Chicken Noodle Casserole {from scratch}

My mom, rather famously (in my family), made a few vows about things she would never do when she had children:

1. Never be absent (her parents owned a business and were very busy. She knew she always wanted to be really involved with us and she was! She was a girl scout troop leader AND a cub scout leader, she volunteered at our schools, and she was just always very present.)
2. Never make her daughter cut her hair. Apparently there was a somewhat traumatic incident where my grandparents forced my mom (kicking and screaming) to chop off her very long hair-into something of a boy-length cut. She promised she would never force that fate upon her future daughter--me! Thank goodness. She somewhat regretted that vow occasionally but she never made me cut my hair off.
3. She would never ever make meatloaf or tuna noodle casserole.

I know. The last one seems a bit random. Apparently those were food items that were fairly common in her household and she hated them. So...she was like "never again." And she never did. I'm ok with this because I don't like meatloaf or tuna noodle casserole. It all worked out. 

What this has to do with this recipe is: Chicken Noodle Casserole was my mom's adaptation of the dreaded Tuna Noodle Casserole. Essentially, she subbed in things she liked for things she hated (chicken instead of tuna, cream of chicken soup instead of cream of mushroom). And what resulted was probably my favorite meal growing up.

Since I was (and am) such a picky eater (and since my mom is not in love with cooking, and is pretty picky herself)-if I found something I liked...we ate it. Alot. Like...there was a point where this casserole was made weekly. My poor brother was so tired of it. But I could not get enough! I requested it constantly. I was sick? Chicken noodle casserole. It's my birthday? Chicken noodle casserole. It's Tuesday and I'm hungry? Chicken noodle casserole. And then....I moved away. And I started to learn how to cook. And I realized I had overdone it with the casserole...and sorta didn't want it anymore. And somehow here I am and I haven't eaten chicken noodle casserole in over 5 years.

Correction-I hadn't eaten chicken noodle casserole in over 5 years.
That dry spell has ended!

The other day I was hungry and itching for a recipe I hadn't made before...or at least recently. And I was thinking about all the ingredients I had and what could be done with them and...my brain just thought of this casserole. And I knew it was time to bring it back. So I talked to my mom and got the original recipe (for the tuna noodle casserole) as well as what her substitutions were. And I knew I was going to have to make my version a bit more from scratch (although I suppose since I bought the noodles and the breadcrumbs it's not technically from scratch...whatever). So I created what you see here. It tasted just like I remember. And it was still so darn simple to make (yes...even with me making homemade cream of chicken soup and roasting the chicken). It just tastes like comfort and home and like a creamy chicken noodle soup in casserole form. 

Perfect to make you feel cozy on a chilly day.

And to make you feel home.

And to make you want to give your mom a big hug. <3

(Speaking of giving my mom a big hug: Tomorrow is my birthday! And I was super sad because it was looking like I wouldn't have anything to do until the evening, when people got off from work. BUT my mom decided to take the day off so she and I can spend the earlier part of the day together. We're going to go shopping and out to eat and I'm sooo excited. Best mom ever!)

Crispy Chicken with Italian Sauce & Noodles

"It smells like fried food in here."

"What's this?"

"Is it healthy?" 

All asked within 5 minutes of my brother's arrival to my house.

"Um...well...I mean...the chicken is like...pan fried...um...and the sauce isn't full of preservatives? Sooooo?"

"Well the pasta is just carbs so I'll just eat chicken and sauce," and then he sat down to eat a bunch of my chicken and sauce. Thus concludes the tale of the mooch-y carb-free brother.

Silly brother aside--you should totally not skip the pasta. The pasta plus cream sauce plus chicken creates a trifecta of yum. And I used whole wheat pasta so it was totally fine :P. The sauce is sort of alfredo-esque, but more herbaceous? And with the chicken this is sort of a chicken parmesan situation...but without the melted cheese on the chicken...and not tomato sauce...and the chicken has a bit of a sweetness to it because of the cornflakes....but you get the idea.

The perfect bite starts with the tender, juicy chicken encrusted in that slightly sweet fried breading. Then it gives way to a creamy, rich, delightful sauce which encases some chewy noodles. Yum. Very filling too-a tiny bowl will pretty much satisfy your belly, even if you have a demanding, Italian stomach like myself and Michael.*

*(Fun fact: he doesn't know what it means to be hungry. He says he's hungry and I tell him "Just because you're not full doesn't mean you're hungry. Do you actually feel hunger?" and he replied, "That's not being hungry, that's STARVING." True story.

French Dip Sandwiches

Hi. I'd like to introduce you to my new favorite thing. (I know I say that a lot, but stay with me on this.)

It's essentially super tender shredded roast beef. On bread. With mozzarella cheese. Dipped in the juice the beef cooked in. And it's filling and comforting and SO YUMMY I COULD DIE.

Like, literally. I almost died for this sandwich.

... ok not exactly.

What happened was I went to slice a baguette in half for a sandwich (my 3rd and final one from this batch, in fact) and I um...didn't have my fingers placed wisely. So I ended up slicing into my middle finger with a bread knife! Albeit a sharp Wusthof bread knife, but still. Embarassing.

So then my finger was bleeeeding and bleeding and I realized this was a much deeper cut than I've dealt with in the past and I realized I might actually need medical attention. But first I called my mom, in hopes she would be like "Nah. You're cool." But she told me to call my doctor. So I did. And they said I, at the very least, should have a tetanus shot so yeah I should go to Urgent Care. So Michael left work (just 30 min. early) and came home and took me to Urgent Care (leaving a bathroom full of bloodiness in our wake) and long story not that short I ended up with 3 stitches.

MY FIRST STITCHES EVER! It was not fun. But you know what I did when I came home?

I made myself that sandwich.* And I ate it. And it was all worth it in the end.

*My mom cut the bread for me this time....just for safety.

So now I'm typing this post with a bunch of gauze on my left middle finger that makes it look like a snowman. And my finger hurts. I should probably take some Tylenol. You probably didn't care about any of this and you just want to know about the sandwich. My bad.

Super tender and flavorful, falling apart, perfect roast beef that you just let cook in a crock-pot gets piled onto your favorite bread (I obtained some roasted garlic loaves of bread from Giant Eagle but you do whatever you want. Next time I'll probably go for a more straightforward kind of hoagie or some such). Then you melt some lovely mozzarella on top. And...then you top it with the other half of the bread that you sacrificed your finger for. And then you dip the bread in some of that lovely "au jus" (which I presume translates to "with juice", yes?) that is the good beefy brothy stuff the beef cooked in. And it's heaven. Perfect for this chill that's currently in the air. Perfect for a girl whose finger is hurting. Perfect for youuu.

Mashed Potato Pizza

Sometimes inspiration hits you like a sledgehammer.

One day I was just on facebook, like I do, and I saw a girl I knew from high school posted a promo from a restaurant about how their "Mashed Potato Pizza is Back!" and I was just like "WHAAAAA??!"

And I knew I must make it.

What does a pizza consist of? Crust, sauce, cheese, toppings.
What does this pizza consist of? Crust, mashed potato, cheese, topping.

Pretty similar.

Pizza is always the perfect dish because you can completely, 100%, make it according to your preference. I used whole wheat thin crust pizza crust, because I like it. You can use whatever suits your fancy-whether that be store-bought or your favorite recipe. You can also use regular, plain old mashed potatoes or jazzed up ones (like garlic mashed potatoes! Or ones with sour cream!)--and you can use fresh mashed potatoes or save on time by using leftover. Top it with your cheese of choice. And then whatever toppings make you happy-which for me are chives/scallions. For you it might be bacon. Who knows!?

Also, if you're extra special and get your hands on some STAR Grilling Cuisine Cooking Oil (with garlic!) it makes a tasty addition when brushed onto the pizza dough before baking. Just saying.

It's fall. Comfort food season. What's more comforting than pizza AND mashed potatoes?!

Grandma's Beef Stroganoff-Beef Checkoff #MC #Sponsored

I participated in an Influencer Activation Program on behalf of Mom Central Consulting for the Beef Checkoff. I received products to facilitate this review and a promotional item to thank me for participating.

This recipe should actually be titled: Grandma's Beef Stroganoff, adapted by Mom, adapted further by me. But that's a bit of a mouthfull. My grandma's recipe involves mushrooms. Mom and I are not fans so she adapted this recipe to use gravy and beef broth instead. And then I further adapted it by making stuff a little bit more from scratch (namely...subbing out a packet of onion soup for actual seasonings) and I added more chunks of beef. Because....really...more beef=more better.

But I'm getting ahead of myself. First of all...I gotta say it: I'm a beef gal. I love it. If I got out to eat there's a decent chance I'll get a burger, steak, or roast beef. Because BEEF IS DELICIOUS. And the insane thing is...I ALMOST NEVER make beef at home! Something about my inability to grill mixed with my constant butchering of my mom's pot roast recipe have led to a beef drought in this house that HAD TO END.

So I ended it. Thanks to the Beef Checkoff!

What's the Beef Checkoff? It is a national marketing and research program, established in 1985, funded by America's cattle farmers/ranchers. The national checkoff program is directed by cattle farmers, ranchers, and importers and they direct funds to research and promotion to increase domestic (and potentially international) demands for BEEF! Plus it's overseen by The Cattlemen's Beef Board and the USDA. One of the contractors for Beef Checkoff is the National Cattlemen's Beef Association-they manage research and promo programs on behalf of US farmers and ranchers (and are also overseen by the Cattlemen's Beef Board and the USDA)-including the "Beef. It's What's for Dinner" brand--you guys totally know that one, yeah? Yeah!

Here is what I know: The "Beef. It's What's for Dinner" website is AWESOME! Like...I feel like I officially have 0 reasons to not make beef more! The website has a ton of recipe ideas, grilling tips and info (helpful for my grilling phobia!), and even info. about the health benefits of beef (hint: there are tons!) You def. need to check it out and then try to find new ways to incorporate beef into your home cooking too! In my oh so humble opinion.

To celebrate my new commitment to making beef dishes at home I decided to really take it home--I created my Grandma's Beef Stroganoff recipe and served it to my mom and grandma (and Michael, duh!) We had such a fun little dinner party (featuring the use of my adorable new Beef Checkoff oven mitt :P), and I was a little nervous about serving them my version of the recipe that they both have in their regular repertoire! Of course, my nerves were for naught. EVERYONE loved this tasty dish-and my mom said she couldn't even taste the difference with the fact that I subbed out the dried soup! Hooray! It just tastes comforting and beefy (I know, weird adjective, but true!) and flavorful and it's just my idea of the perfect entree.

Seriously, could not be an easier recipe. You throw a bunch of stuff in the crockpot. Let it go. Boil some noodles. SERVE! Easy peasy and a def. new favorite-Michael full on approved and insisted that I should make it regularly as well. Crowd pleeeeaser!

Garlic Parmesan Chicken Lasagna

 

My picky eating is a much bigger problem in the savory food world than the sweet (I mean...we can all agree chocolate and sugar and butter are delicious, amirite?) So I get SO. GOSH. DARNED. EXCIIITED when I find a new dinner recipe! Like...sure....they're pretty much all variations on each other (chicken? check. garlic? check. some kind of cheese? check. A carb? CHECK) but....I mean...whatever...they're sort of different...

Anyway. So like....I love chicken. I love garlic. I love lasagna.  I love Parmesan. Sooooo let's be real: Garlic Parmesan Chicken Lasagna was MADE FOR ME TO LOVE AND TO EAT! (I've made it twice already)

And ya know what's sort of dope (yeah. I just said dope. dealwithit!)? I used MY OWN,  freshly grown, parsley to top this lasagna and for the pictures!! FRESH HERBS ARE THE BESTEST! (yes....I said the word dope and then I said "bestest". I'm a complex woman.)

This lasagna tastes like...home to me. Like...it's a cross between lasagna (of which I actually love my mom's mom's recipe and use it to this day.) and this chicken noodle casserole dish that was probably made every week or every other week growing up because I WAS OBSESSED with it. This dish is like those....but better. It's probably gonna be made a lot from now on. It doesn't even take long to make (especially if you use pre-cooked chicken)! *happy dance*

I know even my mom would like this recipe. And she's just as picky as me. It was funny, my cousin Megan asked me the other day "Do you eat like your mom or like normal people?" To which I replied, "Somewhere in between...." My mom got a bit offended and insisted she eats way more things than me-which used to be true. Now I'd say we're probably even. We both eat things the other won't, but for the most part we're both pretty basic. I, however, am much more open to new foods than my darling mother (I like to cite the dreaded incident where I made her my just chicken pot pie recipe and she PICKED OUT ALL THE SCALLIONS! Like....what?! She insisted she'd gag if she ate one, to which I told her the flavor was there regardless! Agh!) Anyway...yeah. She'd like this. I'm pretty, darrrrn, sure! In fact-I think I'll make it for her soon! Hooray for having that option!

I mean...I don't know what else to say. Garlicky sauce, cheese, noodles, chicken. 

You obviously are gonna love it.

Garlic Parmesan Chicken Lasagna

Slightly adapted from Pinch of Yum

Serves 9-12.

Ingredients:

• 6 tbsp. butter
• 1 and 1/2 tbsp. minced garlic (4-5 cloves)
• 6 tbsp. flour
• 1/2 tsp. poultry seasoning
• 3/4 tsp. salt
• 5 cups milk
• 10-15 no boil lasagna noodles
• 3 cups cooked, shredded, chicken (rotisserie adds great flavor, but you can also just bake/roast up some chicken)
• 1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 1/2 cup Swiss cheese (I've also used mozzarella)
• 1 cup water
• 1/4 cup seasoned breadcrumbs
• Optional-fresh herbs, such as parsley

Preparation:

• In a large saucepan, over medium heat, melt butter. Add garlic and saute until fragrant, stirring to avoid burning.
• Add flour, poultry seasoning, and salt. Whisk and cook or about 1 minute.
• Add milk, 1 cup at a time, stirring until slightly thickened before adding the next cup. Continue cooking until thickened, smooth, and simmering. Remove from heat.
• Grease a 9"x13" with nonstick cooking spray and preheat oven to 400F degrees.
• Cover the bottom of the pan with broken lasagna noodles (3-5), half of the shredded chicken, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese, 1/3 cup water (this helps cook the noodles), and 1 and 1/2 cups of the prepared sauce. Repeat this 1 time. Top with another layer of noodles, the final 1/3 cup water and 1 and 1/2 cups sauce, and the Swiss (or mozzarella) cheese. 
• Cover with foil and bake 40 minutes.
• Remove foil and cover the top with breadcrumbs. Bake 5-10 minutes, until golden and bubbly. 
• Sprinkle with fresh herbs and let stand for 10 minutes before cutting and serving.

I baked this with love. For you!

Baked Tortilla Chicken-and a Better Chip review! #TBCInsiders

By now, you probably know I tend to prefer natural, real, fresh food. Which is why I was SO excited to sample and develop a recipe using  The Better Chip! The Better Chip is essentially a tortilla chip that uses farm-fresh ingredients for a real, simple, great taste. The Better Chip is also naturally gluten-free, vegan friendly, and verified non-GMO!

AND there are currently 5 varieties of The Better Chip! Classic corn chips, for purists like myself, Chipotles and Jalapeño will give your snack some kick, while the Beet and Spinach & Kale varieties put your veggies in your chips! My faves are probably the corn chips and the beet (surprisingly, because I don't really like beets!) so I used those 2 to create a simple and delicious tortilla crusted baked chicken recipe (but you could use any of the chip flavors!) Match made in heavennnn!

This recipe is crazy customizeable! You want some spicy chicken? Use the jalapeno and/or chipotle chips and maybe throw some chili powder in there too! Interested in getting your veggie on? Use the beet and spinach/kale varieties! And don't even get me started on the ways you can use your finished chicken/what sauces you could serve it with! I know I was horribly negligent by not making a sauce to go with the chicken but...well...I just didn't have the time or ingredients. I'm sorry guys...forgive me? Learn from my mistakes! Get some sauce with yo chicken!

Southern Style Chicken and Dumplings (with Slow Cooker Method)

2019 update: I perfected the recipe with a slow cooker method that has a much thicker texture and is perfection!! It's a new favorite and I've added the instructions under the regular recipe. xoxo

Um...I don't know if maybe I did something wrong here? I'm just gonna 'fess up: I thought this recipe would be thicker but...for me...it was kind of like soup. Now....that's totally cool. It's yummy soup! But I'm not sure if my perception was wrong or if I did something wrong? Regardless, I've slightly minimized the amount of chicken broth in this recipe.

ANYWAY. Now that we got that out of the way. I want to tell you that this is really comforting. And delicious. I've never been to the South (aside from driving through it and a couple family vacations in Virginia and Disney World-but I don't think Disney counts). But...I really feel like I'd enjoy the food. Comfort food. That's the thing. And that's what I AM ALL ABOUT!

And, uh, yeah....for the record...while we're on the subject: Ohio's not the South. Anyone actually from the South knows this but there are weird groups of people who do not. I'm always like "It's a pretty Northern state...sooo..." and then people tell me they love my southern accent and I'm like "I DON'T HAVE ONE?!" (I don't. Seriously. I took a whole class in school about sounding phonetically neutral and I am. I am accentless. There were 2 words when I went into the class that were just slightly Michigan/Chicago-esque. But those got fixed, sooo). Of course there are also the people who think I'm from Idaho. Or...that Ohio is Idaho. Or...I don't know. All I know is I tell people I'm from Ohio and (seriously, this exact phrase has come out of at least 20 different peoples' mouths) they say: "Oh. I love potatoes!" ...."That's Idaho." and then they're confused.

That tangent aside...

This recipe for chicken and dumplings is beautifully simple to make and it tastes so...mmmm. Like...you know? It's that warm, chicken-y, carb-y, comforting kind of flavor. I can't find a word for it. But you know what I'm saying, right? Of course you do. You're my people. You get me. Right?

Yeah. You do. You understand that this is the kind of meal that soothes your soul. Mmmhm.

Skinny Alfredo

THIS IS IT. The big one you guys!

I have dabbled with a couple different, healthier, homemade alfredo recipes. And I liked them.

But....I LOVE this recipe.

It's so simple to throw together--no weird ingredients, I pretty much always have everything I need for this recipe in my kitchen. It only takes like...10 minutes to make. No lie. AND...this is the big one...MICHAEL APPROVED! He never likes my alfredo recipes, he says they're never creamy enough! But this one he approved of (ok...he would've liked it better with white noodles and no zucchini, BUT he liked the sauce!)

I am completely obsessed and in love with everything to do with this recipe. It is so full of flavor, perfectly creamy, and you can use it on whatever kind of noodles you want. I chose to use whole wheat fettuccine or linguine, and also some zucchini noodles--I'm including instructions on how to make those in the recipe but you can completely do your own thing if you want. I just need to trick myself into eating those veggies whenever I can!

Aren't you guys proud of me?

Yeah, me too. And I'll be proud of you WHEN you go and make this. It'll only take like 10-15 minutes sooo...I'll just be waiting here.

go on. I'll see you soon.

{Healthier} Chicken and Waffle Sliders

I've always been like...crazy curious about fried chicken and waffles. Like...I like fried chicken...I like waffles...I'm intrigued.

But I feel like maybe I like it more in a making the waffle savory kinda way as opposed to putting syrup on both. But who knows. I haven't tried it yet.

In the meantime...I tried these:

SAVORY waffles with baked, crunchy chicken. And cheese. Of course there's cheese. These sliders were super tasty-the waffles were crisp, yet tender, and had a yummy cheesy-slightly garlic-y flavor, and then the chicken was perfectly cooked, and the cornflake breading gave them just a hint of subtle sweetness. And the cheese was cheese. And cheese is good.

These are good.

Pesto Chicken Pizza-Guest Post at Sarcastic Cooking

Bloggy friends are precious. And when they are in need and ask you to guest post for them you say "OF COURSE!" especially when that friend just had her 1st baby AND you participated in her virtual baby shower.

Yepp...I'm talkin' about Stef from Sarcastic Cooking.

That hilarious, fun, witty, genius in the kitchen who has great taste in TV. And less than a month ago gave birth to her little man, Andy. And today I'm taking over Sarcastic Cooking with this pizza!

THIS. PIZZA. A total fave. It uses my new fave crust (the Neapolitan style), pesto, tomatoes, and chicken to create a little variety in my pizza liiiife. So crisp and delicious.

But hey...if you wanna hear more (and GET THE RECIPE) jump on over to Sarcastic Cooking!

Go on, get your tushes over there!

Toasted Ricotta Gnocchi with Parmesan Truffle Cream Sauce

All of my Italian ancestors are probably so proud of me right now: I've finally made homemade pasta- gnocchi, specifically (by myself!--as opposed to helping my grandma)! AND I made the up the sauce recipe all by myself, just using the knowledge I've gained from the last couple years and tasting along the way. I feel all authentic and skilled 'n' stuff. And you wanna know a secret? This recipe is SO. EASY!

Plus I got ridiculously giddy over the fact that when cooking the gnocchi, you know it's done when it floats to the top. How cool is that?! I told everyone. And giggled. Yepp.

The inspiration for this recipe came from a dish I tried at this great restaurant in the city, Jane. As soon as I saw they had toasted ricotta gnocchi in a white truffle cream sauce, I obviously had to order it. And it was PHENOMENAL...for like...3 bites. Then it was overwhelming. And like REALLY rich and filling. So, it took me awhile to finish it. It made me not super into the idea of ordering it again.

BUT, then I got some daRosario truffle oil to try. And I knew I needed to make my own, new, and improved (in my humble opinion) gnocchi with a truffle sauce.

Now let's break down what we have here:

A super simple,super easy recipe for luscious and pillowy, melt in your mouth, ricotta gnocchi. 

That you then toast, which brings in such a delicious, buttery, toasted flavor.

A rich (but not TOO rich) sauce made with...wait for it...FAT FREE EVAPORATED MILK (not cream-so it's not going to be quite as detrimental to some of our pre-wedding semi-diet-y type things), freshly grated Parmesan cheese, and, of course, truffle oil. To taste. So it can be as flavorful or as subtle as you want! 

(and ya know...you can also just make the gnocchi and just put whatever sauce you like on em. It's cool. Whatever floats your boat.)

I'm like....super excited about this one you guys. You're gonna LOVE THIS!

Brown Butter Pasta

I've made this pasta like....almost every week. Real talk.

I mean really....we all know by this point how much I love browned butter, right? And I have a deep passion for pasta. Especially when it has copious amounts of Parmesan cheese.

Source

AND there's nothing not to like about a dinner that's done in like...10 minutes (or less?). Yeah. You get it now, right?

I don't even know what else to tell you. This pasta is nummy. It tastes like browned butter and Pecorino Romano cheese (because of this I suggest actually getting a nice hunk of Pecorino Romano and freshly grating the good stuff) and just nutty cheesy wonderful goodness. And I also recommend using like...LOTS of cheese. That's me though.

Ya know what? Sometimes you just need an easy dinner.

And sometimes I just need a short and sweet blog post.

MANGIA!

Chevre and Spinach Pizza with Truffle Honey-Goat Cheeses of France Review

Fancy fancy pizza up in here today y'all.

Neapolitan pizza crust (AKA my new favorite), spinach, organic white truffle acacia honey, and fresh Parmesan cheese...all of these things come together to highlight the star of this pizza:

Goat cheese. From France.

Goat Cheeses of France, the "original chèvre".

Oooh la la.

I was lucky enough to get a shipment of a few different goat cheeses to try, and oh my goodness! They were all SO creamy and wonderful and just, like, made me feel sophisticated! Turns out there is A LOT to learn about chèvre, which is where Goat Cheeses of France comes in. I HIGHLY suggest you check our their site and get yourself all acquainted with all the goodness there is out there!

Anyway. Back to this fancy shmancy pizza.

The interplay of all the elements creates such an interesting experience on your palate (yeah, listen to me, saying "palate"), it's somehow tangy and smoky and sweet all at once. Sorta unreal.

Now, this was not my favorite pizza. My super tasting-ness was a bit overwhelmed by it all (yesss being a super taster is a real thing and it is to blame for much of my pickiness)-but Michael really liked it and he was enough of a dear to finish off the 2 pizzas for me. 

Regardless of my insanity, if I had a restaurant, I would totally serve this pizza.

Because, I mean, really. Look at it. And I KNOW it's tasty. Trust me. Give it a try.

3 Cheese White Pizza with Truffle Oil-daRosario Review

Some things about me, just don't make sense. Like...I hate mushrooms. Always have. But...gosh darn it I am OBSESSED with all things truffle (although I don't think I could just straight up eat a whole truffle mushroom...) My first taste of the friggin' indescribable goodness of truffle was back when I was a cater waiter, I tried a truffle oil french fry. And I died. BECAUSE OMG. And since then my love has only grown. But, I had never had my own truffle oil to use. Because...well....it's pricey. The foodie heavens all aligned, though, and led to me meeting a delightful man while I was working one of my day jobs, and this man happens to work with daRosario. And when he heard about my blog, he offered me some of their truffle oil to try. And guys...let's dish.

Turns out, all other brands of truffle flavored anything are synthetic. daRosario Organics is the only company that makes 100% USDA Organic truffle and porcini oils, and guarantee all of their ingredients are real (which means real truffles, no artificial flavors, no "aroma" no "essence" and no "extracts".) Their products include (in addition to the truffle oils) white and black truffle mayonnaise, white truffle honey, and white and black truffle butters (all of which are organic and real). The flavor speaks for itself-seriously, it's the only brand I'll use from now on.

When I got my truffle oil, so many thoughts of ways I could play with it zoomed through my mind. But I could not stop thinking about some ricotta pizzas with truffle oil I've had-so I decided to make my own version! Using the Neapolitan style pizza crust I'd learned to make (but you could def. make this pizza using any pizza crust you prefer), and a combination of ricotta, mozzarella, and parmigiana romano cheeses...just...OH MY GAWD. I am IN LOVE with this pizza. I've made it twice already. Even Michael liked it! Seriously, just the perfect combination of flavors. You're gonna feel like a gourmet chef when you make this, and like a goddess (or god...I'm fairly certain some of you readers are dudes also) when you take your first bite. TRUFFLE PIZZA NIRVANA.