The yummiest white pizza. Ever. AKA: An ode to fresh, whole milk ricotta.
Pizza dough:
3 c. all-purpose flour (or bread flour)
1 T. vital wheat gluten (exclude if using bread flour)
2.5 t active dry yeast
2 t salt
1 c warm water (btwn 85-100 degrees F)
3 T olive oil
Spin flour, yeast, wheat gluten up in food processor. Slowly stream water into processor till ball forms. Add olive oil, slowly, spin up 10 sec. Add salt last, spin a few seconds.* Turn out and knead on floured surface 1-2 minutes. Place in bowl and cover with damp towel or plastic wrap and let rise 1 hour. When dough ready, punch down, roll out to desired size/shape— should aim for 1/4” thickness— and transfer to oiled sheet pan. Let proof 15 minutes, then proceed with desired toppings. Bake at 500 degrees F 15-20 minutes.
My toppings for a good white pie:
1/2 bunch broccoli rabe, sauteed with olive oil, salt, red pepper flake (I used leftovers, which is what inspired this pizza in the first place)
1 1/2 cup roughly chopped / hand-torn baby spinach
1/2 c whole milk ricotta (if you’re lucky, use fresh, like me because YUM)**
1/2 lb thinly sliced fresh mozzarella**
red pepper flake
salt and pepper to taste
olive oil for drizzling
You get the idea.
* many formulas will tell you to add the salt at the same time as the yeast. Resist this urge. Salt kills yeast if added in too high of a quantity or if added to a mixture too soon. In this case, simply waiting to add salt till things are pretty much together; this ensures a flavorful dough that happily rises for you.
** = always taste / check to see if fresh cheeses have been cultured in any briney solution. How salty your cheeses are will help you figure out your seasoning, so always give cheese a taste BEFORE seasoning whole pie.
Creamy Roasted Cauliflower Soup
I’ll start by telling you I was inspired by this post by Deb of SmittenKitchen here: http://smittenkitchen.com/2006/09/the-fragile-cooking-ego/. And now I’ll tell you how I changed it up to suit my own sensibilities.
Roasting virtually ANY vegetable adds lots of depth of flavor and often nice color to any dish. While the original recipe sounded nice, I really thought: why not roast the cauliflower first? It’ll add a more amber color to the soup and so much good flavor. And it did. My other thought was, why a quart of stock? Why not split the stock with some milk to add extra creaminess while increasing the nutritional profile of this soup?
So here are my amendments:
— Roast one small to medium sized head of cauliflower with 1 T. olive oil at 375 degrees for about 20 minutes, tossing once. I used the other tablespoon of olive oil mentioned in the recipe to cook down the onion and garlic.
— Use 2 c. low-fat milk and 2 c. stock (I love Imagine Food’s No Chicken Broth)
— I added no additional salt. Nada. Between the stock and the naturally salty Parm, no need for extra. I likely added extra black pepper b/c I love black pepper.
— I finished it w/ chopped chives and an extra grind of pepper, but imagine a little drizzle of heavy cream would be good, as would a dollop of goat cheese or maybe even some thinly sliced roated cauliflower (if one reserved a small floret).
I would have loved this with some garlic toast, but enjoyed it with a dark green salad and some of Metropolitan Bakery’s olive thyme bread instead.
Easy, fast, tasty, healthful soup. Does it get better than that?
Baby Bok Choy with Pan-seared Tofu.
This is one my stand-bys. It comes together quickly and is always tasty and healthy. I usually eat it sans carbs, but I tonight I craved some forbidden rice and thought the fragrance and great texture of the rice would be nice. And it was really nice. Any rice would do in a pinch (or, for that matter, soba noodles), but this black rice is just awesome and very nutritious. I also typically add carrot for color and sweetness but I didn’t have any today. It was just as good.
Do it up:
2 c. cooked forbidden rice
2 teas. vegetable, peanut or walnut oil plus 1 teas. additional oil (I use canola for the omega-3s)
1 fourteen oz. block of tofu, drained well, sliced into 8 long strips
3 heads baby bok choy (or 1.5 large bok choy) leaves and stems chopped and separated
1 tbls very finely chopped or grated garlic (I used my rasp); about 3 cloves
1-2 teas. very finely chopped or grated fresh ginger
1 pinch red pepper flake to taste
1 teas. Bragg’s amino acids (optional)
1 T. oyster sauce, or in my case, vegetarian stir fry sauce
Cook it up, yo:
Heat a large skillet to medium heat with 2 t. oil to coat bottom of pan. When pan is hot, place tofu strips down into the pan. Do not touch. Let the tofu sizzle and really form a good crust. When the pieces are ready to be turned, they will release from the pan and will be a deep blonde color. If they are sticking, they aren’t ready yet. Be patient. Keep rotating till sides are a nice golden color, set aside on paper towel-lined plate.
In same skillet, lower heat a little, and add remaining teaspoon of oil to pan. Add bok choy stems and red pepper flake. Let cook about 2-3 minutes, then add bok choy greens, ginger and garlic. Stir to combine and let greens wilt down, about 2 minutes. Add amino acids, oyster / veg sauce and stir to coat. Add tofu back into pan, nestling strips into veg to allow strips to quickly glaze. Let heat through about 1 minute.
Serve greens and 4 strips tofu over rice and finish with a spash of low-sodium soy sauce and a drizzle of toasted sesame oil, if desired. Serves 2 for dinner, 3-4 as light lunch.
This is a variation on the “straw & hay” recipes I’ve seen. I had a really nice head of cabbage on hand from the farmstand and, I’ll tell you it’s not my first this season and it won’t be my last. Fresh local cabbage is so tasty there’s just nothing like it. For the people who hate cabbage, I encourage you to get to your nearest farmer’s market, pick up a napa, green, or savoy variety and have at it with this recipe. A winter treat, truly.
Here’s the latest to come out of my kitchen worth posting.
Winter Cabbage with Pasta:
1/2 lb. linguine (or other flat noodle)
1/2 head napa or green cabbage, quartered and shredded (cut with sharp knife to create short ribbons of cabbage)
2 tablespoons butter cubed into small pieces, plus 1/2 T.
1/4 c. finely grated Parmegianno Reggiano
1/4 c. finely grated Locatelli or Pecorino
2 T. half and half
1/4 teas. freshly grated nutmeg
3 T. finely chopped parsley
Bring large pot of water to boil. When at rolling boil, add salt and bring back to boil. Add noodles, cook 4 minutes. Add cabbage to noodles and cook 2 minutes more. Add 1/2 T. butter and cook noodles to al dente (or desired tenderness) and cabbage till tender, but not mushy.
While cooking, grate cheeses in bowl together.
Reserve 1/2 c. cooking water, set aside. Drain cabbage and noodle mixture. Transfer to large bowl. Add remaining 2 T. butter and mix to coat. Add a few tablespoons of cooking water, stir. Add 1/3 amount of cheeses, toss to combine. Add few more tablespoons water, then 1/3 cheese. Toss again. Add half and half and toss to combine. Add last portion of cheese, toss. If too dry, add a bit more cooking water or half and half till smooth and creamy enough for your taste. Stir in nutmeg and parsley. Serve immediately. Serves 2 as main (large) dish or 4 as side dish.
Be thankful for January and enjoy.
Moroccan Vegetable Couscous
This past Memorial Day weekend, I was lucky enough to travel to Paris. It was my first (long overdue) trip to that amazingly beautiful, remarkably friendly, and most delicious city. Chez Omar fed my vegetarian self really well and it didn’t hurt that the cafe was a mere 5 minute walk from my hotel in the 3rd. I have dreamt often of the brothy, gorgeous vegetables and fluffy, perfect couscous I dined on there. I attempted tonight to recreate such a dish. It wasn’t the same— not nearly— but it’s one I’d make again because it’s similar enough that I am reminded of the early days of June I spent in one of loveliest places I’ve ever been.
Moroccan Vegetables with Couscous (in the style of the 19123):
3 T. vegetable oil
1 T. butter (ideally ghee, which of course, I didn’t have and wasn’t willing to make; it should be noted at this point that quite a lot of butter typically goes into these dishes. I, however, have opted in favor of my ticker and went for a wee bit of butter per serving and heart-healthy oil).
1 large, sweet onion, halved and sliced into 1/4” pieces
1 small butternut squash, peeled, seeded, diced into 1/2 ” dice
4 small / 3 med carrots, peeled and coined into 1/4”-1/2” pieces
4 small waxy potatoes, peeled, cut into 1/2” dice
2 small zucchini, halved lengthwise and cut into 1/2” slices
1/2 teas. tumeric
1/4 teas. cinnamon
1/4 teas. scant cumin
3 cups vegetable stock
1/2 cup pureed tomatoes or 1 T. tomato paste
1 cup water
healthy pinch saffron (about 1/2 teas)
1 can drained, rinsed chickpeas (garbanzo beans)
salt, pepper to taste (I kept additional salt and pepper to bare minimum thanks to a flavorful broth and plenty of saffron)
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2 c. whole wheat instant couscous
2 1/2 c. water
harissa, to taste
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Directions:
Heat large pot over medium heat. Add oil and butter. Let fat heat through till butter has ceased bubbling. Add onion, butternut squash, carrots. Season with pinch of salt, reduce heat to medium-low, stir. Cover and sweat veg over low heat 15 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add potatoes, stir. Stir in cumin, cinnamon, tumeric. Cover and sweat 5-7 min. Gently stir and add zucchini. Cover and sweat 2-3 minutes. Add stock, 1 c. water, saffron, tomato. Bring to boil, then lower heat to gentle simmer. Let pot simmer over low, gentle heat for 30 minutes. Add chickpeas and simmer 10 minutes more. Test for seasoning and adjust salt and pepper if necessary.
During last 10 minutes cooking (read: while waiting, impatient for such good food), bring 2 1/2 c. water to boil. Turn off heat, stir in couscous. Remove from heat, cover, let sit 5-7 minutes; fluff with fork.
To serve: Put 1/2 c. cooked couscous in bottom of bowl. Ladle veg and broth over couscous, and, if desired, add a small dollop of harissa. Eat immediately, preferably with a nice French rose, outside, while conjuring la Rue de Bretagne.
Serves 8.
