Pizza

2 finished mini pizzas

We've all become guilty of picking up the phone and calling for a delivery pizza or getting a frozen one at the grocery store to "have in the fridge just in case." We've all argued with our friends about which pizza joint has the best. But I reject all of that. Let's consider returning to the "old school" and making our own. I've been doing that for a few years now, saving a lot of money, and my son thinks my home made pizza is much better than anything else. I have to agree. So, I'm going to share yet one more recipe taught to me by my grandmother (born in Chicago in 1920) and pass it along to others. Yes, it has never been written down before, so enjoy.

Ingredients:

• 1 ½ tsp active dry yeast
• ¼ cup lukewarm water (105 F)
• 1 ½ TBSP olive oil
• ½ cup cold water
• 1 2/3 cups unbleached all purpose flour (plus a little more)
• Italian herb mixes 
• Sauce (you figure it out, buy it or make it)
• Toppings of your choice

Directions:

Kneading the dough

• In a large bowl, stir the yeast into the warm water. Let stand about 10 mins until creamy.
• Stir in olive oil first, then add the cold water.
• Whisk in ½ cup of the flour until smooth (wire whisk).
• Stir in the remaining flour ½ cup at a time until the dough comes together (use a fork for this).
• On a floured surface, knead the dough until smooth and velvety (8-10 mins). Cover with a towel and let sit 15 mins.
• When adding herbs, in the last half of the kneading process, sprinkle some each time before you fold it.
• Divide into 2 balls to make 2, 9” pizzas or use as one large.
  Let sit for 1 hour.

• 

  Teaching my son how to toss pizza dough

  Then, press the dough until about ½ inch thick while preheating oven to 500 F.
• Stretch with the back of your hands or a rolling pin until you get the diameter you want, about ½" thick.
• Dust pizza sheet with corn meal, cover crust with sauce, cheese, and toppings, leaving 1 inch around the edge free for brushing with oil.
•  Bake for 8-10 mins. on a baking stone (preheated with the oven) or a metal sheet
  

Tortilla Pizzas à la Q

Assembled (pre-cooking) view of Tortilla Pizzas à la Q

In trying to share with my recently teen aged son some quick and easy food to make in the kitchen (without burning down the place), I used a dish that Elektra Q-Tion exposed me to. Using basic ingredients in the microwave for an easy and quick meal or even snack. Thank you Q!

Ingredients

• 6" tortillas
• pizza or spaghetti sauce
• shredded cheese
• pepperoni slices/toppings

Directions

• spread 3 TBSP sauce per tortilla (leave 3/8" edge as the "crust" area)
• spread several pinches of cheese (as much as you want)
• place 8 pieces of pepperoni (in 4 stacks of 2 like the image above)
• place on a microwave plate and cook in the microwave (on HIGH) for 30 seconds
• cut with a butter knife or pizza cutter into 4 pieces

Suggestions

• 3/8" edge because the cheese will melt and spread into those areas, keeping it on the tortilla instead of the plate
• Laying the pepperoni that way, makes for easier cutting between them without causing a mess
• 30 seconds to melt the cheese and heat it all up, but the plate isn't too hot for bare hands to handle
• Cut into 4 pieces, fold them over on themselves to use a fork or simply use fingers

Observations

• We all have items in our pantry or fridge that can be thrown on the pie. Modify this by what you have. Use the last few TBSP of salsa, tomato soup, or even ketchup in the fridge, and the last 2 or 3 slices of cheese.
• Quick sauce for 5 or 6 of the pies explained above: 8 ounce can of tomato sauce, Italian mix herbs, simmer for about 5 minutes.
• Make larger pies by using the 10" or 12" tortillas. Add several more seconds to cooking time and enough ingredients to evenly cover the crust.
• Smaller sized tortillas are easier for younger teens to handle. The easier to handle, the less mess made on the counter top.
• Use more toppings (browned ground sausage, cooked ham cubes, hot dogs, crisp bacon, tomatoes, cooked veggies, etc.) but play with the cooking time to determine what works.
• Flour tortillas (white or wheat) but not corn ones because they don't tend to cook "right" for me.
• Use a plate as the only "key" dish so there are less things requiring washing. Teens DON'T wash dishes.

Easy & quick to make, less expensive than getting frozen pizza snacks, and your teen helps you get rid of the food that would get thrown away. Especially during the late night kitchen raids they mysteriously perform.

Pantry Raiding

Once again, I followed some of the advice that my grandma instilled in me. "When you are going away from home for more than a few days, make sure you empty the fridge and leave the home clean. That way when you get back, it all seems new." I went away for a few days so before I left, I made sure I didn't have any food in the fridge that would spoil, and I cleaned up the apartment.

After a 9 hour drive to get back, it was extremely comforting to hit the garage door opener, pull in, and enter a clean apartment, especially with Dozer. What I DIDN'T have on the day I got back, was a plan on what I would have for dinner. So, I engaged yet another thing that grandma instilled in me, "Always have a stock of food on hand, and use it to make a potluck meal." So, I raided the pantry.


As you can see, I took some frozen vegetables and steamed them. I took a can of tomato sauce, added a bunch of Italian herbs, and made a sauce. I made some noodles (grandma made me repeat the saying "I will ALWAYS have noodles in the pantry"). I also had a bag of frozen shrimp that I didn't use in my last making of jambalaya, so I sauteed them in my cast iron skillet.

Then, when they were all done cooking...I drained the noodles, and combined all of the ingredients in a bowl, and dove in. It was AMAZING!!!

This is a recipe that I will make more in the future, but on purpose...not just because I had to raid the pantry. My lesson about all of this is simple...keep the place clean if you are going to be away for a while (you will enjoy coming back again)...keep some stable items in your pantry, and don't be afraid to combine several of them all together into a potluck meal. There are several other pantry raid recipes on the Food & Stuff page above.

Yeah, grandma would be proud...