I continue to love pizza (it's weird that HRH doesn't like pizza; you'd think it was like mother's milk to her... especially since I suspect my milk actually tasted like pizza), and although I could probably eat it more than once a week if I were given free reign, I don't.
Sometimes we go out, but more than not of late, when I want pizza, I just make it myself (insert sound clip of small child yelling, "I DO IT MYSELF!").
This also helps make sure that I win the Deep Dish vs. Thin Crust debate (The Husband is pro-Chicago-style; I am a fan of New York pizza).
I have played around with various crust recipes but have found my best success with the crust in the Peas and Thank You cookbook; it's light and bakes up nice and crispy. This week I subbed a small bit of whole wheat flour for the whole wheat pastry flour to get a little bit denser, chewier texture.
When I make pizza, it's basically Whatever Possible Toppings Are On Hand flavor. I feel like I've come a long way in my belief of What is Allowed as a Pizza Topping; when I was small, it was only pepperoni, black olives, and, when done appropriately, sausage, white onions, and cashews. The first time I saw artichoke hearts on pizza, I was mortified. Now I find them delectable and will regularly order them when eating out.
This week, my toppings included yellow summer squash, apples, arugula, and caramelized onions that came right from our CSA share as well as sun-dried tomatoes and part-skim mozzarella cheese. I don't generally use sauce - red sauce has never been my favorite, and while I really do love white garlic sauces, I don't need the calories that my favorite ones add (the approximate number is a bazillion). So I just brush the crust with olive oil. I did plan to add some minced garlic, but I forgot, as I did with the Kalamata olives
The one thing that I think ALL pizza crust recipes need to include is this:
Before shaping the crust, sprinkle an ample amount of cornmeal onto your shaping surface. Right before you put your pizza in the oven, sprinkle your pizza stone with cornmeal as well. This will help prevent the crust from sticking to anything.
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| See? Ample. |
I can't guarantee that all my pizza creations are as veggie-fied as the one I made this week, but hey, when I make it myself, it's bound to be a healthier version of one of my favorite splurges.
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| Pre-cheese |
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| If there is anything tastier than baked cheese, I want to meet it. |
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| Pizza is the exception to my "no seconds" rule. Every rule has to have exceptions. |
What is a food you could eat at least once weekly for the rest of your life?
What is your favorite pizza topping combination?
Red sauce, white sauce, or no sauce?
The running joke at our house is that I could rotate between Asian & Mexican every other day and be perfectly happy. Truth is, I'd have to work a pizza day in there, too. I love it. One of my faves is pepperoni with green olives on a marinara base. Another favorite is grilled chicken, spinach & artichoke hearts on a alfredo sauce. My weirdest favorite is buffalo chicken - which is grilled chicken & cheese on a buffalo wing sauce. And I'm a thin crust girl. All the way.
ReplyDeleteWhen I was pregnant with My Baby (back in the dark ages) I ate guacamole or chocolate Malt-o-Meal almost every day. It was kind of gross.
Both TH and I are always down for Mexican. Asian.... we like but don't run to all the time. Unless it's sushi.
DeleteThere was a period of about 3 weeks halfway through my pregnancy that I HAD to have a salami sandwich on a crust roll with iceberg lettuce, tomato, pepperoncinis, mustard, oil and vinegar, and salt and pepper every day. And since salami has all those nitrates/nitrites that my doctor practically said was worse than booze, I went to Whole Foods to get un-nitrated (nitrited?) salami a few times a week. That was pricy. TH almost had a stroke. Good times.
I really like the nitrate/nitrite-free bacon and salami! So good!
DeleteFact: I ate so much pizza while pregnant with Sons #3 & #4 that we threatened to make their middle names Pizza. Or Luigi, which is still Italian but sounds infinitely less-weird than Pizza. My favorite topping combo is marinara, bacon, pepperoni, and maybe a little pineapple. It's so bad, I know. Although, I will *never* turn down a Margherita pizza. Ever.
ReplyDeleteSon #1 was all citrus all the time. Son #2 was Slim Jim sandwiches from Big Boy, or hamburgers with lots of onions. I ate Cocoa Wheats with dried cherries for breakfast everyday with all of the pregnancies. All of the boys love the foods I craved while pregnant with them.
We don't have Big Boy out here, but I was able to put a hurtin' on In-N-Out Double Doubles like it was my JOB.
DeleteI wish HRH likes the food I ate. The only one she is consistent with is ice cream.
Pizza! We eat pizza every Friday and like you, we make it ourselves!! Just made an amazing pie with olive oil base, prosciutto, bleu cheese, pears and walnut and it was delicious! Look for a blog post later this week :)
ReplyDeleteOh, I will! I hope you are feeling better!
DeleteWe love to have wine/cheese/fruit nights; what better than to combine that with pizza???? Genius!