Herbal pizza with lamb’s lettuce, mozzarella and tomatoes

In the category of comfort food, pizza is one of my favourite dishes! Actually, I can’t remember a situation when I wouldn’t feel like eating crunchy pizza! Sometimes just the tomatoes sauce and mozzarella is enough, another time I’m choosing chorizo or less conventional ingredients.
This time in my pizza I’ve combined classic with fresh and crunchy taste! Fresh olive oil flavour, balsamic vinegar and fresh herbs create the dish which closer to the restaurant than to fast food.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon yeast
½ cup warm water
1 tbsp oil
1,5 cups wheat flour
2 tbsp your favourite fresh herbs ( parsley, oregano, thymes, basil, rosemary, etc.)
½ teaspoon salt
2 balls mozzarella
2 fresh, ripe tomatoes
few sun dried tomatoes
10 slices air dried ham (i.e. prosciutto)
1 small garlic clove
salt, pepper
olive oil
juice from reduced balsamic vinegar
lamb lettuce ( or arugula)


Method
In a bowl, mix water with dry yeast. Let sit about 15 minutes until the yeast starts to bubble. In a bigger bowl, combine the yeast mixture with rest dough ingredients Mix to combine and knead the dough until it’s soft and elastic. Put it covered aside for about 1 hour, until it doubled in size. After 1 hour quick knead dough and roll out until it’s about 5 mm in thickness. Put on baking sheet lined with baking paper.
Fresh tomatoes cut in eighths, hollow out the seeds, cut into small pieces. Toss with salt, pepper and fined chopped garlic. Spread the tomato mixture around the pizza. Tear pieces of mozzarella and dot around the pizza then drape bits of Parma ham on top. Bake the pizza in preheated oven to 220 oC until the crust and mozzarella are golden brown. To serve, place lamb lettuce leaves and drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.

Pissaladière, caramelized onion tart

It’s been 3 weeks since I have this horrible cold! In a prevention action with a leading role of vitamin C grapefruit and onions are my best friends! Although it hasn’t been easy with an onion! Desperate I decided to eat healthy sandwiches with raw onion: I had a stomach-ache until the next day afternoon and the onion- breathe was my companion even longer! I though I will have enough of onion until next flu-season but I simply couldn’t resist the caramelized onion on a yeast dough base!

'White plate' blog recipe was my inspiration this time.

I used red onion, so the filling looks like I’ve added a methylated spirit – don’t worry it’s just an impression! Sweet onion taste goes well with salty fish fillets and black olives, together it’s a delicious composition!

Ingredients
dough
10,5 oz (300 g) wheat flour
3,5 oz (100 g) whole wheat flour
9 fl oz (250 ml) room temperature water
3 tbsp oil
0,4 oz (10 g) sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon dry yeast
filling
5 tbsp olive oil
2 tbsp butter
35 oz (1000g) onion (I also added leeks)
1 garlic clove
1 teaspoon dry thymes
salt and pepper to taste
12 anchovies filets ( 1 small can or jar) mine where in a onion and parsley marinade
½ jar black stoned olives


Method
Mix dough ingredients, knead until elastic, place in a warm spot to rise – for about 1 hour.

Peel and thinly slice onion (onion cut in half , then slice logway).

Heat up oil and butter in a pan. Add onion, thymes and chopped garlic, simmer on a low heat, stir from time to time. Onion should be soft, slightly caramelized (not crispy!).

Season with salt and pepper, but be careful with salt - remember that anchovies and olives are already salted.

Doubled in size dough roll out and place into a lined tart pan. Spoon the cooled onion mixture, anchovies and olives into the pan. Place the tart in a warm spot for 30 min. to rise. Bake at 440F/ 220 oC for 20-25 min.

P as Pizza

I really wanted to eat pizza, the real Italian style one. I didn’t want to eat thick yeast pizza but thin and crispy one. I wanted and I got it! This recipe I found in the Internet. Luckily it showed to be my dreamed pizza. The dough was easy to knead, raised well and delicious! I didn’t change any proportions of this recipe and I don’t want to change them, because this is it!

Ingredients
dough
2 teaspoons dry yeast
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon sugar
2 cups wheat flour
2 tbsp oil
1 cup warm water


Method
Mix yeast with water and sugar, put aside for 15 min. After 15 min. knead all the ingredients until elastic. Place the dough in an oiled bowl and put aside in a warm spot for about 1 hour until doubled in size. After 1 hour shape the dough into pizza, put the ‘topping’ ( I used tomato sauce, mozzarella, cherry tomatoes, and served pizza with a home-made pesto). The dough is quite salty so additions and the sauce don’t need to be salted.
Bake in preheated oven to 460F/ 230 oC on a warmed up baking tray. Bake for about 10 min, the time depends on the type of the ‘topping’.

Thoughts while chopping the onion, almost white pizza

Wyrównaj do środkaI really wanted to have an easy dinner: effortless and tasty. Pizza seems to be perfect solutions to all my problems. Quickly I made the dough and match it with all white additions. Italian purists would be disappointed but in my opinion such a combination was delicious!

Ingredients
dough:
20 oz (600 g) wheat flour
2 teaspoons dry yeast

2 teaspoons oil
1 ½ teaspoons sugar
½ teaspoon salt ( or to taste)
about 10 fl oz (300 ml) warm water
1 large onion
3,5 oz (100 g) blue cheese
handful ground parmesan
handful hard cheese
freshly ground pepper
1 teaspoon sugar
1 tbsp oil
few fresh sprigs or ½ teaspoon dried thymes

Method
Knead an elastic dough (you can add more water or flour). Leave for 30 min. in a warm spot to rise.

Thinly slice onion, put on a strainer and rinse with water. In a bowl mix the onion with oil and sugar.

Place the dough on a lined baking tray , cover with all kinds of cheese, top with onion. Sprinkle with pepper and thymes. Bake in a preheated oven to 440 F (220 oC), for about 20min.

One more time: pizza ( with corn flour)

I deeply regret that I can’t find my perfect pizza in the neighbourhood. Sometimes is too crispy or too soft, with almost no additions (just cheese!) or overfilled with additions. I don’t really have a choice, if I feel like eating pizza I have to make it!

Ingredients
Dough:
2 cups wheat flour
½ cup corn flour + 1 tbsp for sprinkle
¼ cup oil
about 1 ½ cups room temp. water
3 teaspoons dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
Filling (optional)
can chopped tomatoes
mozzarella cheese
pepper
hot salami
grind cheese
half onion

Method
Knead all ingredients until form an elastic dough. The flour absorbs water differently so be prepare to add a little bit more or less of it. The bowl with the dough cover with cling film and put aside in a warm place for about 1 hour.
Preheat oven with baking tray inside to 240 oC (470 F).
Place the dough on a baking paper sprinkle with corn flour. Form the dough in oval shape, leave elevated rim.
Drain tomatoes, place them on a dough + slices of mozzarella, onion, pepper and grind cheese.
Put the baking paper with pizza on a hot baking tray. Bake until golden, for about 20 min.

Herbal pizza with lamb’s lettuce, mozzarella and tomatoes

In the category of comfort food, pizza is one of my favourite dishes! Actually, I can’t remember a situation when I wouldn’t feel like eating crunchy pizza! Sometimes just with the tomatoes sauce and mozzarella, another time I’m choosing chorizo or less conventional ingredients.
This time in my pizza I’ve combined classic with fresh and crunchy taste! Fresh olive oil flavour, balsamic vinegar and fresh herbs create the dish which is closer to the restaurant style pizza than to the fast food.

Ingredients
1 teaspoon yeast
½ cup warm water
1 tbsp oil
1,5 cups wheat flour
2 tbsp your favourite fresh herbs ( parsley, oregano, thymes, basil, rosemary, etc.)
½ teaspoon salt
2 balls mozzarella
2 fresh, ripe tomatoes
few sun dried tomatoes
10 slices air dried ham (i.e. prosciutto)
1 small garlic clove
salt, pepper
olive oil
juice from reduced balsamic vinegar
lamb lettuce ( or arugula)

Method
In a bowl, mix water with dry yeast. Let sit about 15 minutes until the yeast starts to bubble. In a bigger bowl, combine the yeast mixture with rest dough ingredients Knead the dough until it’s soft and elastic. Covered put aside for about 1 hour, until double size. After 1 hour again knead the dough but this time quickly and roll it out until it’s about 5 mm in thickness. Put on baking sheet lined with baking paper.


Fresh tomatoes cut in eighths, hollow out the seeds, cut into small pieces. Toss with salt, pepper and fined chopped garlic. Spread the tomato mixture around the pizza. Tear pieces of mozzarella and dot around the pizza then drape bits of Parma ham on top. Bake the pizza in preheated oven to 430 F until the crust and mozzarella are golden brown. To serve, place lamb lettuce leaves and drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar.