Merguez Sausage Pizza with the Works

Ready for something delicious?

Yep, it's January 5th and I'm giving you pizza. But wait! Don't run away, there's veggies and fresh herbs to go with the meat and not that much cheese, and a slice or two of this is just what's called for in our first week back at work post-holiday. You know I'm right.

When I was in Sydney a few months ago I had plenty of opportunities to eat alone. For the most part, those solo meals were actually pretty enjoyable. There was no one to argue over the menu with, everyone at my table was ordering a second drink, and the people watching and eavesdropping opportunities were primo. However, one Tuesday night I headed over to what I was told was a popular neighborhood pizza spot, and found myself to be the only customer in the place, with a prime sidewalk-facing table and absolutely no one to eavesdrop on. Even the street I was facing was dead, and the waiter kept wandering outside to try to entice customers, so there was no awkward small talk to be had there, either. 

It turned out to be ok though, because once I received my pie with its lamb sausage, goat cheese, and mint, I was fully entertained by daydreaming how I would soon be recreating it in my own kitchen. A few months after I got back stateside, I finally did, and I must say, I think my pizza outshines the original. For one, I replaced the dry, rubbery eggplant (the only bad element) with artichoke hearts and the salty olives with preserved lemon, and added some harissa to give the pizza some extra heat. The result was thumbs up all around. Well, two of my thumbs up because much like that Sydney meal, I ate this alone. But, it turns out it makes great leftovers, so I'm still alright with that.   

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Merguez Sausage Pizza with the Works

Inspired by the "Lamb of God" at Pocket Pizza in Manly

• 1 package pizza dough (I prefer the store-made versions from Trader Joe's or Whole Foods)
• 4-5 oz merguez sausage
• 3/4 cup crushed tomatoes (recommend San Marzano)
• 3/4 tbs Harissa
• salt, to taste
• 3/4 cup canned artichoke hearts, drained and rinsed
• 2 oz goat cheese
• 1 tbs preserved lemon, rinsed and chopped
• 1 tbs fresh mint leaves, torn

1. Preheat a pizza stone or steel in oven at max temperature. If not using a pizza steel or stone, preheat oven to max temperature, and lightly grease a sturdy baking sheet. 
2. Set pizza dough on the counter to come to room temperature. Remove the casing from the sausage. Cut a slit the length of the sausage and then peel the casing off. Form loose sausage into small meatballs (about 1/2 tsp). I got about 28 total.
3. Heat a non-stick skillet over medium-high heat and brown the meatballs until almost cooked through. Be gentle with them as they may break apart. Transfer to a paper towel lined plate to drain.
4. In a small bowl, combine the tomatoes and harissa and season with salt to taste.
5. Roll or stretch out pizza dough into a very thin round. Transfer to your lightly greased baking sheet, or if using a pizza steel or stone, to a pizza peel or upside down baking sheet with a sheet of parchment paper laid over it. 
6. Spoon the tomato sauce mixture around the dough, leaving a 1-inch border. Top with the meatballs and artichoke. Form the goat cheese into small balls and dot on top of the pizza. Transfer the pizza to the oven: if using pizza steel, carefully slide the parchment from the peel or baking sheet onto the steel or stone. (I use a baking sheet, and it's easiest (and safest) to pull out the baking rack a bit, position the baking sheet about 3/4 of the way into the oven, and slide the parchment off the sheet onto the pizza steel.) Bake, about 13-15 minutes until the crust is cooked through and golden.
7. Remove the pizza from the oven (if using baking sheet as pizza peel, use a good pair of tongs to slide the cooked pizza and parchment onto the back of the baking sheet). Scatter with the preserved lemon and mint. Cut into slices and serve hot.

Chai Sangria Granita with Honey Cinnamon Whipped Cream & Boozy Fruit

Happy New Year! We made it through 2016 and that title! We deserve a drink!

Hey, I know it's probably Day 2 of your plan to be healthy in 2017 and maybe you've given up alcohol for the month* but I can't be boring and put some detox smoothie full of empty promises up here. I also know that it is winter and this is roughly the temperature of the outside you are probably hibernating from, but hear me out! 

You know when you make sangria and you have all the fruit left over after you are done drinking? Well, if you are like me, you probably snack on a few pieces then feel a little silly eating what is essentially the equivalent of boozy coffee grounds and so you stop, tossing the brandy-soaked morsels into the trash. Well, no more! It's a new year and we have plans to welcome good fortune, so we can start by being frugal and putting that delicious tipsy fruit right on top of some granita, where it definitely belongs. And duh, I've made the granita out of the sangria and so it's fun times all around, tempered only by a dollop of lightly sweetened whipped cream because we do need a little moderation in January.

This recipe is based on a sangria recipe I tried for Thanksgiving, which was a huge hit but did leave behind a pitcherful of unclaimed brandy-steeped tidbits of apple, pear, orange and cranberries. I had a brilliant idea to cook the soaked cranberries down into a sauce, but since Thanksgiving is over now I didn't want to go there for at least 11 months. So, I ventured instead into the world of granita and I'm so glad I did. I think you should be too. 

*For the record, I did decide not to drink for all of January so please have some of this for me. 

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Sangria Granita with Honey Cinnamon Whipped Cream & Boozy Fruit

Makes 4 generous servings. Sangria base inspired by Jessica's Cranberry Chai version. Granita method from David Lebovitz

• 1/4 cup sugar
• 1 cup unsweetened cranberry juice
• 1/2 cup orange juice
• 2 chai tea bags
• 2 cups red wine (I used Pinot Noir)
• 1/2 cup brandy
• 1/2 inch ginger root, peeled and grated
• 1 orange, peeled, sectioned, and diced
• 1 apple, cored and diced
• 1 pear, cored and diced
• 1 cup heavy whipping cream
• cinnamon, to taste
• 1/2 tsp honey

1. Heat sugar and juices in a large pot until the sugar is dissolved. Remove from the heat and add the tea bags. Steep for 15 minutes.
2. Remove tea bags and add wine, brandy, ginger, and fruit. Stir together and then let sit at least 30 minutes or longer if you can.
3. When ready to freeze, strain the fruit out of the mixture and transfer to a bowl. Set aside, covered, in the refrigerator until needed. Pour the mixture into an 8x8 baking pan and transfer to a flat surface in the freezer. Check after one hour.
4. Once the mixture begins freezing around the edges, rake the frozen edges into smaller chunks with a fork, toward the center of the pan. Return the pan to the freezer, then check every 30 minutes, repeating the raking process until you have fine crystals of granita. There is a lot of alcohol in this mixture so it takes about 6-7 hours to completely freeze. Keep granita in the freezer until ready to serve.
5. When ready to serve, set serving dishes in the freezer to chill. Whisk together the heavy cream, honey, and cinnamon to taste into soft peaks. Pile the granita into the chilled dishes, spoon on desired amount of whipped cream, and then top with the reserved fruit (as much or as little as you like, it's VERY strong). Enjoy immediately.

Hoppin' John

Hey! How was your Christmas? Or are you nearing the end of Hannukah? My gift giving holidays are over, at least officially, according to the calendar. The closing ceremony was observed by my eating all of the dozen or so cookies I brought home in the course of one day, which also served as a handy reminder of why I don’t keep cookies in my house (I’m ready to make my healthy eating resolutions now!).

Unofficially, I had a Secret Santa exchange last night and one scheduled for the new year, so really, Christmas can go on as long as I want, or at least as long as I want to keep my book tree up. Sadly, that won’t be much longer as I need a chicken recipe currently located somewhere at the base of it.

But I said new year, which means it’s almost here and raise your hand if you are more than ready! I’m so happy for 2017 to get started because the only possible way is up, right? To get through the last couple days of 2016 though I’m pretending it’s 1992. I’m off to Seattle, which means I packed all my flannel and I might go check out this cool new coffee shop I heard about.

If you, unlike me, are living the next 2 days in reality and you want to make sure you have the best 2017 you possibly can, I’ve got some Hoppin’ John here to help you do everything you can to make it happen. Southern tradition says it will bring you good fortune and luck in the new year to eat black eyed peas and greens. The peas represent coins and the greens represent dollars. I ate a whole pot this past week, so I’m ready for a flush 2017 (unless I negated it by eating it early? oops). It’s usually served over rice, which I’ve done here, but you could serve with cornbread too.  If you don’t go in for superstition it’s also just a really warming, mostly healthy, filling pot of goodness to start your year with, and the ingredients are pretty cheap so maybe the path to a richer 2017 is just to spend less money on food? 

Happy (and safe) New Year! See you in 2017!

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Hoppin' John

Adapted from David Tanis

• 1 lb black eyed peas, soaked overnight (see note)
• 1 lb smoked ham hock or shank
• 1 tsp salt
• 1/2 onion, peeled
• 1/8 tsp cloves
• 1 bay leaf
• 1/4 tsp pepper
• 1 tbs olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1/4 tsp crushed red pepper flakes
• 1 lb collard greens, washed, stemmed, and cut into strips
• 1 bunch scallions, thinly sliced
• white rice, for serving, enough for 5-6 servings
• tabasco sauce, for serving

1. Add beans and meat to a large pot and cover with water. Turn the heat to high and add salt, onion, cloves, bay leaf, and pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for about 1 1/2 hours, or until the peas are tender. Add water as necessary as they cook and skim any foam that collects on the top.
2. Remove the peas from the heat and remove the ham from the pot. Roughly chop the meat and set aside.
3. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat and add the olive oil. Heat until shimmering, then add the garlic and red pepper and cook until just fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the collard greens and toss to coat with the garlic, then add salt to taste and 1/2 cup water and toss again. Add the chopped meat, reduce the heat to medium, partially cover the pan and cook for another 20 minutes, until collards are tender and the water has almost completely cooked off.
4. While the greens are cooking, make the rice for serving according to package directions. 
5. To serve, scoop the rice into bowls and top with the greens and meat, then ladle the peas and their broth over top. Garnish generously with scallions and tabasco. 

Notes:

• Try to remember to soak the black eyed peas overnight. If you forget, you can do a quick soak by doing the following: rinse beans and add to a large pot with 6-8 cups of water. Bring to a rapid boil and cook for 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cover, then let steep for 1 hour. This is the method I used since I forgot to soak my beans, but it's a little harder on the structure of the beans than the more gently overnight soak. If you look closely at the photos above you can see that my beans were a little worse for wear by the end of the cooking process. So it works, but if you want pretty beans, remember to soak them! Don't use canned beans or they'll be mush at the end.