eggplant pizza on naan.

i bought an eggplant recently and had absolutely no idea what to do with it! to be honest, eggplant kind of scares me-- it just seems so dry when you cut it open, and i know you have to salt before using it which always seemed a bit too complex for a vegetable i wasn't completely convinced i was a fan of. turns out, eggplant is delicious. i'm sure all of you already knew this, but some realizations you have to come to on your own. 

we roasted our eggplant, put it on naan and called it pizza. if you don't already buy the naan from costco, you really should. i have no idea how to make naan, but maybe i'll do some research and try that next. for now, seriously the stuff at costco is gooooood.

eggplant pizza

makes 2 pizzas

ingredients:

2 pieces of naan

2 tbs. olive oil

1 small eggplant, diced

salt & pepper

1 clove garlic, minced

2/3 cup cherry tomatoes, halved

6 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

1. lay the eggplant out on a cookie sheet covered with tin foil and generously salt. let sit for 30 minutes.

2. preheat the oven to 400 degrees. 

3. drizzle one tbs. olive oil over the eggplant and roast until golden brown, about 20 minutes.

4. brush the remaining olive oil evenly on the two pieces of naan. layer the garlic, eggplant, tomatoes, then mozzarella on top of the pizzas. lightly salt & pepper them.

5. bake at 400 degrees until the cheese has melted and the edges of the naan are a light golden brown.

enjoy! and if you have other ideas of what to do with an eggplant, let me know!

zucchini pizza {vegan}

i don't care if we're eating vegan, pizza is a must. here's a vegan version of zucchini pizza, that would also be great with some mozzarella or goat cheese on top.

zucchini pizza

serves 2-4

ingredients:

homemade or store-bought pizza crust (i use the barefoot contessa's dough, here.)

1/4 cup cornmeal

3 tbs. olive oil

2 tbs. garlic, minced

1 tbs. garlic salt

3 roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

1 zucchini, thinly sliced

1/4 cup artichoke hearts

salt & pepper, to taste

1. preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. heat 1 tbs. olive oil in a small sauce pan. add zucchini slices & saute until almost translucent.

3. cover baking sheet or pizza stone with cornmeal. set dough on top of it.

4. brush dough with olive oil & minced garlic. sprinkle with garlic salt, especially crusts. rub in with your fingers.

5. cover dough with tomatoes, arranging in a circular pattern. lay zucchini on top of tomatoes, also in a circular pattern. evenly spread artichoke hearts on top. sprinkle with salt & pepper, and put it in the oven. cook until crust is golden brown.

white pizza.

i have become the queen of making pizzas lately; they are just so yummy! and easy. we throw whatever is in the fridge on there-- olives, sundried tomatoes, artichoke hearts, asparagus, pineapple. lately i love ricotta on my pizza. and we just found a pizza stone at costco for $5! oh how i adore costco.

white pizza

(serves 2-4)

ingredients:

homemade or store-bought pizza crust (i always make the same dough from the barefoot contessa, here)

1 tbs. olive oil

1 tbs. garlic, minced

1 1/2 cups mozzarella, grated or sliced

1/2 cup parmesan, grated

1/4 cup ricotta

(or whatever cheeses you want--sometimes i sprinkle some feta or goat cheese on there too)

salt & pepper, to taste

1. preheat the oven to 400 degrees.

2. brush the dough with the olive oil and garlic (especially the crusts!).

3. spread the mozzarella and parmesan across the dough. drop the ricotta randomly by the teaspoonful.

4. sprinkle the whole pie with salt & pepper, and pop it in the oven until the cheese is melted and the crust is golden brown.

thai pizza.

there's a pizza truck named impossibles that parks on the north shore & sells pies too big to fit in any pizza box. (that or they purposefully buy their boxes small so you're floored by the size of the thing.) their pizzas are incredible, but expensive--around $25. i've never actually tried their thai pizza, but i've heard so much about it that i figured i should try to make my own & see what all the craze was about.

i can't say how it compares to impossibles, but dang, this pizza was gooood.

thai pizza

serves 2-4

(dough from the barefoot contessa)

ingredients:

for the dough:

1 1/4 cups warm water

2 pkg. dry yeast

1 tbs. honey

3 tbs. olive oil

4 cups flour

2 tsp. salt

cornmeal

for the sauce:

3 tbs. peanut butter

2 tbs. honey

1 tbs. rice vinegar

1 tbs. soy sauce

1 tsp. garlic

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

toppings:

olive oil

1 cup mozzarella, grated

1 large carrot, grated

1 scallion, diced

2 tbs red. onion, diced

1 tbs. cilantro, minced

1/4 cup bean sprouts

1. combine the water, yeast, honey & olive oil in a large bowl & let sit for 5-10 minutes, until yeast is foamy. (you can do this in an electric mixer or with a hand mixer. if you're a college student like me, mixing with a wooden spoon does the job.)

2. add 3 cups flour & the salt, & mix. add the remaining flour as you mix. (sometimes i don't add all of that last cup. you just want to form a good dough that's not too sticky.)

3. knead the dough until smooth & elastic, either in the mixer or by hand.

4. place the dough in a well-oiled bowl & turn it over to cover the dough with oil. cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel & let sit for 30 min. to 1 hour at room temperature.

5. combine the ingredients for the sauce with a whisk in a small bowl. set aside.

6. preheat the oven to 400 degrees. after the dough has risen, punch it to let the air out & move the dough to a baking sheet (a big one). form the dough into a circle with your fingers, pushing from the middle out, & leaving about 1/2" crust around the edges. let dough sit for another 10 minutes.

7. lightly oil the edges of the pizza, & liberally spread the peanut sauce across the entire pizza. top with carrots, red onion, scallions & mozzarella. bake at 400 degrees for about 30 min. (check it! how long it takes will vary depending on your oven.) the edges & cheese should be golden brown.

8. sprinkle with cilantro & bean sprouts before serving.