BBQ Chicken Pizza

In case it wasn't already obvious, I love chicken.  I could eat it every day for dinner and be happy.  Unfortunately, my family does not share this same obsession.  However, we are a pizza-crazed family and when I discovered this recipe, I thought I had a safe excuse to sneak in chicken for dinner.  This recipe looked easy to make, which is always a plus on my list.  Also, my dad has been big on making homemade pizza recently and I took full advantage of his pizza dough making abilities.  So, when I got home from student teaching my kindergarteners, all I had to do was prepare the toppings and pop the pizzas in the oven! My family and I loved this recipe and we will definitely be recreating it soon.

What you'll need:
1 store bought pizza crust or refrigerated crust (or 1 lb. homemade crust)
1/2 cup barbecue sauce
1 cup cooked and shredded chicken
1/2 cup thinly sliced red onion
1/2 orange bell pepper; diced
1-3/4 cups (7 oz.) Monterey Jack Shredded Cheese
Chopped cilantro; to taste (optional)

What to do:
1. Preheat oven to 475 degrees F. Place pizza crust on foil-lined baking sheet.
2. Spread barbecue sauce on pizza crust. Add shredded chicken, onion, and bell peppers on top of the barbecue sauce. Top with cheese.
3. Bake 12 to 15 minutes or until crust is deep golden brown. Cut into squares; garnish with cilantro.

Homemade Spaghetti Sauce

Spaghetti.  So easy to make, yet so delicious (who doesn't love carbs??).  In my house, spaghetti is one of those go-to dinners when you are too lazy to think of anything creative to make.  And sure, store-bought spaghetti sauce is convenient and easy but it is definitely not always the best.  This is the recipe for the spaghetti sauce that my mom's side of the family has been making forever! The good thing is that you can't really screw it up and can always adjust spices and other flavors to mix it up a little bit :) 

What you'll need:
1 lb. ground beef
1 tb. minced garlic
1/2-1 medium onion, diced
1 15 oz. can diced tomatoes (My mom cans tomatoes herself, so I just use that.. how convenient!)
1 small can tomato paste
1 15 oz. can tomato sauce
dried basil, Italian seasoning, salt, pepper (to taste)

What to do:
1. Brown hamburger, add onion and garlic near end. 
2. Add salt, pepper, dried basil, and Italian seasoning to taste.
3. Add tomato paste, diced tomatoes, and tomato sauce; simmer, stirring occasionally.