Sunday, November 28, 2010

Pizza for lunch (with spicy chili oil!)

 

Is everyone in as big of a tryptophan coma as I am?  Pfew - that was a lot of turkey - and leftovers.  It was a great holiday (my favorite).  Hope you enjoyed yours too.  I thought I'd provide a little inspiration to move back into the kitchen with something simple, and not about turkey leftovers: homemade pizza.  Have you ever made pizza at home?  The trick is buying the dough - it makes cooking a snap.  Whole foods sells a wonderful refrigerated dough that comes in several varieties including multi-grain.  Unlike the others doughs you find in the market, this one doesn't need to be defrosted - it's fresh and ready to go.  Your local pizza store will probably sell you dough - and if they're nice, they'll even sell you one of their rolled out doughs which will save you even more time.  Top with some roasted garlic, fresh ricotta, a sprinkling of shredded mozzarella, some fresh grated Parmesan,  some fresh shredded basil leaves and tomatoes, season with salt and pepper, and bake at 450 degrees F on a hot pizza stone or the back of a cookie sheet for to minutes until crust is golden and cheese is bubbling.  There are a couple of tricks: 1) once you roll out your dough, allow it to sit for 10 minutes sot that it settles and won't bounce back.  2) Pull it out or press it out with your fingers to stretch it back out if it shrinks back after your initial shaping.  3) Do this on parchment paper so that you just slide it into the oven when you are ready and 4) heat your stone for 30-60 minutes before you are going to use it - this will ensure the crust crisps nicely.

 
And what better to season your pizza than some spicy chili oil?  Heat olive oil (needn't be your best) in a pan with dried chilis, allow to cool, and then pour into sterilized jars.  It will get better the longer you let it sit.  This would make a nice little homemade holiday gift for someone who loves to kick it up a notch. 

8 comments:

Lulu said...

I like the idea for this spicy oil. Everything looks very delicious and the pictures are awesome!

Peter G | Souvlaki For The Soul said...

Chili oil and pizza is def a match made in heaven! I wish we had WholeFoods here! Gorgeous pics as usual!

larryb said...

Great idea! Your photos make me want to throw a pizza in the oven right now! Good job!

oneordinaryday said...

Mmm. Making me hungry. Looks perfect.

Amyb said...

This looks like something I might be able to do successfully! The photos certainly make me want to try.

Unknown said...

Great short cuts. I'm always in the market for good ideas for holiday gifts. Now I have to decide between the spicy oil and your last delicious cranberry idea. You're a mountain of ideas! Pretty shots of this on the stone.

Nienke at Revel said...

Amazing pictures (as always)!

I am a huge fan of adding some kick to my food and that spicy chili oil is definitely something I need to try out.

Simones Kitchen said...

O that looks so incredibly good! I've been really absent here lately but glad I've come back!

Post a Comment

Thank you for submitting a comment. I love, love reading your comments - they motivate and inspire me. Typically I try to come back and respond to your comment. Forgive me if occasionally I don't. Thanks for dropping by! (p.s. please don't leave marketing messages here)