Margherita Pizza

If I was stranded on a deserted island and could only only have one food, I think it would have to be pizza. It has taken me 30 minutes to place these words down because I was mentally struggling between pizza and mac n' cheese. Pizza won for the purposes of this blog but it was close.

I love pizza of all shapes, sizes, crusts and toppings, but most of the time I make a traditional Margherita pizza with crushed seasoned San Marziano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and fresh basil. These flavours to me are the perfect marriage of tastes.  To make this perfect pizza you need to follow these three basic rules:

1. Homemade crust (I made a whole wheat crust);
2. San Marziano tomatoes; and
3. Fresh mozzarella cheese.

Less is more, in this case, and I will never get tired of this tasty pie.

 Whole Wheat Crust

1 package of active dry yeast
1 1/2 cups of warm water 107- 115degrees for best results
1 tbsp agave nectar syrup
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
3 1/4 cups of whole wheat flour
1 tsp each sea salt and pepper


1. In a bowl, mix together, yeast, water and agave syrup.
2. Place the flour, salt and pepper in the mixer bowl and, using a flat beater, mix until blended. Add in the yeast mixture and mix on low speed until a dough forms.
3. Change the flat beater and attach a dough hook and knead the mixture until the dough is smooth. About 3 minutes.
4. Remove the dough from the mixer bowl, wrap in plastic and let rest for 15 minutes.
5. Remove the plastic and cut the dough in half. Roll out one half of the dough onto your pizza pan or stone. Wrap the second half and freeze for another use.
6. Spread olive oil over the top of the pizza crust and let rise in a warm place covered with a tea towel or use your oven proofer, if you have one.  Using my oven proofer, the crust took 30 minutes to rise.
7. Once dough is ready preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
8. While oven is preheating top your pizza any way you like. To make a Margherita pizza like mine top the dough with crushed San Marziano tomatoes and season with oregano, salt and pepper.  
9. Place pizza on bottom rack for 10 minutes until the bottom of the pizza is golden and crispy. If you are using this crust recipe to make another type of pizza you can add your sauce and all your other toppings at once.
10. Move pizza to the rack above the middle rack and cook the pizza for an additional 10 minutes until the top of the pizza is crispy.  If you are making a Margherita pizza this is when you would add the fresh cheese and basil before completing the cooking process. Once the top of the pizza is crispy and the cheese is bubbling you know it is almost time to eat!
11. Serve with a side of crushed chillies and additional basil if you wish or just slice and bite.

Note: For extra delicious Margherita pizza top the centre of the pizza with an egg yolk during the last two minutes of the cooking time.

Pan Seared Scallops with Red Curry Sauce

I wanted to make a special meal for Sunday dinner that was bursting with color and big flavor.  The first ingredient that popped into my mind was scallops and the second was curry. Although I consider myself to be a very good home cook for some reason I have never seared my own scallops. Looking back, scallops are the one item I always find myself ordering when dining out but never an ingredient that I have cooked as the main event in my own home. I decided to challenge myself to making the perfect seared scallops, keeping in mind that I did not want to overcook them or under sear them. I also wanted to create a creamy coconut curry sauce to mop the scallops in to and create the perfect balance of texture and flavor. After gathering my mise en place I was ready to let the creative juices flow. This is the recipe that I came up with.

Seasoned Brown Rice

1/2 cup Lundberg Old World Pilaf with beans

1 1/2 low sodium chicken stock

1 tablespoon unsalted butter

1/2 cup freshly chopped cilantro

salt and pepper to taste

Curry Sauce

1 can of coconut milk (160 ml)

1 tablespoon freshly grated ginger

1 tablespoon avocado oil

1 tablespoon red curry paste

1 teaspoon turmeric

1/4 cup low sodium chicken stock

salt and white pepper to taste

Scallops 

15 medium sized scallops 

salt and pepper

1 tablespoon unsalted butter and 1 tablespoon avocado oil

Sprigs of cilantro for garnish

1. In a small pot place all your rice ingredients and cover. Cook on medium heat for 45 minutes or until rice and beans are soft but still al dente.

2. Pat all the scallops dry and season with salt and pepper. Set aside.

3. On medium high heat, sauté the ginger in the avocado oil until fragrant approximately 2 minutes. Add coconut milk, turmeric, chicken stock, and salt and pepper.  Reduce the sauce by half and strain through a sieve and place back into a clean sauce pan off the heat until needed. 

4. Heat a frying pan on medium high heat, once hot add oil and butter. 

5. Pan sear the scallops making sure not to overload the frying pan 2 minutes per side. 

6. Reheat curry sauce and serve  under the rice and scallops.

7. Enjoy!

I was so pleased that I succeeded in making  restaurant  quality seared scallops  without having to leave the house. I am definitely going to be making scallops again soon.....I am thinking of making them with  a lemon pepper risotto and crispy pancetta.

Have a great Monday!

A