10-Minute Mediterranean Pizzas

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mediterranean tortilla pizzasHave you guys had tortilla pizzas? I’d heard about them, but hadn’t tried it until last week. A flour tortilla acts as the crust (a particularly sturdy one, mind you!), topped and cooked in a cast-iron skillet for just a few minutes. A complete no-brainer, with ingredients that you probably already have hanging out in the pantry already!

Which, I so need meals like this in my life right now. Boy scouts, soccer practices and games, homework… and, now the Holidays right around the corner?  Sheer craziness. The best part is, it can be switched up so easily! Whether it’s a trip to the Mediterranean coast with salty olives and feta cheese like this example,  or barbecue sauce and chicken, or topped with a ton of veggies, or the more traditional route with just cheese and pepperoni – the possibilities are endless.

Bertolli recently reached out to me about participating in their My Tuscan Table campaign to celebrate their 150th anniversary. I wanted to do something very traditional and Italian…but the truth of the matter is, a quick dinner consisting of something super easy like tortilla pizzas and a simple green salad are the norm for our family’s table these days. Everyone gathers around to make their own, which is really important on those busy nights. Cooking and enjoying a meal together is pretty much the cornerstone of Tuscan culture, in fact, I’m pretty sure it transcends all cultures!

Bertolli’s new Riserva line of sauces make it super easy – and with fresh ingredients and no additional sugars, it they bring new hope to the jarred pasta sauce aisle. I’m usually a homemade girl, but sometimes you just need a good store-bought sauce! Bertolli is asking everyone to share their Tuscan tables. For every hashtag “#MyTuscanTable” used during the month of October, they’ll be donating $1 to Share Our Strength’s No Kid Hungry campaign.  So get to hashtagging, folks!

Mediterranean Tortilla Pizzas

1 flour tortilla (I like whole wheat)
1/4 cup marinara sauce
1/4 cup shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup crumbled feta
5 kalamata olives, sliced
sliced red onion
olive oil

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees fahrenheit.

Brush one side of the tortilla lightly with olive oil. Place the oiled side of the tortilla down in a 12-inch cast iron skillet.

Spread sauce evenly across the tortilla, leaving 1/2-inch around the edges. Sprinkle with cheese and toppings.

Bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling (no sooner!) and the edges of the tortilla are lightly browned, about 10 minutes. Let the pizza cool for a few minutes before slicing.

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by the good folks at Bertolli. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

Crab Pizza

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Crab PizzaOur summer is starting to come to a close. We’ve been making sure to get plenty of beach and boating time before it does, but…it’s coming, whether we like it or not.

That’s not to say that I don’t adore fall…really, it’s my favorite season! Chilly mornings with hot coffee, the leaves turning, and most importantly – cheap, fat crabs. They’re down to $50 a bushel here on the Eastern Shore, which makes a spontaneous crab feast on a Saturday afternoon totally doable. Which is precisely what we did last weekend…

We ate our fill, then had plenty leftover to pick the next day. Ended up with close to 3 lbs! Of course I had to make a batch of my creamy crab dip, and I’ll be making some crab cakes to freeze. But, I wanted to do something a little different this time around.

Last month we took a cruise up to Seacrets in Ocean City in our friend’s pontoon boat (thanks, Captain Luke!). A few cocktails were consumed, as well as this delicious pizza. They actually call it “crab toast”… to which, I call bullshit. It’s a crab pizza, and it’s absolutely delicious.

I kept it simple, the crab is the star ingredient here, and it should shine. A light covering of a simple garlicky white sauce, topped with cheddar and mozzarella cheeses, and the crown…jumbo lump crab. Now, let me just go ahead and put this out on the table – don’t use canned crab. Ever. For anything. The quality is absolutely critical for an application such as this. So, if you can’t get the good stuff , just don’t bother.

That’s why we have to get while the gettin’ is good here. Another bushel will probably be on the menu this weekend!

Crab Pizza

For the white sauce:
1 Tbsp. butter
1 Tbsp. flour
3/4 cup heavy cream or half-and-half
1 clove garlic, finely minced
Salt and pepper, to taste

For the pizza:
1 ball pizza dough, halved
Olive oil, for brushing
1 cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
1 cup cheddar cheese, shredded
1/2 lb. fresh crab meat
Old Bay, for topping

To make the white sauce, melt the butter in a small saucepan over medium-high heat. Whisk in the flour and cook, whisking constantly, until bubbling and light golden, about 1 minute. Whisk in the heavy cream and garlic, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring frequently, until the mixture thickens and bubbles. Remove from the heat and set aside.

To make the pizza, preheat the oven and a pizza stone to 500 F for at least 20 minutes. Shape each pizza dough into a 12-14 inch round. Lightly brush the perimeter of the dough with olive oil. Spread a thin layer of the white sauce over the crust, leaving a border clear around the edge for the crust. Sprinkle on the shredded mozzarella and cheddar cheeses.

Transfer the pizza to the preheated pizza stone and bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the crust is lightly browned, about 8 minutes. Remove from the oven, and top with fresh crab. Return to oven for a minute or two, just to warm the crab. Remove from oven and let cool slightly before slicing and serving. Top with Old Bay, if desired. Repeat process with other dough.

Source: inspired by Seacrets Crab Toast

Apple, Bacon, & Goat Cheese Salad

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Apple, Bacon, & Goat Cheese Salad

Nothing beats a really good salad in the summertime. Whether it’s a simple Greek salad with grilled chicken – or something a little fancier like this apple, bacon, and goat cheese salad…they always go over well with our family after spending a day outside in the hot summer sun!

Crispy smokey bacon, crunchy apples, tangy goat cheese, candied walnuts – and the pièce de résistance, a delicious apple butter vinaigrette. I think it may be my new favorite salad dressing!

Musselman's Apple Butter

First off, it acted as an awesome emulsifier – it truly was the perfect consistency for a dressing. It also added wonderful flavor. The sweet and spicy notes in the apple butter really worked well with the salad, and combined with apple cider vinegar – there was definitely a ton of apple flavor going on.

I think the recipe for the dressing would also be an amazing marinade for chicken or pork. Looking forward to trying that soon, will report back! In the meantime, enjoy this wonderful salad.

Apple, Bacon, and Goat Cheese Salad

For the salad:
4 cups mixed greens
1 apple, cored and thinly sliced (Fuji, Jazz, or Honeycrisp are my favorites)
4 oz fresh goat cheese, crumbled
4 slices of bacon, chopped

For the candied walnuts:
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 Tbsp butter
1/4 tsp cinnamon
1 cup walnuts

For the apple butter-vinaigrette:
1/4 cup Musselman’s Apple Butter
1/2 cup apple cider vinegar
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh ground black pepper
1/2 cup olive oil

Cook the bacon in a medium sized skillet over medium high heat until crispy. Set aside on a plate lined with a paper towel to drain. Set aside. Drain the bacon fat from the pan and wipe clean with a paper towel.

Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or a Silpat. Prepare the candied walnuts. Add the sugar and butter to the same skillet you cooked the bacon in, and let melt. Once it’s mostly liquid, add the cinnamon and the walnuts, stirring carefully to coat. Cook until sugar is completely dissolved, and starting to caramelize – about 2 minutes more. Pour onto the lined baking sheet, flatten out into a single layer, and let cool.

Prepare the dressing by whisking the apple butter and vinegar in a small bowl or measuring cup. Add the salt and pepper, then slowly whisk in the olive oil. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper if necessary.

Assemble the salad by placing the greens in a large bowl. Top with the sliced apples, crumbled goat cheese, bacon, and candied walnuts. Serve with dressing on the side.

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by the good folks at Musselman’s Apple Butter. As always, all thoughts and opinions are my own.

 

Boardwalk Fries

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Boardwalk Fries

I was kind of shocked when I realized I didn’t have a recipe for good, old-fashioned boardwalk fries here on the site. It’s shameful really. Sure, I have oven fries (which employ the same soaking technique I’ll touch on later) and fish & chips…but I needed to have an entire post devoted to these crispy, salty favorites.

My first taste of boardwalk fries was of course at Thrasher’s in Ocean City, MD…notorious among Marylanders, Eastern Shore folks, and really the entire nation in some cases. That’s because they’re the best. Their first trick is a soak for the cut potatoes in hot saltwater. It helps to remove some of the starch, and softens them up a bit for cooking.

The second key step is the twice-fried technique. The potatoes are cooked in hot oil for one round, basically to par-cook them. They’re then removed from the oil, set aside to drain, and then added back to the oil to attain that beautiful golden brown and crunchy exterior.

Immediately season with salt, and apple cider or malt vinegar. Never ketchup! It’s actually a rule at Thrasher’s…they don’t have it available. The place  next store has a racket selling containers of it at exorbitant prices. We don’t have boardwalks here on Chincoteague, which is just fine by me – but it’s nice to have a little taste of it here at home!

Boardwalk Fries

5 large Russet potatoes, washed and scrubbed
2 Tbsp + 1 tsp kosher salt
4 cups warm water
vegetable or peanut oil
apple cider or malt vinegar
Make the soaking mixture for the cut potatoes by combining hot water and 2 tablespoons kosher salt in large bowl. Mix to dissolve salt. Set aside.

To prepare the potatoes, peel the sides of the potato with a vegetable peeler, leaving some skin at the top and bottom. Slice potatoes length-wise, in 1/2? slices. Then, slice 1/4? inch strips from those slices. A mandoline or french fry cutter is very handy here!

Place cut potatoes in the bowl of salt water and soak for 15 minutes. Remove from water and place the potatoes on a clean kitchen towel to dry for a few minutes. Dry well to avoid splattering when frying.

Fill a dutch oven with vegetable oil, so that oil comes up a little less than halfway up the pot. Bring to 375 degrees. Once oil is up to temperature, fry the potatoes in batches, taking care not to overcrowd. Fry until edges are starting to brown, about 3 minutes. Remove to a paper-towel lined cookie sheet. Repeat process with remaining potatoes.

Once all potatoes have been fried, bring the oil back up to 375 degrees, and refry them. The “twice-fry” is the key to a crispy french fry. Just another minute or two in the hot oil is all you need.

Once golden brown, remove to a paper towel lined platter to drain. Season with kosher salt and vinegar, if you like.