Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program: Green Giant Vegetables and a World Wide Pizza Party!

If you are like me you probably don't have a ton of time to get things done when you come home from work. In order to learn to love cooking and creating healthy, meals I truly believe in finding easy short-cuts that can help you with your meal planning. As part of the Foodbuzz Tastemaker Program I was offered an opportunity to try a free sample of Green Giant vegetables. I like to use fresh vegetables as much as I can but some days I want the ease of the frozen kind. With the amount of BPA in cans these days I try to avoid canned goods as much as I can. The frozen kind works well and I usually always have a stock in my pantry. I picked up a bag of Green Giant Select Frozen Broccoli Florets and whipped up this recipe below. It would make a great side dish for Thanksgiving/Holidays and for some picky kid eaters this might be a good way with the cheesy sauce to get them to eat some veggies (but since I don't have kids I have no idea if that would work!).

Healthier Cheesy Broccoli Bake

• Ingredients:

• 1 cup Organic Cornflake cereal
• 2 teaspoons olive oil
• 4 cups Green Giant® Select® frozen broccoli florets
• 1 tablespoon  butter
• 2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon mustard
• 1/8 teaspoon pepper
• 1 1/2 cups fat-free (skim) milk
• 1/2 cup shredded reduced-fat sharp Cheddar cheese (I used Black Pepper White Cheddar)

Instructions:

1. Heat oven to 400°F. Place cereal in resealable food-storage plastic bag; seal bag and crush with rolling pin. In small bowl, mix cereal and olive oil; set aside. In 1 1/2-quart casserole, place broccoli; cover and microwave on High 3 minutes. Drain; set aside.
2. Meanwhile, in 2-quart saucepan, heat butter until melted. Stir in flour, salt, mustard and pepper. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly with wire whisk, until smooth and bubbly. Stir in milk. Heat to boiling, stirring constantly. Boil and stir 1 minute; remove from heat. Stir in cheese until melted. Pour sauce over broccoli in casserole. Sprinkle with cereal mixture.
3. Bake uncovered 18 to 20 minutes or until hot.

*adapted slightly from Green Giant

In other exciting news, today I'm celebrating a world pizza party!! When I was at the Foodbuzz Festival I was given copy of this book by the authors:

I've been wanting to get one of their books for awhile and so I was so excited to get this one! Plus it was signed copy...I should have gotten a picture with them! They are hosting this world wide pizza on Twitter! I decided to make the following recipe from the book and it was delicious. My husband liked the way this one sounded especially since it's an adapted version of maybe one of the first pizza recipes ever written. I came home at lunch to make the dough and I loved the use of spelt flour in this recipe. I'm a whole grain lover and this dough recipe makes a a lot, so look out for more pizza recipes soon. 

100% Whole Grain Spelt Dough

Makes enough dough for at least eight 1/2-pound pizzas or flatbreads (12 inches across). You can always double or halve this recipe. 

Ingredients:

3 1/4 cups Lukewarm water

1 Tbsp Granulated yeast

1 Tbsp Salt

2 Tbsp Sugar, honey, malt powder, or agave syrup

1/8 cup Olive oil

8 cups Whole Grain Spelt Flour 

1. Mixing & storing the dough: Mix the yeast, salt, sweetener, and olive oil with the water in bowl, or a lidded (not airtight) food container.

2. Mix in the remaining dry ingredients without kneading, using a spoon, a 14-cup capacity food processor (with dough attachment), or a heavy-duty stand mixer (with paddle). 

3. Cover (not airtight), and allow it to rest at room temperature until the dough rises and collapses )or flattens at the top), approximately 2 hours. 

4. The dough can be used right away after initial rise, though it is easier to handle when cold. Refrigerate and use within 7 days or freeze it for up to 3 weeks in 1/2 pound portions. 

Ancient Greco-Roman Pizza with Feta, Honey, and Sesame Seeds

Makes one 12-inch pizza

Ingredients:

1/2 pound (orange-size portion) spelt dough

1 cup feta cheese

3 Tbsp honey

2 tsp sesame seeds

Flour, cornmeal, or parchment paper for the pizza peel

1. Prepare and measure all toppings in advance.

2. Preheat a baking stone at 450 F for at least 30 minutes. Sprinkle a pizza peel liberally with flour. Dust the surface of the refrigerated dough with flour and cut off a 1/2-pound piece. Dust with more flour and quickly shape into a ball by stretching the surface of the dough around the bottom on all four sides, rotating the ball a quarter turn as you go. 

3. Stretch the pizza crust:Flatten the dough with your hands and/or rolling pin on a work surface, or directly onto a pizza peel. Dust with flour to keep the dough from adhering to the surface. 

4. Add the toppings: Sprinkle the cheese over the dough, then drizzle with honey. Finish with a sprinkling of sesame seeds. 

5. Slide the pizza onto the preheated stone: (you could also make this on a sheet pan and place it right on the stone!) Check for doneness in 8-10 minutes and turn the pizza around in the oven if one side is browning faster than the other. Feta cheese doesn't flow like mozzarella, so don't wait for that to happen. 

6. Allow to cool slightly, on a wire cooling rack. Cut into wedges and serve. 

* Both recipes adapted slightly from Artisan Pizza and Flatbread in Five Minutes a Day

I served the pizza with the cheesy broccoli bake as a side. Pizza can take a bit more time on a weeknight but you could easily make the dough on the weekend and then you'll have it on hand to throw a quick pizza together! With a glass of wine (or a carafe!) make a toast and eat as the Ancient Greco-Romans might have: Pizza and wine, life is good!!!

Ciao!

Betsy