Poutine Pizza

I’m not the most patient of people and struggle to wait for things I’m very excited about! I’ll always remember the night of Christmas Eve and the terrible time I had trying to get to sleep when all I could think about was if Santa was ever going to arrive with my stocking J Thankfully, I’ve got a bit better at waiting as I’ve got older – and I’ve had to be! I have to wait two months after my wedding day for my honeymoon to Vancouver and the Canadian Rockies. So to bide the time, I’ll just make some Canadian-inspired pizza recipes. I won’t be so stereotypical though as to go down the maple syrup route – instead, here’s my take on the Québec classic, Poutine – a dish of chips, cheese and gravy.

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

Ingredients:

180g cream cheese

2 large potatoes

100g cheddar cheese, grated

Generous helping of red onion marmalade

Method:

1. When the bases have finished proving, remove from the oven and turn the heat up to 210°C.
2. Meanwhile, cut the potatoes into thin slices and boil until tender.
3. Spread the cream cheese onto the bases.
4. After draining. add the potato slices to the bases
5. Spread over as much red onion marmalade as you desire, followed by a sprinkling of the cheddar.
6. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
7. Buon appetito!

#WeAreNotAfraid

I like to think my blog posts are fairly upbeat (and hopefully at times, a little bit humourous!) Today though, it's more of a sombre affair. Instead, I'd like to dedicate this red, white and blue pizza to London and the British public who have once again shown their unwavering courage and resilience in the face of adversity...

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

Ingredients:

180g ricotta cheese

2 large handfuls blueberries

1 red onion, finely chopped

Sprinkling of thyme

Method:

1. When the bases have finished proving, remove from the oven and turn the heat up to 210°C.
2. Chop and lightly fry the red onion.
3. Spread the ricotta cheese over the pizza bases.
4. Add the red onion, followed by the blueberries.
5. Sprinkle over the thyme.
6. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
7. Buon appetito!

The luck of the Irish

So it’s mid-March and for many people, that can only mean one thing – St. Patrick’s Day! Personally, I’ve never really understood the furore that seems to erupt around the world during this national day (unless you’re Irish of course). Nevertheless, I do like flags and am somewhat of a vexillologist! Therefore, this year I have decided to buck my trend of years gone by and join in with the festivities by creating a pizza in the image of the Irish flag :)

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

Ingredients:

180g cream cheese

1 carrot, grated

1 small sweet potato

80g brie cheese

50g mozzarella pearls

Generous drizzling of pesto – to make your own, follow the recipe outlined here.

A handful of peas

Method:

1. When the bases have finished proving, remove from the oven and turn the heat up to 210°C.
2. Spread the cream cheese over the entire pizza base.
3. Starting from the left, cover a third with pesto and then top with frozen peas (don’t worry; these will defrost when the pizza is baked in the oven!)
4. For the next third of the pizza, top with the mozzarella pearls and chunks of the brie.
5. Cover the final third of the pizza with grated carrot.
6. Chop up the sweet potato into small chunks and lightly fry in a saucepan. Add these on top of the grated carrot.
7. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
8. Buon appetito! 

Nor-way Jo-sé!

So the wedding preparations are coming along nicely and I've feel like I've got passed the stage of stressful worrying and I'm now able to really look forward to everything that's to come! Last weekend, me and Hubby-to-be had a 3-hour indoor ski lesson in preparation for what I like to call our 'pre-moon'. Turns out, despite my negativity, I'm actually not that bad - a relief considering we're off to Norway at the start of next month to kick-start the wedding countdown! So this pizza is a tribute to Norway and their Scandi cuisine which is somewhat popular in our household :)

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

Ingredients:
6 tbsp tomato pureé
3 tbsp Kalles creamed smoked cod roe spread
3 eggs

Method:

1. When the bases have finished from the oven, remove them from the oven and turn the heat up to 210°C. Now, because for this pizza, I don't particularly want to cook my topping for 10 minutes - I'm going to bake the bases separately. So whent he oven's ready, bake the bases without anything on top.
2. While this is happening, boil the eggs in water for 10 minutes.
3. Remove the bases from the oven and spread the tomato pureé over them, followed by the creamed smoked cod roe spread. Those of you particularly hot on your Scandinavian food brands will recognise that Kalles is actually Swedish... but close enough right? ;)
4. Once the eggs are boiled, cool them in cold water before peeling the off the shell. Now for the fun bit! In your hands, squash the boiled eggs so they almost form crumb-like morsels - a technique I learnt whilst making egg mayonnaise as part of a summer catering job I had during my years at university.
5. Spinkle the egg on top.
6. To serve these warm, pop the pizzas in the microwave for 1 and a half minutes.
7. Buon appetito!

Pancake Day

Buttermilk, scotch, crêpes, blini... or if you’re from Finland: pannukakku. I love Pancake Day and it is a tradition I will vehemently follow every year for the rest of my life (even if I don’t end up sticking to Lent for the following 40 days!) There are so many different types originating from countries flung far and wide across the globe – and I haven’t even started on the potential toppings! Ashamedly I have to admit I haven’t been as inventive with my food combinations for pancakes (perhaps that’s my next venture right there when I’m all pizza-ed out??) and I still love the classics. Lemon and sugar will always remind me of my childhood whilst crêpes and Nutella will always take me back to school trips to France. Here though I pay homage to that good old American favourite – bacon and maple syrup!

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

Ingredients:

8 rashers of bacon

125g mozzarella pearls

180g cream cheese

Drizzling of maple syrup

Method:

1. When the bases have finished proving, take them out of the oven and allow to heat up to a temperature of 210°C.
2. In the meantime, grill the bacon rashers until as crispy as you like (remember though, they are being baked for a further 10 minutes in the oven). Dab off any grease and cut into strips with scissors.
3. Spread the cream cheese over the bases.
4. Add the bacon strips and mozzarella.
5. Bake in the oven for 10 minutes.
6. Before serving, drizzle a generous helping of maple syrup on top.
7. Buon appetito!