no doubt, the gods are crazy

Well, the gods are against us. For reals people. Considering J and I never get to go out alone - ever. - and we actually had someone to watch the kids, this past weekend had looked bright. But as usual, we are forever being punished for something we did in a past life. To start things off, who in the hell starts their period the day before Valentines day? me. Seriously, not only is this cruel, but it is just plain mean. Very romantic, a real deal killer. Not to let anyone top that, they decide that L needs to get a new set of teeth. Molars to boot. The kid is a mess. Snot, drool, hacking cough, up all night, and just pitiful looking. Poor kid. Poor us. Needless to say, nana and papa did offer to watch the girls for a bit, and we were able to catch a flick. We then whisked our defeated family back to our compound to rest up in our own environment. Suck.

I'll just get down to the nitty gritty today - here's this week's menu:

Monday -Happy President's day homemade Pizza & Caesar salad-recipe to follow
Tuesday -Spaghetti & Caesar-using sauce that we made a couple of weeks ago and froze
Wednesday -Tacos
Thursday- swedish meatballs/potatoes/green beans
Friday- Teriyaki chicken w/ rice
Saturday- Veggie night -baked potatoes & Caesar salad
Sunday- Baked rotini/bread/caesar salad


Pizza Crust - this crust is a mix of a couple of recipes that I found and worked with what I had on hand and wah lah!

4 tsp bulk dry yeast
1.5 c warmish (bathtub warm) water
4 tsp sugar
1/3 c olive oil
4.5-5 c flour
1-2 tsp roasted garlic granuals

sprinkle and mix yeast w/ water, then add sugar, let sit for about 10 min or until fuzzy looking. Start by adding the olive oil, garlic, and yeast mix into mixer (I use a kitchenaid for the whole bit)let mix for a couple of minutes. Change out to the dough hook, and start adding 3 cups flour slowly to the mix until it starts to pull from the sides,it gets kind of spider-webby looking, let got for about 10 minutes. At this point add remaining flour until smooth.
I then leave dough in the mixing bowl, cover and let rise. Let sit for about 30 minutes, punch down and let sit for another 30 minutes(or whenever you remember to get back to it :)) Split into two balls, set one aside. Spray some Pam on that baking sheet or pizza stone and start to roll out the dough. I use a combination of my fingers and a pin. I put the pan aside, cover until I'm ready to use it. Add toppings and back at 425 for 20-30 minutes. Enjoy. The sauce I got from here I didn't exactly like it, I just used what I had on hand, but I have to say that garlic is a must.

Oh, the other ball that you set aside- cover with parchments paper or plastic wrap put in a labeled ziploc and toss in the freezer for next time.

Picture to come.

Also, I'm making croutons again. This time I'm trying a method that shouldn't take days. Hopefully, they don't end up chipping teeth and being used to sand the roads. Wish me luck, we'd really like croutons in our salads this week.