Ahh-mazing Tomato & Basil Pizza
My name is Tracy, and I've wasted 31 years of my life being afraid to make my own pizza dough. I've used flatbread as a substitute for pizza and yeah, it's a GREAT substitute...it's just that I don't always have the time to make my own dough...and why should? It never turns out the way I want it to. Some parts are too thick and doughy & not completely cooked. Some sections have holes in them and the middle is always so soggy that the cheese slides right off. I've never been able to shape the dough into a perfect circle because I have some expectation that I can toss the dough into the air like a scene from Mystic Pizza. I really can't do that and I'm not Julia Roberts.
Then I found this recipe...this fool-proof EASY pizza dough that abolished my pizza dough fears.
Mix dough together. Let it sit. Cut it in half. Let it sit. Pull it across a lubed baking sheet. Heat your oven like a mofo. Top the pizza, bake and BANG. You have a thin crust pizza that tastes it came from a pizza joint. The bottom is nice & crispy and slightly oily. The sauce is sweet & salty and the cheese is absolutely divine. It may not be round and it may not look perfect, but just one bite will make you forget perfect triangular pizza slices. Those pizzas look silly anyways. This dough is a game changer and I'm a believer.
Other things to note:
- This recipe makes two pizzas. You can freeze one round of dough or refrigerate it for a day if need be.
- Don't be worried if the dough springs back when you shape it. Let it rest for 5 minutes and try again. Gluten is funny. It's not you.
- Don't be nervous if the dough doesn't seem super wet and smooth after you initially mix the ingredients together. When you let the dough rise in the moist dish towel, all will be good. There's no knead to worry. ;)
- If you are making this on a weekend for lunch, start the dough at 9:30am & you should be eating pizza by lunch time.
- I completed another item from my 31 comes before 32 list! #6. Make my own pizza (and not fail!) Wahoo!
Artichoke & Basil Bruschetta
Friends! I'm teaching a cooking class with Digital Media Playground at Macy's (in Union Square) this Saturday. You should totally come! I'll be doing a little demo on one of my favorite summer foods, bruschetta! My friend Denise will also be teaching a lesson on food photography & how to take awesome shots indoors with tricky lighting. It's gonna be fun!
I've been testing bruschetta recipes this week and yesterday I came up with this scrumptious Artichoke & Basil Bruschetta for the class. On top of a grilled/garlic rubbed crostini you'll find creamy ricotta, basil, marinated artichoke hearts, a slice of Parmesan cheese with a squeeze of lemon. It's so good I made it for both lunch AND dinner yesterday. You are going to LOVE it! One bruschetta down, three more to go!
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Coconut Shrimp with Pineapple Salsa
I learned a few lessons from this Coconut Shrimp & Pineapple Salsa recipe:
Lesson # 1 When Sriracha is involved in a recipe, it has to be good! I already knew this...but oh my word! Sriracha, cilantro AND pineapple. Heaven! Also, I love any excuse to use my beloved cock sauce. *snort*
Lesson # 2: No matter how hard I try, I can't convince myself that baked coconut/panko covered shrimp taste just like the original fried version. Not to say that these shrimp didn’t taste good, they were actually pretty scrumptious! It’s just that whenever I order coconut shrimp on a menu, they’re both fried and earth shattering. I’m usually on vacation when this happens... drinking fruity cocktails that have umbrellas hanging off the edge of them. So yeah. Maybe that’s the real disconnect or maybe I just really need a vacation? (I do.)
Lesson # 3 I must make this pineapple salsa OFTEN and triple the recipe! We ran out of salsa before we ran out of shrimp. I think there was a point where I looked back and saw Casey drinking the juice from the little bowl I put it in. I think that's a sign that he liked it?
Lesson # 4 Fry the shrimp next time. If I'm really craving fried coconut shrimp, then I should do it. It's not like I'm going to make this dish weekly... I'll probably follow all the the same steps but fry the shrimp in a shallow amount of oil in a frying pan. If you're looking to eat something lighter, by all means make this recipe!
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Quick Dinner Idea: Pizza & Salad
A few years ago I told you about a trusted staple in our dinner rotation- MAKESHIFT PIZZAS!! If you have access to Middle Eastern flatbread from Trader Joe's, you can easily make your own quick custom pizzas. If you don't, try to find some other comparable flatbread or pita. Wanna see how easy they are? Let's take a look!
Flat Roasted Chicken
Here's a lesson in food blogging for you: If you want to share a scrumptious recipe with people, make sure to protect your photos from being deleted. You could potentially write your way out of this quandary. You could describe how epic the buttery lemon sauce was that accompanied the chicken. You could tell your readers how easy it was to flatten a chicken and how much faster it cooks when it's prepared that way. You might even want to tell them how you used the leftover chicken in quesadillas one day, threw it in a burrito bowl for lunch another day and finally topped the last bit on a Greek pizza for dinner. But really, who cares about all of that when there isn't a picture like the one you see above?
I made this chicken TWICE in one week. The first time was intended for you...the second time was to make up for the accidental photo deletion. That's right. I lost over 40 photos. With a flat roasted chicken recipe this amazing, making it twice in one week was no big deal. In fact, I didn't mind at all.
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#5. Have a Nacho Party!
You know what's dangerous? Figuring out that it's super EASY to make your own Nacho Cheese Sauce. This kind of information can be really helpful if you want to host a Nacho Party! Knowing how to make your own nacho cheese is not helpful when you plan on wearing a bathing suit soon. If you find yourself making a batch and suddenly you're sitting on the couch watching Housewives shows on Bravo with nothing but the pot & a spoon, STOP YOURSELF! This activity, although incredibly tempting, is exactly why you are not currently bathing suit ready, Tracy.
There are only three people who know how long ago this Nacho Party happened. Hey 3 people, let's not tell the internet how behind I am in posting this! If you can keep the date tight lipped, I'll feed you more nachos. From what I remember, you three DEMOLISHED your nachos, which only leads me to believe you do not want me to revoke your nacho privileges. How's that for a threat??
BTW, we can cross off another thing from my 31 comes before 32 list #5. Have a Nacho Party!! And hot DANG they were good! If you find yourself with any leftover cheese (not possible!) pour some over a baked potato and add some steamed broccoli on top!
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Fantastic Mayo-Free Egg Salad Sandwiches
OK so I made it clear that I don't like mayo. You know what's weird? I kind of like egg salad. Totally bizarre since mayo makes up the base of a traditional egg salad, right? When I was a kid, my mom made really good egg salad sandwiches on toasted wheat bread (the only kind of bread we were ALLOWED to eat). There was definitely mayo in her rendition, but the trick was to eat a sandwich fast enough so I didn't have a chance to think about the mayo part. It totally worked.
I wanted to make egg salad last weekend but there's no way I am going to buy a jar of mayo. Hell to the no! I don't EVER EVER EVER want to see a grocery receipt of mine with the word mayonnaise on it. So here we have an mayo-free egg salad with the help of creamy ricotta and Greek yogurt. I added some chopped red peppers to add color & texture and it turned out pretty good! Next time I might add a little bit of chopped onion... a squeeze of lemon or a few minced jalapenos to the mix because it needs a little kick. Other than that, I'm pretty stoked to find a recipe for a mayo-free egg salad.
Sun-Dried Tomato Arugula Pasta Salad
Just when I thought I couldn't love a salad more, I went and tried this one! After posting what's on my coffee table the earlier this week, my friend Erica tipped me off on this superb recipe from the cookbook I'm slightly obsessed with-- Appetite for Reduction. All she had to say was that it tastes like pizza and instantly, a grocery shopping list was made. Thanks Erica!!
There's a lot to love about this pasta salad. I love how the dressing coats the pasta...getting into every little nook and cranny of the fusilli I used. Look at that picture. Do you see what I'm talking about?? There's something absolutely magical about the combo of walnuts & fennel. It actually mimics the taste of sausage! I could probably eat the entire batch of the dressing-plain. It's THAT good. When added to this pasta salad it's killer! The tang of red onions...the sweetness of roasted peppers...that peppery bite of arugula...the creaminess of the cannellini beans...and the crunch of toasted walnuts...oh dear. I think I've fallen in love with yet ANOTHER salad. I'm totally looking forward to leftovers for lunch tomorrow!
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