WINNER WINNER, Pizza Dinner
UMMM what defines a Friday night in (or out) more than a fresh pizza pie?! I know my Friday date night usually ends in Ryan and I ordering a large Fresh Tomato Basil pie from Rubirosa (aka the greatest pizza joint in our neighborhood/city) and plopping ourselves right in front of the TV with the pizza box literally on our laps. Yes. Please try to picture that. Two big pigs. And I'm not the biggest pizza fan but if you've had there brick oven pizza, you'd prooooobably fall in love. For real.
First I need to ask this- does anyone else watch 'Master Chef' while cooking dinner and totally feel like they're a part of the competition?? Is that just me? I don't know why but it's my new thing. I mean like.. ok.. I first just had it on and happened to be making dinner at the same time, but then they were cooking and I was cooking and I felt like I was really in the cooking zone. It actually made me get more creative while I was whipping up my basic ol' Mac & Cheese! Yes, random but had to share because I.am.inspired.
SO fast forward a bit to me cooking a dif dinner this week, and trying to brainstorm a meal I can make that'll really 'wow' us. I mean don't get me wrong, I love to cook and experiment all these funky vegetarian dishes and just have fun cooking, but sometimes I just wanna make something thats super tasty, easy, and just one of those things you can eat night after night. AND PIZZA. Like this is as simple as simple gets, but it's just so packed with flavor. Seriously speaking, Ryan told me this pizza was the best in the city (probably slightly exaggerating) but hey- I'll take the compliment! And come onnnnnn. look at that fresh ooey-gooey mozzarella. *drooling*
ANYWAYS, hope all you lovely peeps have a great weekend & enjoy the time away from work. You can find me in the kitchen [while watching a 'Master Chef' Marathon], so I can have exciting new recipes for ya'll next week! Happy Friday & WEEKEND! xx S.
|| Vegetarian ||
I N G R E D I E N T S:
- 1 lb of Fresh pizza dough, divided into 2
- 8 oz. of Fresh Mozzarella Bocconcini, sliced
- 1 large Tomato, sliced thin
- Marinara sauce*
- Fresh Basil, sliced
- Salt & Pepper to taste (& any of your favorite italian seasonings to dust)
PREPARE: Preheat your oven to 375 Fahrenheit. Slice up your tomatoes, mozzarella, & basil.
TO START: Begin by rolling out your pizza dough on a greased + flour surface (I use half a ball of dough at a time so it's thinner crust). Once thin, place it in your greased pizza pan (I use this crisper pan and it works WONDERS!) and brush with just a small amount of olive oil. Pop in the oven for about 5 minutes just to get slightly cookin.
COMBINE: After pizza dough is slightly cooked, take outta the oven and begin to prepare that pie! Spread a decent amount of sauce (to your liking!), and place half of your super thin slices of tomatoes. Then, add your sliced fresh mozzarella around evenly and sprinkle with some pepper.
COOK & EAT!: Pop your pizza in the oven for about 15-20 minutes, or until the crust begins to brown and gets suuuuper crispy! Take it out, top with fresh basil & let sit for about 10 [anxious] minutes so cheese sets and you don't burn your mouth. Slice up and serve! MMM
*Notes: The ingredients above make enough for two large pizzas. Since I like my pizzas crunchy and thin, I only use half a ball of dough and roll it out reeeeeaal thin. Also, If you don't have a tomato sauce on hand, here's a trick to one I whipped up for my pizza photo'd above: Boil 1 1/2 cups of water, add half a cup of tomato paste, and put in a dash of oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, basil, sugar, salt & pepper. Whisk and reduce to medium low, and cook until it thickens up a bit. There you have it!