Roasted Vegetable & Ricotta Pizza

What You'll Need:

• Pizza dough, either refrigerated or scratch made
• 2 cups Cremini mushrooms, sliced
• 1 cup Zucchini, sliced
• 1/4 tsp black pepper
• 1 medium Yellow Bell Pepper, sliced
• 1 medium Red Onion, sliced
• 5 1/2 tsp Olive Oil
• 1/3 cup tomato sauce
• 1 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 1/3 cup part-skim Ricotta cheese
• 2 tbsp fresh Basil leaves

What You'll Do:

1. Preheat your oven to 500 degrees.
2. Ready and pre-bake your pizza dough according to directions or recipe.
3. Combine the mushrooms, zucchini, black pepper, red onion, and bell pepper in a large bowl, mixing with 1 1/2 tsp Olive Oil.
4. Arrange vegetables on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes.  
5. Brush the pre-baked pizza dough with 1 tsp Olive Oil, then spread your tomato sauce over the dough leaving a border for a crust.
6. Sprinkle 1/2 cup Mozzarella over the tomato sauce and top with the vegetables.
7. Over the vegetables sprinkle the remaining 1/2 cup Mozzarella and crushed red peppers. Then dollop with the Ricotta cheese.
8. Bake pizza for 11 minutes or until crust is golden and cheeses are melted. Once the pizza comes out of the oven top with fresh Basil leaves.

** I use Pillsbury refrigerated pizza dough; all you need to do is unroll the dough. Nothing easier! **

Dish Info:

This delicious recipe serves 8 hungry adults at 347 calories a serving. It is taken from the April 2011 issue of Cooking Light.

Sweet Potato & Apple Saute

What You'll Need

• 2 tbsp butter, unsalted
• 2 Golden Delicious apples, unpeeled and diced
• 1 medium onion, diced
• 2 cans sweet potatoes, drained and diced (15-oz each)
• 1/2 cup apple juice or apple cider
• 1 1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
• 1/4 tsp Kosher salt

What To Do

1. In a large skillet, melt your butter over medium-high heat.
2. To the skillet add the apples and onions, cooking until tender, about 5 minutes.
3. Stir in diced sweet potatoes, apple juice (or cider), pumpkin pie spice, vinegar, and salt, bringing the mixture to a boil then reducing the heat.
4. Simmer for 10 minutes or until most of the liquid has evaporated.

Dish Info

This recipe will serve 6 people, depending on your appetites. It is also straight from the Semi-Homemade Queen, Sandra Lee, and her wonderful book Semi-Homemade 20 Minute Meals.

Bourbon Sweet Potato Casserole

What You'll Need

• 6 sweet potatoes, medium size
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup butter, melted
• 1/3 cup orange juice
• 1/4 cup Bourbon
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp Cinnamon
• Mini Marshmallows, 1 bag

What To Do

1. Wash sweet potatoes and wrap in foil, then cook in 400 degree oven. When the potatoes are soft, remove from the oven and let cool.
2. Remove the foil and the skins from the potatoes and mash in a large bowl.
3. Add the brown sugar, butter, orange juice, Bourbon, salt, and Cinnamon to your mashed sweet potatoes and beat until smooth.
4. Pour potato mixture into a slightly greased 9X13 pan and bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.
5. Remove dish from oven and sprinkle marshmallows over potato casserole and bake until the marshmallows are golden brown.

Dish Info

This recipe, always requested at Thanksgiving, will serve about 10 people. If you use more Bourbon you will serve less.