Indian Pizza in Bernal Heights

Pooh & Josh (two totally rad new friends) had been talking about this Indian pizza place, Zante, right next to their home since I met them. We had it delivered to their home one night and it was delicious! I used to make a variation of Indian pizza back in NYC - but this place has it down pat, I much prefer their vegetarian version. The box isn't lying - this is the best Indian Pizza (Not sure if there is much 'Indian Pizza' competition in San Fran, but whatever). I have yet to try their other foods -but if their pizza is any representation, I will need to try everything they have!

 The pizza is topped with spinach, eggplant, cauliflower, ginger, garlic, green onions and cilantro. You can taste the cumin and Indian spices on the roasted vegetables. This pizza is perfect with a beer and....they deliver! Cheers for minimal moving.

Zante Pizza
3489 Mission Street
415-821-3949

A Birthday S'more Insantity Pizza!

For my sister's 28th birthday, she had a pizza party with an array of homemade pizzas made by yours truly and Andy! Yes - we flew him in from NYC to assist with the pizza making. At the end of the evening, Andy and I had one dough left and it was clear that the guests were satiated and about to go into food comas so instead of making another savory pizza - we got creative with the ingredients my mom has in her semi-lethal snack cabinet and made a s'more pizza! A S'more Pizza - has all the beauty and simplicity of the classic American dessert and the addictive addition of peanut butter and we just threw in bananas because wherever there is chocolate and peanut butter, you gotta put in some bananas. This pizza is sure to be a crowd pleaser and it's fun to make - don't hold back!

Birthday S'more Pizza

Ingredients:

1 white dough

Nutella

Peanut butter

Mini marshmallows

Gram crackers, crumbled

Mini chocolate chips

Mini white chocolate chips

1 Banana, sliced

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Roll out the white dough with a little flour, place on a pizza pan, poke holes with a fork, spread very lightly some melted butter, cook for about 7 minutes.
3. Spread a generous layer of nutella on the pizza
4. Spread a generous layer of peanut butter on top of the nutella
5. Sprinkle on the crumbled gram cracker pieces
6. Slice one whole banana evenly across the pizza
7. Put the mini marshmallows on the pizza
8. Sprinkle the mini chocolate and white chocolate chips on the pizza
9. Bake in the oven for about 7 minutes
10. Turn the broiler on high and broil the pizza for about 30-45 seconds (watch closely, you want to create a nice golden crust on the mallows but you don't want to burn the mallows!)

Enjoy!

Andy's Proscuitto, Apple, Pesto Pie

It's been way too long since my last post - and so much good food has happened since! On January 18th, we celebrated my sisters 28th birthday with a pizza party - AND, Andy was visiting from NYC! So I quickly employed Andy to be my co-pilot for my sister's pizza party. We made 10 pizzas (maybe 11) and had quite the little system set up in my mom's kitchen. One of the most popular pizzas was Andy's divine prosciutto creation. We pre-cooked all the crusts (we got the dough from our local pizza shop, always 10x better than store bought), and prepped all the topping items, so we were able to pump out three pizzas at once. It got me thinking that we really could open up an inventive pizza shop one day!

Andy's Prosciutto, Apple, Pesto Pie

Ingredients:

Pesto sauce

1/2 Granny Smith apple, thinly sliced

Prosciutto

Marscapone cheese

Rosemary

Walnuts

Pizza Dough

Directions:

Pesto - marscapone - apple slices - prosciutto -walnuts - rosemary, you know the drill.

NY Restaurant Review: Apizza

There is a new pizza shop on Avenue A, Apizza, that is giving Muzzarella a run for it's money. Apizza is a Stanton Island import and has won such accolades as "Best Pizza" from the Village Voice and other, lesser known, Stanton Island periodicals. I've walked by this place numerous times but never went in until I needed dough one day to make a Breakfast Pizza. After chatting it up with the friendly manager and long-time advocate of Apizza, Mark (or maybe his name was Mike or Matt), he gave me a gift card for four free slices of pizza! This is like winning a mini lottery for me. On a recent late-nigh jaunt with some co-workers, we found ourselves near Apizza in the East Village, so we went and redeemed my four free slices. It turns out that Apizza has just four different types of pizzas, this made the whole decision making process pretty easy. Without a doubt Apizza's pizza is one of the best I've had in the city. It is at a tie for number one with Lombardi's in my opinion. Apizza blows Muzzarella out of the water. So the photograph above is of the four free slices, here is what they are clockwise from top left: Four Cheese Sicilian, Signature Sicilian, Old Fashioned Grandma Sicilian, Traditional Neapolitan. My favorites of these were definitely the Four Cheese Sicilian and the Signature Sicilian. The dough is perfect in texture and flavor, their homemade sauce is chunky and flavorful, the cheese is warm and perfect. Everything is perfect about the pizza at Apizza. As far as I am concerned, the only problem with the place is that they are always playing loud violent gang gun scenes on the large flat screen which is not the pleasant entertainment for enjoying some of the city's best pizza.

Apizza
201 Avenue A, between 12th and 13th Street
212-375-0001

Indian Pizza

My roommate, Celadon, is a food combination genius. A couple weeks ago she made chicken tikka massala and had the leftovers heated up over pita bread. She told me her idea of a chicken tikka massala pizza and I knew she had a brilliant idea! So with half a jar of her remaining tikka massala sauce, the Indian pizza was born. Much like my Thai Pizza, this one incorporates a yummy Indian dish, chicken tikka massala, and the cheese and dough and style of a traditional pizza. I used the same pizza dough from Apizza as I did for my breakfast pizza and I will say again that this dough really is astoundingly delicious and adds a whole level of flavor and texture to the pizzas. I would like to make this pizza again and make more sauce so that it can have a thicker layer of sauce. I would also like to add julienned hot peppers and maybe some paneer cheese instead of regular cheese.

Indian Pizza
(Makes one baking sheet pie)

Ingredients:
Dough
1/3 cup Tikka Massala sauce
3 tablespoons vindaloo sauce
Mozzarella shavings
1 carrot, thinly shredded
2 sweet red peppers, thinly shredded
1/3 cup chickpeas
2 chicken breasts, cut into bite size pieces
Cayenne pepper
Cumin
Garlic powder
Olive oil

Directions:
1. Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium high heat. Place chicken pieces on skillet and sprinkle with cumin and cayenne pepper. Saute until chicken is completely cooked, set aside.
2. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and place baking sheet in the oven to heat up. Roll out dough to the size of the sheet.
3. Sprinkle flour on the sheet and carefully place the rolled out dough on the sheet. Drizzle it with olive oil and using a fork, poke holes all over the dough. Bake for approximately 5 minutes.
4. In a small bowl, mix together the tikka massala sauce and the vindaloo sauce. Spread mixture evenly over the pizza crust. Layer the mozzarella shavings on the sauce, followed by the shredded carrots and peppers and chickpeas. Lastly, put on the cooked chicken pieces. Bake for approximately 8-10 minutes, or until cheese is melted. Enjoy!

Breakfast Pizza

Definitely one of the most fun things to do is make variations of pizza. Just a couple days ago, my friend and I wanted to make some pizzas and I didn't have any dough and Trader Joe's just felt too far away so we went to our local pizza shop to ask if we could buy some of their fresh dough. The first place we went, Muzzarella, said no but I was determined so I made us walk a little further until we came to the pizza shop, Apizza, a newbie to the hood. The guy was happy to give us a huge beautiful round of their fresh dough and a twenty minute conversation about his pizza place in Stanton Island and his Sicilian pies and a coupon for 4 free slices! After making pizzas with this dough from Apizza, I definitely notice the difference in good dough. I love using Trader Joe's whole wheat pizza dough but this dough, pictured below, tasted ten times better. I'm sure it was probably more salt or butter but the dough was chewy ad just straight but tasty. Here is a picture of the dough as it was give to us:

I should mention that it was a Sunday morning and while I do like pizza at any time of the day, I wanted something a little more breakfast-like. Basically my thought process was breakfast = eggs, pizza + eggs = breakfast pizza. My algebra has become really quite simple since high school. This pizza definitely will be repeated and is one of my favorites! It tasted fresh and simple and the egg added a delicious additional flavor and texture. I used two eggs for the top only because it was just my friend and I otherwise use as many eggs as you have people. Also, usually I will grate the cheese for the pizza, but this time I peeled it into long strips, or shavings and I prefer much better for this type of pizza. I will definitely be making this pizza again and changing nothing! Hmmm......okay, maybe I would add a little more za'tar. With a glass of orange juice, this is the best Sunday breakfast pizza!

                          

Breakfast Pizza

(Makes one pie the size of a baking sheet)

Ingredients:

Dough
1/2 cup tomato garlic marinara
1 cup whole canned tomatoes
Parmesan shavings
Mozzarella shavings
2 large eggs
2 teaspoons za'tar
1 handful fresh parsley, chopped
Directions:
1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and place baking sheet in the oven to heat up. Roll out dough to the size of the sheet.
2. Sprinkle flour on the sheet and carefully place the rolled out dough on the sheet. Drizzle it with olive oil and using a fork, poke holes all over the dough. Bake for approximately 5 minutes.
3. Spread the marinara sauce all over the dough, using more if necessary. Next place the whole tomatoes evenly over the dough. Follow with the parmesan and mozzarella shavings until most the pizza is covered. Finally, sprinkle the za'tar evenly across the cheese, using more if you want.
4. Bake the pizza for 8-9 minutes.
5. Just before pizza is ready, so at about 6 minutes, fry the eggs. Remove pizza from the oven when the cheese is melted and place the fried eggs on each half of the pizza. Sprinkle the parsley evenly over the pizza. Serve and enjoy!

NY Restaurant Review: Muzzarella Pizza; the Perfect Late Night Friend

My boyfriend's favorite pizza in New York city happens to be a place that we stumbled upon, literally, very late one night. I have to say this place is in my top 5 of New York pizza following behind: Lombardi's, Front Street Pizza, and Lazzo. Muzzarella is thin crust, generous sauce and toppings and conveniently close to home. Whether late night, or for the first meal on a weekend morning, this pizza is right on time. This place also has lasagna and a supposedly famous, but yet to be tried, foccacia. Personally, it is difficult to go and order anything other than pizza. Their white pizza, standard margarita and mushroom pizzas are all solid late night slice choices. We went to Muzzarella one recent morning for an early pizza lunch, next time I will try the other items on the menu!

Muzzarella Pizza

221 Avenue A

(between 13th St & 14th St)
New York, NY 10009
(212) 614-0905
http://www.menupages.com/restaurants/muzzarella-pizza/

Me in red below, to match the place and the tomato pizza.

Baja California Pizza

A few days ago I went to my good friend Sarah at the City Bakery to celebrate hot chocolate month and over dose on sugar. We were talking about our weekends and she told me about this incredible pizza she had late one night in Brooklyn. It's not very often that someone tells me about something he or she ate and I immediately want to make it, but something about this combination set off a motivation in me and I went and got all the necessary ingredients. I wasn't sure what to title this pizza, it definitely has a Mexican influence with the ingredients, but it uses feta cheese which is more Greek, so I decided (actually my boyfriend) decided to call it Baja California Pizza. This pizza was delicious and I definitely want to make it again soon with a few adjustments! I used one can of beans, but I think it could have had more black bean sauce so perhaps 11/2 - 2 cans with more garlic, green onions etc and maybe some hot sauce! Also, I think grilled chicken or toasted corn kernels would also taste great on this! My boyfriend came up with the idea of crumbling blue corn tortilla chips on it! My cooking genius is obviously rubbing off on him ;)  We ate this pizza with tomato soup which was a great combination, even dipping the pizza in the soup tasted lovely. Next time, I think I will prepare pea soup to accompany it.

Baja California Pizza

Ingredients:

Whole wheat pizza dough

1 15 ounce can black beans, drained and rinsed

2 heaping tablespoons of salsa

2 green onions, chopped

3 large garlic cloves

1 1/2 large tomatoes

1 large avocado

Feta cheese

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees and roll out the dough to the shape of your pan. Drizzle with olive oil, poke all over with a fork and bake the crust for 7 minutes.

2. Meanwhile prepare the black bean sauce. In a food processor, pulse the black beans, salsa, green onions, and garlic all together. Pulse until evenly incorporated but not to a smooth sauce, the chunkiness makes it good! Spread the sauce generously over the pre-baked pizza crust.

                           

3. Sprinkle the feta cheese over the black bean sauce, then lay out the tomato slices. Bake in the oven for 8-9 minutes. Then put on the avocado slices over the tomatoes and make for another 3-4 minutes. We want the avocados to warm up but not brown. Cut and enjoy!!!

Pesto, Potato and Chicken Sausage Calzone

This is all part of my calzone kick. Every time I make them, I think I'm going to make an extra for my lunch the following day and somehow, between dinner and the next day's lunch, it disappears. I had some left over potatoes so I decided to use them in the calzone for some extra texture and flavor. My friend Andy, makes a great pizza with pesto and potatoes, so naturally, I made this in a calzone.

Ingredients:

Refrigerated pizza dough, I use Trader Joe's garlic herb pizza dough

Pesto sauce

Grated parmesan

Chicken, cut into bite size pieces

1 small potato cut into slices

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees, place a pan in the oven.

2. In a pan, over medium high heat, saute the chicken with olive oil, pepper and garlic powder.

3. Roll out dough into small rounds. Spread pesto sauce on roll, leaving a 1/2 inch border all around. Sprinkle the grated parmesan on the half the round, then add the chicken and lastly, the potato slices. Fold over the free dough and seal the edges. Sprinkle some flour on the pan and place the calzone on the pan.

4. Bake for 15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Remove from oven, let cool and enjoy!

Marinara, Goat Cheese and Chicken Calzone with Basil

So since I started making calzones a little ago, I'm sort of on a calzone kick and I've realized that  I love folding and rolling food so it's quite fun for me to make these filling pizza pockets. Unlike pizzas, where I prefer a crispier crust, I really like to have a more chewy crust for calzones. Since a calzone is basically a folded pizza, I suppose my next stop is a stromboli which is basically a rolled up pizza! The other night I made one too many calzones so I froze some and then heated it up for lunch for one minute and it tasted perfect! You can't do that with pizza, it will get soggy! Also, it's exciting to cut the calzones open because you are never quite sure how they are going to look on the inside....it's like a delicious little surprise!

Marinara, Goat Cheese and Chicken Calzone with Basil

(Makes 1 calzone)

Ingredients:

1 golf ball size lump of refrigerated whole wheat pizza dough

1/3 cup marinara sauce

1/4 cup goat cheese

1 small chicken breast

4 basil leaves

1 large slice of tomato

Olive oil, pepper, garlic powder

Directions:

1. Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees. Place pan in the oven.
2. Heat olive oil in a non-stick skillet over medium high heat, cut the chicken into bite size pieces and sprinkle with pepper and garlic powder. Saute the chicken until it is completely cooked, set aside.
3. Roll out dough for calzone. Carefully sprinkle flour on the heated pan, place calzone dough on top. Poke holes all over with a fork. Spread the marinara sauce on the dough leaving a 1 inch border all around, then sprinkle the cheese on one half of the dough. Place the chicken on top of the cheese, followed by the tomato slice and the basil. Fold over the other side of the dough and crimp the edges together to form a nice crust.
4. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes, until the crust is golden.

Pesto Chicken Calzone

Whenever I go for a late night pizza break in the city I notice people folding their slices over onto itself like a sandwich and so it can be eaten in half the bites....basically making a calzone. I have been a little nervous to make these because I wasn't so sure they would bake evenly, or would the dough be too soft? Surprisingly, I found that I enjoy making calzones very much! Unlike a pizza where you commit to a topping scheme, with calzones you can make a creative selection of varieties and have them all on the same pan! I didn't really have a plan for this calzone, I just took all the ingredients I thought were tasty out of the refrigerator and when it was time to go, I just went with a simple and tasty combination that is always a hit with pizza. These take about half the over-all cooking time of a regular pizza and because they are all sealed, they are surprisingly easy to transport. Foil wrapped lunch anyone? Traditionally, calzones are made with an egg yolk inside that should be a little runny and they are served with marinara sauce. I opted out of the egg yolk ingredient for my first calzone experience and these puppies are packed with so many flavors, I didn't even need the marinara on top. Also, the thin crust calzone gives a lovely airy pocket and cooks much more evenly. I can't wait to make more calzones!

Pesto Chicken Calzone
(Makes one large calzone)

Ingredients:
Whole wheat refrigerated pizza dough
3 tablespoons pesto sauce
Freshly grated parmesan
1 small chicken breast, cut into bite size pieces
1 large slice of a tomato
8 fresh spinach leaves
Garlic powder
Pepper
Olive oil

Directions:
1. Place a baking sheet in the oven and preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Over medium-high heat, saute the chicken with garlic powder and pepper just until fully cooked. Remove from heat and set aside.
3. Roll out a golf ball size piece of the dough in flour until it is thin and about the size of your face.
4. Take baking sheet out of oven, sprinkle some flour on it and carefully place the rolled out dough on it. Poke the dough all over with a fork for breathing holes.
5. Spread the pesto sauce on it, leaving a 2 inch border all around. Put the parmesan cheese on it, followed by the chicken pieces, and the large slice of tomato and lastly the spinach leaves. You want to place all the ingredients on one half of the dough so you can easily fold the other half over itself. Fold over the other half and seal tight around the edges, folding over to form a slight crust. Brush with a bit of olive oil and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, until the dough turns a darker brown.

Butternut Squash Pizza with Sauteed Onions and Zucchini

I had half a jar left of Dave Gourmet's Butternut Squash pasta sauce and I decided to give it a shot on a pizza. Wow! Why aren't restaurants doing this yet? The combination of onions, zucchini and the butternut sauce was delightful. I was cooking this at my friend's kitchen and the occassion was his new pizza pan and I had just gotten a hair cut. Unfortunately, I forgot to bring my nifty wine bottle rolling pin so making the dough round and flat was a little more difficult. Rather than my usual pepper and garlic seasoning I decided to go with some Italian seasoning and it was perfect! Perhaps next time I'll use some oregano. Other than that, I wouldn't add anything to this pizza combination except maybe some corn kernels would taste nice on it. Also, while I decided to put chicken on this pizza it could just as easily be made vegetarian by omitting the chicken - or you could use seitan instead of chicken. Whatever you do, this pizza is sure to please! Enjoy my friends with a nice glass of Toasted Head Chardonney!

Butternut Squash Pizza with Sauteed Onions and Zucchini

(Makes 1 pie)

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated wholewheat pizza dough (for a thin crust pizza, you will not need the whole package)

Butternut squash pasta sauce (Dave's Gourmet - available online)

Fontina cheese (thinly sliced)

Half a white onion (thinly sliced)

1/3 cup zucchini (sliced)

1 chicken breast

Mozarella cheese (grated)

Italian seasoning

Olive oil

Flour

A little Italian parsley

Directions:

1. Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Roll out the pizza dough and place on a floured pan. Drizzle the dough with olive oil and poke holes in it with a fork. Pre-bake in the oven for 8-9 minutes.

2. Cut the chicken breast into small bite size pieces and cook in a skillet over medium high heat with olive oil and Italian seasoning. Set aside.

3. Sautee the onions and zucchini in a skillet over medium high heat with olive oil and Italian seasoning set aside.

4. Generously spread the butternut squash all over the pre-baked pizza crust.

5. Place the fontina cheese on the pizza, followed by the onions and zucchini, then the chicken and finally sprinkle the mozarella cheese on top.

6. Bake in the oven for 15-19 minutes. Sprinkle some Italian parsley on it. ENJOY!

Pesto Pizza with Mozzarella, Tomatoes and Basil

I love pizza. Enough said. There isn't much to this pizza but its a classic delicious combination and you can make a whole pie at home for a fraction of the cost to order this! Since I've started making pizza I will get inspiration from restaurants pies or go browse the pizza section at Whole Foods which is always updated with new seasonal toppings and combinations. A good'ol pesto pizza though, with mozzarella and tomatoes, can be found at almost any pie shop. It takes no time to put together and there is very little prep work so this is perfect for a week night meal! Even better, it can feed a group of people....or just two very hungry people.

Pesto Pizza with Mozzarella, Tomatoes and Basil

(Makes one pie)

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated pizza dough (I used Trader Joe's garlic and herb dough)

Pesto sauce

Mozzarella sliced

1 large tomato sliced

1 handful fresh basil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Roll out dough on a floured surface and place on a pan. Drizzle dough with olive oil and poke holes all over it using a fork. Bake in the oven for 7-9 minutes, or just until the dough is slightly puffy with a tinge of gold color.

2. Remove from oven and generously slather the pesto sauce. Place the mozzarella slices on top followed by the tomato slices. Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes. Remove and immediately place basil leaves on it. As the pizza cools it will absorb the basil flavor and the basil will cook slightly.

Spicy Thai Chicken Pizza

This pizza is an unexpected big hit and perhaps one of my favorites! As a big fan of pad thai and pizza, I was excited when I found a recipe for a Thai pizza on Closet Cooking putting all these typical pad thai ingredients on pizza dough. When hosting a pizza night for friends, this spicy Thai chicken pizza is one of the firsts to be polished off! I was able to find the perfect spicy peanut sauce at the one and only Peanut Butter & Co. I sampled their "The Heat Is On" peanut butter that is made with fiery spices and packs a punch in the after taste. It's consistancy is smooth and it is the perfect balance of peanut flavor and chile heat. If ever you are in the situation of sampling different kinds of peanut butter, I suggest sampling them on carrot sticks. Carrots have a not too sweet flavor that will help you distinguish the taste of the peanut butter. A slice of this pizza tastes delicious with a little bit of Sraracha and a cold glass of lemonade.

Spicy Thai Chicken Pizza

(Makes one whole pie)

Ingredients:

1 package refrigerated pizza dough (I recommend Trader Joe's Garlic Herb Pizza Dough)

Spicy peanut butter or thick spicy peanut sauce (You can also make a spicy peanut butter my mixing salt-free creamy peanut butter with cayenne powder - bada bing bada boom)

Mozarella sliced

1 large handful bean sprouts

1 large handful julienned carrots

2 chicken breasts

Dried chile pepper flakes

1 spall handful roasted peanuts

1 handful cilantro or scallions chopped

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees and prepare pizza dough. See directions 1 and 2 of another pizza recepi for how to roll and pre-bake pizza dough.

2. Cut the chicken into small bite size pieces and sautee with olive oil, a dash of garlic powder and chili pepper flakes over medium high heat. When chicken is fully cooked set it aside aside.

3.Take pre-baked pizza dough out of the oven and let cool for 2 minutes or so. Generously slather on the spicy peanut butter or a spicy peanut sauce. Place the mozaralla slices over the pizza followed by the beansprouts, juliened carrots, chicken pieces and peanut halves. Bake the pizza in the oven for about 12 minutes. Don't leave the pizza in the oven for too long as you don't want the chicken to get dry.

4. Remove pizza from the oven and sprinkle cilantro or the scallion slices on top. Let cool and enjoy!

Cheesy Zucchini and Onion Flatbread

I am a huge fan of Trader Joe's refrigerated pizza dough! It is $0.99, comes in three flavors, and there is soooo much you can do with it! I've tried Whole Foods pizza dough, but it doesn't seem to hold the same flavor. I had some fresh zucchini from the farmer's market and I'm starting to learn about different cheese, so I thought why not make a cheesy zucchini flatbread? This is a great looking and even better tasting dish for a pot luck or dinner party! I used the garlic and herb pizza dough from Trader Joes, which, as you can see in this picture, matches my counter top!

Cheesy Zucchini and Onion Flatbread

(Serves 4)

Ingredients:

Flour (for rolling the pizza dough and coating the pan)

1 bag of refrigerated pizza dough (you can also use the tuber pizza dough)

3/4 cup garlic and herb cheese spread (I used the Alouette brand)

3/4 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese

1 handful chopped fresh Italian parsley

1 small red onion cut into thin slices

1 7-8 inch long green zucchini halved and cut into thin slices (I'm sure a yellow one would be just as tasty - whatever you prefer!)

Olive oil

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Sprinkle flour on a hard surface and roll out dough into a large rectangle. I don't have a rolling pin, but this old wine bottle works perfectly!

2. Sprinkle flour on the pan and carefully place the dough on the pan. You may need to remove excess dough that hangs over the edge of the pan (this is perfect for breadsticks). Drizzle olive oil on the dough and if you have a basting brush this would be the time to use it. If not, a paper towel or the palm of your hand works great too! Using a fork, poke the dough all over, this will help the dough to breathe in the oven and prevent bubbling. Place dough in the oven for 7-8 minutes.

3. Remove pan from the oven and spread the garlic and herb cheese all over the dough. Then sprinkle half of the Parmesan cheese on the dough. Place the onion slices on top of the cheese, followed by the zucchini slices. Drizzle olive oil on top  of  the zucchini and sprinkle with pepper and the remaining Parmesan cheese.

 

4. Place pan back in the oven for another 8-10 minutes until it is puffed and turning a golden brown along the edges. Remove from oven and sprinkle parsley on it. Cut and serve. Bon appetite!

Pizza with Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onions, Mushrooms, Chicken Sausage and Basil

Pizza is one of those foods that never gets boring. It's also easy to make and fun for a group dinner because your friends can bring their own toppings! As fun as it is to try new pizza combinations, I always prefer the good'ol tomato marinara, cheese and meat combo. This is a slight variation. I think pizza goes best with a fresh salad or it can just jive solo!

Pizza with Goat Cheese, Caramelized Onions, Mushrooms, Chicken Sausage and Basil
(4 servings) - I say this with a bit of skepticism because I've shared an entire pizza with just one other person!

Ingredients:
1 bag fresh pizza dough (Trader Joe's has delicious pizza dough for $0.99! For this pizza I prefer the garlic herb dough, however feel free to use the white dough or the whole wheat).
Tomato Marinara (a Garlic-Herb one is best)
Ricotta Cheese
Olive Oil
1/2 White Onion thinly sliced
3/4 cup button mushrooms thinly sliced
2 Chicken Sausages (I like the ones mixed with herbs)
Handful of fresh basil leaves
Flour for rolling dough and coating pan

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 425 and set pizza dough at room temperature for about 15 minutes before rolling.
2. Cut white onion and mushroom into thin, even slices.
3. Using a handful of flour, coat a kitchen counter surface and lightly coat the dough in the flour.
4. Using a rolling pin, (I don't have a rolling pin so I use a large empty wine bottle and it works great!) roll the dough into the shape of your pan. It's important to spend a lot of time rolling and kneading the dough because you want the dough to be even.
5. Lightly coat pizza pan with flour, place dough on pan
6. Pour a tablespoon of olive oil onto a folded paper towel and lightly dab the dough with olive oil.
7. Using a fork, poke holes all over the pizza dough. This will allow it to cook evenly.
8. Place pan in center of oven and pre-cook the dough for about 8 minutes. It should start to bubble.
9.Caramelize onions with olive oil and a splash of pepper until soft but not wilted. They will cook more in the oven with the pizza. Set aside.
10. Saute mushrooms with olive oil, pepper and garlic powder until brown and soft. Set aside
11. Cut sausage into even slices.
12. After removing dough from oven, slather generously with marinara sauce.
13. Add dollops of ricotta all over the pizza
14. Layer on the caramelized onions, followed by the mushrooms.
15. Place the sausage slices evenly around the pizza
16. Place pizza in oven for approximately 12 minutes. Check to make sure cheese has fully melted and the ingredients are sticking together.
17. Remove from oven and immediately place the basil leaves on the pizza. They will cook for a few minutes while the pizza is still hot.