Cooked...because I actually do ♥

One of the new features I wanted to create this new year was an area where I could share recipes, cooking experiments, mini kitchen explosions lol, etc. I have noticed so many young married girls on the blogosphere like me and well, we don't all know how to cook that amazing nor have time to devote to becoming Martha Stewart. So! I decided well, why not make a place where we can all learn together...Because, yes, I actually do cook (unlike popular belief hah) and I would love to get better at it myself!

So, here's the deal. I will find, test and come up with some recipes here and then (if no one gets sick from it) I will put up the recipe, with a few pictures and you can try it out if you'd like....and let me know how it goes, if you changed up anything and add any pictures of the dish!!! If you are like me, I have to see what I am about to make, so if there are no pictures, I hesitate to try it.

Plus if you have a recipe you want me to try out or feature contact me (using the contact tab on my homepage) and I will be glad to give it a whirl! Sometimes I am too afraid to try a recipe so I get someone else to test it out first, if that is the case with you, I will be the test dummy too (unless it is really odd, like rabbit eyeballs or something creepy like that lol).

Also, you vegans out there...I have been dying to try out some recipes, but I am a little overwhelmed and don't know where to start so if you have anything for me to try....please send it to me. I will gladly try it out too!

Okay, well without further ado....here's my first recipe!

Homemade Hamburger Pizza

Yes, I totally started out with the healthiest of foods, I know lol, but it is such a cheap meal, and my Luca loves it ( I wonder why haha).

What You Will Need:

• Pizza Crust- pre-made, homemade or the packet (for this I used the packet kind)
• Pizza Sauce- you could also substitute with a cheese sauce, bbq sauce, etc.
• Cheese- any types you wish ( I used mozzarella, and cheddar)
• Toppings- For this pizza: fresh mushrooms, onions, ground hamburger
• Pizza Pan- round or rectangle
• Vegetable Oil (or Olive Oil)
• 1/2 cup of water

What You Do:

• pre-heat your oven to 475 degrees
• (if your using the packet, here are my directions) empty packet into bowl, mix in water and knead until you can round it into a ball.
• brush oil over the ball of dough and let rise for 5 min.
• spread the dough over the pan, pinching the ends around the edges
• use a fork and stab the dough thoroughly (this lets the dough cook through evenly
• bake on lowest rack for 5 min.
• (while the crust is baking) brown hamburger in a pan, drain the excess grease and wash the meat in warm water.
• cut up your mushrooms and onions (and/or whatever else you use for toppings (i.e., bell pepper, chicken, etc.)
• (when the crust is done "pre-baking") remove from oven and add your sauce, toppings, cheese, and place back in the oven for an additional 9-11 min. or until the crust is completely cooked through.

Viola! Hot, Cheesy Pizza ready to eat!

* side note- if you do not drain and rinse you hamburger, you will end up with some really soggy crust no matter how long you bake it! Yuck!

Hope you all enjoyed the first ever COOKED, there will be a lot more where that came from, so get your ideas, recipes and pictures in! I wanna see them!

XoXo