A Life, Lived

Grilled Pizza with Spicy Italian Sausage

It was Kim's turn to select the recipe for the Sunday Slow Supper crowd to play with. Her area was BBQ. She posted a recipe that she first brought to my attention 3 years ago - in fact, it was the recipe that started my love of pizza on the grill.

If you love pizza and you own a grill you really should try this. I remember when I first made pizza ont eh grill - I was at the receiving end of some unusual looks from the dinner guests. Sure, they understood steak, chicken, salmon, and perhaps some veggies - but pizza? That wasn't a grill-worthy item to them.

Silly folk.

You wouldn’t know by reading the instructions how ridiculously easy this is. The instructions are so long I didn’t even want to read them at first. Having made this recipe a few times I can assure you that it looks complex but it breaks down into manageable chunks - chunks that can be shared if there is more than one person around to do the cooking.

The finished pizza has a thin, crispy crust . . . not unlike a pizza made in a commercial wood burning brick oven. The difference is that you can make it yourself without spending $5000 on a brick pizza oven.

Try it once - you won't want to go back to delivery again.

The one draw back of this recipe is that there are far too many toppings. In fact, I think that you could use half of the called for toppings and it would still be good. You could save the rest of the sausages and grilled veggies to make an amazing grilled sausage sandwich. MMMMM

Grilled Pizza with Spicy Italian Sausage

Dough
1 cup warm water (105°F to 115°F)
1 tablespoon sugar
1 envelope dry yeast
3 tablespoons olive oil
3 cups (or more) all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
preparation

Combine water and sugar in a food processor. Sprinkle yeast over; let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add oil, then 3 cups flour and salt. Process until dough comes together, about 1 minute.

Turn dough out onto floured work surface. Sprinkle with rosemary. Knead until dough is smooth and elastic, adding more flour by tablespoonfuls if dough is sticky, about 5 minutes. Lightly oil large bowl. Add dough; turn to coat with oil. Cover bowl with plastic, then towel. Let stand in warm draft-free area until dough doubles, about 1 hour. To test that the dough has risen sufficiently, push two fingers into it. The depressions should remain.

Punch down dough. Knead dough in bowl until smooth, about 2 minutes. Divide dough into 4 equal pieces. Stretch out each piece on floured surface to 9-inch round. To prevent the dough from sticking as you stretch it, use flour sparingly; too much will result in a tough crust.

Toppings

3/4 cup olive oil
6 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons chopped fresh rosemary
1 pound spicy Italian sausages
2 yellow or red bell peppers, cored, lengthwise
1 large red onion, peeled, cut through root end into 1/2-inch thick wedges

Whisk first 4 ingredients in medium bowl. Let vinaigrette stand 15 minutes at room temperature or refrigerate up to 2 hours.

Prepare barbecue (medium heat). Arrange sausages, peppers and onion on baking sheet. Brush with some of vinaigrette. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill sausages until cooked through and peppers and onion until slightly charred and crisp-tender, turning and basting occasionally, about 12 minutes for sausages and 8 minutes for peppers and onion.

Transfer sausages and vegetables to cutting board. Cut sausages into 1/2-inch pieces and peppers into thin strips.

Final preparation

2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
2 cups crumbled chilled soft fresh goat cheese (such as Montrachet)
4 plum tomatoes, halved, seeded, chopped
3/4 cup chopped green onion tops Add coals to barbecue if necessary. Place 2 dough rounds on grill. Grill over medium heat until top of dough puffs and underside is crisp, about 3 minutes. Turn rounds over. Grill 1 minute. Transfer to baking sheet with well-grilled side up. This side of the dough becomes the surface that will hold the toppings.

Repeat with the remaining 2 dough rounds. Sprinkle each with 1/4 of mozzarella and Parmesan. Top each with 1/4 of sausage, peppers and onion, then with 1/4 of goat cheese, tomatoes and green onions. Drizzle each with 1 1/2 teaspoons vinaigrette.

Using large metal spatula, return 2 pizzas to grill. Close grill or cover pizzas loosely with foil. Grill until cheeses melt and dough is cooked through and browned, using tongs to rotate pizzas for Transfer to plates. Repeat grilling for remaining 2 pizzas.

Onion, Potato, Pancetta, and Rosemary Pizza

September is Ovarian Cancer Awareness Month, and for the second year in a row, Sara of Ms Adventures in Italy and Michelle of Bleeding Espresso are hosting the O Foods Contest to raise awareness of this important health issue.

There are TWO WAYS to take part in the O Foods Contest:

ONE: Post a recipe to your blog using a food that starts or ends with the letter O (e.g., oatmeal, orange, okra, octopus, olive, onion, potato, tomato); include this entire text box in the post; and send your post url along with a photo (100 x 100) to ofoods[at]gmail[dot]com by 11:59 pm (Italy time) on Monday, September 28, 2009.

PRIZES for recipe posts:

• 1st: Signed copy of Dolce Italiano: Desserts from the Babbo Kitchen by Gina DePalma, Executive Pastry Chef of Babbo Ristorante in NYC, who is currently battling ovarian cancer, inspired this event, and will be choosing her favorite recipe for this prize;

• 2nd: Signed copy of Molto Italiano: 327 Simple Italian Recipes to Cook at Homeby Mario Batali (winner chosen by Sara);

• 3rd: Signed copy of Vino Italiano: The Regional Italian Wines of Italyby Joseph Bastianich (winner chosen by Michelle).

OR

TWO: If you’re not into the recipe thing, simply post this entire text box in a post on your blog to help spread the word and send your post url to ofoods[at]gmail[dot]com by 11:59 pm (Italy time) on Monday, September 28, 2009.

Awareness posts PRIZE:

• One winner chosen at random will receive a Teal Toes tote bag filled with ovarian cancer awareness goodies that you can spread around amongst your friends and family.

———

From the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund:

• Ovarian cancer is the leading cause of death from gynecologic cancers in the United States and is the fifth leading cause of cancer death among U.S. women; a woman’s lifetime risk of ovarian cancer is 1 in 67.
• The symptoms of ovarian cancer are often vague and subtle, making it difficult to diagnose, but include bloating, pelvic and/or abdominal pain, difficulty eating or feeling full quickly; and urinary symptoms (urgency or frequency).
• There is no effective screening test for ovarian cancer but there are tests which can detect ovarian cancer when patients are at high risk or have early symptoms.
• In spite of this, patients are usually diagnosed in advanced stages and only 45% survive longer than five years. Only 19% of cases are caught before the cancer has spread beyond the ovary to the pelvic region.
• When ovarian cancer is detected and treated early on, the five-year survival rate is greater than 92%.

And remember, you can also always donate to the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund at our page through FirstGiving!

Please help spread the word about ovarian cancer.
Together we can make enough noise to kill this silent killer.

Paul and I made this pizza yesterday as our 'O' food entry. We had a similar pizza when we were last in Venice and loved it so we were eager to try and recreate it at home. It seemed perfect for this event.

Onion, Potato, Pancetta, and Rosemary Pizza

Your favourite pizza dough (enough for one pizza)
2 boiling potatoes
1 yellow onion, sliced as thinly as you can slice it
2 tablespoons fresh rosemary leaves (chopped)
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 oz cubed pancetta
salt and pepper

Preheat over to 450 degrees with a pizza stone inside.

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the potatoes and cooked until tender (about 30 minutes). Drain, cool, and slice as thinly as you can.

Shape the pizza dough on a piece of parchment paper. Cover it with a layer of potato slices. Arrange the onion on top. Sprinkle with rosemary and cubed pancetta. Drizzle it with three tablespoons of olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Transfer to the oven and bake for 10 minutes.

Reduce the heat to 400 degrees.

Bake for an addition 10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.

Drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon of olive oil.

Serve immediately.

Peach, Prosciutto, and Goat-Cheese Pizzas

This is my entry for Weekend Herb Blogging - one of the longest running food blog 'events' on the web.  This week it is being hosted Rachel from The Crispy Cook. Weekend Herb Blogging was created by Kalyn and is now organized by Haalo, WHB is now in its 4th successful year of showcasing every week delicious (and often unusal) foods prepared using herbs, fruits and vegetables by bloggers around the world.

More on peaches after after the post . . .

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For those of you who adore the salty and sweet flavour combinations - this pizza is for you! Just imagine my joy when this recipe came up in one of my facebook groups. Really they are just temptresses. The timing could not have been better as I had some delicious, fresh peaches in the fridge and all of the other ingredients on hand.

The recipe was originally in the August 2000 Gourmet magazine. I admit that I made some changes . . . the main one being that I love pizza that has been grilled - the crisp, smokey, charred crust. MMM I also love not having to turn on the oven in the summer. LOL I also added some fresh rosemary to the pizza dough.

This is a delicious recipe. Each ingredient comes through, and they dance together on the palate beautifully. The combination of the salty, crispy pork and the sweet peaches was phenomenal.  The peaches, goat cheese and prosciutto would make a wonderful grilled panini on rosemary bread, too.

I'm definitely going to make this again before local peaches disappear from the market - I think I'll try some blue cheese . . .

If you're lucky like we are and have some ripe peaches in the fridge be sure to give this one a try!

Enjoy

Peach, Prosciutto, and Goat-Cheese Pizzas

1 (1/4-oz) package active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 cup warm water (110–115°F)
2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 firm-ripe peaches, cut into thin wedges and halved crosswise
8 very thin prosciutto slices, torn into pieces
3 oz soft mild goat cheese, crumbled
2 teaspoons chopped fresh rosemary

Stir yeast and sugar into water until dissolved and let stand 5 minutes, or until foamy. Whisk together flour and salt in a bowl and add yeast mixture, stirring until a dough forms. Knead dough on a floured surface 5 minutes. Put in an oiled large bowl and turn to coat.

Let rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm place until doubled in bulk, about 1 1/2 hours.

Quarter dough on floured surface and dust with flour. Shape and stretch 2 pieces of dough into 7- by 5-inch ovals (keep remaining dough covered). Follow the technique for pizza on the grill here.

When one side of the sheels are grilled until crisp remove them from the grill. Working quickly, brush ovals with some oil and top each with one fourth of peaches, prosciutto, cheese, and rosemary. Season with salt and pepper. Return the dressed shell to the grill.

Grill until crisp and golden, 6 to 8 minutes. Slide a metal BBQ flipper under pizzas to remove from the grill.

Shape, top, and cook 2 more pizzas in same manner. Drizzle remaining oil over pizzas.

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Funny thing about peaches - they go on the long list of things I refused to eat as a child yet at some point in my recent past learned to love. Why is it as kids so many delicions fruits and vegetables get ignored only to be discovered later?

Selecting

Look for peaches with skins that show a background color of yellow or warm cream. The amount of pink or red blush on their cheeks depends on the variety and is not a reliable indicator of ripeness. Undertones of green indicate the peaches were picked too soon and will not ripen properly and won't be sweet. Look for plump, medium to large peaches with unwrinkled skins. Choose fruits that are mildly fragrant. Avoid rock-hard peaches and choose those that yield slightly to pressure along the seam, even if they may otherwise be fairly firm. Peaches at this stage of ripeness will soften if kept at room temperature for a few days. Avoid dark-colored, mushy, bruised peaches that are overripe and beginning to spoil. Tan circles or spots on the skin are early signs of decay.

Storing

Store them in a single layer with their stem end down to prevent bruising. Check them daily. When you sniff the stem end, a ripe peach will smell very sweet and peachy. Use them immediately or refrigerate them.

Using

Peaches should be washed thoroughly and can be rubbed with a paper towel to remove the fuzz on the skin. Some people prefer to peel peaches rather than encounter the fuzziness or chewiness of some peach varietal skins. Whole peaches can be peeled easily by immersing a few peaches at a time in boiling water for about 15 seconds and then plunging them into ice water. The skin will slip right off.

Nutrition Information

Peaches are high in fiber, vitamins A and C, niacin and potassium.

Denver's Best Pizza? The Oven

Yesterday Joanne and I had an 1.5 hour exam! ARGH This was challenging for me when I haven't written an examination for 23 years. When it was over I was exhausted; in need of food AND vino!

As I was doing my 'pre-trip research' I followed my standard search routines I try to use for Norther American destinations and googled for those lists of 'Denver's Best . . .' Many community newspapers undertake these lists annually, readers vote, and the lists are published. I have found that the places that are voted in are always a great spot to explore.

One of the spots listed as serving up Denver's best pizza was actually located OUTSIDE of Denver not far from where we are in Golden. The Oven was opened in 2004, and  focuses on homemade cooking using local and organic produce whenever possible. Their marinara, mozzarella, ricotta, sausage, bbq sauce, pizza dough, and desserts are all made in house.  When I read about that it sounded promising!

I googled a bit more and discovered a listing in Food and Wine magazine that listed it as one of the places to go in Denver.

SOLD

How could we go wrong? Best of Denver in 2005, 6, 7, 8, AND 9. A nod from Food and Wine. Great reviews on YELP and Chowhound . . .

The oven is meant to be a place where you can hang with friends. They feature huge communal tables which are perfect for a night out with your buds or making new ones if you are so inclined. The service is friendly and casual.

We were challenged by what to order - everything looked so good!

In the end I selected a simple started called 'bread and dips"'. We received a platter with warm foccacia wedges that were studded with rosemary and covered with paramigiano. MMMMMM The dips were house made tapenade, pesto, and a zippy marinara. I was in heaven . . . delicious warm bread . . . amazing spreads/dips! WOW

The pizzas arrived with a thin crust (but not so crisp that you fear the roof of your mouth will be traumatized) made from fresh ingredients (including flour imported directly from Italy). I was surprised at the amount of toppings on the pizza - I went for the 'da really bold sausage' pizza which came with pepperoni, house-made sausage, prosciutto, house-cured bacon, and the house-made mozzarella. It was a spicy protein delight and after one bite I was in heaven.

 It was as close to Italian pizza I could have had (well, except for all of the toppings because all who have had REAL Italian pizza knows that the toppings are sparse but amazing!) without being in Italy!

We were too full for dessert but the Oven makes pies and ice cream fresh every day. A table near us ordered the seasonal pie (strawberry and rhubarb) and it looked amazing!

So, the verdict? If you're in the area and want delicious pizza in a fun atmosphere be sure to check out the Oven!

Tex-Mex Calzones

I've been making pizza/calzones regularly each week. It has become a way to reward myself for being good; a week of gym and watching my calorie intake deserves a treat once in awhile. I found this recipe in the March 2009 Cooking Light magazine and decided it sounded good enough to try!

It was! I loved this recipe. It was quick to prepare and delicious. I followed the recipe as printed with two exceptions: I used my favourite pizza dough which I make with whole wheat dough (thereby removing considerable fat from the recipe - have you read the labels on one of those cans of pizza dough?) and I also used my own salsa which is better than any of that store bought stuff!

Enjoy!

Tex-Mex Calzones

8 ounces ground turkey breast
1/2 cup chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped green bell pepper
1/2 cup chopped red bell pepper
3/4 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon chili powder
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup fat-free fire-roasted salsa verde
1 (11-ounce) can refrigerated thin-crust pizza dough (I used my favourite whole-wheat pizza dough which is quick and easy to make)
3/4 cup (3 ounces) pre-shredded Mexican blend cheese
Cooking spray
1/4 cup fat-free sour cream

Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven (if using). Preheat oven to 425°.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add ground turkey to pan; cook 3 minutes, stirring to crumble. Add onion and next 5 ingredients (through garlic) to pan; cook 4 minutes or until vegetables are crisp-tender, stirring mixture occasionally. Remove turkey mixture from heat; stir in salsa.

Unroll dough; divide into 4 equal portions. Roll each portion into a 6 x 4–inch rectangle. Working with one rectangle at a time, spoon about 1/2 cup turkey mixture on one side of dough. Top with 3 tablespoons cheese; fold dough over turkey mixture, and press edges together with a fork to seal.

(If using your own favourite dough: Divide the dough into four equal pieces.  Roll out each piece into a large circle.  Place  dough circles on a nonstick cookie sheet or pieces of parchment paper. Top with 3 tablespoons cheese; fold dough over turkey mixture, and press edges together with a fork to seal.
Fold dough over in half and pinch edges to seal. The result is a half-circle shaped turnover.)

Cut slits in the top of the calzone.

Place on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray or slide onto the preheated pizza stone.

Repeat procedure with remaining dough and turkey mixture. Bake at 425° for 12 minutes or until browned. Serve with sour cream.

Sausage Ricotta Calzones

For some reason I went a bit crazy buying ricotta cheese a few weeks ago. I blame the 'recession insanity' - when I see a great price on something I don't buy one, I buy 12. Of course I am forgetting that I then have to use it up. I guess it is not unlike shopping at Costco.

There should be a 12 step program for this recession insanity.

Cognizant of wasting food, I started searching for recipes that would help me use up this stock of cheese. I found this one on a blog somewhere - I think it was originally by . . . . gulp . . . Rachel Ray.

Yes, the self-loathing is quite palatable around here as I type.

Nonetheless, I ignored her instructions (which called for tubes of Pillsbury pizza dough) and modified things a wee bit. I also tried to cut the fat by using turkey sausage and low-fat cheese. I added some crushed red pepper as well, because we like things on the 'zippy' side.

Zippy being the technical term, don't you know.

I used some of my 'new' favourite pizza dough recipe - a wonderful dough that is easy to make and uses a combination of whole wheat and regular flour. The result is a delicious dough that is pliable, each to use, and bakes up very well.

Whether you use your own dough, a ball of store bought, or tubes of Pillsbury (will the inhumanity never cease) these calzones come together quickly and will have you wanting more.

Enjoy!

Sausage Ricotta Calzones

1 1/3 pounds Italian sausage, casings removed
drizzle olive oil
2 cups ricotta cheese
1 handful grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 teaspoon nutmeg
fresh black pepper
2 tablespoons chopped roasted red pepper
1 large ball prepared pizza dough (about a pound and a half)
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
garlic oil
2 cups marinara or pizza sauce
Garlic oil (1 or 2 cloves chopped and heated in 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil)

Preheat oven to 425ºF.

Brown sausage in a small skillet in a drizzle of olive oil. Drain the coooked saucsage on papper towel. Combine sausage with ricotta, parsley, garlic, Parmigiano, nutmeg, pepper, and roasted red pepper.

Divide the dough into four equal pieces.  Roll out each piece into a large circle.  Place  dough circles on a nonstick cookie sheet or pieces of parchment paper. Use 1/2 cup mozzarella on half of each dough circle and pile a mound of filling on half of the total area.

Fold dough over in half and pinch edges to seal. The result is a half-circle shaped turnover.

Cut slits in the top of the calzone.

Bake calzones 15 minutes (on the cookie sheets or slide onto a heated pizza stone) or until golden all over. Serve calzones with warm tomato, marinara, or pizza sauce for dipping.