Turkish-Inspired Pizza

You’ll remember how much of a fan I am of pesto - well earlier this week, I found myself with a small amount of left over pine nuts in the cupboard. I’m massively against foodwaste and so I thought I would use it as an opportunity to create a new pizza topping! I had vague recollections of a take on a Turkish salad recipe I had seen online which got me thinking… and below is the fruits of my labour.

To make the bases for this pizza, please click here.

Ingredients:

6 tbsp tomato purée

1 red onion

2 handfuls pine nuts

100g feta cheese

Sprinkling of ground cinnamon

Drizzling of honey

Method:

1.      When the bases have finished proving, turn the oven up to 210°C.

2.      Chop up your red onion before briefly frying in a saucepan.

3.      Spread your tomato purée, followed by your onion, over your bases.

4.      Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.

5.      Add the pine nuts, followed by crumbled feta cheese.

6.      To finish, add a generous helping of cinnamon and honey.

7.      Serve immediately and buon appetito! 

I'm bacon you a pizza...

This weekend I stumbled across a can of tinned prunes in our cupboard. I'm not sure how long they'd been there (don't worry though - they were still in date!) and no one seemed to have plans to use them any time soon so I decided they would make a great addition to an experimental pizza topping recipe! Their sweetness with salty bacon and creamy mozzarella turned out to be a winning combination - I hope you agree!

To make the base for this recipe, please click here.

Ingredients:
6 tbsp tomato purée
4 rashers of bacon
125g mini mozzarella pearls
1x 420g can prunes in syrup

Method:

1. While your bases are proving , grill the rashers of bacon until cooked to your taste - in my opinion, the crispier the better! 
2. When the bases have finished in the oven, remove them and turn the heat up to 210°C.
3. Spread the tomato purée over the bases.
4. Now that your bacon has had a chance to cool slightly, cut into strips and dot these over the pizzas, followed by the mozzarella.
5. Cook in the oven for 10 minutes.
6. When they are done, remember to chop your prunes and add these on top before serving.

Naughty but Nice…

I am a strong believer in the term ‘pudding stomach’ because it’s true, no matter how full you are, you always have room for dessert! And looking online, it seems the craze of sweet pizzas has really taken off – so I’ve jumped on the bandwagon somewhat and given you three of my favourite concoctions to make sure your Saturday Pizza Night is that little bit sweeter as well.

How to make a sweet pizza dough:

The ingredients listed here are enough to make three pizza bases – and it just so happens I have three ‘Naughty but Nice’ toppings which are a must-try! You won’t have to eat them all in one go though, these bases freeze very well.

Ingredients:

170g softened butter

340g brown sugar

1 egg

1 tsp vanilla extract

340g plain flour

½ tsp baking powder

¼ tsp bicarbonate of soda

340g oats

Splash of milk if necessary

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180°C. In a large mixing bowl, stir together the butter and brown sugar, then mix in the egg and vanilla. Next, add the flour, baking powder, bicarbonate of soda and oats. Stir until well combined and slacken with a splash of milk if necessary. Divide the dough into three, and line separate baking trays with greaseproof paper. Press the dough into even circles and bake in the oven for 18 minutes or until a deep golden brown colour.

Chocolate Heaven

For this topping, start off by making the chocolate ganache. To do this, you will need to chop 100g good quality dark chocolate into small pieces and tip into a bowl. Pour 140ml of double cream into a pan, add 1 tbsp golden caster sugar, and heat until it is about to boil. Take off the heat and pour it over the chocolate. Stir until the chocolate has melted and the mixture is smooth. Pour this onto the base after it has cooled slightly and then add two handfuls of crushed, toasted hazelnuts along with 4 handfuls of blueberries. To finish it off, melt some white chocolate and drizzle it over the pizza to make an indulgent and decadent pudding!

Go nuts for bananas (or bananas for nuts) – whichever you prefer!

If you'd prefer to try this option, start off by making some cashew nut butter. To make this, simply combine 200g toasted cashew nuts with 5 tsp olive oil in a food processor and blitz until you have a butter with a slight crunch. Pour over the base and then add 2 handfuls flaked almonds along with 40g of dried banana chips - et voilà! 

Pizza for breakfast anyone?!

Now my final sweet pizza recipe requires a little more preparation - but it's definitely worth the effort :) alternatively, you can always nip down the local supermarket for a sneeky shortcut! 

Firstly, make the granola - for this, you will need:

500g oats

170g of a mix of nuts of your choosing

200g of a mix of dried fruit of your choosing

80g of a mix of seeds of your choosing

120ml agave syrup

120ml sunflower oil

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 tsp ground cinnamon

To make your homemade granola, preheat the oven to 170°C. Mix the oats, cinnamon, seeds and nuts in a bowl. Separately, combine the syrup, oil and vanilla together and then add to the oat mixture making sure to stir it well. Spread evenly in a baking tray for 30 minutes, stirring after every 10 minutes. Remove and allow to cool before adding in your choice of dried fruits.

While this is in the oven, the chia jam can be prepared:

1 tbsp chia seeds

1 tbsp coconut water

200g strawberries (plus an extra one for a snazzy garnish!)

1 tbsp maple syrup

To make the jam, place the chia seeds and coconut water into a tall container and set aside to soak for 10 minutes until expanded. Add the strawberries and maple syrup. Using a stick blender, whizz until well combined and store in the fridge until ready to use.

Now all the hard work has been done, it's time to assemble! Start by spreading over 250g of Greek yoghurt. Then drizzle over some of your delicious chia jam and a couple of handfuls of your granola. Cut a strawberry in half for garnish like they do in only the finest of restaurants ;)

And the best bit about this recipe...? You have lots of chia jam and granola left over for brekkie for the rest of the week - even after all your pizza has gone!

Waste Not, Want Not!

In our house, as is the case in many homes across the UK, Sunday can only mean one thing – a good old fashioned roast dinner! A long-standing tradition, us Brits love this dish so much that the French still refer to us as ‘les rosbifs’ (literally meaning the ‘roast beefs’). And what is the only condiment to serve alongside such a classic? – horseradish sauce of course! But with such a powerful flavour, it can take a while to get through the jar and so it just starts to hang around in the fridge for months on end… Fear not though as it seems if we just use a little imagination, we can add it to a number of dishes to add that extra zing – including pizzas it would seem!

To make the base for this pizza, please click here.

Ingredients:

6 tbsp tomato purée

1 red onion

170g minced beef

100g cheddar, grated

100g soured cream

1 tbsp horseradish sauce

Method:

1. While the bases are proving in the oven, slice the red onion and fry with the beef until tender.
2. When the bases have finished proving and you’ve taken them out, turn the oven to 210°C.
3. Spread over the tomato purée, followed by the onion and beef.
4. Grate the cheese on top and cook in the oven for 10 minutes.
5. Whilst your pizzas are cooking, we can make the sauce. Simply combine the soured cream and horseradish and drizzle over the pizzas when they have come out the oven.
6. Serve immediately and buon appetito!