My Pizza crust and sauce recipe A cheat post 11.4.11

It's a cheat day and post for me.

My intentions when I started this blog was to make a daily post and cook something that was featured on the show.  Today was extreme day on The Chew and I just could not make one of the two (first day only two options were shown).

First recipe was from Adam Richman, host and "the Man" in the Man vrs Food TV series.  I love the show and am a huge fan of Adam's, but I just could not bring myself to cook the Sea Urchin Carbonara that was shown on the show.  First, I am thinking that Sea Urchins might be a bit too difficult to find in Kansas.  But honestly, after carefully watching the recipe, considering the look, texture and just the idea of it... I was out.  Sorry Adam.

The remaining recipe was Michael Symon's Cowboy Ribeye with Marrow-naise and fries.  Now this was actually a possibility.  I did call around to my three butcher shops that are close, and would normally stock the hard to find item (Like the necessary femur bone for the marrow).  I could order it, but would take a week and also it seemed very expensive.  Combine that with the HUGE bone in ribeye that Michael made, this was just too much of a budget buster for me.

So, I failed.  I was beat, nothing for me to make today.

But, if you look closely, squint your eyes, drink a box of cheap wine you may just let me off with only a warning that I am skirting the concept of the blog (maybe a strike... do I get two more?).

You see, on the show they did a tour of a pizzeria that makes a 60 inch (5 FOOT) pizza that feeds 50 people.  While entertaining and fits into the theme of extreme foods, there was no recipe for me to try.

But they did brag on their crust and sauce.

So... Here's my Pizza 101 Crust and Sauce recipes.

First... the dough.  There are plenty of dough recipes out there.  But this is simple to make, fast (even though it has yeast, the rise time is only 30 minutes) and has always been fool proof for me.  Never fails!

3/4 cup WARM (105 degrees) Water
1 1/4 tsp Yeast (or 1/2 a pre-measured package)
1/4 cup Olive Oil
2 cups Flour
pinch of Salt

I use a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment.  Pour the flour and salt into the mixer bowl.  Next, mix the yeast and the water together.  Pour this into the bowl and start whirring away.  Add the oil in slowly.

The dough will become elastic, pulling away from the side of the bowl as it kneads the dough ball.  If needed, add a bit of water 1/2 tsp at a time, or flour if it is too wet.

After about 5 minutes of kneading, form into a ball and wrap in plastic and store in the fridge for about 30 minutes.  The dough will rise a bit, but not double in size as many yeast recipes call for.

And while the dough is resting in the fridge, let's work on a sauce.  This is painfully easy.  All you need is a can of diced tomatoes (It's November. Do not pretend that the tomatoes in the produce section taste the same as they do in August).

Anyway, empty the can of tomatoes in a saute pan and heat over medium heat for 20 minutes.  The simmer will bring out the natural sweetness of the tomatoes and break down the texture to a more semi solid.

Add a small can of tomato sauce and heat.

And you are ready.  If you like a chunky sauce, use as is.  Me, I normally prefer to whirl this through my food processor, or to use a hand held mixer to puree the sauce and it is done!  You can add some spices now, oregano if you like, or this is a good time to add a tsp of my "Not Your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence"

And that's it!  Home made, fresh made pizza dough and sauce in under 40 minutes.

And once you have a sauce and a ball of dough, pizza is easy...

Preheat the oven and a pizza stone (Hopefully, a stone makes a BIG difference in the quality of your pizza) to 500 to 550 degrees (YES, that hot)

Flatten out the dough onto a sheet of parchment paper.

Leave a little thicker lip around the edge so the good stuff does not run out while it bakes.

Drizzle some extra virgin olive oil over the top of the dough.

Take a brush and make sure everything is coated.

Especially coat the lip part that will be exposed.  It helps to crisp up the dough so it has a bit of a crunch.

I like to season my dough at this time...

Just a little salt and pepper is all.

And I LOVE a cheesy pizza... LOTS of cheese.  I am not sure what it is called, but I buy a cross between mozzarella and provolone.  It slices easy and is just delicious (also, it melts beautifully so you get that stringy look when you cut the pizza).  So, I make a layer of cheese on the bottom of the good stuff.

And now the good stuff... Go ahead and add the sauce (it's been simmering, hot sauce is fine, the cheese will start melting).

Use the back side of a big spoon to get it into all the nooks and crannies, leaving a half inch or so around the edge.

And from here... add what you have.

This is my week night pizza.  I always have all these ingredients in my pantry.  The toppings are whatever I have leftover.  Chicken, steak, eggs, you name it.

Tonight I had some pulled pork and red onions.  Go light on the ingredients.  less is more.  No need to add a dozen toppings.  All the best pizzas only have a few ingredients (Like only 2 or 3).

And I top with some thinly slice provolone.

These slices are just for show.  the cheesy taste is in the base, these slices will bubble up and slightly char for that pretty look.

Move it to the oven and onto the pizza stone (cookie sheet will work in a pinch, but the stone does make a difference).

500 to 550 degrees for 8-10 minutes.  The edge will get that delicious golden brown and delicious look, while the cheese slices will bubble and char.

Let it rest for 5 minutes before you slice...

Sorry for the cheat... best I could do from today's episode.

Carla Hall's Compound Butter 10.28.11

If you take a look at yesterday's post, you can just imagine the leftovers I have.  Ribs, Beans, Tater Salad, Cole Slaw, Pulled Pork and a full refrigerator.  I am under orders from the boss (my wife) to not cook anything new until we make a dent in the remains of the day!

BUT, if you have pulled pork, you need sandwich bread.

And if you make a loaf of bread, you need some butter!

Today's The Chew featured a quick easy condiment.  A reminder that meals are coming up soon (Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas, New Year's Eve) when something just a little bit extra is expected.

Like Herb Compound Butter!  Takes just a couple of minutes and just sets the table off as something special.

It's just about the easiest thing you can imagine.

The night before you plan to serve this (or, as Carla suggests, make ahead and actually freeze for the special occasion), just leave out a stick of butter (or a couple) to reach room temperature and to get soft.

Then add a tsp of herbs per stick.  Carla suggests Thyme and Chives.  I prefer my pre-made mix I call, :Not Your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence".  I make a batch up at least once a month to have around the house to add to eggs, make some herb bread (like this loaf).  Here's my recipe...

BTW, I make my own Mediterranean spice mix I call, "Not Your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence".  You will be seeing this ALOT.  It's a fast way to add that special savory taste to any dish.  I make about 2 cups worth a month and bit by bit, it is gone!  Tastes great on everything from eggs to chicken and anything in between!

While Oregano spice on it's own is fine, It was so much easier to just add a couple of TBS of this...

Here's my formula...

• 1 part dried tarragon
• 1 part dried Oregano
• 1 part dried Dill
• 1 part dried Rosemary
• 1 part dries Thyme
• 1 part dried Garlic Flakes
• 1/2 part course grind Sea Salt
• 1/2 part fresh ground Peppercorns
• 1/2 part fresh Lemon Zest
  Note: if I know I am going to use this up in a week or two, I will go ahead and zest the lemon.  Sometimes I make enough to last a month or two with no real plans to use it.  On those occasions, I do not add lemon zest, instead I will add fresh zest as I make whatever recipe I am using the spice mix.

So, just a couple tsp of this added to the soft butter and mix and you have something special!

I was still having people around, so I served the fresh baked bread with the soft herb compound  butter from a dish (don't you love the heart shaped serving dish).  I did not have enough to freeze for later as suggested.  Click HERE to see The Chew website printed recipe, or HERE to see the video recap of Carla making her version.

Great way to add a little panache to a Redneck Shepherd's Pie meal made of leftovers...

Michael Symon's Spicy Tomato and Blue Cheese Soup 10.18.11

It was soup day!!!

I love soups.  And the whole day did not disappoint.  This was a close call, as there was a gulf shrimp and grits soup recipe that looked really good as well.  But, in the end I decided to go with what I had in stock.

BTW, just a couple of days earlier I was shopping at Sam's Club, the big Costco-like warehouse store.and spied a HUGE can of tomatoes for less than $3.  Serendipity.

Click the photo above to see my
review of Michael's other Tomato Soup

I did find this interesting that Michael would post a second tomato soup just a few days apart.  Interesting, but there is very little comparison.  The soup that he used as an accent for a fancy grilled cheese was a quicky (it really did come together in about 5 minutes).  Savory seasoned, with Cumin and thick, almost like a dip.

Whereas, this is a spicy soup, seasoned with Sriracha sauce (the hot "rooster" sauce).  The spice is cut a bit with cream and blue cheese, but it is spiced instead of savory.

I made a few changes...

I was all set to add the chicken stock to the soup as it was cooking.  But, since the juices from the big can of tomatoes was added, as the tomatoes cooked down, what was left was still a thick soup (as I like).  Adding stock would have thinned it out too much for my taste.  I added 1/4 cup of stock, but saw the beautiful thick luscious soup being thinned and stopped at that small amount.

The soup also calls for a tiny amount of fresh oregano.  First, I did not have any, second, I was using canned tomatoes at the height of tomato picking season and third, I have a pretty good dried spice mix that I use (combined with a little bit of lemon zest).  This way, I was able to make this a pantry soup, something I generally have all of the ingredients on hand.

BTW, I make my own Mediterranean spice mix I call, "Not Your Grandmother's Herbes de Provence".  You will be seeing this ALOT.  It's a fast way to add that special savory taste to any dish.  I make about 2 cups worth a month and bit by bit, it is gone!  Tastes great on everything from eggs to chicken and anything in between!

While Oregano spice on it's own is fine, It was so much easier to just add a couple of TBS of this...

Here's my formula...

• 1 part dried tarragon
• 1 part dried Oregano
• 1 part dried Dill
• 1 part dried Rosemary
• 1 part dries Thyme
• 1 part dried Garlic Flakes
• 1/2 part course grind Sea Salt
• 1/2 part fresh ground Peppercorns
• 1/2 part fresh Lemon Zest
  Note: if I know I am going to use this up in a week or two, I will go ahead and zest the lemon.  Sometimes I make enough to last a month or two with no real plans to use it.  On those occasions, I do not add lemon zest, instead I will add fresh zest as I make whatever recipe I am using the spice mix.

And I made a very simple grilled cheese (just provolone) to go with the soup!

You can see Michael's original recipe by clicking HERE.  I did simmer the tomatoes much longer than Michael implied, about 2 hours at a very low simmer.  In my opinion, it breaks the tomatoes down better, allowing the sweetness to come through... before we added to Sriracha sauce!!!

The recipe made a huge pot.  Easily a dozen servings.  Perfect for a cool fall weeknight and plenty of lunches afterwards.  And with the very inexpensive huge box store can of tomatoes, this comes in at less than a dollar a serving.  The budget buster is the blue cheese, but if you shop carefully, it is a great budget saving soup!

I mean WOW, great taste, a pantry soup and a budget dream!