Serving Up {Pizza}: Balsamic Pear Pizza

Earlier this week I posted a recipe for a Tomato & Basil Pizza and in doing so shared my culinary pizza adventure as I tried to create a pizza dinner for my family recently, using mainly ingredients from my own garden.  The second pizza I made that evening was this recipe for Balsamic Pear Pizza.  I have enjoyed pear pizza many times in restaurants, so with a pear tree just outside my backdoor I knew that a pear pizza was what I wanted to make that night.

My most memorable pear pizzas have generally been paired with a balsamic flavoring, so as I searched for the perfect recipe I was drawn to this one.  I have also enjoyed pear pizza with Gorgonzola cheese so I experimented a bit, but having made this recipe with a smattering of Gorgonzola as well as without, I have to say that without won it for me so that is how I wrote the recipe.

This pizza was a hit!  So much so that I didn't get as many slices as I would have liked so I was "forced" to make it again later the same week.  I served it the second time to my in laws for lunch and it was voted a hit again so this recipe is definitely a keeper.

One Year Ago: Sally Luna Bread
Two Years Ago: Coconut Chex Mix

BALSAMIC PEAR PIZZA     
(recipe adapted from Inspired Taste)
printable version

1 ball favorite pizza dough (I prefer Trader Joe's)
2 Tbs. olive oil
1 sweet onion, thinly sliced
1 tsp. chopped fresh thyme
1/2 tsp. salt
1/4  cup balsamic vinegar
2 Tbs. brown sugar
2-3 pears, ripe but still firm
1 Tbs. lemon juice
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup pecan pieces

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and place pizza stone in the oven to heat as well.
Form pizza dough into a 12-inch circle on large piece of parchment paper, sprinkled with corn meal.  Allow dough to rest.
In a medium sized non-stick frying pan, heat 1 Tbs. of olive oil over medium heat.  Add sliced onions, thyme and salt.  Cook 3-5 minutes or until the onions are soft and beginning to brown.  Add the balsamic vinegar and brown sugar and allow to simmer until the syrup becomes thickened and coats the onions.  Set aside.
Core and thinly slice the pears.  To prevent the pears from browning, sprinkle with lemon juice and gently toss.
Drizzle remaining olive oil over the pizza dough.  Spread onions over the pizza dough.  Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese over the onions, then place pear slices and top with pecan pieces.
Remove heated pizza stone from the oven and carefully transfer prepared pizza from parchment paper onto pizza stone and place in the oven.  Bake the pizza until crust is cooked and cheese is melted and beginning to bubble - approximately 12 minutes.

Serving Up {Pizza}: Pizza with Tomato and Basil

A few weeks ago I found myself needing to begin preparing dinner without really a menu idea in mind.  With it being late summer, and with plenty of fresh produce in the garden and the orchard, I determined that I wanted to make something utilizing all the yummy options outside my back door.  We ended up having two very different pizza's that night and they both turned out delicious.  I am sharing both recipes this week in hopes that maybe you still have some fresh ingredients of your own to utilize.

The first recipe is pretty standard fair at many pizza parlors - a tomato and basil topped pizza.  In my case I used Roma tomatoes because that is what I had ripe on the vine, along with basil picked from the plant right as it went onto the pizza.  It could not get any fresher and the delicious flavor was evidence of the perfect ingredients.  In fact, the pizza was so yummy that I made it again only a few days later.  What can I say?  I had a lot of tomatoes!

I also have to put a plug in here for buying fresh mozzarella (the kind that comes in a ball that you have to grate yourself and it makes a mess when doing so) whenever you are making homemade pizza.  It tastes better, it melts better and the pizza will thank you.

One Year Ago: Darn Good Chocolate Cake

PIZZA with TOMATO & BASIL     
printable version

1 ball favorite prepared pizza dough (I love Trader Joe's)
corn meal
Olive Oil
1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese, grated

2 Roma tomatoes, sliced thinly (1/4 inch)

1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, grated
1 garlic clove, minced
1/4 cup packed fresh basil, cut chiffonade-style
salt

Preheat oven to 450 degrees and place pizza stone in the oven to get to temperature.

Roll out pizza dough into a 12-inch circle on a large piece of parchment paper sprinkled with corn meal.  Drizzle olive oil over pizza dough.  Sprinkle mozzarella over the top of the dough.  Arrange tomato slices over cheese.  Sprinkle Parmesan cheese over tomatoes, then basil and garlic.  Remove pizza stone from oven and carefully slide prepared pizza onto pizza stone.  Place in preheated oven and bake until crust is baked through and cheese is melted, approx. 12 minutes.  Remove from oven and generously sprinkle with salt to taste.

Serving Up {Pizza}: Balsamic Strawberry Pizza

I could happily eat pizza every day for the rest of my life and be happy (okay, so I know I have also said that about salad....and bread....and ice cream....but I mean it every time that I say it!).  I love unique pizza combinations and so I knew that I simply had to make this pizza when I saw it posted here (please click on this link and check out her blog - her food photography will make you drool! and her picture of this same pizza is 100 times prettier than mine).

The pizza sauce is a strawberry balsamic glaze.  I had a friend that used to serve strawberries drizzled in balsamic vinegar, so I knew that combination would work for me.  Then the pizza is tossed with chicken, bacon, sweet onions and strawberries.  It is serious deliciousness!

Serious!  Deliciousness!

Serious!

One Year Ago: Frosted Banana Cookies
Two Years Ago: Shredded Sweet Pork
                          Cilantro Lime Rice

BALSAMIC STRAWBERRY PIZZA     
(recipe from Cafe Sucre Farine)
printable version

1/2 cup strawberry jam
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. Sriracha Chili Sauce
1 ball pizza dough (I like Trader Joe's)
1 cup diced chicken breast
1/2 cup applewood smoked bacon, cooked and drained and crumbled
1/2 cup thin sliced sweet onion
12 ounces shredded Italian blend cheese
1/4 cup fresh cilantro, finely chopped
1/4 cup fresh strawberries, diced small

Place pizza stone on middle rack of oven and preheat oven and stone to 450 degrees.

Place balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 4 to 5 minutes or until reduced to half of the original volume and mixture is thick and syrupy. Add strawberry preserves and chili sauce and mix well. Set aside to cool.

Prepare pizza dough by rolling it out to approximately a 14 inch circle. Place a piece of parchment paper, slightly larger than your dough on a pizza peel and sprinkle with cornmeal. Place dough on parchment paper.

Combine chicken with 2 tablespoons of the balsamic-strawberry mixture and mix to coat all chicken with sauce. Pour the rest of the sauce onto the pizza dough and spread to cover. Leave a 1 inch border all around the edge. Scatter chicken evenly over the sauce.  Place about 3/4 of the cheese on top of dough and spread to cover sauce evenly. Scatter  bacon and sweet onion over cheese to distribute evenly. Scatter remaining cheese over this layer.

Slide parchment paper with pizza on top onto pizza stone. Bake for approximately 8-10 minutes or until cheese is bubbly and crust is golden brown.

Remove pizza from oven and let cool slightly, 1-2 minutes. Sprinkle with chopped cilantro and fresh diced strawberries. Serve and enjoy!

Serving Up {Pizza}: Roasted Pumpkin and Sage Pizza

It turns out that October is national pizza month.  Considering that, I thought that I ought to at least post one pizza recipe this month - especially considering how much our family loves pizza!  This recipe is the perfect October recipe because it's star ingredient is roasted pumpkin!  So should you have a cute little sugar pumpkin sitting on your counter as an autumn decoration, it is now time to put it to good use.

I was inspired to create this recipe after seeing this recipe for squash pizza and after having roasted an entire sugar pumpkin to serve as a side dish and being left with ample left overs.  Normally when I make roasted pumpkin I roast it with the sage, but in the case of this creation, I had roasted my pumpkin with rosemary, which was delicious in and of itself.  But since I knew that I love the flavor of sage and pumpkin together, I knew that when I put it on the pizza that I wanted to include sage.  So I browned some butter and cooked the sage that way.  In place of a pizza "sauce" I spread marscapone onto my pizza crust before topping it with the roasted pumpkin, browned sage leaves and mozzarella cheese.  The result was absolutely delicious!
Hope you agree.

One Year Ago: Pumpkin Bread Pudding

ROASTED PUMPKIN AND SAGE PIZZA     
printable version

For the crust:
3/4 cup warm water
2 tsp. sugar
1/2 tsp. yeast
1/2 Tbs. olive oil
1 1/4 tsp. salt
2 1/4 cup flour

In a mixing bowl, combine warm water, sugar, yeast and oil.  Allow yeast to activate for approximately 5 minutes.  Add flour and salt and combine - with bread hook or with a large heavy spoon.  Knead in the mixer or by hand for 5-10 minutes until a soft, workable dough has formed.
Place dough in warm area and allow to rise for an hour, or until double in size.
Remove dough onto a floured surface.  Work into a large 12-15 inch circle, place on pizza pan and set aside.

For the pumpkin:
1/3-1/2 small sugar pumpkin
2 shallots, chopped roughly
1 1/2 tsp. rosemary, slightly crushed
1-2 Tbs. olive oil
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.
Cut the pumpkin, remove the seeds and peel the outer layer.  Cut pumpkin into 1-inch squares.
In a bowl, combine pumpkin, shallots, rosemary and olive oil.  Line a baking pan with foil and place pumpkin mixture on pan; sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste.  Place pan in the oven and cook until pumpkin is tender - approximately 30 minutes - removing pan and tossing pumpkin once during cooking process.

For the pizza:
1/4 -1/2 cup fresh sage leaves, cut into narrow strips
2 Tbs. butter
4 ounce marscapone, softened
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
cooked pumpkin (see above)
pizza crust (see above)

In a small non-stick pan melt butter and allow to cook until it begins to brown.  Add the fresh sage leaves.  Cook until the leaves are wilted and brittle.  Remove from heat and set aside.
To prepare pizza, preheat oven to 450 degrees.  If using a pizza stone, preheat stone in oven.
Using your prepared pizza dough, spread marscapone over the entire crust.  Sprinkle cooked pumpkin and then cooked sage.  Top with shredded mozzarella.
Bake in the oven for 12-15 minutes, until crust is cooked through and cheese is melted.

Serving Up {Pizza}: Reuben Pizza Calzone

I have a bit of a condition that is very serious and thus far I have no cure...if I find myself at a restaurant that serves sandwiches and a reuben is on the menu, I am hopelessly bound to order the reuben.  I love them and still remember being introduced to them for the first time while staying with my aunt while my parents were on vacation.  I have been enjoying them ever since.

It is no wonder that when I stumbled across this recipe a number of years ago, I let no time pass before I promptly made it and have been making it ever since.  Should you find yourself with a similar obsession with reubens, I hope you enjoy this recipe and find it to be a delightful variation on the perfect sandwich.

One Year Ago: Garlic Chicken Farfalle

REUBEN PIZZA CALZONE     
(recipe from Rachel Ray)
printable version

1 pound pizza dough (refrigerated or make your own)
1 1/2 cups shredded swiss cheese
1 pound deli-sliced pastrami
1 cup sauerkraut, rinsed
1/2 Tbs. olive oil
1/3 cup mayonnaise
2 ½ Tbs. ketchup
2 Tbs. finely chopped dill pickles

Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 425 degrees. If you are using a pizza stone, put your stone in the oven and preheat it for at least 20-30 minutes.

Cut the pizza dough in half and form each half into a disk. Place on a lightly floured work surface and cover one with a towel.

Roll out the other piece of dough into a 9-inch round and place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Sprinkle half of the cheese on top, leaving a 1-inch border all around. Arrange the pastrami and then the sauerkraut evenly on top. Top with the remaining cheese.

Roll out the second piece of dough in to a 10 inch round and place over the filling. Tightly crimp together the edges to seal. Brush the top with the olive oil and cut 3 vents in the center.

Bake the pizza until browned and crisp, 20-25 minutes. Let it cool briefly.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, stir together the many, ketchup and pickles. Cut the pizza into wedges and serve with the sauce.

Serving Up {Pizza}: Deep Dish Pizza

I like the idea of having a "pizza night" every week - yummy homemade dough, toppings for everyone to create their own masterpiece and knowing that everyone leaves the family table satisfied and happy.  In search of that "perfect" homemade pizza I have tried EVERY dough recipe that I come across but most leave me still searching.  Recently however, I discovered that it wasn't the dough recipe that was keeping my weekly pizza night from becoming a reality - it was my method!  And now that I have corrected that, we are proudly eating pizza ALL THE TIME!!!   I am quickly becoming the awesome mom I have always known I could be if I only served pizza more.

My pizza epiphany came when I was browsing pinterest and saw a pin for "pizza hut deep dish pizza".  Due to the fact that I was still in the "try every recipe I come across" I printed off the recipe and made the knockoff.  The verdict from my family was that the recipe had the "deep dish" method down, but even my kids complained that they thought the dough itself was bland.  That is probably because our favorite homemade dough is very flavorful and delicious - my reason for not making it more frequently is that I truly don't love rolling it out.  Why this method seems "easier" to me, I'm not sure.  A couple of days later I tried making my dough recipe but cooking it in the deep dish method and my family gave me a "keep the recipe" rating, which is the equivalent of 5 stars!

The recipe for the sauce is from the pizza hut recipe - I had my own homemade sauce recipe, but I just can't get over the five ingredient version so the sauce recipe listed has become my "go to" sauce as we become regular pizza makers at our house.

DEEP DISH PIZZA     
(printable version)

1 1/2 cup warm water
1 packet yeast
1 Tbs. honey
1 Tbs. oil
1-2 cloves garlic, crushed
1 tsp. basil
1 tsp. oregano
1 1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbs. dough enhancer (optional)
3 1/2 - 4 cups flour


Turn oven to 150 degrees.  Once temperature is reached, turn off the oven.


Prepare three 9" cake pans by oiling each with 2 Tbs. oil (I use 1 Tbs. melted butter and 1 Tbs. olive oil).  Set aside.

Combine water, yeast and honey in a large mixing bowl and allow to sit for 3-5 minutes, until the yeast foams.   Add oil, garlic, basil, oregano, salt, dough enhancer and 2 cups flour.  Mix well and add remaining flour 1/2 cup at a time until the mixture pulls away from the sides of the bowl.  Continue to mix on "knead" setting for an additional 5 minutes.

Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and divide into three equal balls.  Stretch dough or use a rolling pin to create a 9-inch circle from each dough ball.  Place dough into oiled cake pan.  Cover the cake pan with a large plate and place it in the warmed oven (make sure you have turned the oven OFF!).  Allow to rise 30-60 minutes.

While the dough rises, prepare the sauce:
1 can (8-ounce) tomato sauce
1 tsp. dry oregano
1/2 tsp. dry basil
1/2 tsp. marjoram
1/2 tsp. garlic salt
Combine in a bowl and allow to sit for an hour.

Once dough has raised, remove from oven.  Preheat oven to 475 degrees.
For each pizza, spread 1/3 of the sauce, sprinkle with freshly shredded mozzerella cheese, add any additional toppings, end with additional shredded mozzerella.
Bake at 475 degrees for 10-12 minutes, until cheese is completely melted and bubbly.

Serving Up {Pizza}: Pizza Roll Ups

I have been making these Pizza Roll Ups for as long as I have had kids.  I got the recipe from a class I went to that encouraged cooking for two days straight and then freezing everything.  I think it was called "freezer meals".  Although I loved the concept, it was a commitment that I couldn't keep up with after about the second 30 day stretch.  The truth is that I am HORRIBLE about remembering to pull out the next days meal 24 hours in advance.  So I let it go.

I haven't let this recipe go though.  My kids LOVE these.  I do find myself doubling (or even tripling) this recipe when I make it and then freezing the extras.  They make a great addition to a lunch box - talk about making your kid the popular kid at the lunch table!

The recipe is really just a general guideline.  You can alter it in innumerable ways.  Use wheat dough, add (hide) veggies, use a different meat (chicken or sausage anyone?), try a gourmet cheese.  You get the idea.

PIZZA ROLL UPS     Pin It

printable version

1 loaf frozen bread dough (I like Rhodes)
3/4 - 1 pound ground beef
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
1 cup pizza sauce
1 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. pepper
2 tsp. Italian seasoning
1 Tbs. chopped fresh parsley
additional pizza sauce (for dipping)

Thaw dough and roll into a 14x24 inch rectangle about ¼ inch thick. Cook ground beef until brown. Drain fat and stir in the remaining ingredients. Spoon filling evenly over dough, slightly pressing the filling into the dough. Roll dough lengthwise like you are rolling a jelly roll and cut into 12 2-inch slices.
Spray cookie sheet with nonstick spray.  Lay slices on the cookie sheet, one inch apart.
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Let roll-ups sit for 15-20 minutes to rise slightly.
Bake for 20-25 minutes or until golden brown.
Serve with pizza sauce for dipping if desired.

(variations: wheat dough, chicken, sausage, mushrooms, olives, chopped tomatoes, peppers, etc.)