Stromboli and Everything Yeast Dough

We love pizza at my house. Matter of fact I think most of us could eat pizza for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. There's just one problem pizza is expensive! Even the cheap pizza gets expensive when you are at the end of your two week pay period (can I get an Amen?!)


I've been playing around with making my own pizza dough for a few months. I've used boxed mixes, the bread machine and more. You name it and I've probably tried it. Finally I have found a fool proof recipe that turns out great every time and is super versatile. 


Next week I'm going to try making cinnamon rolls out of this dough!

Everything Yeast Dough


1 T. fast acting yeast (by my measurements 1 of the little pouches is equal to 1 T.)
2 1/2 c. flour (you could do a mix of whole wheat)
1 tsp. turbinado or regular sugar
1 tsp. salt
1 c. warm water (I just let my tap run for a few minutes to get it nice and warm)


Mix the yeast with the water; mix all dry ingredients together. Stir in water until dough starts to come together. Dump onto floured surface and knead for just a few minutes until dough stays together well. Makes two small pizzas, or wrap small pieces around little smoked sausages or cut hot dogs, or cover with pepperoni and cheese then roll up jelly roll style to make a Stromboli or simply cut into strips for bread sticks.


For the Stromboli and bread sticks I slather the outside with butter when I pull it out of the oven and then sprinkle garlic sea salt and Parmesan cheese on top! YUM! Also, I don't put the pizza sauce on the inside. Instead I put it in a little bowl and serve it as a dipping sauce.

Lemon Blueberry Scones

My daughter Molly LOVES the vanilla bean scones from Starbucks (it's our guilty pleasure when we go and shop at Target!) but when you shop at Target as often as I do that $2 bucks starts adding up quickly. So I set out to make my own scones at home.


For the cost of three petite scones at Starbucks, I made a dozen!

Lemon Blueberry Scones


2 1/2 c. flour (you could use 50/50 whole wheat and white if you want)
1/2 c. sugar
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1/2 tsp. salt
2 T. butter
3/4 c. half and half
zest of one lemon
1/2 c. blueberries (frozen works best)


In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients; cut in butter until it makes crumbs (like when you make a biscuit). Add half and half, lemon and blueberries.  Mix gently! Put contents on a floured surface and knead lightly until dough comes together. It will be flaky. Pat out until about an inch or so thick. Cut into triangles like a pizza. Bake for 15 minutes or until slightly browned at 375 degrees. These freeze really well too. Freeze on cooking sheet before storing in a freezer bag.

Icing:

1 T. lemon juice

1/2 c. powdered sugar

2 tsp. water (DO NOT USE MILK or you will have buttermilk!)

Mix the water in 1 teaspoon at a time until desired consistency is reached. Spread on scones while still warm.