Calzones

Calzones are a fun twist on the regular pizza night.  My kids enjoy making their own and filling them with whatever toppings they want.  Each person can have their own since you can really make them any size you like.  I like that they reheat nicely in the oven and they are easy to eat.


1 1/2 cups warm water
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry rapid rise yeast
1 tablespoon honey
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
4-5 cups bread flour

In the bowl of a stand mixer, using the dough hook attachment, combine the honey, olive oil, and warm water.  Sprinkle the yeast on top of the water and let sit for 3-5 minutes, you should notice it starts to look a little foamy.  Add the salt and 2 cups of flour.  Turn mixture on low and let mix until flour is completely combined.  Add 1/2 cup flour at a time and continue mixing on low until you notice the dough has formed a ball around the dough hook.  It should not stick to the sides of the mixer, add a few tablespoon of flour at a time if it is still sticking to the bowl.  Once the dough has pulled away from the sides of the mixer leave it on low speed and let it knead the dough for about 8-10 minutes.  Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot to rise for 1 hour.
Roll/stretch dough out into a 12" circle and place desired filling on lower half.  Fold top half over and crimp dough by pulling lower edge over upper and pushing down and making an indent with your finger.  Brush top with olive oil and sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.  Bake in a 500°F oven for 10-15 minutes or until golden brown.
*Extra dough can be stored in the fridge or freezer for use at a later date.

Pizza Two Ways : Take Two

This picture doesn't do this pizza justice.  It was good...so so good.  Both sides were delicious...like, can't stop eating it, reaching for just one more nibble, oh-look-at-that-piece-wasn't-cut-straight-I-am-only-cutting-off-that-sliver-to-balance-it-out delicious.

I went with a thinner crust this time and browned up a bunch of Italian Sausage and then topped it with a whole ball of fresh mozzarella cheese.  All very good decisions I must say!  On one side I added red onion, spinach, and dollops of ricotta cheese...my favorite.  I left the ricotta off of one corner but I found out that it was an unnecessary step...the kids liked it with as well as without.

Sausage, Spinach, and Ricotta Cheese Pizza

for the dough (makes enough for two pizzas):

3 3/4 cups flour

2 1/2 t active dry yeast

3/4 t salt

3/4 t sugar or honey

1 1/3 cups water, room temperature

Mix flour, yeast, salt, and sugar in a medium bowl.  Add water and mix with a spoon until blended.  Cover the bowl and let rest at room temperature until doubled, about 2 hours.  Divide the dough into two portions.  

I like to sprinkle a bit of cornmeal on my sheet pan and then place the dough on top and press down with my hands.  This dough is meant to be thin and it takes a bit of elbow grease to get it stretched across the entire pan.  Keep working at it until you get it this and uniform.  Then spread your favorite sauce, cheese, toppings, and more cheese before baking at 500 degrees until cheese is melted and crust is browned.

Pizza : Two Ways

You know those times when you want to try something new for dinner, but you are unsure if the rest of your family will be as excited about a new food?  I have those days often and so I find myself creating a plan B if everything goes badly or compromising like I did tonight.  I knew a Thai Chicken Pizza would be tasty, but I was afraid the kids would shy away from the heat that I wanted it to have.  So, I decided to create pizza two ways.  Their side was a fresh mozzarella and ham pizza and our side was Thai Chicken with a spicy peanut sauce.  Both sides were equally delicious...and a hit with everybody. The kids tried the Thai Chicken side and said they liked it followed up with requests for milk refills!

This is also a great way to get rid of leftover bits in the refrigerator...I had two slices of ham leftover from breakfast, a container of fresh mozzarella balls, a few carrots from a veggie tray, and cilantro from a batch of guacamole.
Pizza : Two Ways

Pizza Dough
1 t active dry yeast
3/4 cup warm water
1 T honey
1 T olive oil
1/2 t salt
2 cups flour
Combine water and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, let stand 5-10 minutes. Add remaining ingredients and turn mixer on low.  Continue mixing until all flour is incorporated.  Dough should be firm and not sticky, add a little flour if needed.  Transfer dough to a lightly oiled bowl and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour.

Peanut Sauce
1 clove garlic
1 T fresh ginger
2 T soy sauce
1 1/2 t sesame oil
1/2 cup peanut butter
2 t honey
1 T chipotle adobo sauce or 1 T sweet chili sauce
Combine everything in a small food processor bowl and process until smooth.

12 oz. fresh mozzarella
2 grilled chicken breasts, thinly sliced
1 cup shredded carrot
1 cup cilantro
1/4 c chopped peanuts

Heat oven to 500 degrees.  Spread a little cornmeal onto a half sheet pan and roll dough out to the size of the pan.  Place dough in pan and spread half with peanut sauce and the other half with your favorite jarred pizza sauce.  Next top regular pizza side with toppings of your choice.  Finish by topping entire pizza with thin slices of fresh mozzarella and baking until cheese is melted.

Finish Thai Pizza side with grilled chicken, shredded carrot, chopped cilantro, chopped peanuts, and drizzle with additional peanut sauce.  Enjoy!

Roasted Veggie Flatbread with Ricotta and Pine Nuts

This flatbread is really delicious and many of the elements can be made ahead of time making assembly a snap later on. I made fresh pesto earlier in the day, freezing some for easy pasta dinners later on, and I used the leftover pesto for this fresh flatbread. I also roasted the veggies ahead of time which left very little to clean up once dinner was over. You could do the veggies a few days ahead and, if you're like me, you'd do extra and use some for an omelet or inside a sandwich on another day. I always like to make things that can be used in multiple ways.

Roasted Veggie Flatbread with Ricotta and Pine Nuts

Use this recipe for the pesto.

Use your favorite pizza dough recipe or this recipe which is really good.

Roast your favorite vegetables with olive oil, salt, and pepper at 400 degrees until tender (This takes about 30 minutes.) I used 1 red onion, 1 red pepper, and a yellow squash today. Zucchini, tomatoes, eggplant, green peppers, and mushrooms are also really good on this pizza.

pizza dough

2 T pesto

1 cup roasted veggies

1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted

1/4 cup ricotta cheese

1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese

Shape your dough into rectangles about 6 inches wide by 15-18 inches long. I usually dust the counter with a little cornmeal mixed with a little flour. This gives the dough a nice texture on the bottom. Spread a tablespoon or two on the dough. Spread veggie mixture on top of the pesto. Toast 1/4 cup of pine nuts and sprinkle on top of the veggies. Add a few dollops of ricotta cheese on the pizza and finish with a handful of mozzarella cheese. Place in a 500 degree oven for about 10 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and beginning to brown.

Polenta "Pizza"

My pictures don't do this pizza justice. I love polenta, but topping it and baking it make it even better!! We liked the idea so much that we have made three or four versions of this pizza. The original was our favorite but the others were very tasty. I think I would like almost anything on this polenta!

I made an Italian sausage, sauteed onion, and Fontina cheese version as well as a sausage, marinara, and Fontina cheese style pizza. We preferred the first, but they were both mighty yummy. I liked these enough that I made a second batch of the sausage and onion pizza a few days later, but I used a different recipe for the polenta crust. I love this version from Barefoot Contessa. The rosemary in the polenta added another dimension of flavor to the pizza and made it really tasty.

Polenta "Pizza"

1 recipe polenta - see above

1/4 lb sweet italian sausage, browned

2 large onions, thinly sliced and cooked in a bit of oil until tender and caramelized

1-2 cups fontina cheese, freshly grated

Distribute toppings evenly on polenta.  Cook in a 400 degree oven until cheese is melted and pizza is heated through.  Remove and cut into squares.

Stuffed Pizza

These pizza rolls are a fun and interesting alternative to the normal pizzas that we enjoy around here. I used our standard pizza dough but I rolled it out thinner and then spread it with toppings/fillings before rolling. This one happens to be a sausage, cheese, and onion pizza roll...but nearly any combination would work. These are also great because each one can be individualized to meet each diners' taste.
Once they are filled and rolled they should be placed seam-side down, brushed with egg, topped with sesame or poppy seeds, and baked at 500 until golden. I would also suggest having a little extra sauce on the side for dipping.

Pizza Dough

¼ cup white wine
1 tsp. salt
1 cup warm water
1/2 Tbsp yeast
1 Tbsp honey
Flour
1 Tbsp olive oil

In a bowl combine everything except flour. Let mixture sit for 4-5 minutes. Next, stir in flour ½ cup at a time until mixture comes together and forms a ball. Continue adding flour until the dough is not sticky. Turn out onto floured counter and knead until dough forms a smooth ball. (2-3 minutes) Rub a small amount of olive oil on dough and place in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and then cover with a towel. Place in a warm spot for 1-2 hours. Dough should double in size.When you are ready to make the pizza, roll out dough and add desired toppings. Bake pizza in a 500 degree over until cheese is browned and bubbling.
(I never follow a recipe when I make this dough...so you may have to tinker with the measurements until you get it the way you like it.)

(This is a breeze if you have a stand mixer. Simply combine all ingredients except flour and mix with the dough hook. Then gradually add in flour until the dough forms a ball and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. After that just leave the mixer on for 4-5 minutes to knead the dough. Follow above instructions from this point on.)

BLT Pizza

This BLT pizza is a great alternative to the traditional pizza and toppings we usually opt for. This happens to be my favorite type of pizza when we go out to California Pizza Kitchen so I thought I would recreate it at home. It turned out just as tasty and was a hit all around. Needless to say, we'll be having it often!

BLT Pizza

1 lb pizza dough

2 cups mozzarella cheese

6 strips bacon, browned and drained (you can cut before cooking or crumb it afterwards)

1 tomato, diced

3 cups lettuce, shredded

1/4 cup mayonnaise

salt

pepper

olive oil

Prepare pizza dough and preheat oven to 500 degrees.. Brush flattened pizza round with olive oil and sprinkle mozzarella cheese evenly on round. Bake 8-12 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is lightly browned. Remove from oven and let cool while preparing lettuce.

Toss lettuce with mayonnaise (use as much or little mayo as you like...we go for moderate) and spread on slightly cooled pizza. Sprinkle with bacon. Toss tomatoes with salt and pepper and then spread evenly on pizza. Enjoy.

Pizza with Tomato, Ricotta, Prosciutto, and Arugula

This is a tasty alternative to take out pizza.  It comes from a great cookbook, Simple Pleasures, which has given me a surprising number of stellar meals in the past month or two.  Give it a try!

Pizza with Tomato, Ricotta, Prosciutto, and Arugula
adapted from Simple Pleasures by Alfred Portale

All-purpose flour, for dusting the work surface
1 1/4 pounds raw pizza dough
Olive oil
Coarse salt
Freshly ground black pepper
1 cup pizza sauce
1 1/2 cups ricotta cheese
1/4 pound Parmigiano-Reggiano, finely grated
1/3 pound thinly sliced prosciutto di Parma
2 cups arugula, stems removed
6 basil leaves, cut into a chiffonade

The original recipes calls for grilling the flattened and sauced pizza dough at 425 degrees for 1-2 minutes however this doesn't work in January, so I brushed the dough with olive oil and seasoned it with salt and pepper and then baked at 500 degrees until puffed and removed before any color developed on the edges.

Spread the pizza sauce lightly over the surface and distribute spoonfuls of ricotta (or fresh mozzarella) around the surface of the pizza. Scatter the Parmesan cheese over the top and bake in the oven for 3 minutes.

Remove and arrange the prosciutto slices and arugula attractively over the pizzas. Drizzle with olive oil, top with basil, and season with salt and pepper.

Pizza Sauce
2/3 cup tomato paste
2 T olive oil
2 t finely chopped rinsed anchovy fillets
1/2 t finely chopped garlic, mashed with a pinch of salt
1/2 t dried oregano
1/4 t freshly ground black pepper
1/4 t crushed red pepper flakes
1/2 t coarse salt

In a medium bowl combine all of the ingredients.

Pizza Dough

¼ cup white wine
1 cup warm water
1 Tbsp honey
1 Tbsp olive oil
1 tsp. salt
½ Tbsp yeast
Flour
In a bowl combine everything except flour. Let mixture sit for 4-5 minutes. Next, stir in flour ½ cup at a time until mixture comes together and forms a ball. Continue adding flour until the dough is not sticky. Turn out onto floured counter and knead until dough forms a smooth ball. (2-3 minutes) Rub a small amount of olive oil on dough and place in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and then a towel. Place in a warm spot for 1-2 hours. Dough should double in size.

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La Festa al Fresco - Margherita Pizza

I noticed creampuffsinvenice announced her La Festa al Fresco challenge awhile back and I have been thinking about what I'd like to make... for a long time now. I even stopped by the library and picked up a few cookbooks to get a little inspiration. I brought home a few including Saveur Cooks Authentic Italian. This cookbook is not only inspirational and beautiful but it makes you so hungry you have to keep sopping up the drool as you flip the pages.
After finding a few recipes that looked mighty delicious I settled on Pizza Margherita since the others didn't have much in terms of fresh ingredients. Plus, I was planning on company today and I wanted something fun to make with them. So, I got to work on a double batch of the dough before heading out to stop at the local farmstand. Once the dough was tucked away to rise I set out to pick up the plum tomatoes, fresh basil, and fresh mozzarella to complete the meal.
Once home I sliced everything up and arranged it for easy pizza assembly and started on dessert.  Make you own pizza night is one of my favorite way s of entertaining.  Everyone can help themselves to the toppings they like and everyone gets involved.

Pizza Dough
adapted from Saveur Cooks Authentic Italian

1 7-gram packet actice dry yeast
1 1/2 c all-purpose flour
1 1/2 c cake flour
1 tsp. salt
extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 c cornmeal

1. Dissolve yeast in 1/4 c lukewarm water in a large bowl. Set aside until yeast begins to activate, about 10 minutes. Combine flours and salt in a small bowl. Add 1 cup flour mixture to yeast and stir well. Mix in 1/2 cup water, then add another cup of flour and continue to stir. Add remaining flour, then gradually stir in about 1/4 cup water and mix well. The dough should be fairly soft but not too wet.
2. Turn out dough on a lightly floured surface and knead with the heels of your palms until it has a smooth, uniform texture, about 10-12 minutes. Divide dough into 2 equal balls. Coat the insides of 2 medium bowls with 1/2 tsp. oil each. Place dough in bowls, cover with damp cloths or plastic wrap. Set aside to rise until doubled in bulk, about 2 1/2 - 3 hours.
3. Punch down dough from one bowl, make a ball, and flatten it on a cornmeal sprinkled peel or sheet. Stretch dough into a 12" circle with a slightly raised edge. Add toppings and slide onto a hot pizza stone.
4. Bake until crust is golden brown and crisp, about 10 - 12 minutes at oven's highet setting. Drizzle with a little olive oil on each and serve.

For the Margherita toppings I sliced, seeded, and salted 2 pounds of plum tomatoes. I let the salt pull out the extra moisture before layering them on the dough. I also added a little pepper for taste. Then I added the sliced mozzarella and topped it off with the torn basil. After pulling them out of the hot oven I added a little extra fresh basil and oilve oil. Ciao!

Pizza Dough

Here is my favorite basic pizza dough recipe.  I have used it for pizza, breadsticks, calzones, and more. It always turns out delicious!


Pizza Dough

• ¼ cup white wine
• 1 tsp. salt
• 1 cup warm water
• 1/2 Tbsp yeast
• 1 Tbsp honey
• Flour
• 1 Tbsp olive oil

In the bowl of a stand mixer combine everything except flour. Let mixture sit for 4-5 minutes. Using a dough hook mix in flour ½ cup at a time until mixture comes together and forms a ball. Continue adding flour until the dough is not sticky. Turn out onto floured counter and knead until dough forms a smooth ball(2-3 minutes) or continue mixing with the dough hook for 2-3 minutes. Rub a small amount of olive oil on dough and place in a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and then cover with a towel. Place in a warm spot for 1-2 hours. Dough should double in size.
When you are ready to make the pizza, roll out dough and add desired toppings. Bake pizza in a 500 degree over until cheese is browned and bubbling.