Pizza Margherita

Caprese salad is one of my very favorites. I love how the sweet summer tomatoes pair with the light, salty fresh mozzarella and the bright, pungent basil. Did you know that basil was originally from India (according to the wiki)?I didn’t either! That’s probably because it’s best known for being in Italian cooking. It’s a close relative to the mint plant, but had a more anise flavor (liquoricey– yep, it’s a word – I just made it up!). Can you tell I love basil? I digress. When you take those same ingredients you use to make a caprese salad and put it on a pizza, it transforms magically while in the oven into Pizza Margherita. Pretty fancy, right? Thought so. The best part about this pizza is that all you need is five simple ingredients. If you want to make your own pizza dough, feel free to, but I like to buy the premade dough from Trader Joe’s here to save time (to save even more time, you could buy a totally premade crust such as Boboli). Also, if your store doesn’t carry garlic oil, you can make your own in a snap. Just heat a quarter of a cup of olive oil to a pan over medium low heat and add two smashed cloves of garlic and cook for eight to ten minutes or until the garlic has browned a bit infusing it’s flavor into the oil. Remove the garlic cloves and allow oil to cool slightly and viola, garlic oil. If you’re feeling really, super fancy, you can make your pizza on the grill, but today I’m going to be using a pizza stone in the oven. If you don’t have a pizza stone, a baking sheet will work just fine. Enjoy with a generous squirt of sriracha and red pepper flakes.

What You Need:

1 – 16 oz ball of pizza dough (I used whole wheat)
8 oz fresh ovoline mozzarella packed in water, drained, dried & sliced into ¼” pieces
1 ½ large tomatoes, sliced into ¼“pieces & pressed between paper towels
2 - 3 Tbs basil chiffonade (thinly sliced – to taste)
2 Tbs garlic oil

Salt and pepper (optional – to taste)
cornmeal for pizza stone (if using)
flour for dusting

What To Do:

Heat your pizza stone in a 425* oven for 15 – 20 minutes. This ensures that the crust will be nice and crisp on the outside, but doughy on the inside. For best result, take your dough ball out of the fridge while the pizza stone heats (about 20 minutes). Once your dough has come to temperature, roll it out on a well floured surface to about a 12” round.

Remove the hot pizza stone from the oven and sprinkle with cornmeal to prevent sticking.

Gently transfer your dough onto it and pierce with a fork all over to prevent bubbles while it bakes.


Bake the crust for about 10 minutes or until barely browned. Keep your eye on it as you don’t want it to overcook (you’ll be baking it again with toppings).

After the crust has prebaked, remove from the oven, brush with garlic oil and top with tomato and cheese slices. Season with salt and pepper if using. Bake for an additional 12-15 minutes or until cheese has melted and the crust is nicely browned.

Remove pizza from oven and top with fresh basil chiffonade.

Serve with red pepper flakes and hot sauce.














Makes 8 slices.

Print this recipe!

**Edited to add: Here are the nutritional stats for 1 slice.**

Bon Appetit!
Mary


**Cook’s Note: On the tomatoes: make sure you really get as much liquid as you can out of the tomatoes. If not, the liquid in them will make your pizza soggy. On the basil: if you don't want to chiffonade, you could simply chop it up to whatever size you desire.**



Dinner Tonight

I have been reading Jenna's blog since 2008.  She blogs about her cooking adventures and several other things like books she likes and places she visits from her home in Northern California.  She's always baking up tasty things in her kitchen, so you might want to click over and see some of her other recipes.

Back to the pizza... I was drinking my coffee this morning and reading some blogs for dinner inspiration and came upon Jenna's recipe for Barbecue Chickpea Pizza with Gouda and Caramelized Onions.  I loved that she used chickpeas in place of the more traditional chicken here.  After looking through the ingredients, I realized I had everything on hand.  Perfect!  I had to make a few substitutions as I didn't have any Gouda on hand (I've put my substitutions in italics and parenthesis below.).

Barbecue Chickpea Pizza with Gouda & Caramelized Onions

Recipe from Jenna Weber
makes one large pizza (about 8 slices)

Ingredients:

1 batch The Best Pizza Dough (I used 1 - 8oz ball of prepared dough)
1 can chickpeas, drained and rinsed (I used about 1 cup)
1 bottle barbecue sauce of choice (I loved the Trader Joe’s kind! - me too!)
1 large yellow onion
1 T olive oil
8 oz Gouda cheese, freshly grated (I used a blend of smoked cheese & goat feta)


Directions:

Make the pizza dough according to recipe directions. Note that one recipe makes two large pizza crusts so you may want to freeze half the dough for later.

Heat the olive oil up in a large, heavy-bottomed pot. Slice the onion very thinly and cook in the olive oil for about 30 minutes on low heat, until deeply golden and caramelized. Stir frequently! You don’t want to burn this.

Preheat your oven to 450 degrees.

Roll out your pizza dough into a large rectangle or circle. Drizzle with barbecue sauce (you’ll probably only use 1 cup sauce). Sprinkle with cheese then layer with chickpeas and caramelized onions.

Reduce oven temperature to 425 and bake pizza on a lined baking sheet for 15 minutes, or until cheese has melted and the crust is done. Let cool then cut into slices and serve.

Time:

30 minutes (does not include time to make pizza dough)

**Cook's Note: The onions take 30 minutes and then you have to bake the pizza, so total cook time is more than 30 minutes.**

Orzo Salad with Asparagus & Creamy Dill Dressing

When I originally scrawled out my notes for this recipe I was going to use green beans, but once I got to the store and saw the asparagus, it looked too beautiful not to use. The tiny, tender stalks were calling my name. If your asparagus is a bit thicker, you will want to add a minute to its cook time. Knowing I wanted to grill salmon tonight, I decided dill would be my herb of choice here, but you could use any herb you like (i.e. parsley, cilantro, thyme). If after refrigerating the salad it seems a bit dry, add one tsp lemon juice and a half tsp honey. If it’s still dry add a splash of milk or half and half to get things moving. Serve with grilled salmon, a wedge of lemon and sriracha.

What You Need:

½ lb orzo
½ lb asparagus, cut into ½“pieces
3 Tbs fresh dill, minced and divided (to taste)
2 Tbs mayo
1 Tbs plain Greek yogurt , or an additional Tbs of mayo (I used 2%)
1 ½ Tbs lemon juice
1 tsp honey
¼ tsp kosher salt & freshly cracked black pepper (to taste)

What To Do:

Cook orzo in well salted water (or broth) according to the packages instructions. Add the asparagus during the last minute of cooking. Rinse orzo and asparagus thoroughly with cold water to stop the cooking process.

While the pasta cooks, whisk together 1 Tbs of the dill, mayo, yogurt, lemon juice, honey, salt and pepper, then refrigerate.

Combine dressing, pasta, asparagus and remaining dill and mix well. Allow salad to meld in the fridge for as long as possible. It will still be tasty if you eat it right away, but if you have the time, make it a few hours ahead.




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**Edited to Add: makes 4 - heaping 1/2c servings

Nutritional Stats for 1 Serving

Bon Appétit!
Mary

My Brother's Pesto Pasta Salad

My little brother David has been making this simple, flavorful salad for years and it’s just so tasty, it’s time to share it with all of you. With just six ingredients, you can make it too. If you’re feeling ambitious, you can make your own pesto sauce, but to stay true to my brother’s recipe (and because I’m still recovering from my injury) I will make it just like he does with the prepared pesto. I cook the pasta in chicken broth for extra flavor, but you could use either well salted water or vegetable broth to keep this recipe vegetarian. When you’re slicing your onion, I suggest making the pieces no longer than the pasta you choose so it makes it easier for your guests to eat. The best part about this recipe is that your measurements don’t have to be exact, just make it to taste. My brother says you can make it a day ahead… just leave out the almonds and cheese until you’re ready to serve it. Take this salad to any summer BBQ and it’s sure to be a big hit. There won’t be any leftovers! This recipe is for a crowd, so feel free to half it for a more manageable portion if you’re not taking it to a party.

What You Need:

1 – 14.5 oz box short pasta (I used penne – Barilla Pasta Plus)
1 – 7oz container pesto (my brother uses Buitoni or Costco’s)
4 oz crumbled goat cheese (or feta if you prefer)
½ cup slivered or sliced almonds (toasted or raw)
½ cup julienne sliced sun dried tomatoes packed in oil, lightly drained
¾ cup or about ½ medium red onion, sliced into small peices (optional or to taste)

What To Do:

Prepare pasta according to packages instructions in salted water or broth.









If you’re going to be eating the salad the same day, combine all ingredients and allow to chill in the fridge until ready to serve. If you’re making this a day ahead, combine all ingredients except cheese and almonds. Refrigerate until ready to serve, mixing in remaining ingredients just before you eat.

Serves 8-10

1 cup is about 289 cal, 13g fat, 3.5g fiber, 10.5g protein, 6g cholesterol

Print recipe. (<--click here to print!)



Bon Appetit!
Mary