Bismarck Pizza (with no knead dough crust)

When you raise chickens, it's a given that you'll search for ways to use their fresh eggs, and this is one way that we accomplish that.

There is an authentic Italian pizza that is similar to this one ~ and a knock off here in the states that is named The Bismarck (I'm not sure where that name originated), but I just call it that pizza with an egg on top. :o)

This time I used the "Artisan Bread in 5-minutes a Day" olive-oil dough for the crust (it's a no knead crust.) You can find the recipe here. But you can use any favorite dough for the crust.

Aside from the egg, the other ingredients that sets this apart from any other pizza I've made (or have eaten), this one includes salt and pepper on the pizza dough, topped with homemade garlic butter ~ those two ingredients really add a nice flavor punch.
 

I baked these on a preheated pizza stone on the outdoor gas grill, but you can also bake them in the oven on your pizza stone.

If someone you know is allergic to eggs, you can just omit ~ but I hope you will try the technique of sprinkling salt and freshly ground pepper on the crust, and definitely try the garlic butter method!

For additional details and the printable recipe you'll find it here on my recipe blog. Have a wonderful day everyone! xo~mari

Pizzettas! Applewood Smoked Bacon, Caramelized Onions and Fresh Sage

Just Pizzettas (Little Pizzas).
I like them because they are just the right size and each person can add their own toppings.
So easy!
Your favorite pizza dough, shaped into rounds from 3 to 8 inches in diameter.
Then add your favorites...
Here is one of my favs ~ 


It includes a light brushing of extra virgin olive oil  caramelized onions applewood smoked bacon a little scattering of grated mozzarella cheese (Bake)
Then a sprinkling of fresh baby sage leaves and sage blossoms, if in season, when it comes out of the oven.
Pair it with a fresh salad and you have a very fine meal.


Blessings everyone!

Please come visit Foodie Friday at Michael's Rattlebridge Farm blog:

Click the logo to see some wonderful recipes!


Have a wonderful holiday to those observing Memorial Day. Memorial Day honors all Americans who have died while in the military service.

Cherry Tomato Pizzettas!

Pizzettas are small pizzas (I make mine about 5 to 6-inches in diameter, or about 4 ounces of dough for each pizzetta),


They are just the perfect size for a topping of cherry tomatoes, or top them with any of your favorite pizza components.





*Sigh* The last wave of our tomatoes are ready to harvest, they happen to be some of the sweetest; tiny grape, yellow pear, orange cherry.

Cherry, plums, olives with pits ~ that's how things used to be served.


If the sight of tomatoes still on the stem on your pizza doesn't appeal to you ~ of course you can de-stem them.

I like the rustic look, and surprisingly the cooked tomatoes release very easily by just pulling up on the stem.





These really are tiny (shown here in a regular teaspoon) and very, very sweet ~ but you can use any kind of cherry tomato on these pizzettas.


 I pluck some of the tomatoes from the vine/truss and slice in half, others I leave on the truss and place them on the cheese topped pizzettas about half way into baking.

To some of the pizzettas I added small yellow pear tomatoes, cut in half, along with a few "Currant" tomatoes and some sliced red ripe jalapenos for a spicy BITE. Yum!

For the cheeses I chose some fresh mozzarella, and some aged whole milk mozzarella, they make a mild, creamy combination. By all means if you have a favorite pizza cheese, anything that's good and melts well, that will work too.


Some of the tomatoes will burst into warm, sweet juicy goodness while while they are baking ~ and don't worry ~ when you pull on the tomato truss (stem), the baked tomatoes release easily.  Just put the stem to the side and enjoy the pizzetta!

For this version of pizza, I add the herbs after removing the pizzettas from the oven ~ their fragrance is really intensified that way.


Use any herbs you like,  I chose thyme sprigs for the Yellow Pear tomato and Jalapeno pizzettas, and a few fresh basil leaves for the Sweet Currant tomato version.

And just for variety I sprinkled a few capers on a couple of the slices, you could add some wonderfully flavorful chopped olives as well.


The best/most authentic flour for pizza dough?





It's Italian 00 (extra fine, high gluten flour)  If you cannot source it locally (I can't, so I) order it from amazon.com or Market Hall Foods.com

But if you want to make these right away, regular all purpose flour will do.


I have a few favorite pizza dough recipes listed on my recipe blog and any of them would work here ~ 

For my printable collection of tested Pizza Dough recipes click:

 HERE (Fast, Thin Crust)

HERE (Tasty and Healthful)

 HERE (100% Whole Wheat & Fast Crust)

and

HERE (One of Donna Hay's Pizza Dough recipes), it's the one I used for these pizzettas. If you make them, I hope you enjoy! 

Have a wonderful weekend everyone. xo~m

~*~*~*~*~

And don't forget ~ only 2 more days to enter the Tate's Bake Shop Cookie Drawing.  See details in the upper right corner of this page.

Grilled-Chicken Alfredo Pizza

What can I say? It isn't low-fat, but it IS delicious!

Grilled chicken layered with grape tomatoes, fresh basil (or spinach leaves) and fresh mozzarella over an easy-to-make creamy Alfredo sauce on a crispy 50% whole wheat crust.

The creamy Alfredo sauce goes together in minutes, and it is spiked with pinch of red pepper flakes to give it a little kick. You can spread the sauce right on the raw dough, but I usually pre-bake my crusts for a couple of minutes first then apply the toppings.

After the sauce is smeared on top of the crust, a sprinkling of fresh basil leaves (or baby spinach leaves) go on top.

I grilled the chicken breasts specifically for this recipe, but you could surely use leftover chicken as well. Next time I'll cook the chicken until "just done" as I thought it was a tiny bit dry by the time the pizza finished baking. I used fresh mozzarella but you could used aged if you prefer.

I love the way the grape tomatoes gain that bit of roasted char in the hot oven, it really seems to concentrate the sugar in them so they are delightfully sweet.

Lastly, brush the edges of the crust with olive oil before baking, and a light sprinkling of coarse salt and pepper over the pie before it goes into a hot oven for 20 to 25 minutes.

Another shower of basil or spinach goes over all once the pizza is taken from the oven for a fresh contrast to the hot pizza.

*~*~*~*

For the crust this time I found myself playing around with a pizza crust recipe I came across on Heidi Swanson's "101 Cookbooks" blog (I adore her blog!)

In keeping with trying to eat more whole grains, I just changed the recipe a little by exchanging half of the white whole wheat flour with a mix of whole wheat and dark rye flour. It turned out very well, and the crust crisped up very nicely, with a nice "chew" to the edges.

For ease of transferring the pizza to and from the oven I always assemble my pizzas on a pizza peel (click) like the ones shown below.

I love to put these beautiful wooden peels into double duty as cheese, fruit, bread, sandwich, and appetizer or dessert serving boards.






.......

And although this metal type of pizza peel may not be as aesthetically pleasing as the wooden ones -- the thin, sturdy metal construction makes removing the hot pizza from the pizza stone a very easy task.

It slides right under the thinnest, or the heaviest pizza without a hitch.

I like a crisp crust so I bake pizzas directly on a preheated baking stone like ...

This one.

I've tried all kinds of baking stones; individual tiles, round and square one-piece units, but my favorite by far is this rectangular one-piece style. It works great for baking bread upon, too. I usually keep it in one of the ovens all of the time as it helps in keeping the baking temperature on point.

Baking Stone cleaning tip: If you don't mind leaving a rack in place when you use the self-cleaning function in your oven, leave your baking stone on the rack while you clean the oven. The baking stone will be cleaned at the same time. (I just use my bench scraper to remove any cornmeal or other bits from the stone prior to auto-cleaning the oven, then fire up the self-cleaning mode.)

If you would like a printable copy of the pizza recipe you can find it on my recipe blog by clicking HERE.

Loaded Pizza The Lazy Baguette Way

Does it get any easier than this?

Probably not, but it's a really good fast lunch or dinner, and beats the frozen version by miles.

Take an inexpensive baguette from the grocery store, split into two and brush lightly with olive oil, and some of my friend Ann's delicious No-Cook Pizza Sauce *~

And then top it with your favorite pizza toppings ~ anything you like.

Because it doesn't spend as much time in the oven as a traditional pizza some of the toppings are partially cooked before going on the pizza.

When it is finished baking I like to cut it on the diagonal into magnagable serving pieces.









Aside from the intial brush of olive oil and Ann's Pizza Sauce I topped with sun-dried tomatoes in herbed olive oil, some crumbled ricotta cheese, browned Italian Fennel Sausage, sauteed mushrooms, sauteed onions and sweet red bell peppers, black olives and another fine drizzle of olive oil before going into a hot oven to crisp up and heat through.







I eased up on the cheese this time ~ just the crumbles of ricotta before going into the oven. And after the loaded baguettes baked I added coarse gratings of Parmesan, and finally a few leaves of Italian Parsley.

It's truly an easy way to satisfy a pizza craving without phoning take-out.

* (Click to go to the recipe for Ann's No-Cook Pizza Sauce.)

Thanks for stopping by and any comments you'd like to share. I love hearing from you.

I hope you each have a lovely day.

My Favorite No Cook Pizza Sauce

I doubt you'll go back to store-bought pizza sauce once you try this no-cook pizza sauce created and shared by my friend Ann on her blog Thibeault's Table .

Ann is an excellent, very experienced cook and baker.*

It is so flavorful and you can adjust the amount of herbs and seasonings according to your own preferences. It's my go-to pizza sauce.

She explains she devised this recipe after experimenting with several versions over the years. Since it requires no cooking it goes together in moments so you can use it immediately (or sometimes as I do, you can make it ahead, store in the refrigerator and use within a couple of days.)










For the best flavor use good quality Italian canned tomatoes, you can adjust the herbs and seasonings to your own taste.
I like to add an extra clove of garlic, and extra freshly cracked black pepper.

Ann mixes the ingredients right in the tomato can using a stick blender ~ how clever is that?!

Thank you for sharing this simple yet delicious recipe Ann.

* You must go visit her blog and see the incredible homemade breads she makes using her own no-commercial-yeast starter.




If you would like a printable copy of the recipe you can find it on Thibeault's Table, or on my recipe blog ~ click HERE.

Fast and Crispy No Rise Pizza Crust

Do you have a particular pizza crust preference?







I would be hard pressed to name a favorite style, but something about a very thin, crispy, crackly crust is quite appealing to me.





What makes this recipe different than most is that there is no rise-time. Perfect for those occasions when you want pizza in a hurry.





This is a recipe my family has been enjoying for a very long time ~ it is very user friendly, too. It yields one large pizza, two medium or four small pizzas. I prefer to make four smaller pizzas so we can vary the toppings (and the dough is a bit easier to work with in the smaller size.)

And if you don't happen to use up all of the dough you can either refrigerate it for up to one day, or freeze it for longer storage.

The pizzas in these photos were made from dough prepared, then refrigerated the previous day ~ so they have risen slightly more than dough formed and used immediately. Both ways are delicious!

I like to bake in a hot (500*) oven and directly on the pizza stone, and keep the toppings rather sparse to achieve the most crispy crust.

Again, the pizzas shown here were made from dough which was refrigerated for one day ~ so they rose a little more than immediately-made and baked dough.

This time they were topped with quick homemade pizza sauce (I'll share my favorite in the near future), fresh mozzarella, mushrooms, olive halves, and finely slivered sweet red pepper and slivered brown/yellow onions and fresh herbs.

On one pizza I added grape tomatoes, which I had oven-roasted with olive oil, fresh crushed garlic, sea salt and cracked pepper. Soo good!

To simplify even further ~ you can also make this dough in a food processor.

If you would like a printable copy of the recipe and directions

please click HERE to go to the Once Upon a Plate Recipe Blog.

If you try this method ~ I hope it becomes a favorite of yours as well.

Healthy Mediterranean-Style Grilled-Veggie Pizza on My Best Crust Yet!

Eureka! I've finally hit upon my favorite homemade pizza to date ~ and the bonus is that it's relatively healthy and substantially lower in fat & cholesterol than most.

What I'm particularly excited about is that I've finally hit upon a whole wheat crust that I really like by tweaking a couple of other recipes that were in my recipe files.

The solution was simply a matter of adjusting the ratio of all purpose flour to whole wheat flour and water. It is much more like a traditional crust, but a wee bit more healthy than an all-white flour pizza crust.

In my family we like our crust crispy and flavorful, this one has everything I was looking for in a healthier pizza crust; flavor and sturdiness, and it can be mixed in the food processor or mixer and baked within minutes, or refrigerated, or frozen so it is ready when you are.

The other trick for a crispy, not soggy crust is using a well-preheated baking stone in a very hot oven, and pre-baking the crust for just a couple of minutes before adding any topping. This assures a crispy crust that can stand up to a load of healthy toppings. ouple of other recipes that were in my recipe files.

The solution was simply a matter of adjusting the ratio of all purpose flour to whole wheat flour and water. It is much more like a traditional crust, but a wee bit more healthy than an all-white flour pizza crust.

In my family we like our crust crispy and flavorful, this one has everything I was looking for in a healthier pizza crust; flavor and sturdiness, and it can be mixed in the food processor or mixer and baked within minutes, or refrigerated, or frozen so it is ready when you are.

The other trick for a crispy, not soggy crust is using a well-preheated baking stone in a very hot oven, and pre-baking the crust for just a couple of minutes before adding any topping. This assures a crispy crust that can stand up to a load of healthy toppings.

Sometimes a simple pizza with just a few toppings will do ~ but my goal was to practically eliminate the cheese, and also use up some of the abundance of zucchini we all seem to have at this time of year.

Sometimes less is more, and I DO like very simple pizzas, but this time we wanted a veggie-loaded pizza.

To make it I simply sliced the zucchini and red onion about 1/4-inch thick, brushed them lightly with olive oil, a sprinkle of sea salt then grilled them until slightly charred on the stove top grill. Grilling the zucchini adds a lovely depth of flavor, plus they give up some of their water content, thereby helping to avoid a soggy, mushy crust.

I made a simple tomato sauce (you can use your favorite commercial sauce), spread it on the partially baked crust, then layered with the grilled zucchini, red onion and baked for a couple of minutes.

Next (while the pizza was still in the oven) I added wedges of canned artichoke hearts, quartered olives, oven roasted tomatoes and allowed it to bake for a few more minutes.

Upon removing from the oven I sprinkled a little crumbled Feta cheese, some cherry tomato halves and a generous shower of fresh oregano and thyme leaves.

A delicious, and nearly guilt-free pizza!

Of course you can top it with ANYTHING you like ~ I think the real revelation here is the pizza crust.

If you would like a printable copy for my recipe, please click HERE.

If you try this pizza or the crust, I hope you love it as much as my family does.

Thank you so much for stopping by today!