Island Bound

Only seven sleeps til I'm back on my Island.  I missed it this summer - I made it home for a mere four days in early July.

One thing that strikes me when I arrive home in summer is the fragrant air. Heavy, sweet clover.  The hot dirt.  Salt air.  Strawberry blossoms and sand.

  

The fall sights and smells will be different, of course.  Turning leaves, and the sharp piney smell of decomposition in "the woods".  Baking.  Stewing preserves in warm kitchens.  I'll take few beach walks and watch those big fall hurricane waves roll in.

One more week til my feet are back where they should be, on Island soil.  

Homemade pizza

To many Canadians, the words "homemade pizza" conjure up this image:

What a treat it was when we were kids!  Kraft Pizza had a taste all its own.  The inexplicably orange sauce, the 'herbs' (dehydrated beyond the point of recognition), the huge packet of granulated parmesan.  I was lucky, and had parents who would add more nutrition to the top, like ground beef, green pepper, onions, and mozzarella (and sometimes bacon!).  I know of some people who only used the kit contents!  I shuddered when I found that out...

Anyway, the point of this post is not just to reminisce... it is to remind everyone that homemade pizza does not have to come in a box or a packet, and you can really make it into anything you want it to be.  When we have homemade pizza in this house, it is always different than the last version.

May I present Pizza 7.0 (we've probably made half-a-dozen versions in the last year or so):

Toppings:

thinly sliced cocktail tomatoes (or other small tomato)
red onions, thinly sliced and browned in a dry pan
goat cheese, crumbled
capocollo slices (I wanted prosciutto, but in Newfoundland grocery stores, it's like the Stones said:  you can't always get what you want)
coarsely cracked black pepper
oregano-infused olive oil (as the sauce)

Crust:

Today I did what I usually do with my busy schedule and picked up a pre-baked flatbread from the grocery store.  There are some nice ones out there.  I chose PC Blue Menu.  It was marginally healthier than the other brand.  When we have time, Mike makes a nice pizza crust (he is in charge of all items involving yeast).

Variations:

...are endless.  Some other good combinations are:

• Sundried and fresh tomatoes, fresh basil leaves, feta, and toasted almonds
• Chorizo and mozza or Monterey jack with peppers and onions
• Turkey pepperoni, tomato or pesto sauce, parmesan and peppers

Don't be afraid to create your own combo... and then tell me about it!