Almond-basil pesto

I had a bounty of basil that I wanted to use while it is at its peak, so I made a big batch of pesto based on this recipe. I had some extra spinach, so I tossed that in there, too. I made mine cheese-free.

3 cups basil leaves

1/2 cup slivered unsalted almonds, toasted

3 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

1/2 cup olive oil

1/2 teaspoon salt

juice of 1/2 lemon

Combine ingredients in food processor, pulsing until chopped, then processed until smooth. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze in an ice cube tray until just frozen, then transfer pesto cubes to a freezer bag.

Bell pepper, red onion, and goat cheese pizza with fresh thyme

Bon Appétit recipe:

Bell pepper, red onion, and goat cheese pizza with fresh thyme

1/4 cup olive oil
1 large red onion, thinly sliced
6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1/2 large red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/2 large green or yellow bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1 pizza crust, cooked ahead of time
5 oz goat cheese, crumbled
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves

Heat oil in a heavy large skillet over medium-low heat. Add onion and garlic, sauté 20 minutes or until very soft. Add peppers, sauté 5 min, then add crushed red pepper. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
Heat oven to 450. Brush crust with some oil from the skillet, then top with onion-pepper mixture. Sprinkle with cheese and thyme. Bake until crust is crisp and topping is heated through, about 12 minutes.

Broccoli, tomato, and mozzarella stromboli

We have made this Martha Stewart Everyday Food magazine recipe several times...

Broccoli, tomato, and mozzarella stromboli

-1 prepared pizza dough

-flour, for work surface

-1 lb package frozen chopped broccoli (or steamed fresh broccoli)

-2 garlic cloves, minced

-coarse salt and ground pepper

-1 cup marinara sauce

-1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella

-2 oz thinly sliced Genoa salami

-1 tablespoon olive oil

Preheat oven to 400 and line a baking sheet with foil. Divide dough into 4 pieces. On lightly floured surface, stretch each piece to a 6x8" oval. Place broccoli in a strainer and press to remove excess liquid. Transfer to a double layer of paper towels and pat dry. Dividing evenly, scatter broccoli over dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border. Sprinkle with garlic, salt, and pepper. Top with mozzarella, salami, and 1/2 cup marinara. Starting at shorter end, roll each stromboli and place seam side down on baking sheet. Using paring knife, cut tow slits in the top of each. Bake until golden, 25-30 minutes. Serve with remaining marinara for dipping.

Pizza rolls

This is such a great idea! So versatile!

Pizza Rolls

1 refrigerated rectangular pizza crust

fillings (toppings and cheese)

olive oil or melted butter

salt, pepper

grated parmesan

marinara sauce (for dipping)

Stretch the dough into a 8x12" rectangle. Divide into 24 squares (4x6)

In each square, put a little cheese and a little topping. For mine, I made half red pepper and goat cheese and the other half ham, pineapple, and mozzarella... I just kind of put in enough to fit. Then fold the corners of each square and press to seal so you have a little dough ball. Put into a baking dish (a 9" round worked well) seam-side down. Brush the top of all of the stuffed dough balls with melted butter or olive oil and then sprinkle salt, pepper, and grated parmesan cheese. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes or until the dough is golden brown. Serve with warmed marinara and maybe some more grated parm. YUM!

Pizza Bianca

I found little pizza dough rounds at the grocery, so tonight we had little pizza biancas. I mostly followed this recipe. They were really good! They would also make good appetizers.

Pizza Bianca

1 pizza dough (or individual doughs!)

1 1/2 cups fresh goat cheese

1-3 tablespoons milk, if needed for spreading

2 garlic cloves, minced

6 small mushrooms, sliced (I used Paris)

1 medium tomato, diced

3/4 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed

1/2 cup fresh mozzarella, crumbled (or grated)

Place dough on a cookie sheet. Mix the goat cheese and minced garlic. If the cheese is too thick to spread, add milk. Spread cheese onto crust, going nearly to the edge. Top with vegetables, then mozzarella. Bake at 400 for 25 minutes or until cheese has melted and crust is beginning to brown.

BBQ Chicken Pizza

Doug made this yummy pizza tonight... here's how it works (adapt to your tastes):

BBQ Chicken Pizza

-prepared pizza crust (store bought or homemade)

-BBQ sauce

-thinly sliced red onion

-diced cooked chicken

-chopped fresh cilantro

-grated or chopped mozzarella

Spread prepared crust onto cookie sheet or pizza pan/stone. Spread BBQ sauce all over crust (leave a 1" border around the sides to avoid a mess). Sprinkle toppings all over pizza and top with mozzarella. Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes.

Yum!

vegetarian pizza combos

We tried two combinations last night on pizza and both were delicious! We were hesitant since there was no sauce on the pizza, but it turned out really well!

Combo #1= tomato, ricotta, basil, Parmesan
Combo #2= potato, rosemary, Parmesan

ingredients:
extra virgin olive oil
prepared pizza dough (store bought or homemade)
3 small-medium sized tomatoes, cut into small wedges
1/3 cup ricotta cheese
1/4 shaved Parmesan (we used fresh grated)
coarse salt and ground pepper
3 or 4 small red new potatoes, very thinly sliced
leaves of several sprigs fresh rosemary
leaves of several sprigs of fresh basil
kosher salt and pepper

Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place tomatoes on a foil-lined cookie sheet, drizzle with a little olive oil and roast until soft and beginning to brown (about 10 minutes).
Meanwhile, work pizza dough and spread onto cookie sheet. When tomatoes are finished, increase temperature to 450. On one half of the crust, place tomatoes, dollop with ricotta, top with basil. On the other side of the crust, place potato slices in an even layer, drizzle with olive oil, and top with rosemary. Sprinkle Parmesan on entire pizza and season entire pizza with salt and pepper.

Bake at 450 for about 12- 15 minutes or until crust begins to brown. Yum!

Or, if you really like the potatoes, you could do all potatoes like I did here (aren't the little potatoes cute?!):

see more of Doug's pics here

Homemade pizza or pasta sauce

This sauce is so easy but so good! We doubled the recipe and used it for pizza Friday night, for meatloaf Saturday, and the rest for pasta on Monday!

Simple Tomato Sauce

2-3 cloves garlic

2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 Tablespoons unsalted butter

1 lb canned tomatoes

several sprigs of fresh basil

salt and pepper, to taste

In a food processor or blender, puree the tomatoes, set aside. In a heavy bottomed saucepan, heat the olive oil and butter over medium heat. Add the garlic cloves and saute for 3-5 minutes- do not allow to brown. Add the tomatoes and basil, stir to combine. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat to a low simmer. Simmer 15-25 minutes or until sauce has thickened slightly. Remove garlic and basil and season with salt and pepper. Serve over your favorite pasta or spread over a prepared pizza dough. Once extra sauce has cooled, freeze in freezer bags for future use.

Soft Pizza Dough

I have been making crispy pizza dough for a while... I recently discovered this recipe from Salud, and it is a much softer dough.

Pizza Dough

1 package active dry yeast (if you are using yeast out of a jar, use 2 1/4 teaspoons)

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 cup tepid warm water (like a baby's bottle)

2 Tablespoons olive oil

1 1/2 teaspoons Kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon sugar

In a small bowl, combine the warm water and sugar. Add yeast and stir gently. Allow yeast to bubble slightly (5-10 minutes). Pour yeast mixture into a mixer bowl with the dough hook attachment. Add olive oil, salt, and 2 cups flour. Turn on mixer- after a few minutes the dough should start to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Add flour as needed (you may not need the entire last cup). If you do not have a mixer, this process can be done with a large bowl and wooden spoon. Oil a large bowl. Remove dough from bowl and knead slightly then place in bowl, turning to coat evenly with oil. Cover with a dish towel or saran wrap and allow to rise in a warm place until doubled in bulk, approximately 1-2 hours. After doubling in bulk, remove from bowl and knead on a floured surface. Stretch dough onto pizza stone or cookie sheet. Add sauce, desired toppings, and cheese. Bake at 425 for 15 minutes or until cheese is melted and crust is beginning to brown.

Pizza!

Doug and I love homemade pizza. It is a great thing to make at the end of the week when you can make toppings from extra tomato, onion, pepper, meats, etc. that you have from other meals.

Crusty Pizza Dough

1 package (2 ¼ teaspoon) active dry yeast

1 cup warm water

pinch sugar

½ teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons olive oil

3- 3 ½ cups flour

enough tomato or pesto sauce to cover dough

desired pizza toppings

grated cheese for top

Pour warm water into mixer bowl. Sprinkle yeast and sugar on top. Gently mix. Let sit 2-3 minutes until bubbles appear. Add salt, olive oil, and half of the flour. Attach dough hook to mixer, turn to speed 2 and mix 1 minute. Add remaining flour and mix 2 minutes or until dough clings to hook and cleans sides of bowl. Mix 2 minutes longer. Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top. Cover and let rise in warm place, free from draft, about 1 hour or until doubled in bulk. Punch dough down. Brush pizza pan with oil or pizza stone with Crisco. Stretch dough and press across bottom of pan. Spread pesto or tomato sauce across dough and layer toppings. Sprinkle cheese over top. Bake at 375 for 15-20 minutes.

Calzones!

My friend, Cristae, found this delicious recipe. We made them at a cooking night and they were great to pull out of the freezer later. Next time I make them, I will probably vary the filling ingredients... ham and pineapple sounds especially good right now!

Taste of Home’s Veggie Calzone

(or Ham and Pineapple!)

¼ lb fresh mushrooms, chopped

½ medium onion, chopped

½ medium green pepper, chopped

1 Tablespoon canola oil

1-2 plum tomatoes, seeded and chopped

½ can tomato paste

½ cup shredded Monterey Jack cheese

½ cup shredded mozzarella

1 lb loaf frozen bread or pizza dough, thawed

Egg wash:

1 egg

2 teaspoons water

In large skillet, sauté mushrooms, onion, and green pepper in oil until tender. Add tomatoes and stir for 3 minutes. Stir in tomato paste; set aside. Combine cheeses and set aside.

On lightly flour surface, dived dough into 4 pieces. Roll each piece into a 7” circle. Spoon a scant ½ cup of vegetable mixture and ¼ cup cheese mixture over one side of each circle. Brush edges of dough with water; fold dough over filling and press edges with a fork to seal. Place calzones on greased baking sheets. Cover and let rise in warm place for 20 minutes. Whisk egg and water; brush egg wash over calzones. Bake at 375 for 15 minutes. Cool calzones and place in freezer bags. Seal and freeze for up to 3 months. To use frozen calzones, place 2” apart on greased baking sheet. Bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes or until golden brown.