Pizza

A few months ago I posted a picture of my favorite pizza on Facebook and my blog and received many comments from people wanting the recipe.  It has taken me a while to write this down because I improvised the topping from my mom's famous Panzanella.  I have carefully tried to figure out the proportions as I've made it again, but I still don't have exact measurements.  I still have to say taste as you go.  The pizza dough (which is based off Lydia Bastianich's recipe) is fantastic, but it requires a bit of advanced prep because it needs to rise over night in the fridge.  I would say it is worth every bit of work because it is as good if not better than any pizza crust I've tasted.

Pizza Dough:
6 cups bread flour (can substitute all-purpose)
2 tsp active dry yeast (not instant)
3 tsp kosher salt
2 cups warm water
Extra Virgin Olive Oil (EVOO) for greasing bowl

Directions:

• Mix flour, salt, and yeast together in a stand mixer fitted with paddle attachment.  While mixer is on medium speed, slowly add 2 cups of warm water and let mix for about 30 seconds until the dough just starts to come together in a ball.  Swap out the mixing paddle for dough hook and mix on medium speed for another 30 seconds or so. *Note, this part can be done by hand if you don't have a mixer.  In fact, the original recipe calls for mixing by hand but I found it to be a lot less work and the results are better with a mixer.  At the end of this point, sometimes there is a little bit of flour that still doesn't mix in, so I just kneed it in by hand in the next part. 
• Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and kneed for 5-10 minutes, until the dough is smooth and springy.
• Coat a bowl (I use my mixer bowl) with a bit of EVOO, put the dough in the bowl, cover with a slightly damp towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 1/2 hours-or until doubled in size.
• After the dough has risen, punch the dough down and divide into 6 even balls.  Place on a cookie sheet and cover tightly with plastic wrap.  Put cookie sheet in the fridge and let rise for about 20-24 hours.  I make the dough usually about 9 or 10 and night and then serve it for dinner the next day about 5:30 or 6.  I have also made the dough at 9 or 10 am and then served it for dinner at 6 with success.
• After the second rise, you can either stretch and shape the dough or you can wrap tightly in plastic wrap, put in a freezer bag, and freeze.  Each ball yields about an 8-10 inch pizza.  Our family usually needs 3 pizzas to feed our voracious pizza appetites.  

   Topping and Baking:

• Place a pizza stone in cold oven and preheat to 475 degrees.  If your oven does convect, preheat to 450 convection (this is my favorite way to bake the pizza).
• On a pizza peel or cutting board, stretch the dough gently until it is about 8-10 inches in diameter, or until the thickness suites you.  The dough doesn't rise very much during the baking process, so if you make it very thin, it will stay very thin.  I've stretched the dough extremely thin and left it not so thin and it is fantastic all ways, so it's up to your taste.  
• If you have a pizza peel, top the pizza, if you don't have a pizza peel, wait to top the pizza until you put the dough on the pizza stone.  The dough is not very sturdy and you will lose the toppings otherwise.
• Return, pizza, toppings, and stone to the oven and bake for 8 minutes.

Pizza Toppings or My Favorite Pizza

• There are so many different ways I like this pizza: plain tomato sauce and cheese, white, Margherita (sliced tomatoes, garlic, mozzarella, and basil), meat, veggies, etc. but my very favorite is the following (if you are familiar with my mom's Panzanella, it's the inspiration for this topping)
• After forming the dough, brush with EVOO and layer with slices of good, fresh mozzarella.  Leave a little bit of bare dough between slices of the fresh mozzarella as it melts differently than shredded mozzarella.  You can also use shredded mozzarella if you wish.  Sprinkle with a little good Parmesan or Romano cheese, especially get the edges of the crust.
• Bake the pizza as directed above. 
• While the pizza is baking, make the following to top the pizza:
• 1 10 oz container of cherry or grape tomatoes cut into quarters OR equivalent diced tomatoes.  Salt tomatoes with about 1-1 1/2 tsp kosher salt.
• Pour about 1 to 2 TBS EVOO
• Press 2 medium to large garlic cloves through a garlic press into the EVOO.
• Mix together, taste, add more of any of the previous ingredients to taste.
• Add 1/2 to 1 tsp Red Wine Vinegar and 1 + tsp Balsamic Vinegar.  Mix, taste, adjust according to your preferences.
• Snip 5-10 fresh basil leaves into the mix.
• Slice and serve pizza, pass around the tomatoes for topping. 

So there you have it, if you have any other questions or it just isn't working our for you, please let me know. 

Italian Chicken Pasta Bake: A Remix

Breaded chicken and pasta is one of my staple meals.  I can make it without thinking and I always have the ingredients on hand.  It's simple and easy, yet elegant enough that I can serve it for company.  I used to make extra because I love leftovers, but the chicken never tastes as good the second day and the pasta gets kind of mushy.  I was also thinking about the Italian Chicken Pastina Bake from Giada.  It always left me a little disappointed: I wanted it more flavorful and it seemed silly to cook chicken and pasta to then bake it in the oven and essentially cook it again.  I was always left with a million dishes to do (and I hate doing dishes).  It's almost like the dish was made for leftover chicken and pasta.

So it hit me.  I could make extra chicken and pasta and use it to remake the chicken pasta bake.  Brilliant.  It turned out way better than the original, and much easier.  Two different dinners for the price of one night of cooking (and one night of dishes, yay).  And it tricked my leftover hating toddler into eating leftovers and enjoying it.  I may never make the original again.

Ingredients: (fed 3 of us plus leftovers for lunch, could probably feed a family of 4)

• 1/2 cup leftover breaded chicken, cubed.  See here for recipe.
• 1/2 box of medium size pasta (penne, rigatoni, rotini, cavatappi, your favorite)
• Enough sauce to cover the pasta to your liking (I probably used about 1/3 to 1/2 cup) See here for a really good sauce recipe.
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/4 cup good Parmesan cheese (i.e. NOT Kraft)
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1 TBS butter
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder

Directions:

• Preheat oven to 375 degrees
• Mix chicken, pasta, sauce and mozzarella in a 9x9 in baking dish (sprayed with cooking spray).
• Mix bread crumbs, Parmesan and garlic powder in a small bowl.  Pour over the top and dot with butter.
• Bake for 15-20 minutes, or until browned on top and hot throughout. 

*You can easily add extra seasoning to the bread crumb topping if you like, I bet oregano, basil, and parsley would be delicious. 

World Famous Tomato Sauce

This is the real deal.  From my Sicilian great-grandmother to my Sicilian grandmother to my half Sicilian mother to me.  It is so easy yet so delicious.

Ingredients-makes enough for 2 lbs of pasta

• 2-3 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
• 7-8 Peeled garlic cloves
• 1 28 or 35 ounce can of whole peeled tomatoes (My mom and I both like Hunt's whole peeled tomatoes, but get the plain ones or with basil) put them in the blender or food processor until crushed.
• 8-10 fresh basil leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried basil leaves

 Directions

• Heat oil in a heavy pan.  Sauté 5 or 6 (save 2) garlic cloves. 
• When garlic is starting to sizzle, add the remaining 2 garlic cloves through a garlic press (if you don't have a garlic press, you can chop the garlic and mash it with a fork). 
• Sauté for about a minute and then add tomatoes. Carefully lower tomatoes into the pan and use a screen to help prevent splattering. 
• Bring to a boil and then lower heat, simmer for about 20-30 minutes. 
• Taste and add salt (maybe 1/2 teaspoon) to taste.  Add basil, cover pan and let stand off the heat for about 10 minutes.  Taste again and adjust seasonings.  Add another Tablespoon of Extra Virgin Olive Oil if you want.

*I usually double the recipe and freeze half for later.  It thaws and reheats amazingly well.

Italian Chicken Pastina Bake

I found this recipe on the Food Network, again. I'm glad the food network lists reviews and I'm glad I read them for this recipe. A lot of people said it needed more sauce and more seasoning, and I would agree. Also, the recipe calls for "pastina", which I knew growing up as the tiny star shaped pasta, but also means any smallish pasta. Someone said they like cavatapi, I also like gemelli, rotini or elbows would work too. I double this recipe because it reheats well and I really like leftovers. I've never tried, but I'm sure you could freeze this unbaked for later use.
Ingredients

• 1 cup pastina pasta (or any small pasta)
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1/2 cup cubed chicken breast (1-inch cubes)
• 1/2 cup diced onion (about 1/2 a small onion)
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 (14.5-ounce) can diced tomatoes with juice
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
• 1/4 cup bread crumbs
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan
• 1 tablespoon butter, plus more for buttering the baking dish

* For the doubled recipe I add an 8 oz can of tomato sauce
* Dried oregano and basil to taste, maybe 1 teaspoon each for the doubled recipe
Directions
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
Bring a medium pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook until just tender, stirring occasionally, about 5 minutes. Drain pasta into a large mixing bowl.
Meanwhile, put the olive oil in a medium saute pan over medium heat. Add the chicken and cook for 3 minutes. Add the onions and garlic, stirring to combine, and cook until the onions are soft and the chicken is cooked through, about 5 minutes more. Put the chicken mixture into the bowl with the cooked pasta. Add the canned tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, parsley, salt, and pepper (and tomato sauce, oregano, and basil). Stir to combine. Place the mixture in a buttered 8 by 8 by 2-inch baking dish (for doubled recipe I used 9 x 13). In a small bowl mix together the bread crumbs and the Parmesan cheese. Sprinkle over the top of the pasta mixture. Dot the top with small bits of butter. Bake until the top is golden brown, about 30 minutes.