One of the best benefits about homemade food is that we get to enjoy our guilty pleasure with a healthier twist.
My version of Hawaiian pizza is made with organic cheese, organic flour, etc. On top of that, I used roasted and smoked turkey breast instead of ham, and the result is not any less tasty than store bought version (at least better than boxes from the frozen aisle!).
Ingredients for one pizza?
Dough:
1 envelope of instant pizza crust yeast
1 2/3 cup of organic all purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons of organic granulated sugar
3/4 teaspoon of sea salt
2/3 cup very warm filtered water
3 tablespoons of olive oil
Toppings:
3 oz of sliced honey roasted and smoked turkey breast
8 oz/1 small can of cubed pineapple
1 1/2 cup of organic shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup of organic shredded parmesan
1/4~1/3 jar of spaghetti sauce
Some olive oil
How?
There's actually one "less successful" pizza before this recipe. Thanks to my friends who unknowingly became experimental white mouse and finished that very first pizza.
I used instant pizza crust yeast for the pizza dough. In fact, I never knew such thing exists till the other day at the grocery store. After reading the description, there's no hours of proofing the dough required, what a time saver!
If you can't find instant yeast, just use the regular kind and prepare the dough as instructed -
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheight.
Once done kneading or maybe proofing the dough, roll it out and transfer onto a baking sheet. Drizzle some olive oil and let's start layering the toppings. Below are the ingredients I used starting from the bottom:
Spaghetti sauce
Half of the shredded mozzarella
Turkey breast slices
Pineapple
Parmesan
The other half of the shredded mozzarella
Remember to leave about one inch space around the outside edge of the dough. Into the oven for 12 to 15 minutes, or till the top of the cheese turn slightly golden brown.
Serve with Tabasco or red pepper flakes.
The cheese helps binding all the ingredients together and Everything just turned into a mouthful of oozing goodness.
Maybe dessert pizza next time?
When we talk about spaghetti sauce, the immediate responses are usually tomatoey marinara and creamy alfredo. For more advanced eaters, the answers are broadened a wee bit into nutty pesto and spicy arrabiata. I found that most of the commonly known sauce are the very hearty ones and sometimes that can translate into a plate of heavy tasting meal.
With a big ambition in mind, I wanna tell these people that there are numerous light and flavorful pasta dishes out there that have long been underestimated by the public. A delicious Italian meal doesn't have to be overload with cheese nor packed with meat balls and sausages every bite. This is how I do it -
Ingredients (for 2 to 3 portion)?
30 shrimps (peeled and deveined)
1 zucchini
1 ripe tomato
1 lemon
4 to 5 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon of Italian seasoning
1 teaspoon of sea salt
1 teaspoon of freshly ground black pepper
2 to 3 tablespoons of olive oil
1/3 cup of dry white wine
Some red pepper flakes
Some linguine
Water
How?
Let's start with some prep work first,
Peel and mince the garlic,
Peel the zucchini and cut into small cubes,
Also dice the tomato into small cubes, save the juice for the pasta sauce,
Peel and devein the shrimps -
Bring a big pot of water into a boil then add a few pinches of sea salt to flavor the water,
Cook the linguine till almost al dente in texture, drain well and set aside,
We'll finish cooking it once mix together with the sauce.
Drizzle some olive oil in a big pan, turn to medium high heat,
Toss in chopped garlic, some red pepper flakes if desired, sea salt, and freshly ground black pepper,
Cook for a short moment, before the garlic gets burned, add in the shrimps and Italian seasoning.
Give it a quick stir and sear the shrimps for about one minute, pour in some dry white wine.
Add the zucchini and tomato, season with more salt and pepper.
Usually I would cook the shrimps after the vegetables to prevent tough chewy texture from happening, but I find the shrimps to be more aromatic if I cook them first. On top of that, if the shrimps are very fresh, the texture usually remains even after simmering in heat for a while.
Bring the whole mixture to a boil then simmer for couple minutes,
Add the spaghetti along with the juice of 1 lemon,
Remember to zest the lemon first and save it for later use.
Cook the whole mixture in medium heat till the pasta reaches desired doneness,
Taste it and see if more salt is needed,
Transfer onto a plate, sprinkle some black pepper and lemon zest before serving -
Buon appetito!
Cindy's Rating: 8
