Grilled Naan White Pizza Bites

Did I surprise you Aggie?  I just had to be part of the celebration.  I wouldn't have missed it for the world!  You are my sister-in-law and this virtual baby shower is for you and my nephew, Micah!  

We have an Italian themed menu in honor of you and your heritage.  I know how much pizza and Italian food has been such an influence in your life.  After all, your dad has been in the pizza and restaurant business for over 30 years.  You taught me how to make grilled Naan pizzas, so I had to make these Grilled Naan White Pizza Bites for your virtual baby shower.  We have a huge menu below to include: Appetizers, Non-Alcholic Drinks, Salads, Entrees and Desserts.

Aggie, you are so special to me.  You have inspired me in the kitchen and in life.  You encouraged me to start this blog several years ago.  Even though I haven't blogged in over a year, I still cook and bake, I still love to try new recipes, and I still love to share recipes with family and friends.  

We are sooooo happy and excited for you, Larry, Sammy and Gina!  We love you dearly and we're counting down the days (I'm sure you are too) for baby Micah to join the family.            

My funny and fabulous brother Larry, the beautiful Aggie, and my wonderful nephew and niece, Sammy and Gina!  Can't wait until Micah joins the crowd!

Grilled Naan White Pizza Bites

Recipe adapted by Food n' Focus

Serves 4-6

Ingredients

4 Naan Flatbreads (I used Stonefire brand, found in deli section or speciality breads)

8 tablespoons pesto, homemade or store bought (I used Classico brand)

2 large tomatoes, sliced

Fresh Mozzarella, sliced (from deli or speciality cheese section)

Ricotta Cheese

Basil, sliced thin

olive oil

Preparation

Preheat grill to medium heat.  Brush one side of Naan Bread with olive oil.  Place side with olive oil down on grill rack.  Grill for a few minutes until bread starts to get light grill marks and is slightly crisp.  Take off grill, place on baking sheet(s) and set aside.

Spread 2 tablespoons pesto on each of the non-grilled sides of the bread.  Top with mozzarella cheese and tomato slices.  Place a few teaspoons of ricotta cheese around each pizza.  Close grill and cook for about 5 minutes or until cheese is melted.   

Remove from grill, sprinkle with basil and cut into slices.  

Cut into quarters for bite-size pieces

Serve as an appetizer or it's also great as a meal with a salad 


Here's the roundup of recipes from some of Aggie's Blogger friends....what a spread they put out for everyone.

Appetizers

Sundried Tomato Hummus from Robyn of Add a Pinch 

Melon & Prosicutto Balls from Paula of bell'alimento 

Bruschetta from Sheila of Eat2gather 

Jalapeno Poppers from Ali of Gimme Some Oven 

Grilled Naan White Pizza Bites from Jamie of Mom's Cooking Club 

Watermelon Feta Bites with Basil Olive Oil from Sandy of Reluctant Entertainer 

Pesto Caprese Fried Wontons from Julie of The Little Kitchen 

Blue Cheese Wedge Salad Crostini from Cheryl of TidyMom 

Drinks

Toasted Coconut Milkshakes from Bev of Bev Cooks 

Lemon Cream Soda from Angie of Eclectic Recipes 

Peach Sorbet Bellini and Spritzers from Shaina of Food for My Family 

Non Alcoholic Berry Spritzer from Lisa of Jersey Girl Cooks 

Virgin Peach & Raspberry Bellinis from Milisa of Miss in the Kitchen

Italian Basil Sparkling Lemonade from Marly of Namely Marly

Italian Sodas from Laura of Real Mom Kitchen 

Cafe Mocha Punch / or Iced Cafe Mocha from Amy of She Wears Many Hats 

Salads 

Italian Chopped Salad in a Jar {with Creamy Caesar Dressing} from Brenda of a farmgirl's dabbles 

Caprese Salad with Mozzarella Crisps from Christine of Cook the Story 

Pesto Pasta Stuffed Tomatoes from Suzanne of Kokocooks 

Grilled Romaine Caesar Salad from Liz of The Lemon Bowl 

Herbed Israeli Couscous Salad with Tomato and Mozzarella from Rachel of Rachel Cooks 

Chickpea, Avocado, & Feta Salad from Maria of Two Peas and Their Pod 

Lentil and Chickpea Layered Salad from Lisa of With Style & Grace 

Entrees

Chicken Cacciatore from Meagan of A Zesty Bite 

Zucchini, Bell Pepper & Edamame Stir-Fry from Cassie of Bake Your Day

Potato-Crusted Vegetarian Quiche with Zucchini, Tomatoes & Feta from Dara of Cookin' Canuck 

"Straw & Hay" Tagliatelle in Cream Sauce from Flavia of Flavia's Flavors 

Grilled Italian Chicken with Veggie & Bow Tie Pasta from Katie of Katie's Cucina 

Grilled Naan Pizza with Summer Veggies & Turkey Sausage from Kelley of Mountain Mama Cooks 

Smashed Chickpea and Avocado Panini from Kathy of Panini Happy 

Desserts 

Fresh Blueberry Shortbread with Lemon Cream Frosting from Sommer of A Spicy Perspective

Crostata di Mango from Lora of Cake Duchess 

Italian Ice from Kristen of Dine & Dish 

Roasted Banana and Nutella S'mores Bruschetta from Jenny of Picky Palate 

Italian Cream Cake from Deborah of Taste and Tell 

Panna cotta from Leslie of The Hungry Housewife

Fortune Cookies from Shari of Tickled Red 

Baby Vanilla Bean Scones a la Starbucks from Tara of Unsophisticook

Thank you Liz, Julie and Sandy for hosting and organizing this very special baby shower.  I know Aggie will be thrilled and touched!

Spring Break 2013 in Northern GA...it wasn't very "Springy" but we had a great day together!

Cousin time is special time!  We are looking forward to Micah in joining the dance party.

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  Try these other Naan Pizza's for more tastes and flavors....Enjoy!

Grilled Veggie Naan Pizza with Pesto

Grilled Tomato and Mozzarella Naan Pizza

Grilled Naan Stinger Pizzas

Grilled Baby Portabella Pesto Flatbreads

Andouille Sausage, Mushroom and Sun-dried Tomato Naan Pizza

Brushetta with Warm Tomatoes....."Have a Heart" with The Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club

Celebrate the month of February with Cooking Light recipes focusing on red foods.  Red foods are known to be heart healthy and full of vitamins/minerals.  Check out this article on Livestrong.com for the 10 Healthiest Red Foods. 

 This month, the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club has prepared a menu around red food.  We have some new members this month.  Welcome to Jerry from Jerry's Thoughts, Musings and Rants and Roz from La Bella Vita.  We are happy to have others join in our monthly gathering of Cooking Light recipes.

I made the Appetizer this month and my red food was tomatoes.  This is a delicious starter to any meal.  Warmed grape tomatoes that have been marinated in a balsamic vinegar, basil and garlic mixture on top of some toasted french bread rubbed with some extra garlic.  Why are simple, fresh food and ingredients just so good?  

Click here for Brushetta with Warm Tomatoes printable recipe on Myrecipes.com.   

Now, let's take a look at the rest of the "Have a Heart" menu from the other Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club members.  Click on each of their blog links for all the details of their red food dish.

Jamie (me) - Mom's Cooking Club - Brushetta with Warm Tomatoes - recipe below

Sandi - Whistlestop Cafe Cooking - Orange and Fennel Salad with Red Onions

Mary Ann - Meet Me in the Kitchen - Granny Smith, Radish and Radicchio Salad

Val - More Than Burnt Toast - Bourbon and Brown Sugar Flank Steak w/Garlic-Chive Mashed Potatoes

Jerry - Jerry's Thoughts, Musings and Rants - Roasted Sweet and Sour Beets, Carrots and Parsnips

Roz - La Bella Vita - Almond Jelly Roll with Raspberry Filling


Bruschetta with Warm Tomatoes

Recipe by Cooking Light, August 2004

Ingredients

2 1/2 cups grape, pear, or cherry tomatoes
3 tablespoons thinly sliced fresh basil
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
2 teaspoons olive oil
1/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon balsamic vinegar
1/8 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
1 garlic clove, minced
Cooking spray
4 (1-ounce) slices ciabatta or sourdough bread - I used Italian Bread and had enough tomato topping for approximately 7 slices
1 garlic clove, halved


Preparation

Combine first 8 ingredients, and let stand 1 hour.

Heat a medium nonstick skillet over medium heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add tomato mixture, and cook 10 minutes or until thoroughly heated, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat.

Heat a grill pan over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add bread; cook 2 minutes on each side or until toasted. Rub 1 side of each toast piece with the cut sides of garlic clove halves. Serve tomato mixture over toast.

Note: I used Italian Bread and the recipe was enough for about 7 slices of bread. You can easily double and triple this recipe. I also heated my bread in a regular skillet instead of a grill pan. Either one works fine.

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  While heating up the tomatoes, give them time to soften.  You will hear them pop as they warm up and the skin will break apart.  You want them to be in this stage before spreading on your toasted bread slices.

See the blog hop link below.  Feel free to link up any one of your red food posts.

Duo of Herb Dips......Basil Parmesan Dip with Pita Chips & Creamy Garlic-Herb Dip

The Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club "meets" again.  This month's theme is Cooking with Herbs.  There are endless recipes using herbs but the recipes this month showcase herbs as the STAR ingredient.  Myself and the 4 other bloggers in the Cooking Light Virtual Supper Club have put together a great menu to share with you.  I made 2 herb dips.  One that highlights basil and the other that highlights parsley and chives.  Both dips were very good and easy to put together.  I made pita chips with the Basil Parmesan Dip and they were excellent and went well with the dip.

Click here for the Basil Parmesan Dip with Pita Chips recipe.

Here's the rest of the menu from the other supper club members.  Make sure to click on their links to read more details about their recipe.

Val from More Than Burnt Toast - Olive and Asiago Rolls

Jamie (me) - Basil Parmesan Dip with Pita Chips & Creamy Garlic-Herb Dip

Sandi from Whistlestop Cafe Cooking - Chicken Stuffed with Herbs

Patsy from Family, Friends & Food - Risotto With Fresh Mozzarella, Grape Tomatoes and Basil

Shelby from The Lives and Loves of Grumpy's Honeybunch - Pound Cake with Lemon-Basil Glaze 

The Creamy Garlic Herb Dip is great with a variety of vegetables. 

Click here for the recipe on Myrecipes.com

My herb garden is growing like crazy....Basil, Italian Parsley and Thyme

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club:  Growing herbs at home is easy to do, fun and a great cost-saver.  I have herbs growing in pots and some in a small garden area.  You don't need alot of space and when a recipe calls for some herbs, I just go outside and cut what I need.   

Hot Chicken Dip

Happy New Year 2010!  It's been a busy holiday and I'm still traveling visiting family.  Hope everyone had a wonderful holiday with their family and friends.  I wanted to share this dip recipe that came from my nephew Ryan.  If you are looking for a different dip recipe that is perfect for those sports gatherings (like a Superbowl party), then you need to give this one a try.  I also wanted to remind everyone that my Kraft Foods Gift Basket Giveaway ends today at 11:00pm Central Time.  Click here to still enter.  I will randomly pick a winner on Sunday, January 3rd, 2010.

Hot Chicken Dip

Recipe shared by my nephew, Ryan Adams (original source unknown)

(Printable recipe) 

Ingredients 

1 pound of Deli Chicken Tenders from your grocery store at the Deli counter (or pound of boiled chicken or cooked bagged chicken tenders or chicken breasts from the frozen section) 

Frank's Red Hot Buffalo Wing Sauce (or your favorite hot sauce)

8 ounce package of cream cheese - softened

1/2 cup of ranch dressing or blue cheese dressing

shredded sharp cheddar cheese - 1/2 cup or a little more as desired 

Directions

Chop chicken in small bite size pieces.  Mix the chicken with Frank's hot sauce just so the chicken pieces are orange in color.  Add softened cream cheese and mix.  Add in dressing and mix.  Taste and add more hot sauce if needed.  Put in baking dish and top with shredded cheese (around 1/2 cup or so).  Bake for 25 minutes at 350 degrees.  Serve with pita chips, bagel chips, tortilla chips or even eaten on its own.
 

We ate the hot chicken dip with pita chips.
 

Enjoy!

Mom's Cooking Club Lesson:  To soften cream cheese easily and quickly, place cream cheese in microwavable bowl and microwave for 10-15 seconds or until soft.  Microwave for 10 second intervals if needed.