Lazy Dinners

So, even though I was sick last week, I still managed to get a hot dinner on the table every night that I wasn't working. Here are 2 of my husband's favorite lazy dinners that I make. Both of them take less than 20 minutes to prepare and less than 20 minutes in the oven. The first recipe is for french bread pizzas. I don't know about you, but I haven't found my "perfect" pizza crust yet. I've used a few recipes and tried out frozen and packaged doughs. No bueno. The solution? French bread! My grocery store's bakery always has a selection of fresh baked breads for under $2. It's so easy to just keep a loaf or two in the freezer for when you want to make pizzas, special french toast, croutons, baguette for hummus, subs for football parties or just about anything. As far as the pizza sauce goes, you can use your favorite recipe or if you're feeling lazy like I was last week, mix a tablespoon of pesto (which I always have on hand as well, Classico makes the best pesto!) with a small jar of pizza sauce to zest things up a bit. Pizza sauces can be found next to all of the spaghetti sauces at your grocery store. I paid $1 for mine and it turned out great. Use whatever toppings you have on hand. I always have a big jar of roasted red peppers and huge container of fresh baby spinach on hand. I buy both of these items in bulk at Sams Club and use them for salads, sandwiches, omelets, quiches, pasta, casseroles and protein shakes (I'll post my favorite "green" shake next week). The second recipe is for chicken pot pie. In this recipe, I used a can of biscuit dough that I had in the fridge for the crust. I also used just whatever ingredients I had in the pantry/freezer and it turned out better that Marie Calendar's. Haha. Enjoy these lazy dinners & feel free to leave comments and suggestions!

FRENCH BREAD PIZZAS

INGREDIENTS:
-1 loaf of french bread, halved
-1 cup of your favorite pizza sauce
-1 tbsp pesto
-2 cups shredded mozzarella
-1/4 cup fresh grated parmesan
-3-4 fresh basil leaves, chopped
-1 package of pepperoni
-2 handfuls of fresh spinach
-3 whole roasted red peppers
-4 strips of cooked bacon

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to 400*
2. Place both french bread halves soft side up on a cookie sheet
3. Mix together the pizza sauce and pesto & spread it onto the bread.
5. Layer cheese and other ingredients (I like to put the fresh parmesan on top)
6. Bake for 20 minutes or until cheese is melted.

CHICKEN POT PIE

INGREDIENTS:
-2 cans of reduced fat cream of chicken soup
-1 cup of water
-1/4 cup frozen peas
-1/4 cup frozen corn
-2 carrots, peeled and thinly chopped
-2 celery stalks, thinly chopped
-1 large chicken breast, cooked & shredded
-1 tsp ranch seasoning
-1/2 tsp poultry seasoning
-pinch of garlic powder
-pinch of onion powder
-1/2 tsp salt
-1/2 tsp pepper
-1 can of biscuit dough (I used Pillsbury Grande)

DIRECTIONS:
1. Preheat oven to whatever temperature it takes to cook your biscuits.
2. In a large skillet, saute celery and carrots in a tbsp of olive oil. Once the celery and carrots are mostly cooked, add cream of chicken soup, shredded chicken, peas, corn, and seasonings; stir. Cover and simmer for about 10 minutes.
3. Pour mixture into a casserole dish and top with biscuits. Bake for 15 minutes or until biscuits brown.