olives.

My husband made these, so they didn't have near as much spinach as I usually use.

Middle Eastern Pita Pizzas - adapted from Betty Crocker Easy Vegetarian, March 2000
Yield: 4 servings


4 6-inch pita breads - the flatbreads work great!
1/2 cup hummus - plain or roasted garlic
1 cup crumbled feta cheese
1/2 small red onion, sliced
2 cups shredded spinach
8 oz. grape tomatoes, halved
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, chopped

Heat oven to 400F. Place pitas on ungreased jelly roll pan. Spread hummus on each pita, sprinkle on cheese. Bake 8-10 minutes, until cheese is melted. Top each pizza with onion, spinach, tomato and olives.
Enjoy!

Tomato Sandwiches

It's that time of the year when I start longing for tomato sandwiches. The tomatoes in our garden won't be ready for quite a while, but when they are I'll have to have a few of these sandwiches to celebrate.

Tomato Sandwich
Yield: 1 sandwich

2 slices bread - preferably white whole wheat
mayo
salt
pepper
tomato - thickly sliced  (these sandwiches are best with freshly picked tomatoes)

Toast the bread. Spread mayo on both pieces. Place sliced tomatoes on one piece of bread. Add salt and pepper. Cover with other piece of bread.

Picnic Sandwich

This sandwich works great for lunch, a picnic, or a quick and easy summer dinner.

Picnic Sandwich - adapted from Betty Crocker Summer Eating Light & Quick, Aug. 1993
Yield: 6 servings


1 focaccia
softened butter
5 romaine lettuce leaves
1/2 pound salami, sliced
2 tomatoes, sliced
pepper
1/4 pound Swiss cheese, sliced
1/2 cucumber, sliced thin
3 TBSP dijon mustard

Cut bread horizontally in half. Butter bottom half. Layer lettuce, salami, and tomatoes on bottom half. Sprinkle with pepper. Add cheese and cucumber. Spread mustard on top half of bread, place on top of sandwich. Secure with toothpicks. Cut sandwich into 6 pieces and serve.

Chocolate Chip Scones

I absolutely love these scones. They are a bit like puffy cookies, and they're good for breakfast and snacks. The coconut oil gives them a great flavor and also makes them dairy free. I enjoy baking with almond meal because it's so high in protein. It takes a while to get used to the difference in texture, but I think these scones are much better than any wheat-based scones I've made. I get my almond meal from Trader Joe's, but you can also find it at Bob's Red Mill and online.
This recipe comes from The Gluten-Free Almond Flour Cookbook by Elana Amsterdam. I enjoy her website, and have made a number of recipes from both her site and her cookbook. I modified the recipe to use coconut oil or melted butter instead of grapeseed oil, and honey instead of agave nectar.

Chocolate Chip Scones
Yield: 12-16, depending on size

2 1/2 cups almond meal (sifted)
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/3 cup melted coconut oil (or butter)
1/4 cup honey
2 eggs
1/2-1 cup dairy-free chocolate chips (the ones I use are mini, so a little goes a long way)

Preheat oven to 350F. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment, or just use a baking stone.
In a large bowl, whisk together oil, honey, and eggs. Mix in salt and baking soda. Sift in almond meal. Stir well to combine. Add chocolate chips. Drop the batter by 1/4 cups 2 inches apart on prepared baking sheets.
Bake for 12-17 minutes, until golden brown. Mine usually take 13 or 14. Let cool for 30 minutes on baking sheets, then serve. This last step is important because if you try to eat them too early, they will fall apart!
Store in an airtight container in the refrigerator. These reheat well in a toaster oven.

I'm back!

Well, it's been quite a while and a lot has happened since I last posted. I've decided to use this site as a recipe archive of sorts, so I can easily find favorite recipes from my cookbooks. We now have a 2-month-old baby, and there isn't a lot of extra time for searching through cookbooks. I'm not sure how often I'll be able to post, but I have quite a few recipes I need to get organized!