Duo Pizza - Thin and Crispy (Italian Type)

Receita em Português

Fiz estas pizas para o jantar no outro dia, ficaram uma delicia, já há muito tempo que não comia piza assim, sem estar oleosa e fofa, só fiz uma coisa que modificava, mas foi por preguiça. Nesta só me ti cheddar queijo, quando devia também ter posto mozarella, mas não estava com paciência para ir a loja, então podia ter ficado mais gostosa, mas também teria ficado mais calorifica. hehe O que se há de fazer?

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 4 or two hungry ones)

• 2 tall glasses of strong plain flour
  
• 1 tall glass of water (+or-)
  
• 1 glass grated cheddar
  
• 1 glass of grated Mozarella (I didn't put this but is definitly better with it)
  
• 1 glass of pitted black olives
  
• 1 glass of mushrooms (thinly sliced)
• 1 large onion very thinly sliced
  
• 1/2 glass of tomato pulp (tempered with: a little salt and black pepper, a tea spoon of oregano, and a pinch of garlic granules)
• 1 tea spoon of instant fast action east
  
• salt
• olive oil
  

Preparation:

A very simple and fast recipe to accomplish. In a bowl I placed the flour and the east, which I mixed well, then followed by a large pinch of salt and the water (preferably warm), mix it well in with your hand, until it comes away from the walls of the bowl, transfer it onto a floured table, and sprinkling more flour kneed it stretching it to break down the starch in the dough making it silky and smooth, do this for around 5 minutes. Split the dough into two balls, and roll them with a rolling pin to the size of the trays you wanna put them in, with a tissue rub some olive oil at the base of the tray and then place the dough there, and you cover it with some kitchen cloths (sprinkle a little coarse polenta so it doesn't stick to the cloth) place them in the oven (switched off) for around 30 minutes, to allow the dough to rise a little.

After that remove the trays from the oven, and turn the oven on to preheat to 180-200c.
Split the sauce between the two pizzas, making sure you leave off around 1cm from the edge, leaving the dough exposed there, so you get a nice crust. Then put half of the mix of mozarella and cheddar dividing by the two pizzas over the dough. Followed by the toppings, (half for each) olives, onions, mushrooms (i made one without mushrooms as one of my kids do not like e'm), then followed by the remaining mixed cheddar and mozarella, a sprinkle of oregano on top of each, and oven with them for around 18 minutes, until golden, then I served with a little mixed salad and balsamic vinaigrette.

Remember you put whatever topping you want, and that this is also great to use left overs, of cooked meat or fish etc... (or even use ham, pineapple etc). just cut them into chunks and on top they go. Very nice with a glass of nice light red wine, like a good Californian red.

Double Baked Potatoes and Rosemary Chipolatas

Recipe Ingredients:(enough for 4)

• 12 chipolatas sausages
• 4 large roasting potatoes
  
• 1 packet of mixed salad, water cress, spinach, gem lettuce & beetroot
• 1 soup spoon of butter
• 1 pinch of nutmeg
• 2 soup spoons of grated cheddar cheese
  
• a little milk
  
• 1 tea spoon of fresh rosemary
  
• 2 soup spoons of olive oil
  
• salt and black pepper to taste
  
• pinch of cayenne
  
• a little balsamic oil
  

The preparation is simple, wash the potatoes and stab them with a sharp knife around 4 times on each side, then they go in the oven around 200c for around 40-50 minutes.

Five minutes away from the potatoes being ready, put a frying pan on the stove with the olive oil once hot ad the rosemary, seasoning (salt & pepper), chilli and the chipolates, turning these around on each side until golden.

Remove the potatoes from the oven and slice them in half, with a soup spoon remove the pulp completely only leaving the skin, the pulp place it in a bowl and ad, to it a soup spoon of butter, a glug of milk, seasoning, nutmeg and cheese, mix well. Then fill the potato skins half full and insert the chipolates cut in half, fill the rest with the mash and bake the potatoes back in the oven again until golden brown or less if you prefer. I done mine less as I was hungry and couldn't wait. (also instead of cheddar if you want a smoother cheese you can use Gruyère)

Serve this on a plate with the mix salad, with a little seasoning, a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic oil.

A simple yet delicious meal, and fairly balanced. For a stress free dinner.

Courgette Bake (Vegetarian esily changed to Vegan too)

I thought the meal before this one had come top shoulder to shoulder with all the meals I ever made, maybe even above...So I thought I will never be able to surpass it..how wrong was I, and is not even a meat meal...I was really surprised, I DECLARE THIS ONE THE BEST MEAL I EVER HAD.

My wife said the same, so did my kid (who normally a very good meal to him he classes it as aright) they classed this meal as EXCELLENT. Not sure if I should divulge it. :) lol
I can tell you is not a lasagna nor it's a gratin.

Receita em Português

Ok...ok.. I will give out the recipe, as it is very special not to share with my loved followers. Is like a lasagna but has no pasta, I used slithers of courgete instead of pasta, and is like a grattin but it is not a bechamel as it has no cheese appart from the lottle bit you can see sprinkled on top, is a white sauce like the one I made for the previous meal with ginger garlic and saffron, I used milk to make it, but for a vegan use soy milk (which I think will even improve further the flavour, and skip the sprinkling of cheese on top.

Recipe Ingredients: (enough for 5-6)

• 2 large courgettes (slither them with a potato pealer, very thin slices)
  
• 6 large carrots (cut into half and then quartered leght ways)
  
• 150grs runner beans (destringed and sliced diagonally)
• 1kg baby new potatoes (others will do but these are the most tender)
• 1pkt of asparagus
• 2 chillis (thinly sliced)
  
• 1 large bell pepper (sliced) this has the most nutty taste...one can smell it when cutting it.
• 4 large garlic cloves (minced)
  
• 1 piece of ginger the size of 4 large garlic cloves (minced)
• 2 glasses of milk (soy if you vegan)
• 1 large spoon arrow root (or more cheaply corn starch) diluted in a little water.
• 1 celery heart (sliced)
• some butter
• some olive oil
• a little salt and black pepper
• a pinch of saffron
  

Well, put a large pan with boiling water on the stove and cook the new potatoes and the carrots, you want them fully cooked but still firm around 25-30 minutes, should do it but it is dependent on potato quality, so keep and eye on them, I use a pin to prickle them throught if it goes through effortessly then their're done. Once cooked drain them and half them, set them aside temporarily.

Prepare all the veg. Once is all prepared, you need to make the white sauce and the stirfry to go within the courgette slithers.

For the white sauce in a milk pan put alittle olive oil and seasoning (salt and pepper), once hot add half of the ginger and half of the garlic and the pinch of saffron, once golden pour the milk in stirring briskly. While stirring put in the arrow root powder dissolved in a little water (and optionally a large spoon of butter), continue to stirr until is thikens up, once done set it aside.

Now place a large wok on the stove add a little olive oil, once hot add a little seasoning + the remaining garlic, ginger also the bell pepper, chilli, runner beans and celery. Continuously stir-fry these it will take around 10 minutes, then add the potatoes, stirfry a further 3 minutes. Then is ready remove from the fire.

Set a pirex tray (or any other tray to go in the oven) drizzle olive oil on the bottom, then slither by slither carefully layer to cover the whole botom of the dish, then throw in the potato mixture, followed by the carrots, then the white sauce reserving a little for the top, place another layer of courgette slithers to fully cover the top (no gaps) than smeer the remaining sauce on top nad sprinkle a little cheddar cheese (if vegan i would sprinkle a little oregano and sweet paprika) and it goes in the oven 200c for around 20 minutes.

The asparagus blanch them for around 3 minutes then cook them in a generous amount of butter (if vegan after blanching them cook them in peanut oil "not fry" so low temp and toss them)

So there you are, a beautifull meal for all of you beautifull people ou there!!!