Egg and Pesto Stuffed Tomatoes

People always ask what I eat or what diet I'm on and I pretty much dabble in everything. Sometimes my meals are paleo and sometimes they are low carb. Other times they are rich pastas or delicious desserts. I'm a big fan of moderation. I've been trying to do a little more Paleo in the morning because we all eat different things at this house for breakfast so I can experiment a bit more.

I was pretty excited when I stumbled on to this recipe. Paleo and breakfast. Score!

At Crossfit my trainer told me about this breakfast they made where they cracked eggs into a tomato, baked them, and ate them. It sound very interesting and easy so I went on a search for temperatures and recipes.

I love pesto so of course this seemed like the obvious choice to try. I made these the next morning and they were awesome. Definitely not something I would make for the whole family since I am the only tomato lover in my house but definitely a me breakfast. I've made them a few times since and each time is better.

You should try these.

Egg and pesto stuffed tomatoes
adapted from Paleo Diet Lifestyle
2 large tomatoes
2 eggs
1 Tbs. pesto

Preheat oven to 400. Remove core and seeds from tomato. If it doesn't have a flat bottom slice a little off the bottom so that it sits upright. Place tomatoes in an 8x8 pan. Add pesto to tomato shell and crack one egg on top off pesto. Be careful to not break the yolk. Sprinkle some salt and pepper on top. Bake 18-21 minutes. Remove from oven and Enjoy.

Pesto
*This recipe will make more than necessary but I just put it in the fridge or freeze it and use whenever.

2 cups fresh basil leaves, packed
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan-Reggiano or Romano cheese
2-3 Tbs. fresh lemon juice
1/3 cup pine nuts or walnuts
3 medium sized garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste

Add basil, cheese, lemon juice, nuts, and garlic in to a food processor and pulse until combined. With motor running slowly drizzle olive oil in to food processor. Add salt and pepper.

 

Pizza Night!!

At least a couple times a month we have pizza night. I know it'll always be a hit and it's easy to change out ingredients to what I have on hand. The other week i had a ton of ham so we had ham and cheese pizza. It was so good. We've had 4 cheese when I need to get rid of the last bit. But most of the time it's turkey pepperoni.

I love pizza night because now that Wesli is older so some nights we have make your own pizza where she shapes it and puts on her own sauce and toppings. I love the crust because it's whole wheat. The sauce is made from scratch too. So healthy! So delicious!

Honey Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
*Makes 2 12-inch pizzas or 1 large 16 to 18-inch pizza

1 1/4 cups warm water
2 teaspoons instant yeast
2 tablespoons sugar
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 teaspoons salt
3 cups whole wheat flour or white flour (I prefer wheat)
.
* If you don't use instant yeast, proof it first and increase it 3 teaspoons.

Combine salt and flour into a medium size bowl. In large bowl or in the bowl of your mixer add water, yeast, sugar, honey, and oil and mix well until combined. Add 1 cup of the flour/salt mixture to wet ingredients. Slowly add rest of flour until you get a nice, soft dough. Knead for 10 minutes by hand or five minutes with the mixer. Place in a lightly oiled ball and cover tightly. Stick in the fridge or garage and let rise overnight. If not overnight try to make the dough early in the morning.

Take dough out and let warm up about 3 hours before baking. Roll out onto a baking sheet.

One hour before baking turn your oven on to 475 degrees and move your rack to the lowest position. Place a baking stone in there and when you have the pizza all rolled out and topped place the pan on the stone and bake for 9-10 minutes. Pull out let sit for a few minutes and enjoy!!

The Best Pizza Sauce
*Makes enough for 2 16-18 inch pizzas
1 (14.5 ounce) can diced tomatoes

1 small can tomato paste

1 teaspoon sugar

1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon garlic salt

pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
Combine all ingredients in food processor or blender and blend until desired consistency. All the seasonings can be modified depending on taste – add what you like!

Sauce credited to Mel's Kitchen Cafe
Crust adapted from Mel's Kitchen Cafe