Mini Cracked Egg Pizza

February 12, 2010 by 48 Comments
You know the old saying, ” Don’t knock it until you try it”, well all I can say is this, if you haven’t eaten a pizza with a cooked egg on top, you’re missing out! I know it may sound a little weird, but believe me it’s amazing!
Crunchy dough and savory tomatoes anchor one perfectly cracked organic egg along with toppings of smoked ham, fresh spinach, green onions and mozzarella cheese. A complete breakfast all in one, and because they’re mini, you can tailor the toppings to every one’s individual likings.

Wouldn’t this be great to serve to your special Valentine on Sunday morning? You still have time. You can make your own homemade dough or pick up some up from your favorite store or pizza place.
Before you begin though, make sure your dough is at room temperature. Get your oven nice and hot, at least 500F. Rub olive oil on your baking sheet and dust with polenta or cornmeal.
For the heart, take your time and shape it by hand, remember these are mini’s, but make sure you have enough room for the egg white to travel once it’s placed on top.
I like to precook my dough for 5 minutes before anything goes on top, this will also set the shape of the heart or any other shape for that matter.
Crack your egg into a small bowl before it goes on the pizza, you’ll have more control, then add whatever toppings you like. Bake until dough is crispy and eggs are cooked through. Now don’t you want to just stick your fork in that yoke and let it all ooze out?
Happy V-Day, and Buon Appetito!
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48 Comments Filed Under: Eggs, Pizza, Seasonal Tagged: ,

Frizzelle

February 8, 2010 by 40 Comments
Frizzelle, I haven’t had them in years until a week ago when my friend Jean brought a platter full to our monthly Bunco get together. She stirred up so many good memories eating these as kids, and we all wondered why we stopped buying them! After one bite, I couldn’t wait to go out and get a bag!
Frizelle, sometimes spelled Friselle, are crispy Italian circular breads that have a hole in the center, it’s baked once, then cut in half, then rebaked on a very low temperature until completly dried and super crispy.
You can find Frizzelle usually at any good Italian market or bakery, they’re stacked in a bag, they come in whole wheat or white, small or large size, and they’re very inexpensive!

With just a few store bought ingredients you have the makings for a wonderful snack. This is what I made for Super Bowl Sunday, the husband was very happy!
I ran over to my nearest Italian market and bought a bag of the smaller whole wheat ones, a jar of eggplant salad, which has sliced eggplant marinated in oil and spices, along with roasted red peppers, celery, capers, and smashed green olives, all in one jar, so good! a chunk of good aged fontinella cheese, provolone is just as good, and thinly sliced salami which I diced up when I got home.


Because they’re very crisp, many people like to sprinkle a little water over the top to soften them up. I never do that for mine, I like the crunch! Besides all your toppings soften them up anyway, but that’s just me.

The key thing to do, I mean you have to do this, is take a raw garlic clove and rub it all over, the garlic flavor will fall between the crunchy grooves. Now drizzle olive oil on top of that, a little salt, black pepper, and another key ingredient is dried oregano, shake it all over!

See how everything soaks in? It’s even good to eat it just like this adding a little red wine vinegar drizzled on top.

But it’s much better like this, trust me!
I like to drain my eggplant salad, you don’t need all that oil, you’ve already prepped your bread with your good olive oil.
Play around and experiment with your favorite toppings, how about a ripe tomato salad spooned on top? It’s great to have a bag handy in your pantry when someone pops over for a visit. Quick, easy and so good!
Now go out and try to find these, you’ll be happy you did!
Buon Appetito!

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40 Comments Filed Under: Appetizers, Breads Tagged: , , , ,

Winter Risotto

February 1, 2010 by 23 Comments

In case you missed it the other day, Punxsutawney Phil saw his shadow, so according to him we still have 6 more weeks of winter, which means you still have plenty of time to make this warm and earthy risotto.

Any type of winter squash could be used in this recipe such as acorn, pumpkin, delicata and even sweet potatoes, but as I mentioned in my previous post I told you how much I adored butternut squash, so now pair that with spinach and earthy crimini mushrooms and you have the makings of a wonderful and hearty risotto!

I like to have my squash roasted and ready beforehand and towards the end of cooking the risotto I just toss it all in along with sliced mushrooms and fresh torn spinach. Kale would be good as well if you want to replace the spinach.

This easily could be a one pot meal or served as an individual side. Risotto is so easy to mold, while it’s warm it takes on the shape of whatever you place it in, whether it’s a tiny bowl or ramekin, I’ve even used a spring form pan to mold a whole pot of risotto, after it cools slightly you can release the spring and then cut it into wedges.

Here’s the ingredients:

1 1/2 cups of Arborio rice*** 4 cups of chicken or veggie stock, simmering hot on stove*** 2 cloves of minced garlic***1/2 of chopped onion***fresh thyme*** 1/2 cup white wine*** 3 cups of roasted medium diced butternut squash***1 1/2 cups of sliced crimini mushrooms*** 1 large handful of fresh torn baby spinach*** 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese.

Here’s what you do:

In a heavy pot on medium heat, drizzle bottom with olive oil and 1 T of butter, toss in the onion and garlic and saute. Next toss in the rice and season with fresh thyme, salt and pepper, cook rice until you see a light golden color. De glaze with the wine, letting it cook down.

By ladle fulls, start adding stock stirring until it’s absorbed into the rice, keep adding stock and stirring. Towards the end, add in your squash, mushrooms and spinach, gently stirring until all stock is gone. Turn of the heat, toss in your cheese, and a little drizzle more of the olive oil. Taste for salt and pepper.

Enjoy and Buon Appetito!

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23 Comments Filed Under: Rice and Risotto Tagged: , ,