Egg Crust Pizza

It seems like everyone I know these days is trying to follow a more low carb lifestyle, which makes my heart happy! Our bodies don't need all of these processed food products and grains. We can get enough carbs in our day just through wholesome foods like vegetables, for instance. I'm not saying you shouldn't ever turn down your favorite foods and treats, it's just that we don't need them in our lives as often as we probably are consuming them.

Life would be pretty boring without some of our favorites like pizza. Pizza is good! We probably have it for dinner almost once a week. I came up with this healthier version so I can still satisfy my pizza cravings, but not feel so bloated from the dough afterwards. The girls have yet to try it, but I did make one for the hubby last night and it passed his test. He can be pretty picky at times too, so this is a win in my book.

I'm definitely not the first person to ever make a pizza crust using eggs, I've seen them before. But, I'm using the whole egg and not just egg whites. I pay a pretty penny for my local eggs and I don't want to waste any bit of them. Plus, the egg yolk is so good for you! You've heard me say this before, just eat the whole egg!

So far we've only tested out pretty basic toppings on our pizzas, but I'm sure anything will work. Get creative with these and send me pictures, I want to see! While it's very easy to make and will fill you up, my biggest tip is to make sure your pan is greased very well. I used butter with Josh's pizza and definitely did not get it as well as I should have, it ended up sticking a bit and came close to falling apart when I tried to serve it on his plate. Coconut oil has worked best for me so far.

If you want video directions for this pizza, check out my story highlights on Instagram, you'll see the "egg crust pizza" there.  I can't wait for you to try this recipe. Enjoy pizza as much as you want with this healthier version!


Egg Crust Pizza

Ingredients:
2 whole eggs
Coconut oil, butter or avocado oil; for greasing pan
Pizza sauce
Mozzarella cheese
Choice of toppings

Directions:
Grease a 10-inch saute pan well with choice of healthy fat (coconut oil, butter or avocado oil). Make sure to grease up sides of pan.

Let pan warm up on stove over medium-low heat. Meanwhile, in a small bowl, beat together two eggs.  Pour eggs into pan and let cook for a few minutes. As eggs are cooking, make sure to run spatula along the edges and lift egg to prevent sticking.

Once egg is cooked almost completely through, add a little bit of pizza sauce on top of egg. Spread with a spoon, the amount you use is up to you. Sprinkle toppings over the sauce and finish with mozzarella cheese. Place a large plate over the pan and turn down to a very low temp, let the cheese melt and toppings heat for 2-3 minutes.

Remove plate, if cheese is melted, turn off the stove and remove from the pan. Your pizza should slide out nicely with the help of your spatula. Serve on a large plate, cut into slices and enjoy!

Bacon, Egg and Tomato Sandwich

For the past seven weeks or so, I've been taking an continuing ed class at our local community college.  My other classes were always later in the evening, giving me ample time to prepare dinner. Now we're finding ourselves getting home from dance practice at 5 or after and seriously rushing to get dinner on the table so I can leave and be in class by 6:00.

If it weren't for simple meals and the help from each family member, we probably wouldn't be able to make this work so well. Or else we'd be tempted to eat out those two nights each week. This season in life is crazy busy but hey, we're making the best of it. I'm sure so many of you can relate all too well.

So these happened to be dinner last night. Ridiculously simple, yet so good! I hope you're realizing good food doesn't always have to be time consuming and complicated.

I quickly pan fried a few small potatoes from the farmers market in a tiny bit of bacon grease and they made for a delicious side. The girls of course added some fresh blueberries to their plate.  These made for a great dinner when we're craving hearty breakfast food. You can certainly keep these in mind for your breakfast during the week or on the weekend.


Bacon, Egg and Tomato Sandwich

Ingredients:
1 lb bacon
Eggs
Sliced tomato
Cheese, if desired
Ciabatta buns

Directions:
In a large skillet, cook bacon over medium-high heat until browned and cooked through. Transfer to a plate lined with paper towels and set aside.

Prepare eggs in another small skillet, fry in a bit of bacon grease if desired.

While eggs are cooking, start toasting buns. When eggs are ready, layer each toasted bun with an egg, bacon and tomato. Add cheese if desired.

Serve with pan fried potatoes and fresh fruit.

Egg Salad

These are the days of late night baseball games or whatever other activity you have on the calendar.  I remember many nights packing simple meals of sandwiches, chips and fruit to take with us to the ball diamonds.

Then there's also those extremely hot evenings when nothing remotely warm sounds good. Sandwiches like egg salad will do the trick. Simple, yet filling, and they pack well if you're on the go.

I like a little crunch in mine, so I make sure to dice up celery and dill pickle. And if you're not feeling like a sandwich, serve this mixture along with crackers such as Triscuits.

Egg Salad

Ingredients:
6 hard boiled eggs
1/4 cup mayonnaise
1 celery stalk, diced
1 dill pickle spear, diced
Pinch of salt and black pepper
fresh dill

Directions:
Peel and chop eggs. Add to a small bowl. Mix in remaining ingredients, stir to combine.

Chill in fridge until ready to serve. Spoon over choice of bread or serve with crackers. Makes 4 sandwiches.

Wonton Breakfast Cups

Every so often we need to change up the meal plan and have brinner, breakfast for dinner. During bowling season when the hubby is gone on Monday nights the girls and I will do this. Many times it's pancakes or waffles, eggs and bacon.  But it's also fun to make new dishes too.

We experimented with these mini omelets a few summers ago and will make them on occasion.  I thought this time around it'd be fun to incorporate the wontons, for a little extra crunch.

These were easy enough to whip up quickly and also for the kids to help. It gave them a chance to help fill each of the wells in the muffin tin with our chosen ingredients.  I always think they eat a little better when they can help.

As for the filling. That's completely up to you. Use any of your favorite omelet fillings or whatever you have on hand. It all works and anything goes!


Wonton Breakfast Cups

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. pork sausage
6 eggs
pinch of salt and pepper
1/2 cup diced green pepper
1/4 cup grated cheese
12 wonton wrappers, small

Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Brown sausage in skillet over medium heat, until no longer pink. Drain and return back to pan, set aside.

Lightly grease wells of a muffin pan with oil. Place one wonton wrapper into each well.

Whisk eggs until frothy in a small bowl and add salt and pepper. Pour eggs into each wonton, filling about 3/4 full. It may work easier to pour eggs using a spouted measuring glass.

Sprinkle in desired toppings; peppers, sausage and cheese. Bake in oven for 15 minutes, just until eggs are set and wrappers are browned.

Remove from oven, let cool for a few minutes before serving. Makes 12

Ham and Egg Breakfast Bake

Well I really can't believe Christmas is already here. Maybe it's the lack of snow here in Iowa or just the fact that we've been so busy. Regardless, I am excited to be off work for almost two weeks! I'm looking forward to spending the holiday with our families, relaxing and who knows,  maybe even doing a little freezer cooking.

Christmas morning I always like to have something special for us to eat after we open presents. The usual cinnamon rolls or waffles are favorites but the hubby likes more savory dishes. So I created this with him in mind.

I combined some of his favorites: ham and cheese. And it can even be made ahead of time which I love. Christmas eve night toss everything together in a casserole dish and let it set in the fridge overnight. Then while you're busy opening presents in the morning, your breakfast can be baking away in the oven. Perfect if you ask me!

Ham and Egg Breakfast Bake

Ingredients:
4 slices thick deli ham, cut into small pieces
4 English muffins, cut into chunks
6 eggs
1 cup milk
Pinch of salt and pepper
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/2 cup grated cheddar cheese

Directions:
In a 2 qt. casserole dish place two slices of ham in bottom of dish. Layer muffin pieces on top.

In a medium bowl whisk together eggs, milk and seasonings. Pour over the mixture and sprinkle cheese over top. Cover with foil and let set in fridge overnight or at least 4 hours.

Remove from fridge when ready to bake. Bake covered at 350 degrees for 30 mins. Then remove foil and bake for another 10-15 mins. or until center is set. Remove from oven and serve warm.

Two Minute Ham & Egg Bowl

I shared this picture, along with the easy instructions on the Facebook page recently; but I felt the need to share again in an actual post. These help to make our mornings a little easier. It's a very simple and healthy breakfast and I love the fact that I can prepare something nourishing for my family in such little time. Heck, I could even bring along the ingredients to work with me and have one for lunch if I wanted.

I didn't have any individual sized ramekins; while mine is still pretty small, you can certainly make this using only one egg and thus decrease your cooking time to only one minute total. No matter how rushed your mornings are, I think everyone can take two minutes and enjoy a dish of these ham and eggs. You'll have a great start to your morning and feel full for hours.

2 Minute Ham & Egg Bowl

Ingredients:
1 slice deli shaved ham
2 eggs
small handful of cheese
salt and pepper, to taste

Directions:
Place ham in bottom of a small ramekin. Add eggs on top, do not stir. Microwave for 45 seconds. Remove from microwave and stir. Place back in microwave and cook for an additional 45 seconds. Season with salt, pepper and sprinkle cheese on top if desired. Enjoy!

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Coming up on the blog later this week: a new Freezer Friday recipe and a review of the new 100 Days of Real Food cookbook including a recipe straight from the book! Stay tuned!

Sweet Potato Hash

This might not look like your typical child's lunch, but I have to say I've always prided myself on what I serve to my daycare kids. Now, I am far from perfect. We've had the occasional mac and cheese but I really do try to stay away from that stuff. I figure if I don't want to eat it, why should I force them to?

I didn't do any prep work ahead of time, like I normally might do, and still had lunch on the table within 30 minutes. I don't provide care for a large group, I've always liked to keep mine on the smaller side. But four kids is still four kids and I understand that it's not always easy.

Here I made use of ingredients we had on hand. A very simple dish, nothing complicated. I think the sweet potato and ground pork go very well together and bell peppers are always good in just about anything. I added a little bit of cinnamon and paprika for seasoning, then placed a fried egg on top. Of course on the kids' plates the egg was on the side and they had some fresh raspberries too.

Everyone ate really well. Of course they all have their dislikes. One doesn't really like peppers but always tries a bite. Another one didn't really eat much of the sweet potato. And that's totally okay with me! At least they're trying new things and who knows, one day they just might love that particular food.

I, on the other hand really enjoyed this dish. I think it works well for lunch or dinner, but maybe even for breakfast. Why not? Plus if you're following a gluten free or paleo diet, this would be a perfect meal to add to your repertoire.


Sweet Potato Hash

Ingredients:
1/2 lb. ground pork
2 medium sized sweet potatoes
1 bell pepper, diced
1/2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cinnamon
fried egg, to top each serving

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Wash potatoes and cut into small cubes. Throw onto a cookie sheet greased well with coconut oil. Roast in the oven for 20-25 minutes, until softened. Using a spatula, make sure to turn potatoes at least once while cooking.

Meanwhile, in a medium skillet, brown ground pork until no longer pink. Drain any grease and return to skillet. Add in diced bell pepper and let cook over low heat. Sprinkle in seasonings and stir well to combine.

Once sweet potatoes are cooked through, add those into the skillet. Let cook on low to keep warm while you prepare the eggs to serve on top.

Freezer-Friendly Breakfast Burritos

I love having items like these in the freezer, within arms reach for busy mornings or when mom just doesn't feel up to cooking so early. The family doesn't mind, in fact these are one of their favorites. Simply reheat in the microwave, toaster oven or your regular sized oven and breakfast is served. Simple, I like that!

Since we had a change of plans in our dinner a few nights ago and I already had this bacon thawed out. It made sense to make up a big batch of these. I don't always use bacon either, a lot of times if will be a mild breakfast sausage or even some diced ham. I love adding bell peppers to mine but I know the hubby and some of the girls don't like them cooked. You can use whatever veggies you prefer, maybe some mushrooms.

Then you'll want to top with cheese and roll them up. Wrap each one individually in foil to prevent freezer burn. Stack them all neatly in a large Ziploc bag, label with contents and date. And voila, you've got yourself some breakfast burritos ready to be enjoyed at a moments notice.


Freezer-Friendly Breakfast Burritos

Ingredients:
scrambled eggs with or w/out desired veggies cooked in {peppers, onions, mushrooms work well}
choice of meat- crumbled bacon, diced ham or sausage
grated cheddar cheese
flour tortilla shells
foil
freezer bags

Directions:
Lay tortillas out onto a clean counter top. Spread a small amount of scrambled eggs down middle of tortilla. Top with meat and cheese. Roll up burrito style. Wrap each one individually in foil. Place gently into a large freezer bag. Label with contents, date bag and then store in the freezer until ready to use.

When ready to use; you may remove and store in fridge to thaw overnight if desired. Otherwise simply reheat burritos while frozen, in the microwave it should take about 2 minutes. If you heat in the oven, about 5-6 minutes.

Veggie & Sausage Frittata

Every so often we like to have breakfast for dinner, it's a fun change of pace and generally something I can get on the table fast. That was the plan for Monday night before we were off to dance lessons for the evening, but of course I was almost out of eggs. This frittata had to be pushed back.

It worked out alright though, we ended up making it for lunch yesterday. I had some extra sausage, kale and bell peppers that needed used up; that's what I love about frittatas. They never have to be the same, you can throw in whatever's in your fridge.

For those nights when you get home and have no plan for dinner, make this. It takes less than 20 minutes and there's really no right or wrong way to prepare it. And I can't think of a better way to sneak in some extra veggies into our kids' bellies!

Veggie & Sausage Frittata

Ingredients:
10 eggs
salt and pepper to taste
1/2 cup grated cheese {I used cheddar}
1 tbsp butter
1 cup diced bell peppers
1/4 cup chopped kale
1 cup cooked, crumbled sausage

Directions:
Preheat oven to 375 degrees.

In a medium bowl, beat eggs together. Season with salt and pepper, add in cheese and set aside.

In a 10-inch oven safe skillet, melt butter over medium heat. Add in veggies and let cook for a couple minutes until softened. Add in cooked sausage and toss together. Pour eggs into skillet and let cook on the stove for 1 minute.

Then transfer to oven and let bake for 12 minutes or until eggs are cooked through and top is lightly browned. Remove from oven, slide onto a large plate and cut into wedges. Serve warm.

Deviled Egg Dip

Today we'll be spending most of our day out at the softball diamonds watching our oldest play in a tournament. These are always one of my favorite weekends out of the summer but it also means summer's coming to an end soon. Seriously where is the time going? I need to start on school shopping soon but don't even have the desire to think about that.

For now I'll just think about this dip.

This creamy dip that tastes just like a deviled egg. Deviled eggs happen to be one of my favorite appetizers and really are very easy to make, but everything is so much more fun in the form of a dip. Agree? What's even better, you can make this a thick or creamy as you like. I'm giving you measurements for each ingredient but seriously I just eye balled everything. Taste as you go and make to suite your own tastes.

I loved this served with Triscuits but feel free to use your favorite cracker or pretzel.

Deviled Egg Dip

Ingredients:
5 hard-boiled eggs, chopped
1/2 cup mayonnaise
2 tsp mustard
splash of white vinegar
salt to taste
1/2 tsp paprika
2 tsp sugar

Directions:
Add all ingredients to a small bowl and mix together to combine. Taste and adjust seasonings if needed. Can serve immediately but tastes better if chilled for at least one hour in fridge. Makes about 1-1/2 cups.

Homemade McGriddles

 

 

Yesterday morning we experimented a little bit with our breakfast. Have you ever had a McGriddle sandwich? I think I have once a long time ago, but I try not to eat much for fast food because one, it's not good for you and two, cooking at home always tastes so much better!

 

 

The kids always want pancakes and the such for breakfast, while my hubby likes his eggs and meat. To satisfy everyone I decided we'd try making our own version of these sandwiches. Everyone pitched in with the prep work and they were pretty darn good. The kids mostly picked theirs apart as I expected. I think if I could get the pancakes to be a little bit thicker we would have liked them even more, but overall they were something different for breakfast and very easy to put together. I even tried swirling some syrup in the pancake batter while they were cooking. You should definitely give these a try, I think you'll like them!

 

 

Homemade McGriddle Sandwiches

 

Ingredients:

Pancake batter:

2 c flour

2 tbsp sugar

4 tsp baking powder

1 tsp salt

2 eggs

1 1/2 c milk

1/2 c oil

 

Sausage patties, cooked (bacon would work well too)

Scrambled or fried egg

Cheese, if desired

Syrup

 

Directions:

Combine all ingredients for pancake batter in a medium sized bowl and mix together. Over a heated griddle, drop small amounts of batter to make silver dollar sized pancakes. Immediately pour a small amount of syrup onto batter, once bubbles form flip over and cook until other side is done.

 

To assemble: Taking 2 pancakes, sandwich an egg, sausage patty and slice of cheese between them. You add a small amount of syrup inside or just serve extra alongside the plate for dipping.  Simple as that....enjoy!

 

Look what's sitting on my table waiting to be used up?! I've got 14 lbs. of pears that I picked up this weekend. I'm waiting for them to ripen just a little bit more before I get to work. I'm planning on making some pear sauce but other than I'm not sure yet.  Any ideas? I'm definitely open for suggestions!

 

 

 

 

 



Mini Omelets

Are those cute or what?! They're little omelets that I baked in a muffin tin and they happen to be the perfect size for kids. The kids and I had fun trying out some new recipes last week and these were one of them.

Talk about easy and an activity the whole family can join in on. Each person got to choose their own fillings and put them inside their own muffin well. I poured the egg mixture on top and baked them in the oven. Even my little daycare guy that never eats eggs for me gobbled this up! They were really yummy!

Definitely use whatever ingredients/toppings you have on hand for these. I had some leftover ham steak from dinner the night before so that was our meat choice. We added green peppers and cheddar cheese in as well.

Now while we're talking about kids, check out this fun activity we did outside this morning!

I made up some sidewalk chalk paint for the kids to pain the patio area with. They loved it and it's so simple to make, I know you'll have everything on hand for it. Simply mix 3T cornstarch with 3T water, then add in 5-6 drops of food coloring and mix all together. That's it, give them a paint brush and have at it. Some of the colors showed up a little better than others, but overall it was a frugal activity that they really enjoyed.


Mini Omelets

Ingredients:
6 eggs
Splash of milk
Salt and Pepper, to taste
Chopped Ham
Diced Green Pepper
Grated Cheddar Cheese

Directions:

Beat eggs in a medium sized bowl with milk, season with salt and pepper. Set aside. Grease 6-7 muffins wells, add in chopped ham, green pepper and cheese. Pour eggs over each well until 3/4 full. You don't want them to be too full because the eggs do puff up a little bit. Gently stir and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 15-17 minutes or until eggs have settled and are starting to turn golden brown around the edges. Let cool for 5 minutes and then remove from muffin tin. Enjoy!