Tag Archives: Pizza

Salmon, Asparagus and baby Spinach White Pizza

If you want to take Pizza Night to the next level, than stay with me. With this Smoked Salmon and Asparagus Pizza you going to treat yourself to a gourmet dinner.
On this Pizza I’m skipping the tomato sauce and replacing it with Crème fraîche, giving it a much softer tasting base to enhance the flavor of the fresh green Asparagus and the Smoked Salmon. They’re so wonderful on their own that just some fresh Oregano a soft gooey Buffalo Mozzarella suffice for this outrageously delicious Pizza. The Pizza base is made with half whole grain spelt flour giving it more bite and nuttiness.

Makes: 2 large Pizzas, or 4 small ones

INGREDIENTS DOUGH:

• 1 C. white Spelt flour
• 3/4 C. whole Spelt flour
• 1 tsp. Active dry yeast
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 2 tsp. Olive oil
• 1/2 tsp. Salt
• 3/4 C. lukewarm water

Or you can use one of the Freezer Pizza Bases

INGREDIENTS TOPPING:

• 1/2 C. Crème Fraîche
• 1 small ball Mozzarella
• A large handful thin green Asparagus (fresh or frozen, see note)
• 2 cloves of garlic, peeled and grated
• 2 tbsp. Fresh Oregano leafs
• 1 C. baby spinach
• 4 oz. (Organic) smoked Salmon
• 1 tsp. dry chili flakes

If you prefer a meatier Pizza, why not try Shawarma Roasted Red Pepper Pizza or Whole Spelt Pizza with Chorizo, caramelized Onions and Basil

And for low carb lovers the Broccoli Pizza

METHOD:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment combine all the ingredients for the dough. Knead for a few minutes until it comes together but is still sticky. Add a little more flour if it seems too wet. Using your hands, on a floured surface, form the dough into a ball. Oil a bowl lightly and place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a towel or cling film and place in a warm place to rise for about an hour or until doubled in bulk.
Meanwhile fry the asparagus (fresh or frozen) in a hot pan with a tiny bit of olive oil, season with salt and pepper just to color them a bit, depending on the size cook until just tender making sure to not over-cook. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 230° C / 450° F position the baking tray upside down in the middle of the oven, this will make sliding the pizza in so much easier. Or if you have a pizza stone place it on a rack in the middle of the oven.
Once the pizza dough is ready, lightly flour a counter. Divide the dough in two. Use your hands or a rolling pin to roll the dough out until you have a thin flattened disk. Place the pizza on a piece of parchment paper and then use your hands to gently pull the dough into a free style round-ish shape.

Spread a generous amount of Crème Fraîche over the bottom, the one clove of garlic grated over each pizza (or finely chopped), spread out over the Crème Fraîche. Sprinkle with fresh Oregano and baby spinach.
Then top with Mozzarella, Asparagus and chili flakes.
Transfer the pizza by lifting the parchment paper onto a large cutting board or use a pizza peel if you have one and slide it on to the hot baking tray/pizza stone with the parchment paper still underneath.
Bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is all melted and the crust golden and crispy.
Remove onto a large wooden board and divide the smoked Salmon over the pizzas. Sprinkle with some more Oregano and eat straight away.
Best served with White Wine or ice cold Beer.

Enjoy!

If you make this Salmon, Asparagus and baby Spinach White Pizza be sure to leave a comment! I’d love to hear from you and if you love it, pin it. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! @thecookingspoonblog or hashtag it #thecookingspoonblog

Shawarma Roasted Red Pepper Pizza

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Sweet and Spicy Shawarma Roasted Red Pepper Pizza, because it’s still weekend and Pizzas are the best.
Homemade pizza dough topped with a simple tomato sauce, two types of cheese, grilled peppers, Shawarma, cherry tomatoes and basil.
This pizza is so good. It’s sweet and a tiny bit spicy and will leave you wanting more.
There really isn’t anything better than home-made Pizza. You could also use store-bought Pizza dough if you’re in a hurry or my one of my LINK

Prep time : 15 min
Cooking time : 10-15 min
Makes : 4

INGREDIENTS DOUGH:

• 500 gr./ 3 1/3 C (type 00) flour
• 1 tsp. sugar
• 1 1/2 tsp. active dry yeast
• ¼ tsp garlic powder (optional)
• ¼ tsp onion powder (optional)
• 1 tsp. Salt
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 350 -375 ml / 1.5 – 1 3/4 cups warm water

INGREDIENTS TOPPING:

• 1 C. Tomato sauce/marinara sauce
• 1 C. shredded Mozzarella
• 1 C. shredded Gouda cheese
• 1 onion, peeled and sliced thin
• 2 whole roasted red peppers from a jar, drained and dried on kitchen paper
• 1 C. cooked Shawarma meat SEE RECIPE BELOW
• 1 tsp. dry chili flakes
• A handful cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• Fresh basil

INGREDIENTS TO MAKE THE SHAWARMA:

• ½ lb. minced beef or lamb
• A drizzle of oil
• 1 garlic clove, peeled and crushed or grated
• ½ tsp. Ground coriander
• ½ tsp. ground cumin
• 1 tsp. smoked paprika powder
• 1/2 – 1 tsp. dry chili flakes
• Salt and pepper

METHOD:

In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the hook attachment combine all the dry ingredients and stir to mix, then add the wet. Knead for a few minutes until it comes together. Using your hands, place all the dough on a floured surface, kneading and forming the dough into a ball using some extra flour . Oil a large bowl lightly and place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a towel or cling film and place in a warm place to rise for about 30-45 minutes or until doubled in bulk.
Meanwhile make the Shawarma meat.
Heat a large frying pan and add a drizzle of oil. Once the pan is hot add the meat and garlic and fry for a minute, add the seasoning and continue cooking until the meat is no longer pink. About 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off the heat and set aside to cool.
Preheat the oven to 230° C / 450° F , place a pizza stone in the oven if you have one or otherwise the baking sheet.
Gently punch the dough down and divide into 4 equal pieces. Roll each piece on a lightly floured surface into a 25cm/10” circle (roughly). Place each circle on a piece of parchment paper.
Spread tomato sauce over each pizza base. Divide cheeses, Shawarma meat, onion, peppers and cherry tomatoes over the pizzas.
Transfer the pizza by lifting the parchment paper onto a large board and slide the pizza into the oven.
Bake the pizza for 10-15 minutes or until the cheese is all melted and the crust golden and crispy.
Remove onto a large wooden board. Sprinkle with dried chili flakes and Basil and eat straight away.

Enjoy!

If you make this Shawarma Roasted Red Pepper Pizza be sure to leave a comment! I’d love to hear from you and if you love it, pin it. And of course, if you do make this recipe, don’t forget to tag me on Instagram! @thecookingspoonblog or hashtag it #thecookingspoonblog

Whole Spelt Pizza with Chorizo, caramelized Onions and Basil

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Homemade Pizza is one of my favorite foods to cook at home , especially on my Pizza stone. If you bake a lot of Pizza’s at home it is worth buying a Pizza stone and a Pizza peel, it makes life so much easier. An other great method, which is what I used to do before I had all the Pizza baking equipement was, turning the baking tray in your oven upside down, it works great too, I do recommend placing the Pizza on a piece of baking parchment before popping it into the oven with this method so it doesn’t stick. When using a Pizza stone I find that the best non-stick method is to use semolina or polenta for underneath the Pizza when placing on the stone.

The spelt Pizza dough is really delicious and it has this nutty flavour that we love. The combination of the spicy Chorizo with the sweetness of the caramelized onions is pure heaven.

Makes : 3 large Pizzas or 4 smaller ones.

Ingredients:

400 gr / 2.5 cups whole grain spelt
100 gr / 3/4 cups white spelt
1 tsp instant yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tbsp olive oil
350 -375 ml / 1.5 – 1 3/4 cups warm water

1 onion, peeled and sliced
2 tsp olive oil
2 tsp honey
Salt and pepper

2 cups shredded Mozzarella

1 – 1 1/2 cup Marinara sauce
30-40 slices chorizo approx* SEE NOTE
Fresh basil

Instructions

If you are using a pizza stone, place it in the oven an hour before baking to heat up.

In the bowl of your stand mixer, combine flour, yeast and salt.
Turn on the mixer to slow and add warm water and olive oil. Add a little more water if it seems too dry or add a little more flour if it seems to wet.
Knead for 5 minutes.
Place in an oiled bowl and cover with cling film.
Let rise until double in bulk, punch down and shape into ball again, place back in oiled bowl and cover.
Now place dough in fridge until ready to use.

To make the caramelized onions;
Heat a frying pan and add the olive oil, add the sliced onions and cook for 5 minutes, add the honey and cook until golden brown, about 3 to 5 more minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.

Remove the dough from refrigerator at least one hour before using.
Roll out the dough on a floured surface, I prefer to use semolina since this doesn’t stick to the baking stone.
Spread the Pizza base with marinara sauce, cover with a thin layer of the Mozzarella cheese then caramelized onions, and then add some more cheese and divide the chorizo over the pizza. Lightly dust your pizza peel with semolina , gently lift the side of the Pizza and slide it under in one secure movement, transfer to oven. Alternatively, roll out on parchment paper and transfer to oven tray.
Bake at 230 for 10 to 12 minutes, turning the pizza half way. We like our Pizzas dark and crunchy but that is up to you.

*I always buy a whole Chorizo sausage and slice it myself, but do what works for you and depending on the size, you can use either more or less, these slices were small so we used 9 to ten slices on each Pizza.

Enjoy!

Chocolate Dulce de Leche mini Tarts

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Mini tarts filled with dulce de leche and chocolate Ganache, some caramelized nuts add a bit of crunch making this little dessert fit for a king. So simple to make and yet very big on flavour. There’s just something so cute and fun about having your own little cake or in this case mini tart. Perfect with some coffee or tea in the afternoon or as a dessert.

The pastry crust is a no-brainer and you can find the recipe here. I like to make pastry dough when I have some time to kill and pop it in the freezer so that I can make a pie at a moments notice, you should try it, it’s a game-changer.

Makes 6 small tarts or one medium 20 cm / 8 inch

INGREDIENTS:

1 recipe super simple pastry crust, prepared all the way.
1/2 cup dark or semi sweet chocolate, chopped into pieces or chocolate chips
1/2 cup double cream
1/2 cup dulce de leche (use any leftovers for the most amazing fancy coffee with whipped cream)
1/2 cup nuts of choice (pecans, hazelnuts or walnuts are good…)
2 tablespoons sugar or maple syrup.

INSTRUCTIONS:

Start by making the crunchy nuts.

Heat a small frying pan on the stove to medium, toast the nuts stirring constantly for about 5 minutes util golden and toasted, add the sugar and do not stir any more. You can gently swirl the pan, as soon as the sugar has dissolved and coated the nuts pour them onto a piece of parchment paper and let them cool completely before chopping up.

Heat the double cream in a small sauce pan until small bubbles start to appear, remove from heat immediately. Add the chopped chocolate and let it melt for about 5 minutes, stir to combine.

Dived the dulce de leche over the tart shells, gently top with the chocolate ganache. Place the tarts in the refrigerator to firm up and ready to serve. Just before serving, chop up the nut brittle and sprinkle over the tarts.

Enjoy!

If you make this recipe please be sure to leave a comment and/or give this recipe a rating! I love hearing from you. And please don’t forget to tag me on Instagram so I can see your creations!