Greek Lemon Chicken Pizza

Friday night! The end of the work week and two days of peace and quiet with no phone ringing and clients needing help and payments not processing and claims and applications and enrollments and....... 

So I'm sitting here working out some recipe ideas......tossing things around in my brain..... thinking about the upcoming recipe contest Sinful Food is holding, and wishing I could enter. I think I have a winner here.....

Everyone loves pizza, right? I do, but I do get tired of the same red sauce and cheese, pepperoni and mushrooms pizza we always seem to go with. Instead of using red pizza sauce I've gone with a brushing of olive oil- Sinful Food garlic olive oil to be exact. Then instead of fatty sausage or pepperoni, boring mushrooms and peppers, I went to the Greek Isles with Greek-marinated chicken, Kalamata olives, preserved lemons (a Mediterranean mainstay) and feta. You don't want a thick bready crust for this pizza- think thin and cracker-like crust. You can use homemade or store bought pizza dough or mix, or even pre-made crusts. I've also included a recipe for easy pizza dough if you want to make it homemade. It's a breeze with a stand mixer- mix the dough with a dough hook instead of kneading it.

If you haven't tried the Sinful Food oils yet, you absolutely MUST!! Get yours by clicking HERE.

Greek Marinated Chicken

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1/3 cup Sinful Food olive oil, garlic or Italian herb
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1 teaspoon finely minced preserved lemon
6 cloves garlic, minced
1 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
2-3 sprigs fresh thyme, chopped
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
salt and pepper

In a medium bowl whisk together the oil, vinegar, juice, preserved lemon and herbs. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove about 1/4 cup of the marinade and refrigerate for later.

Place the chicken breasts in a large zip top bag. Add the marinade, seal the bag and pop in the fridge for a minimum of four hours. Overnight is best.

To cook, remove the chicken and discard the marinade. Pat the chicken dry. You can either cut the chicken into cubes before you cook it or after. Heat a skillet, grill pan, or grill until hot. Add a couple teaspoons of oil to the skillet or grill pan. Add the chicken and cook, turning once, until cooked through. Set aside until cool enough to handle. When chicken has cooled, cut into bite sized cubes and place in a clean zip top bag. Drizzle about half the reserved marinade over. Seal bag, and refrigerate until ready to use. Save the last of the marinade too.

You can make the chicken a day or two ahead of time or double the recipe and serve chicken with grilled veggies for dinner one night and reserve a couple boneless skinless breasts for pizza night. This Greek chicken is delicious in sandwiches and salads too.

Greek Lemon Chicken Pizza

pizza dough
Greek lemon chicken
1/2 cup halved pitted Kalamata olives
1 small onion
2-3 cloves garlic, minced
2 teaspoons finely minced preserved lemon
8 ounces shredded mozzarella
1/4 cup feta cheese
chopped fresh parsley
Sinful Food garlic olive oil

Cut the onion in half lengthwise, then slice crosswise. Cook in a small skillet until just beginning to brown. Add garlic, cook for one minute. Set aside.

I mixed the cooked chicken, the onion, garlic and lemon
together before topping the pizza.

Stretch the pizza dough to form a thin crust. You want a cracker-like crust, not a heavy doughy crust. Place dough on baking sheet and prick all over with a fork. 

Brush a couple tablespoons of Sinful Food garlic olive oil over the crust. Scatter chicken cubes, olives, onion mixture and minced preserved lemon. 

Sadly I forgot to save some kalamata olives for this recipe.
I had to use sliced ripe olives in their place. 

Top with shredded cheese and feta cheese. You may not need all of the mozzarella. Drizzle with additional olive oil. Bake in 450 degree oven for 10-15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and cooked through. Sprinkle with chopped fresh parsley and serve.

Remember that reserved marinade? I like to make a small salad of arugula and Italian parsley leaves dressed lightly with the marinade and piled on the baked pizza. So fresh and delicious. As promised, here is that pizza dough recipe: 

Homemade pizza crust recipe

1 packet yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
3-4 cups all purpose flour
Sinful Food Italian herb olive oil

Dissolve the yeast and sugar in the warm water. Allow to rest about 5 minutes. Pour over 3 cups of flour in a large bowl. Add 2 tablespoons olive oil. Mix the dough together gently, adding more flour as needed until you have a smooth dough. Knead for about 3-4 minutes, or use a stand mixer. Form into a ball. Wipe out the bowl, pour a couple tablespoons oil in the bowl and brush it around. Place the dough ball in the bowl and turn over to coat with oil. Cover with a towel and place in a warm spot for an hour or so, until dough doubles in size. Punch down, and you're ready to make pizza.

Disclosure of Material Connection: This is a "sponsored post." As a Brand Ambassador, the company who sponsored it compensated me via a cash payment, gift or something of value. Regardless,  I only recommend products or services I believe are of good quality and safe. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Foodie Field Trip- Loveland, Colorado

Springtime in Colorado is wonderful. You might have warm sunny days, chilly nights, dry conditions and wildfires, or snow up to your elbows. The Chef and I recently made the trek over the vast nothingness of Nebraska to Colorado to visit family and since we were there, why not make it a Foodie Field Trip at the same time? Sounds good to us! Since the reason for our trip truly was to be with family, we had to squeak a little time out for ourselves here and there, and while we didn't hit as many restaurants and food stores as we had hoped, we still found some great spots!

Our first night in Loveland we were BEAT!! Our hotel had an indoor heated pool AND a hot tub so guess where we rested our road-weary bones? You got it- hot tub time. By the time we were unwound and ready for a late dinner we just couldn't face another minute in the car, so we began to hunt down delivery options. Chain pizza places were an option but we decided to find something local. 

We hit the jackpot with Silver Mine Subs. The sandwich spot featured a large menu of cold and hot sandwiches and great sides. The Chef immediately spotted his sandwich choice- The Mother Lode, which is a monstrously huge sub heaped with roast beef, ham, turkey, salami, Provolone, lettuce, tomato, onion, oregano and dressing. I chose the Homestake, a warm sub on a soft Italian loaf with thinly sliced Angus steak cooked perfectly, pepper jack cheese, grilled peppers and onions. So so so good. Potato salad and giant crunchy dill pickles completed our dinner.

The next day was spent entirely with family, but we were still able to experience some local flavor. After a long discussion earlier in the day about where the best pizza is in Loveland- we were leaning towards Beaujo's and heard lots about other local spots. The Chef and I almost headed out to check out Beaujo's but instead the family got together and had a pizza party with pizza from Arte. This local pizza spot is owned and operated by a Naples native and makes delicious thin and crispy pizzas with a huge assortment of toppings. Dough made fresh daily in house sets this pizza apart from all the chain places and the toppings are fresh and generously piled on the pies. I think we had one of everything!

Saturday morning we were up and at 'em early! We did some driving around town, scouted out a Starbucks, drove through the FABULOUS Promenade Shops at Centerra. Wow oh wow. I kept ooohing and ahhhing and thinking "oh man, my daughters would LOOOOVE this place." It was huge and wasn't an enclosed shopping mall. The open-air stores look like a village, with lots of store-front parking and great shops. Across the interstate we found a very nice outlet mall with even more fun things- the Chef perked up when he saw the Bose outlet and of course I was dying to go in the kitchen outlet. Rather than spend the beautiful day inside the stores, we decided to head for the mountains and check out Estes Park.

Estes Park is such an adorable town. Nestled in the Rocky Mountains there is something for everyone in this town. The main drag is lined with shops and businesses. Souvenirs, clothing, household items, jewelry, wine shops, gourmet food shops, candy stores- just literally anything you can think of. We grabbed a parking spot outside of Distinctively Colorado Food and Gifts and wandered in to make them take my money. Guys.....this is exactly the kind of shop I love and wish I owned. Local husband and wife, live in town, quaint shop filled with products made in Colorado- this is why it's so important to support local businesses. Mrs. was manning the store while we were there, Mr. off doing something else, and she was a great hostess. We browsed the many food products made locally- honey from different types of flowers, Gourmet pastas and gluten free gourmet pastas line an entire shelf, with several varieties to choose from.

Row after row of small hand-mixed spice blends and mixes made it hard for me to choose what I wanted to take home to try. Another large shelf was filled with hot sauces, salsa, pasta sauces, a variety of pickles and pickled vegetables. Almost as if they knew they'd snag my heart, the shop owners tuck a variety of kitchen linens and accessories in and around the food products. Hmmmmm, elk jerky or kitchen towel........ well you know which one I'd chose!

If you were interested in checking out local beers, craft sodas, or wines, the shop has got you covered there as well. Chilled and ready to take home, or off to the hotel, they had a pretty decent selection. Because I wasn't sure how many more stores we'd hit and didn't want a heavy bag to lug along, I limited my selections to two items, Yampa Valley Sauce Company's Purple Blaze hot sauce, and Bee Squared honey.

The hot sauce is literally purple- but not in a gross food coloring way, in a blueberry and habanero sort of way. Yes, blueberries and habanero peppers- the stuff of nightmares! We still are kind of pepperhead types and still seek out interesting hot sauces and peppers and spice mixes when we're out and about. But fruit and heat, you ask? Sure! Sweet and hot is a very popular combination of flavors, touching many different cuisines, even everyday American- in pepper jelly. So Purple Blaze claims, on the label, to be a "mind-blowing infusion of blueberry and habanero." This stuff is fantastic! Real blueberries, not flavors, bring their deep purple color and sweet flavor to this vinegar-based sauce that kicks your butt with habanero. Goooooood stuff. Reminds me of Caribbean foods. Good thing they have a website! I might have to order more!

There's no heat in my other goodie but still plenty of good stuff. Bee Squared is a small scale apiary that produces award winning local honeys, in a chemical-free environment. Bee-keeping, sustainability and preservation of bee populations is critical, not just to honey production but also to maintaining a food source for humans. The jars are packed so attractively they would make a fabulous addition to a gift basket, and each one has a hangtag with the basic story of honey- very unique and important! Many people don't know that honey never expires, and never spoils. The tag tells you all about it, and what to do when your honey hardens. Plus, if you ever wondered exactly what honey is....... they got you covered too- all on that cute little tag. Bee Squared also has a website with products, info and more.

Walking out in that mountain air made us hungry. There are some really awesome restaurants in Estes Park. Even though it really isn't tourist season, the restaurants around town were bustling. Since exploring the hot sauces, we decided on Mexican for lunch and stopped at Pepper's Mexican Grill. Pepper's is a quick-serve setup where you order at the counter, and your food is made fresh right in front of you. The Chef chose a giant burrito with shredded beef and all kinds of delicious fresh veggies and salsas in there. It was HUGE! I ordered the beef and cheese enchiladas and was blown away by the huge portion. It starts with three cheese enchiladas covered in a heaping pile of carne asada, and fresh lettuce, tomato, beans, rice. Enough for two people easily. I also tried the pineapple mango salsa and it was so bright and delicious and had a decent jalapeno kick.

After returning to Loveland we toodled around town a bit more, checking out all the sights, scenes and wishing we had more time to spend here. We did compile  a fairly lengthy list of things we want to do next time, places to eat, things to see, stores to visit. We can't wait to come back!

Friday Flatbreads

Friday. The work week is over. The wine is chilling. My chef is at work, meaning I am left to fend for myself this evening. After a long day in the office I often don't feel like cooking a big huge meal when I get home, and living in a rural area limits my options for a quick meal. That's where Flatout Flatbreads come in. 

Usually when we make pizza at the Little Lake House we break out the Kitchenaid and make dough the old fashioned way. Tonight, however, I'm cooking just for me, and cheating just a little bit by using the flatbreads. 

Because I like to shake things up a bit, I won't be using the usual pizza toppings. The bottle of white Merlot chilling in the fridge calls for something a little lighter that won't weigh down the thin and crispy flatbread crust. I want something that will compliment the wine, taste fantastic, but be easy to pull off. Few things in life taste better than perfectly caramelized onions. I prefer Vidalia or red onions for caramelizing. They have a higher sugar content and become so sweet and tender they are irresistible. 

To get things started, I am going to caramelize a large red onion that's been cut into slivers. Cutting the onion was fun itself- I broke out the brand new ceramic chef's knife and I must say, I am sold! It cut the onion effortlessly and nothing stuck to the blade. Cooked slowly in a heavy skillet with a pinch of salt and a little bit of butter until golden brown, I'll add a couple cloves of minced garlic for the last 5 to 10 minutes. I don't want to overcook the garlic- it gets very bitter. Spoon the onions into a bowl and set aside.

Melt another tablespoon or so of butter in the same skillet and add a handful or two of sliced mushrooms (depending on how many pizzas you plan on making) and saute them until golden brown. Mushrooms are a great accompaniment to the caramelized onions. They soak up a little of the buttery sweet drippings in the pan and if left to become golden brown before turning, they take on a whole new savory dimension. Once the mushrooms are cooked, set aside to cool.

We love all kinds of sausage and charcuterie around here, with sopressata and salami being the big favorites. Artisan sausages are easy to find and in any price range but I find cotto salami or Genoa salami to be the best choice for this pizza. I always ask the deli clerk to slice it as thin as possible. Cut several slices of salami into strips, again, using the amount you need for the number of pizzas you are making. It's super easy- roll the slices up like a cigar and slice using that awesome knife, separate the slivers with your fingers.

Lay a flatbread on a pizza stone or baking sheet. Brush evenly with olive oil. This is also a great way to use infused oils or others such as pumpkin seed oil. You can get a huge variety of flavors just by switching up the oil. I used the leftover butter from the sauteed mushrooms with a touch of oil added to be sure I had enough. Over the oil, scatter shredded mozzarella cheese, using a little lighter hand than if you were making traditional red-sauced pizza. Sprinkle the caramelized onions, mushrooms and slivered salami over. Give each pizza a couple grinds of fresh ground black pepper and a little drizzle of olive oil on top. Pop in a 425-450 degree oven and bake about 10 minutes until bubbling and brown and crispy on the edges. Keep an eye on them- remember, you aren't baking raw dough here so they finish a LOT faster!

Remove from oven and let rest a couple minutes. Top with chopped fresh herbs or fresh baby greens if you like. Cut each flatbread into pieces and enjoy with that chilled bottle of wine!

Now, wasn't that easy? There is almost no excuse for greasy deep fried drive thru food when you can get dinner together with only a handful of ingredients and in the oven in minutes. Can't find Flatout Flatbreads? I can't always get them either, so I often substitute large flour tortillas. Sometimes I use traditional tomato sauce and all the regular pizza toppings. Remember- use what you have on hand, and use what you like to make it yours. 

Disclosure of Material Connection: I have not received any compensation for writing this post. I have no material connection to the brands, products, or services that I mentioned. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 55: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Pizza with a side of Melt Your Face Off

Another Sunday. Another Chef's Day Off. Another day filled with football. Football food...what to make.....what sounds good.......what do we have.......

At our house it's the same routine every week. What do we eat, what's in the cupboard, we didn't thaw anything. Since it's football season, there are some obvious choices- wings, nachos, chili. We aren't the obvious, average sort of cooks tho, so we like to shake things up a bit.

Recently the incredible folks over at FireFood sent us a little "care package" of goodies to sample and then let them know what we think. Well that box was filled with incredible choices, everything from fiery hot panko with onion and habanero to chipotle apple butter (THAT one has me really thinking about some innovative ideas......). If you've followed this blog for more than a few months you KNOW we are pizza people. Homemade pizza is like an art form here, with the Chef as Picasso, painting his doughy canvas with sauce and vegetables and meat and cheese and then kissing his fingers and declaring Bellissimo !!!   Ok, well, maybe that might be overdoing it a little but you get it- we take pizza making seriously here.

In the box is this little, unassuming, innocent looking jar of something deep red. I pick it up and unwrap the bubble wrap and discover- HOLY HELLFIRE !!!!  Diablo Habanero Pizza Sauce !!! We looooove our hot and spicy food around here !! So it's settled. Sunday. Football. Melt your face off pizza.

We started, as always with my homemade pizza dough. There is no recipe here folks, just experience. I've been baking for 30-plus years and breadmaking for just as long. I dump some flour in the bowl, eyeball some sugar, pinch of salt, dribble or so of olive oil, palmful (guesstimate) of yeast (we buy it in bulk jars, so there is no "use one packet" or anything like that) and enough warm water til I think the dough is "right".  Set that aside to proof for a little bit and we finish watching the Vikings SKIN the Lions !!! SKOL !!!!!

Once the dough is made, my pizza duties are largely over with. The Chef takes over and does his thing. So he tastes the Diablo Habanero Pizza sauce first with a spoon- as do I, we need to learn to fear/respect the habanero......and decide how "saucy" we want this to be. Pretty saucy- we like it HOT.

Next goes cheese, some pepperoni, chopped fresh onion, mushrooms, and sliced banana peppers (as if we aren't already in enough trouble) and a few chunks of fresh tomato scattered about. A little more cheese on top, and into the oven she goes.

Now, how to describe this sauce...... well, to start I'll compare. Several local pizza joints have their "spicy" sauce which pretty much is pizza sauce with just a bunch of extra red pepper thrown in there. All you get is heat. The Diablo sauce is so much more than that. You can tell Elaine and Rob at FireFood care about their product and that people enjoy it. This sauce is heavenly. It's the slightest hint of heat, the sweet mouthful of tomato richly simmered down and THEN the little blast furnace of habanero in your mouth. Believe me, if you love HOT foods, you must try this stuff. If you are wimpy and don't do hot, don't even think about it- you have to be a habanero lover or love spicy hot foods to appreciate it. It's not just about the heat- you can taste so many flavors in this sauce, the heat is just an extra bonus on top of the delicious. And the heat doesn't stick around for ever- you get this nice POW of pepper and then it nicely mellows out.  It's a must have again and again for us !!

You can find these wonderful products online at www.FireFood.com or search for FireFood on Facebook. I HIGHLY recommend it. And I still have 3 more jars and a pack of those spicy panko breadcrumbs to play with !!!

He said, she said

When it comes to pizza EVERYONE has an opinion, and a favorite. Nowhere on earth is this more true than at our little lake house, where HE says thick crust and loaded with toppings, and SHE says super thick crunchy crust and minimal toppings. Tonight we decided to go with a dual pizza dinner and here are the luscious results !!

First, we will go with He Says. The Chef makes alot of pizza around here (and sorry, if I overload you with pizza pics but....it's what we do !!) and today he was at it again. After making the dough and letting it rise once, I divided the dough and we set off on our own projects.

The Chef's pizza was his traditional recipe red sauce with a splash of white wine added and simmered til thick. The used the round pizza stone and kept his dough a little on the thicker side, not as thick as the deep dish from last week, but more like a "hand tossed" style. Sauce, cheese, mushrooms and loads of fresh veggies from the garden topped it off.

A quick spin thru a very hot oven and the Chef's pizza was done.

Look at all that cheese !!!!! And just think, all the veggies were added on top of the cheese- they melt and meld and become part of the cheesy awesomeness.

And now.......She says.......I prefer a completely different style of pizza, and I don't get to make it very often. So today I decided to go with a super thin and crispy crust, NO red sauce, just a drizzle of olive oil, sliced tomatoes from the garden and sliced fresh mozzarella.

I sprinkled the top with a chiffonade of fresh basil from the garden BEFORE baking because I like it when the oil and the basil get together and the basil turns into this spicy, licorice-y, crispy topping. If you like yours fresh and green, add it after baking.

You'll notice I didn't go with the pizza stone because #1 the Chef wanted it for his pizza and #2 I think the metal sheet pans I have give a nice crispy finish to the crust. And I sometimes like the weird shape of a non-round pizza.

The tomatoes practically melted into the crust, so sweet and yummy, the cheese was milky and smooth and slightly browned in places, the basil crisped just like I like it........yum.......

So there you have it...... our version of  he says, she says. What a delicious argument !!!

Pizzeria del Riccio

Everyone who knows us KNOWS that pizza night is a big deal at our house. The Chef is hands down one of the best pizza creators I've ever met. He pooh-poohs the chain pizza places and delivery joints in favor of homemade crust and his brilliantly crafted red sauce and toppings. He scours the garden looking for peppers, tomatoes, herbs, anything to add to his pizza creation.

Where we live there are some pretty interesting pizza places. Big Tomato Pizza had dominated the late-night pizza scene for years and boasted some of the most off the wall toppings around (corn ? sliced hot dogs ? no thank you....). A handful of family-owned Italian eateries also put together some pretty good pies. And of course, Fong's Pizza has certainly changed Des Moines' pizza scene with their asian-inspired toppings and crazy cocktails.

But when it comes to pizza, the Chef around here likes to go big. Usually he breaks out the pizza stone and throws on piles and piles of toppings, like an avalanche of vegetables and cheese. This time however, he wanted to go a little different direction with pizza, so he thought back on his visit to Gino's East in Chicago and that's where he went- Chicago style deep dish pizza.

Usually made in well-seasoned cast iron pans he had to wing it with the biggest springform pan in the house.

Since I'm the official dough-maker in the house, it was my turn to whip up a batch of pizza dough and hand it over to The Master.

Traditionally, this kind of pizza is made with the cheese on the bottom, so he generously loaded the crust with shredded mozzarella.

The sauce comes next, and after simmering away on the stove for a while, it's thick and red and spicy and.....well......delicious !!

See those big chunks of herbs in the sauce ? Those were picked fresh right from the garden !! You can't get any fresher than that ! After the sauce comes the toppings. The Chef never skimps on toppings, this time choosing pepperoni, mushrooms, fresh tomatoes (yellow tomatoes from the garden), green bell peppers, onions, olives and mushrooms.

Finished with a generous sprinkle of parmesan, this baby went in the oven for about 45 minutes and emerged a hot, gooey, cheesy pan of amazingness. Usually we have plenty of leftovers for snacking- that was not the case with this one. We didn't even get a picture of the finished pizza !!!! Next time, and believe me, there WILL BE a next time, we won't attack it like turkey vultures !!!