Monday, May 16, 2011

Lively Pizza

The original, official name for this one is Pizza Capricciosa. Pizza that is "lively and free." I like it.

And I LOVED this pizza. I might go out on a limb and say this is my favorite pizza we've made so far.  SO GOOD IT DESERVES ALL CAPS. (Whoa!)

Everything holds together in exactly the right way: texture, color, flavor. In fact, it has this perfect balance of fresh and salty flavors, where each delicious ingredient blends with the rest to make an even better overall flavor.


Lively and free, indeed.

Here's how you make it:
  1. Par-baked crust. We used whole wheat for this one, and I thought it was perfect.
  2. Spread of crushed tomatoes, aka salsa semplice (again, I recommend Pomi brand)
  3. Grated mozzarella
  4. Sliced crimini/baby bella mushrooms
  5. Thin strips of prosciutto or other Italian cured ham
  6. Sliced canned artichoke hearts
Bake all of that together at 450 degrees F for 5 minutes, then add:
  1. Chopped fresh spinach
Bake for another 2 minutes, pull out of the oven, and top with a drizzle of olive oil and freshly grated Parmesan. Buon appetito!


Chorizo & Jalapeño Pizza

Felicidades! Happy belated Cinco de Mayo...? Or something like that...?

Last week we picked up some Mexican chorizo at a Latin American market with the intention of making tacos. Didn't take long before we decided pizza deserved a spicy sausage treatment as well.

For those of you not familiar with it, Mexican chorizo is a pork sausage that's made with chile peppers and a variety of seasonings. Very tasty. Moderately spicy. A very dominant flavor that takes over everything around it.

Cue the jalapeños, onions and cilantro:


They also have dominant flavors that happen to go very nicely with said chorizo, which makes this one flavor-filled pizza.

While you're par-baking your crust, be sure to brown the chorizo and pour off the excess grease.

Layer the toppings like this:
  1. Par-baked crust
  2. Thin spread of salsa verde (green salsa made from tomatillos)
  3. Good ole mozzarella, grated
  4. White or red onions, thinly sliced in rings
  5. Jalapeño slices
  6. Browned chorizo
  7. Chopped cliantro
Bake at 450 degrees F for about 7 minutes. Don't bother with the customary drizzle of olive oil and sprinkle of Parmesan, but you could consider a few spritzes of fresh lime juice or a shredded radish garnish.


Sunday, May 1, 2011

Coming Soon!

We inadvertently stumbled upon deep dish skillet pizzas and recipes for grilled pizza. Experiments in progress. Recipes coming soon.