Week in Pictures: April 4, 2011

It's been a bit of a crazy week. We've had construction guys in my kitchen almost every day, which has made cooking a challenge at times. The good news is...my new hood is in!

Here's what I made this week:

Sunday:

We had a lazy day on Sunday and the boys slept most of the afternoon. So, I didn't make anything fancy for dinner. I did make Crockpot Apple Coffee Cake for our small group, although I forgot to add the sugar. It was that kind of day. There's no picture of that mistake!

We did snack on these yummy Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Truffles that I made last week instead.

Monday:

Crockpot Teriyaki Chicken. After a busy weekend with guests for dinner on Friday and Saturday, and company on Sunday, plus all the running around and staging, I knew I needed to keep it simple. Love this meal. It's something I've made many times, so...no picture again.

Tuesday:

Ovenschotel met gehaktballetjes en winterpeen. This is officially my new favorite Dutch recipe. WOW!!! So SO good. It translates to Casserole with Meatballs and Carrots, and the secret ingredient is Ketjap Manis, which is a sweet Indonesian soy sauce. You should be able to find it in an Asian or Dutch store. You can also make it yourself. YUM!

Wednesday:

Such a fun night! My Valentines Day gift from The Hubs was a knife skills class with a friend. We had a blast, and totally rocked our Greek Panzanella Salad. There was lots of cutting and lots of learning.

Thursday: I was wiped. We had leftovers.

Friday:

Crockpot Coconut Beef. This one was a total experiment, and The Hubs actually liked it more than I did. I forgot to start the rice, so I made couscous instead and added a big handful of flaked coconut (unsweetened). I thought it had a bite, but The Hubs thought it was just right.

Saturday:

BBQ Chicken Pizza. I was a little afraid, but I made my first homemade pizza dough to go with this recipe. It took a little time, because the dough needed to rise, but WOW, so, so good. I'll definitely make this again. Maybe next week because my dough recipe made enough for two pizzas.

I'll have to make a separate post about the dough because I found the recipe in a book, but here's a sneak peak: 4.5 cups flour (I used 1 c. whole wheat, the rest AP), 2 t. yeast, 2 t. salt, 2 T. sugar, 2 T olive oil and 1 3/4 cup COLD water (I thought it was odd that it wasn't warm, but it worked). Combine all dry ingredients. Add oil and water. Stir together until mixture becomes dough. Knead 10 minutes (a great workout if you don't have a mixer!). Form into 2 balls, place in lightly oiled bowls. Cover and let rise for 1-2 hours. When doubled in size, punch down. Let rest 20 min. Roll or pull dough to size of your pizza pan. Add toppings and bake. (Dough lasts in frig for 6 days).

Eet Smakelijk!