Pizza Rolls

So, Marta and Luke had a party tonight.  Tons of high schoolers attacked the house, and it was up to the rest of us to just stay out of the way.  During the party, at least.  Beforehand, we were front and center.  I wasn't too upset about making a ton of food... what a surprise!

Yes, I'm using my mom's camera.  Mine is kind of dead :/

In the recipe, the mozzarella cheese measurement doesn't need to be exact - just remember that you can freeze mozzarella, pepperoni, and marinara, and don't stress too much about having too much of those things relative to the dough.  Use all of your dough, and store your leftover ingredients, or use them the next day on a pizza!

Oh, and by the way - these were a hit.  The poor tray never knew what hit it.

Pizza Rolls
An Eliza original!

1 batch dough of your choice (any bread, pizza, or roll dough will work)
4+ cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 bag pepperoni, with each pepperoni quartered (stack them and cut)
Italian seasoning (optional)
1/4 cup melted butter
Parmesan cheese, grated or canned, to sprinkle
Garlic salt
Marinara sauce, for dipping (optional)

Preheat oven to 400 and get somebody to help you assemble.

Take a slightly-smaller-than-a-golf-ball piece of dough and roll it in flour so it's workable.  Flatten into a 2-inch disc.  Sprinkle about 1-2 tsp. of cheese and 4 pieces of pepperoni on top.  If desired, sprinkle lightly with Italian seasoning.  Gather the edges and crimp at the bottom.

Place on a greased pan, folded side down.  Repeat (until the pan is full).  Brush some melted butter on top of each, then sprinkle with parmesan cheese and garlic salt.  Bake for about 12 minutes, or until the bottoms of the rolls are golden.  Let cool and serve with cold marinara sauce!

Baba Ghanoush (Arab eggplant dish)

Sunflower Farmer's Market was having a sale on eggplant this week - 88 cents each!  So, duh, I had to buy four.  That's just how I roll.  I didn't realize until I'd gotten the eggplant how expensive the tahini was going to be, but that's another story.

I'm not sure how authentic this recipe is, but I really like it.  Besides the tahini and eggplant, I had everything on hand.  And it's delicious.  Right now I'm freezing a small portion of it to see how well it freezes - I'll let you know how that goes.  [Update: It freezes amazingly!  Just let it thaw in the fridge for a few hours before eating.]  But next time there is a sale on eggplant at your local grocery store, you should try making baba ghanoush.  It would be especially exciting to try on a grill, but as I am at college, I just used the broiler.

I have to warn you - it's not universally appealing.  But if you like eggplant and/or tahini, you will enjoy this delicious food.  You can eat it alone, spread it on bread, pita, or crackers, or use it as a sandwich spread.

Prick the eggplants - so they don't explode!

Then roast them.  Until they're falling apart.

Look at the inside...

Scoop out all the good stuff.

And dump it in a bowl with tahini, lemon juice, garlic, salt, and parsley.

Stir it all up.  Mmm.

Spread it on your carb of choice.  I chose French bread.  If you wanted to serve this as an appetizer, it might be good to sprinkle some parmesan cheese on top.. but I'm kind of a cheese fiend, so take that as you will.  

Baba Ghanoush
Via the Pioneer Woman

3 medium eggplants (whole)
1/4 cup tahini
4 cloves garlic, finely minced
1/4 cup lemon juice
3 Tbs. olive oil
1/8 cup dried parsley or 1/3 cup fresh, chopped
Salt, to taste

Prick each eggplant with a fork, several times.  Broil for about 30 minutes, turning every 5 minutes.  By the time it's done, the skin should tear when you stick a fork in it to turn it over.  It will be blackened and very wrinkled.  Remove from oven.

Cut the very top part (stem area, about 1 inch) off of the eggplants.  Cut your shriveled eggplants down the middle and let them cool until you can handle them.  Scoop the flesh out of each eggplant and put it all in a medium bowl.  Mash it around with a fork until it's a texture you like.  If it's still stringy, use your immersion blender so you can scoop out individual portions.

Add all of the other ingredients.  Mix it up and serve.  It can be eaten cold or warm.  Enjoy!