Gourmet Pizza with Sun Dried Tomatoes, Spinach, Feta, Artichoke Hearts

Hello, everybody! I've got a fun pizza recipe that takes a lot of odd ingredients you probably don't have in the pantry but it's WORTH the splurge, especially if you can't get to the next town where an actual pizza parlor is! We don't have any bad weather here at all, but as usual, it takes an act of Congress to get us out to a restaurant. So, sometimes it's just easier to recreate that delicious pizza we're craving at home!

 Now, this might be diet pizza. I have no idea. It has thin crust so maybe that counts for something, but if we're looking at fat and calories, this is NOT pizza that will make you skinny. (Of course, I'm not sure there is a pizza that fits that description.)

You'll need:
thin and crisp pizza crust (or make your own)
baby spinach
feta cheese
sun dried tomatoes
artichoke hearts
white pizza sauce (I usually make my own but I saw this one on sale and decided to try it)
mozzarella cheese

 We love this little pizza recipe book. We've used a lot of great ideas from it like...

 Artichoke and Tomato Focaccia. I love focaccia. If I could see in my chest, I think my heart would be made out of focaccia. But the kids don't, so we usually do regular pizza crust.

 This one I tried and loved but again... not a hit with the little people, so there was also a big cheese pizza on the table.

 I never took a photo of this when I made it. I think my thought process was something like, "FOOD! EAT FOOD." But, here's the picture from the recipe book.

 So, for this pizza, prewarm the oven to 425F. Spread on the white pizza sauce. (Note, I wasn't a real fan of this. It seemed too sour for a garlic sauce. I like my white sauces sort of Alfredo-y.)

 Sun dried tomatoes, chopped and drained.

 MMMMM... Artichoke hearts, in brine. I want to eat the bowl of them.

 Layer the spinach on the pizza.

 You don't have to be so geometric but hey, we were all talking and I think we were doing more talking than cooking so the fact I took fifteen minutes to put on spinach leaves didn't seem to matter.

 Layer on a bit of mozzarella. Add the sun dried tomatoes.

 I didn't cut the artichoke hearts because hubby is not a fan. The bigger they are, the easier they are to pick off.

 Drain and crumble the feta. (My life has gone sideways!)

 Bake for approximately 10-12 minutes or until the edges are very crispy.

Ta-dah! With a salad on the side and some fresh veggies, I was a happy camper and I didn't even have to put on nice clothes and drive across the state line!

I hope everyone is having a good weekend and a prayerful Lent!

Fresh Tomato Sauce with Capers

Hello, everybody! I found this cookbook at the library and thought it might have a great way to use up some of our fresh tomatoes.

It's called (sideways) The Southern Italian Table. I looooooove Italian food. GIMME, GIMME.

 The recipe is really simple. Fresh tomatoes, a few teaspoons of fresh basil, 2 tsp of capers, two cloves of garlic.

I sent some kids out into the garden to get tomatoes. (It occur to me that by the time you read this, it will be October. So, imagine it's summer time.)

                                     
Chop the tomatoes, and throw in a pan with the basil. Add two teaspoons of olive oil.

 Here are the capers. Funny how a little jar lasts forever. Because recipes hardly ever need capers...

Mmmm. I love the way they smell. Mix everything together and mash well. Let it boil for about 20 minutes so the water is mostly reduced. Some people add a little salt or brown sugar, but this was a pretty simple sauce. 

                                           
I decided to make some stuffed pasta shells to put the sauce on, so mix two eggs, a carton of ricotta cheese, a cup of parmesan shredded cheese, 2 tsp salt and 2 tsp crushed garlic. Boil the shells, rinse in cold water, stuff, pour on the sauce and bake in the oven.

 Hubby's plate. Man, I wish I could eat like he does and not gain weight. YUMMY.

 I threw in some frozen meatballs because it sounded good.

Have a great weekend and see you all soon!

Squid Ink Spaghetti with Heirloom Tomatoes

Hello, everybody! It's been a crazy week at Casa Munoz and I'm shocked that after all the cooking we've done, I don't have much to show for it. Why do I not take pictures?? We had a delicious grilled tuna a few days ago, then roasted stuffed peppers, then a layered tomato salad. But do I have photos? NO. Well, I have a few.
                                              
I'm in love with our garden right now! SO much deliciousness happening out there. Our peaches are all gone and I only managed to can about six or seven quarts of vanilla peaches (sliced peaches with a bit of vanilla bean). Of course, we've also eaten half of those quarts already but I hid one in the back of the pantry for January when we're all sick to death of store bought food.

These bright little peppers make me so happy! I don't eat them plain, like my husband does, but I like them in pico de gallo and stirred into home made Italian sauce. Gives everything just a little kick.

And here is tonight's dinner, squid ink spaghetti. How cool is that? I think someone already posted about black pasta, though. I can't remember who it was but I remember thinking, "Oooo, new and shiny! The kids might love it!" So, here's out take on it. I didn't notice much difference, but that may be because I put a lot of basil in my sauce. (And this is my husband's dish. I don't do peppers.)

 

Until next time!