Fried Rice

This is one of our favorite "everything in the pot" left over recipes. 

Fried Rice

Ingredients:

Olive oil

Sesame oil (if you have it)

1-2 eggs

½-1 cup chopped carrots

½ cup onion

½ cup celery

1 tsp fresh ginger (optional)

2-4 cloves garlic (optional)

½ cup peas (frozen or canned)

½ cup corn (fresh off the cob, frozen, or canned)

1 cup chopped chicken or chopped ham

1-2 cups already cooked white rice

1-2 tbsp soy sauce

3 green onions chopped

Use a little olive oil and a little sesame oil to scramble and cook the egg(s).  set aside. 

Using the same pan, add a little more of each oil. Add the chopped vegetables (ginger and garlic if desired, not the green onion). Cook 8 minutes on medium heat.   

Add the already cooked meat. Add the cooked/cold rice. Stir and mix thoroughly.  

 Add soy sauce, 1 tbsp at a time. Combine well (you do not need much here).   

Remove from heat.   

Add egg and onions. Serve hot. 

Taco Pizza

I've learned that a big part of successful, low-stress cooking is making meals with ingredients that can be used for another meal later in the week (for instance, easy crockpot shredded chicken can be used for enchiladas, tacos, pulled chicken sandwiches, chicken salad, chicken pot pie and more).  So, while I think of leftovers as the same meal again, Cooked ingredients (like chicken or broccoli etc) that can be "repurposed" into a different dish feel like a fresh meal.  

So, tonight we used some "leftovers" and fresh ingredients to make a taco pizza.  

I preheated the oven to 450 degrees, and put the pizza stone in when I turned the oven on. 

I used the second ball of this dough from last night and rolled the crust and put it on a pizza pan.

Then I used 4 packets of mild sauce from Taco Bell (you know they give you a gazillion every time, don't throw them out, save them and use them for recipes like this) as the pizza sauce straight on the dough. It's a thin layer, but too much will make it too spicy. 

Then I added shredded mozzarella (you can use cheddar but it tends to be greasier). (about a cup)

Then I used pre-cooked and seasoned ground beef/taco meat and gave a generous layer on the pizza. (about a cup)

Then I added a layer of cooked pinto beans. (about a half cup).

Then jarred jalapenos on half of the pizza (since our 2 year old doesn't care for the extra spice).

Cook at 450 for 8 minutes. The dough should be firm enough to transfer to a pizza stone if you have one, if not, don't stress it. 

Cook for another 4 minutes and the crust should be browned and crispy and the cheese melted and browned.  

Serve hot topped with chopped cilantro, chopped green onion, avocado, salsa, or sour cream, or all of the above!

With the ingredients pre-cooked and ready to go and the dough already made, it took about 10 minutes to assemble and 12 minutes to cook.  Quick, easy and delicious!