I have been eating a lot of pizza lately. A lot of veggie pizza. It’s all in the name of pregnancy of course. I just look at it as a tasty way to get my veggies and calcium in for the baby. Yeah…that’s it.

Usually when I get the craving for pizza, we order in but the other night instead of delivery, I decided to make my own with all of the fresh summer veggies I had in the fridge. And the best part was, instead of typical pizza dough, I used a sheet of puff pastry that I had in the freezer. The result was a fresh, light, cheesy pizza on a crispy flaky dough. Or in other words: heaven.

This isn’t the first time that I have tried to make pizza with puff pastry. However, this is the first time that I have been successful at it. The first few times I didn’t roll it out enough so it was really doughy. Another time I didn’t puncture the dough and it puffed up a little too much for my liking. This time however, I rolled it out to a perfect 10X15, rolled over the edges, then used a fork to put little holes all over the dough before baking. This created the perfect pizza crust. It was thin, crispy and flaky.

Serves 2 – 4

You will need:

• 1 puff pastry sheet, thawed
• ¼ cup olive oil, plus more for greasing the baking sheet.
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon crushed red pepper
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1 small zucchini, sliced
• 1 small yellow squash, sliced
• ½ small red onion, sliced
• 2 tomatoes, sliced

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Use a little olive oil to lightly coat the bottom of a baking sheet. Set aside.
2. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the puff pastry dough to 10” x 15”. Place the dough on the prepared baking sheet. Fold the edges of the dough over to make a crust. Use a fork to gently poke holes throughout all of the dough. Bake in the pre-heated oven for 10 – 12 minutes or until golden brown.
3. While the dough is baking, heat ¼ cup of olive oil over medium- low heat. Once warm, stir in salt, crushed red pepper, basil and garlic. Cook just until the garlic is fragrant. About 30-45 seconds. Do not allow the garlic to brown.
4. Remove the dough from the oven. If it has puffed up a little gently puncture it with a fork. Brush the garlic olive oil over the dough. Spread 2 cups of the mozzarella cheese over the dough and then layer the vegetables. Sprinkle the remaining mozzarella over the top. Bake for 10 minutes or until the cheese is melted and the edges of the crust are browned. Turn on the broiler for 2 minutes if you like your cheese extra bubbly.
5. Allow to cool several minutes, slice and serve.

Enjoy!

As I sit here typing this on Thursday night I hear the not so faint sound of Saint’s fans cheering in the background. I happen to know they’re Saint’s fans only because I heard the “Who Dat” phrase quite a few times. The fact that I am hearing this cheering can only mean one thing: It’s football season. And if you’re like me, this doesn’t interest you at all. Well maybe it does a little bit only because it means that you get to make all kinds of football food, of which I will be sharing plenty of recipes later. But today I am sharing a recipe for all of the other “non-football” fans like me out there who want something to nibble on while we are watching something a little more sophisticated. Something with a little more depth, like say, Jersey Shore. And nothing pairs with learning about a little GTL then a fresh, cheesy, hot from the oven pizza.

I’m not going to call this a girl pizza because I know very well that there are some boys out there that will like it. Ryan did. But there are also some boys out there that will say “WHERE’S THE MEAT?” Alas, there isn’t any on this pizza. But that doesn’t mean that it is short on any flavor. There is not one, not two but three different kinds of cheeses: mozzarella, romano and goat. This makes each and every bite an explosion of creamy cheesy goodness. The sweet red onion and crisp red pepper take the flavor to another level. And the spinach? Well that is just there for good measure.

One last note, I do prepare my own pizza dough for this recipe, but if that takes too much time go a head and buy a pre-made dough and start from step 9.

Serves 4

You will need:

• 1 (1/4 ounce) envelope active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for flouring surface
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 2 cups baby spinach leaves
• 1 medium red onion, sliced
• 1 red pepper, seeds and ribs removed, sliced
• 1/2 cup shredded romano cheese
• 1/2 cup goat cheese crumbles

1. In a bowl dissolve yeast in warm water. About 10 minutes.
2. In another bowl combine flour, basil and kosher salt.
3. After yeast has dissolved, gradually mix in the seasoned flour. Mix with hands until well combined.
4. On a flour coated surface, kneed dough until soft, about 5 minutes. Add more flour as needed so the dough doesn’t stick to your hands or the board.
5. Grease a bowl with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Place dough in the bowl, cover tightly with saran wrap. Let rise in a warm, dark place for 40 minutes – 1 hour or until it has doubled in size. I put mine in a kitchen cabinet.
6. Once it has doubled in size, punch the dough to release the air bubbles.
7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
8. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough  and then using your hands shape into 15 inch pizza pan. Bake dough for 10 minutes.
9. While dough is baking, heat remaining olive oil in a skillet over medium heat, add garlic and oregano. Cook just until garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds.
10. Remove dough from oven and brush olive oil and garlic mixture over the top.
11. Layer remaining ingredients on the dough. Bake for 20 – 25 minutes or until cheese is melted and bubbly and crust is browned.
12. Slice and serve.

Enjoy!

I was craving pizza the other night and didn’t really want to go out for it or call the delivery guy so I decided to make some for Ryan and I. Traditionally I’m a pepperoni kind of girl but I didn’t have any. I did however happen to have some Italian sausage, bell peppers and onions. From my experience with my Sausage, Peppers and Onions Pasta I knew it would be even more delicious combined with homemade pizza sauce and homemade crust. The result was delicious enough that I think I just may loose the delivery guy’s number.

The idea of making your own pizza crust can make this pizza seem like too much work, but it really is more waiting time than anything. It took a little over an hour for me to make my pizza crust, including rising time, and I was really happy with the results. Making my own gave me the opportunity to add my favorite seasonings to to give it a bit of a flavor boost which can sometimes be a problem when eating pizza out.  However, if you don’t have the time to make your own, you can always pick up a pre-made dough at the grocery store.

Serves 4

You will need:

• 1 (1/4 ounce) envelope active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 cups all purpose flour, plus more for flouring surface
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1 tablespoon plus 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 cup homemade Pizza Sauce
• 2 – 2 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1/2 pound Italian sausage
• 1 red bell pepper, sliced, seeds and stem removed
• 1 green bell pepper slice, seeds and stem removed
• 1/2 yellow onion sliced

1. In a bowl dissolve yeast in warm water. About 10 minutes.
2. In another bowl combine flour, basil, oregano, garlic, and kosher salt.
3. After yeast has dissolved, gradually mix in the seasoned flour. Mix with hands until well combined.
4. On a flour coated surface, kneed dough until soft, about 5 minutes. Add more flour as needed so the dough doesn’t stick to your hands or the board.
5. Grease a bowl with 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil. Place dough in the bowl, cover tightly with saran wrap. Let rise in a warm, dark place for 40 minutes – 1 hour or until it has doubled in size. I put mine in a kitchen cabinet.
6. Once it has doubled in size, punch the dough to release the air bubbles.
7. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
8. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough  and then using your hands shape into 15 inch pizza pan. Once shaped, brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.
9. Bake the plain pizza dough for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with pizza sauce, mozzarella, Italian sausage, bell peppers and onions. Bake for 25 – 30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the sausage is cooked.
10. Allow to cool for several minutes, slice and serve.

Enjoy!

If you like pizza you will love this casserole. Pepperoni, sausage, green peppers, mushrooms, onions and homemade pizza sauce are tossed with rotini pasta, topped with mozzarella and baked until bubbly. Just think of it as your favorite combination pizza turned into a tummy warming dish fit for a Sunday supper.

Casseroles gained popularity in the 1950s because of their simplicity. They are easy, one dish meals that can feed an army and as a bonus they freeze quite well. This pizza casserole is no exception. This recipe makes enough to fill two 8″ x 8″ inch casserole dishes. That way you can bake one casserole one night and freeze the other casserole to use for another night when you just don’t have much time to spend in the kitchen.

Note: For this recipe, the cheese that is added to the top before baking is left off of the casserole that you freeze. When you are ready to bake the second casserole you will need 2 cups of freshly shredded mozzarella and 1/4 cup freshly shredded Parmesan cheese.

Serves 8 (2 casseroles that serve 4)

You will need:

• 1 pound dried rotini pasta
• kosher salt
• 1 pound hot or mild ground Italian sausage
• 1 green bell pepper, ribs and seeds removed, diced
• 1/2 cup chopped red onion
• 1 cup chopped button mushrooms
• 1/2 cup diced pepperoni
• 1 cup pizza sauce
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup shredded Parmesan cheese

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
2. Bring a large pot of water to boil. Season liberally with salt, about 1 tablespoon. Cook pasta for 6-7 minutes. Strain. Pasta will be firm.
3. In a large skillet brown Italian sausage, about 5 minutes. Strain.
4. In the same pan you cooked the sausage stir together bell pepper, red onion, mushrooms and pepperoni. Cook for 3-4 minutes or until vegetables soften. Return sausage to pan. Stir to combine. Add in pasta and pizza sauce. Mix well. Remove from heat.
5. To bake one casserole: Place half of the casserole mixture into a 8″ x 8″ glass casserole dish. Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese on top.  Bake for 15 minutes. Remove. Top 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella and 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese. Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until cheese starts to brown.
6. Serve immediately.

To freeze one casserole:

1. Line a 8″ x 8″ casserole dish with foil, making sure to leave enough hanging off the sides to wrap around the casserole.
2. Spoon remaining half of casserole mixture into prepared pan. Set pan on top of ice water to cool rapidly. Then freeze for a couple of hours or until firm.
3. Lift the frozen casserole out of the dish, wrap in foil and place in a plastic freezer bag. Cook within 2-3 months.
4. When ready to bake, place frozen casserole in casserole dish and thaw in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
5. Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Unwrap the casserole. Sprinkle 1 1/2 cups of shredded mozzarella cheese on top and bake for 20-25 minutes or until mozzarella is melted and casserole is heated through. Remove from oven sprinkle 1/2 cup shredded mozzarella and 1/4 shredded Parmesan on top. Place under the broiler for 1-2 minutes or until the cheese starts to brown.
6. Serve immediately.

Enjoy!

I am a sucker for pizza. It is right up there with spaghetti and meatballs as one of the things I could eat everyday and never really get sick of. So it should come as no surprise when I tell you that I was craving pizza the other day. But it was just too hot to eat the traditional pizza with thick crust and loads of meat and cheese. Instead, I decided to make this lighter version with flat bread, salami, arugula and a few other goodies.

You will notice that there is no tomato sauce or mozzarella on this pizza.  Instead I used a little olive oil and garlic and herb cheese spread.  I have used this spread in quite a few of my recipes because I love the creamy, garlicky flavor that it adds to dishes.  In this dish, it compliments the peppery arugula nicely. As does the diced salami, fresh tomatoes, marinated artichoke hearts and crumbled feta cheese.

For the crust, I decided against making my own. Instead I picked up a package of pita flat bread. It was the perfect size for personal pizzas and actually cooked quite nicely under the broiler. It had a little crunch to it but was still soft.

Serves 2

You will need:

• 2 pieces of pita flat bread
• olive oil
• 1/4-1/2 cup garlic and herb cheese spread
• 2 handfuls baby arugula
• 1/2 cup diced salami
• 1/2 cup chopped marinated artichoke hearts
• 1 tomato, diced
• 2-3 tablespoons feta cheese crumbles

1. Preheat oven broiler
2. Brush flat bread with olive oil.  Place under the broiler for 2-3 minutes or until bread is slightly golden.
3. Spread a layer of garlic and herb cheese spread on the top of flat breads. It may melt slightly at first, just keep adding until you get a thin layer.
4. Top flat breads with remaining ingredients. Slice and serve.

These personal size pizzas are great with a little salad dressed with olive oil and vinegar.

One more note, a fork can come in handy with this pizza as some of the toppings mall fall off since there is no melted cheese to hold them on. I lost a couple of pieces of salami while I was eating, but on the bright side the dog sure enjoyed it.

Enjoy!

When I moved to Seattle a few years ago, I left my family behind in the Portland area. For those of you that don’t know, the Portland to Seattle drive is not that long, about 3 hours.  I should know, after all Ryan and I have made that drive countless times to visit our family and friends. Yet, some of my friends and family, I won’t name names, you know who you are, have yet to visit us. After yesterday however, I will have to remove my little sister from the list. She called me the other day to tell me she was coming up for a hair show (so nice to have a hair stylist in the family :)) and she wanted to stop by for dinner. Me, being the one always eager to have dinner guests, said “Sure! What can I make?”  Her answer “Pizza”. Perfect, I love pizza and think it is even better homemade.

While my mozzarella addiction only intensifies with each bite, I also think the sauce can either make or break the pizza. For this reason I decided that I would make my own. One of the reasons that I am not a huge fan of store bought sauce is that they tend to be a little too sweet for me. With that said, I still add a little bit of sugar to cut the acidity of the tomatoes. That is just the beauty of making this at home, you can pick and chose the flavors you like.

Makes: 1 cup

You will need:

• 1 (14.5 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 tablespoons tomato paste
• 1 garlic clove, finely minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon fennel seed
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper depending on the amount of spice you like
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1/8 teaspoon granulated sugar
• 1/8 teaspoon allspice

1. Combine all ingredients in a small sauce pan. Cook over medium heat until it starts to bubble slightly, about 5 minutes. Reduce heat and let simmer for 15-20 minutes.
2. Use on your favorite pizza.

It was nice visiting with my sister. We ate pizza, drank beer and watched Daisy of Love. Classy Klassy all the way ;-)

Enjoy!

I don’t often make homemade pizza crust, but I was craving some pizza the other day and happened to have some packets of yeast so I thought what heck, lets give it a try. I wanted to have a little change from the plain pizza dough so I thought about adding some different things. First I added some dried oregano, and garlic. I then decided to add some of the oil from a can of sun dried tomatoes that I had in the fridge, and let me tell you the result was delicious!

As far as the rest of the pizza goes, I topped it with all of my favorite toppings: a quick red sauce (see recipe below),  pepperoni, bell peppers, onions, sliced olives, fresh tomatoes and of course mozzarella. I then baked it until the crust was golden brown and the cheese was melted. It was like bringing the pizzeria home, except it was less expensive and I could do it all in my pajamas! :)

Serves 4

• 1 package active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water
• 2 1/4- 2 1/2 cups flour
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 teaspoon dried oregano
• 2 teaspoons granulated garlic
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 tablespoon of oil that sun dried tomatoes are packed in
• 1 tablespoon, plus 1 teaspoon of extra virgin olive oil

1. Dissolve yeast in warm water. About 10 minutes.
2. Sift together, flour, basil, oregano, granulated garlic and salt. Gradually add 2 cups of flour mixture to yeast mixture, mix to combine. Add sun dried tomato oil, mix to combine. Add in more flour slowly using your hands to gently  mix the dough until it is no longer sticky.
3. On a flour coated surface, kneed dough until soft, about 5 minutes. Add more flour as needed so the dough doesn’t stick to your hands or the board.
4. Grease a bowl with 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil. Place dough in the bowl, cover tightly with saran wrap. Let rise in a warm, dark place for 40 minutes – 1 hour or until it has doubled in size. I put mine in a kitchen cabinet.
5. Once it has doubled in size, punch the dough to release the air bubbles.
6. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
7. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough  and then using your hands shape into 15 inch pizza pan. Once shaped, brush the dough with 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil.
8. Bake the plain pizza dough for 10 minutes. Remove from oven and top with your favorite toppings. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.

Adding simple stuff that I have on hand to pizza crust has certainly opened my eyes. I am definitely excited to try some more. Any suggestions? Do you add anything to your homemade pizza crust?

Quick Red Sauce

• 1 (14.5 ounce) can tomato sauce
• 2 heaping tablespoons tomato paste
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon granulated garlic
• kosher salt and pepper to taste

1. Combine all ingredients in small sauce pan. Cook until warmed through.

Enjoy!

On day two of Super Bowl snack week, I thought I would share this recipe for pizza bites. I think the trick with these is to toast the bread first, then rub it with a little garlic before you add the toppings. It adds a garlicky crunchiness to the bite. Best of all you can top these with any of your favorite toppings.

Makes 15 bites

You will need:

• 1 (8 ounce) can of tomato sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon granulated garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon dried basil
• 1/4 teaspoon dried oregano
• kosher salt and pepper to taste
• 1/2 baguette, sliced into 15 slices, about 1 inch thick
• 1 clove garlic, peeled
• 2/3 cup to 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• About 10 slices of pepperoni, diced

1. Turn your oven to the broil setting.
2. In a sauce pan add tomato sauce, granulated garlic, dried basil, dried oregano and salt and pepper. Heat over medium heat until warmed, but not boiling.
3. Line a cookie sheet with aluminum foil (it makes for easy clean up). Lay the baguette slices in a single layer on the cookie sheet. Cook under the broiler for about 1 minute. Just until they are slightly toasted.  Once they are toasted, rub each slice with the clove of garlic. Return to the oven and broil for 1-2 more minutes or until they turn slightly brown.
4. Using about a teaspoon of sauce, spread sauce over the toast. Layer with cheese and then pepperoni. Repeat until all baguette slices are complete. Put under the broiler until cheese melts.

The best thing about these is that the possilities are endless. Another variation would be your favorite BBQ sauce with some left over shredded chicken and some pepper jack cheese.  Or go traditional Italian and use the same tomato sauce, some fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. Enjoy!

Now don’t get me wrong,  I love a good traditional American pizza with pepperoni, sausage, extra cheese and lots of tomato sauce, but every once in awhile I crave something a little different. This recipe for white pizza is very similar to some of the pizzas that Ryan and I had when we were in Italy, where there is NO pepperoni, that’s right, NONE. Believe me I was just as shocked as you.  If you go to Italy and try to order a pepperoni pizza, you will get a pizza topped with peppers. But you know, not having pepperoni wasn’t such a bad thing, it allowed us to experiment by ordering different types of pizza. Those pizzas are what inspired me to create this recipe when we got home.

Now you can certainly take the time to make your own homemade pizza dough which allows you to add yummy things like basil, oregano and cheese, but for this recipe I chose to use a frozen dough that I found in the freezer section at my local grocery store and it worked pretty well. It was in a ball so I did have to thaw it and roll it out, but that was pretty easy.

Serves 4 (or 2 very hungry pizza lovers)

You will need:

• 1 frozen pizza dough, thawed and rolled out to 15″
• 2 cups freshly grated Mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup fresh baby spinach leaves
• 12 slices of thinly sliced salami, halved
• 1 12oz jar of marinated artichoke hearts
• 10 sun dried tomatoes, oil packed
• 1 cup sliced mushrooms
• 1/2 red onion sliced
• Extra virgin olive oil for brushing
• 1 clove of garlic

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Meanwhile, roll out your pizza dough, and place it on a pizza pan.
3. Once the oven has heated, place the pizza dough on the middle rack. Cook for 10 minutes.
4. Remove the pizza dough, rub with the garlic clove and brush with extra virgin olive oil, be sure to brush the entire pizza, this will give the edges a pretty golden color. Next add 1/2 of the cheese, spinach, salami, artichokes, sun dried tomatoes, mushrooms, red onions and top with remaining cheese.
5. Cook until cheese is melted and crust is golden. About 15 minutes.

Pass the freshly grated Parmesan cheese, crushed red peppers and enjoy!