Pizza Rosa – my take on a classic from Pizzeria Bianco

16 Jun

I am a pizza fan and I love to find new interesting flavors for my pizzas…  When I was watching an episode of The Best Thing I Ever Ate on Pizzas, I learned about the Pizza Rosa from Pizzeria Bianco.  It sounded strange and delicious too…

I have heard of Bianco before – on TV, from Martha Stewart… but Pizzeria Bianco is in Phoenix, Arizona and I have no plans to visit Phoenix anytime soon.  So the only way to try the flavors of this pizza is making it myself.  And the ingredients were not so foreign to me – red onions, parmeggiano reggiano cheese, rosemary and PISTACHIOS?!?!?!  Yep, Arizona pistachios to be exact.  Well, my pistachios would have to be from Walgreens, but I was intrigued nonetheless on how this would turn out.

My take on PIZZA ROSA from Pizzeria Bianco

1 flat bread or store-bought pizza dough round
Red onions, thinly sliced using a mandoline in the thinnest setting
Pistachios, shelled and ground in a food processor
Pecorino romano cheese, grated
Italian Cheese blend of shredded cheeses
Fresh Rosemary needles, chopped finely

 

  1. Pre-heat your toaster oven to 450F.
  2. Place the flatbread on a cookie sheet…  I use the small cookie sheet from my toaster oven.
  3. And top with the topping in this order – first place a small amount of the Italian cheese blend (about a small handful), then spread the onions, then the pistachios, then a light shower of the freshly grated pecorino romano cheese and finish off with a sprinkling of rosemary.  My fresh rosemary has dried in the fridge so I just crumbled it with my fingers.
  5. Place in oven for about 5-10 minutes, until the cheese on top gets some golden brown flecks.
  6. Take out and wait about 1 minute for the cheese to set, slice it and enjoy. 

You will make this pizza time and time again.  The pistachios are an unexpected ingredient, but they work with the onions and cheese.  Now I know why it was on the Best Thing I Ever Ate list…

Do you think I could have won the pizza contest with this Pizza Rosa???  I think so…

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Pizza Contest – a Canvas for some interesting flavors

14 Jun

For the last few weeks I have been preparing myself for a Pizza Contest being held at our yoga center.  The 1st prize was nice, worth $500 – the entry fee for one of our yoga retreats. And in this economy… that’s a HUGE prize.

There were a few rules we needed to stick by:

  • The crust needed to be wheat-free.  Spelt flour was allowed.
  • If using cheese, it needed to be organic and rennet-free.  Vegan cheeses were allowed.
  • If baking the pizza at home, to make sure nothing had been exposed to any meat-products ever.

Easy enough, right??  NOT!!!  Not when you are a challenged pizza dough maker.  I am a pizza fan, but as you may have seen around this blog, when I make pizza at home, I make it on alternative crusts, namely flatbreads and pita bread.  But I gave myself the opportunity to build the perfect wheat-free crust – crispy on the outside, with certain chew on the inside. Without the need of stand mixers to help me knead…

That’s why I turned my attention to no-knead doughs…  I tried several recipes with NO SUCCESS!!  I tried a recipe from foodwishes.com and a recipe from Paula Deen using the food processor to knead the dough instead of doing it by hand.  I’ll be honest, the foodwishes one was more successful, but not where I wanted it to be.

So I moved my attention to at least try out the toppings recipes – if at least I could get the flavors combinations on point, I knew that the crust issue at some point would be resolved.  I tried out a few tried and true recipes, and then experimented a few of my own.  These were my possible entries into the contest:

A take on the pizza Rosa from Pizzeria Bianco in Phoenix Arizona.  People all over brag about how good these pizzas are.  People make lines for them… and believe me I will go there if I ever visit Phoenix…

A simplified version of Co.’s Popeye Pizza

An eggplant pizza I had while in Montevideo, Uruguay – seasoned eggplant on a perfect crust, no cheese, no sauce.

Absolutely delicious.

A white pizza using garlic olive oil, topped with cheese and a few scallions – I got my inspiration from foodwishes.com and I thought it would be easy enough to try it out on the grill, instead of in the oven.  I thought it would give me some edge…

 

Unfortunately, my crust experiment was a BUST and I decided to participate in the contest as a reporter for all of you.  I was not going to put my name on something that I wasn’t completely proud of.  I learned this from my Top Chef /Hell’s Kitchen/Kitchen Nightmares/Iron Chef /Next Food Network Star watching experience…  And it was a shame because at least 4 people, some contestants among them, told me they were really looking forward to my pizzas and that they were even thinking I was a surefire winner if I was participating… apparently my reputation precedes me.

Fortunately, my fellow yoga people did have more success with wheat-free crusts than I did, (or they just have different standards) Anyhow, I want to share with you some of the contest entries and winners:

 1st Prize

Chorizo Pizza by Yazmín Cabrera

This was a true trip back memory lane when we used to eat pizzas with real chorizos.  The oily grease on the bottom of the crust was exactly as the judges remembered it.  The crust is filled with cheese too…

2nd Prize

Stuffed Pizza by Manolo Velazquez

With two crusts filled with delicious goodness – broccoli, scallions, cauliflower, mushrooms… and topped with tomatoes, peppers and lots of cheese.  The judges loved it!!!

 

3rd Prize

Mediterranean Pizza by Mili Ortiz

Even though the crust felt apart when we cut into it, the flavors impressed the judges – onions, peppers, tomatoes, mushrooms, black olives…

4th Prize

Tofu Pizza by Emma Lebrón, who is also Manolo’s mom

This was a true tofu-lovers pizza – using fried tofu, tofu pups, tomatoes and other pizza favorites.

I think it even has potatoes on it.

 

Some notable and interesting mentions…

Cheese Pizza on Rice Flour crust by Angie Cruz

This one was very delicious, but it did not win for being too simple… a hint for next year’s contest, Angie!!!

The Everything Pizza by Carmen Gonzalez

The judges said this felt like a whole meal on top of a pizza crust.  It was a mile-high piled with ingredients such as a border made from tofu dogs, black and red kidney beans puree.

Now you be the judge…    would you like to try some of these winning recipes??  Do you think I stood a chance with any of my planned flavors of pizza??  Which ones do you prefer??  Tell me all about it…

Stay tuned for some of the recipes…

I would like to thank the yoga center, Centro Cultural Yoga Devanand, for allowing me to take pictures and report on this Pizza Contest.  If you live in Puerto Rico, Miami or NYC and you would like more information about the Devanand Yoga Center, please email me at karmafreecooking[at]yahoo[dot]com.

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Incredible India all over again – Street Food and Markets

11 Jun

Whenever I travel, I love going to street markets and supermarkets… I guess it’s a way to learn more about a country and culture.  Learning what and how they eat teaches you a lot about the country you’re visiting. 

 You can see how I have visited markets in Guadalajara, in Paris, even in NYC… but in India, surprisingly I have not visited any markets per se.  Why?  I think because in India, the markets come to you.  Street vendors are EVERYWHERE in India.  No matter the city, even in busy bustling Delhi, you see a food street vendor of some sort.   

In Old Delhi, you have the Chadni Chowk, and all over you see these carts selling lemon water.  They look super refreshing, especially in the April heat, but for us tourists from the Western world these are off-limits.  In India, it’s safer for us to stick to bottled water, even making sure it’s sealed from the manufacturer.  Something that I identify with a lot is the lemons available in India are criollo lemons – the same small ones we have here in Puerto Rico. 

        

 Actually, the produce available all around the streets is very, very similar to what you find here in Puerto Rico… I guess we’re close to the same latitude – you can see coconuts sold for coconut water, sugar cane to get sugar cane water or what we call here in PR, guarapo.  You can also see a lot of regular produce, like oranges, eggplants, melons, green beans, spices… 

   

                                   

 But something you see quite a lot, I mean they’re everywhere, are CUCUMBERS.  They sell them sometimes already peeled so you can eat them right there.  I wouldn’t eat them off the street peeled because the environment in India is filled with dust and dirt from the streets, but apparently people buy them because otherwise there wouldn’t be so many people selling them.  They’re a different variety than what we see here in the Americas.  They’re long and squiggly…

 

 Not food related per se, but once we even bought neem sticks off the streets of Varanasi .  Indians use neem sticks as a natural toothbrush.

 

 

Next time to travel abroad, or even to a different city from yours, make it a point to explore the markets and the street food typical of the place.  I am sure you’ll be able to appreciate a bit more the locals in your travels…

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Recreating Maggiano’s Stuffed Mushrooms

3 Jun

For a long time I had been dreaming of this dish… the Stuffed Mushrooms from Maggiano’s.  I had never heard of Maggiano’s before, but I went first during a trip to Philadelphia.  Someone recommended the stuffed mushrooms and when I tried them I was hooked.  I have been known to hook a few other people to these mushrooms.    Every time I travel and I see a  Maggiano’s,  I start to salivate for these mushrooms.  Hey, I even photographed them once for you…

But I was crushed recently … CRUSHED, because for the first time ever, Maggiano’s mentioned these mushrooms are made, apparently, with chicken broth.  Something, I swear, I had never seen in their menus, or even tasted.  Believe me, I have been tricked many times into thinking something doesn’t have chicken broth and then I taste it and arrrrgh!!!!  But these mushrooms never tasted to me like they had any chicken broth.  But one day I checked them out on the internet and there it was… the description every vegetarian dreads:

Stuffed Mushrooms
Jumbo mushroom caps stuffed with spinach and topped with our seasoned breadcrumbs and house cheese; served in a white wine chicken broth.

Could it be that I had never read the menu when I ordered them???  Possibly… nonetheless, I was scarred for life…

And as we are, humans with worldly desires, just knowing I couldn’t have these delicious mushrooms any more with the knowledge of someone drowning them in chicken broth, made my desire of re-creating this recipe the more ever-present in my mind…  YOU MUST BUY MUSHROOMS, YOU MUST COOK MUSHROOMS, YOU MUST EAT MUSHROOMS… and so to Costco I went.

Coincidentally that same afternoon, my friend Jonathan invited me to dinner, and I remembered the huge container of jumbo mushrooms from Costco in my fridge and without giving it too much though… I invited him over for dinner.  I guess the time had come for him to taste my vegetarian cooking.  Would I pass the test?  Would I really be able to recreate these stuffed mushrooms from Maggiano’s while satisfying Jonathan’s carnivore appetite?!?!?!  Check out the results…

 

Better-than-Maggiano’s STUFFED MUSHROOMS

8 jumbo white mushrooms
About 2/3 cup of chopped frozen spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
1/3 cup of grated parmesan cheese
¼ cup shredded pecorino romano cheese, plus more to top mushrooms
1/3 cup of whole-wheat breadcrumbs
Salt and Pepper to taste
A pinch of red pepper flakes (optional)
1 yellow lemon

 

  1. Pre-heat the oven to 400F.
  2. Clean the mushrooms well with a damp paper towel.  Remove the stems and place them over an oiled baking sheet.  Set aside.
  3. Chop the mushrooms stems finely and add them to a medium bowl together with the spinach, cheeses and breadcrumbs.  Mix well and season with salt and pepper.  Add the red pepper flakes if you’re into spice, like Jonathan.
  4. Fill the mushroom caps generously with this spinach mixture.  Top with a bit more pecorino romano cheese and drizzle a bit more olive oil on top.
  5. Place in oven for about 20 minutes until the mushroom caps cook and the cheese on top is golden brown.
  6. Serve immediately with a squirt of yellow lemon juice over them.

 

We had these mushrooms with a salad on the side.  I would say the dinner was a complete success… according to Jonathan, these mushrooms are the BEST he has ever had.  And now,  I won’t salivate anymore over any mushrooms out there.  I have what I need at home.


Portobello Mushrooms

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Healthy Lifestyle Change for JUNE– Exercise regularly

1 Jun

Most of you already know that to be in good health we must exercise.  Running, jogging, aerobics, spinning, and even brisk walking are all great forms of exercise.  I particularly like Hatha Yoga…  Hatha Yoga is a psycho-physical way of exercising that works the body and the mind simultaneously.  It’s a form of exercise developed thousands of years ago that has been in fashion for the last 10-15 yrs.  There are many versions of yoga exercises, but the hatha yoga practiced at the yoga center I attend is designed to help your body and your mind to be quieter during meditation.  Some of its benefits are:

  • It’s simple
  • You can do it at home
  • It tones your body muscles
  • It quiets the mind
  • When you finish a session you finish reenergized instead of tired
  • You can be in vogue by saying you also practice yoga exercises…

      

Personally, hatha yoga has helped me to have more balance and concentration and to have stronger will-power.  Hatha yoga should be practiced about 3 times a week for optimum results, but just doing it at least once a week is a good start.

 

Look for a yoga studio/center near you to start practicing hatha yoga regularly.  In the meantime, you need to move your skeleton… so try any or a few of these easy ways to exercise:

  • Walk around your neighborhood – create a route that would take you at least 30 minutes to complete.  Or you can embark on an adventure – in Puerto Rico, you can walk in the Paseo Tablado de Pinones, Paseo Lineal in Hato Rey, on the outside trails around Parque Central, etc.  Or walk on a treadmill if you prefer to exercise while watching TV…

  • Walk on the beach – I love to listen to the waves when I walk on the shore.  It’s a real theraphy for the mind and spirit.  Go to your nearest beach and walk it from one end to the next.  Isla Verde beach, from one end to the other back and forth is about 3 miles in total.

  • Do some exercises at home using an exercise DVD or Video – I am hooked on the P90X exercise DVDs, but the Biggest Loser series are also really good and customizable to your level.

  • Ride bicycle or do spinning – I prefer doing this in a closed environment where there are no cars around me… but if you’re adventurous, you can ride on a Sunday morning on really nice routes.

  • Swim in a pool or at the beach – it is low-impact and you will not feel the sweat…

 

Doing a combination of these will bring variety to your exercise routine… after 3 weeks of exercising regularly, your body will crave it more often… Make time for your health.

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