Pizza Friday: Apple, Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Blue Cheese

I have a huge backlog of pizzas from Pizza Fridays that I need to blog, including this one with sliced apple, bacon, caramelized onions and blue cheese. I know it sounds weird, but we love fruit on pizza, especially when the sweetness of the fruit is paired with salty goodness.

Apple, Bacon, Caramelized Onions, Blue Cheese Pizza

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1-lb ball of pizza dough
8 oz mozzarella, shredded
1 small apple (we like honeycrisp), peeled and thinly sliced
4 slices bacon, cooked and crumbled
1/4 cup blue cheese crumbles

Preheat a pizza stone in a 500-degree oven for at least an hour while you assemble your ingredients.

Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and season with salt and pepper. Allow the onion to cook slowly - you want it to get brown without burning. Lower the heat if the onions are browning too quickly. If the pan seems dry, add a splash of water. The onions should take about 20-30 minutes to turn a nice, caramel color and become soft.

Lay a piece of parchment paper the size of the pizza stone on a work surface. Dust lightly with flour and roll out the pizza dough into a 14-inch circle. Drizzle some olive oil on the dough and rub around so all the dough is lightly coated.

Top with the mozzarella cheese, followed by the apple sliced, bacon and the caramelized onions. Dollop the blue cheese evenly on top.

Transfer the pizza on the parchment paper to the pizza stone. Bake for 15 minutes, checking often to make sure there are no bubbles forming. I keep a poking fork handy to pop them during the first 5 minutes.

Remove the pizza from the oven. Cool for a few minutes, then slice.

Pizza Friday: Veggies with Goat Cheese

Another delicious pizza I made a long time ago and haven't found a chance to blog. This is a great pizza to make with summer veggies, but it's good any time of year. The freshness of the basil goes so well with the goat cheese, and the crunch of the veggies is a great contrast to the doughy crust. 

Pizza with Veggies and Goat Cheese
Modified from A Couple Cooks

1-lb ball pizza dough
1/2 cup pizza sauce (see below)
8oz shredded mozzarella cheese
1/4 red bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 yellow or green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1/4 small red onion, thinly sliced
10-12 grape tomatoes, halved
8 to 10 leaves fresh basil, minced
4 ounces soft goat cheese
Kosher salt and pepper

Preheat a pizza stone in a 500-degree oven for at least an hour while you assemble your ingredients. 

Lay a piece of parchment paper the size of the pizza stone on a work surface. Dust lightly with flour and roll out the pizza dough into a 14-inch circle. Drizzle some olive oil on the dough and rub around so all the dough is lightly coated.

Top with the pizza sauce, then the mozzarella cheese, then the veggies (peppers, onion and tomatoes). Sprinkle the basil and dollop the goat cheese evenly on top. Season lightly with salt and pepper

Transfer the pizza on the parchment paper to the pizza stone. Bake for 15 minutes, checking often to make sure there are no bubbles forming. I keep a poking fork handy to pop them during the first 5 minutes.

Allow to cool slightly, then slice.

Pizza Friday: The Works

This pizza is one of our favorites. I'm not sure I've ever seen it actually called "The Works" on a pizzeria menu, but it always reminds me of a pizza I used to love at Pizza Hut, back when I'd get the Book It rewards and go there for dinner with my dad. 

The Works contains pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onion, green pepper and black olives. Use as much or as little of each as you want. In case you're new here, I like to load up our pizzas with toppings. 

The Works Pizza

1-lb ball homemade pizza dough
1/2 cup pizza sauce (recipe below)
8oz shredded mozzarella cheese
sliced pepperoni, to taste
2 links of cooked Italian sausage (see note)
4 white button mushrooms, cleaned and cut into chunks
1/4 of a small white onion, peeled and cut into chunks
1/4 of a green bell pepper, cut into chunks
1/2 cup canned black olives, sliced
dried oregano
garlic salt

Place a pizza stone in your oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees.

Lay a piece of parchment paper the size of the pizza stone on a work surface. Dust lightly with flour and roll out the pizza dough into a 14-inch circle. Spread the pizza sauce in a thin layer over the dough, leaving a half-inch margin around the outer edges. Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella over the top, then add the pepperoni, sausage, mushrooms, onion, bell pepper and olives. Dust with some oregano and garlic salt, to taste.

Transfer the pizza on the parchment paper to the pizza stone. Bake for 15 minutes, checking often to make sure there are no bubbles forming. I keep a poking fork handy to pop them during the first 5 minutes.

Remove the pizza from the oven and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before slicing.

Homemade Pizza Sauce

1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil/1 teaspoon dried basil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon pepper
1/4 teaspoon salt

Mix everything together in a bowl. I like to use a 28-oz can of crushed tomatoes and make multiple portions of sauce at once, then store it in 1-cup measurements for future pizzas.  

NOTE: To cook the Italian sausage, first remove the outer casing and discard. Break the sausage meat into bite-size pieces, or crumble it. It's up to you what texture you like. Heat a small skillet with about a teaspoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the sausage and cook until it's no longer pink.

Pizza Friday: Edamame with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese

I've mentioned this before but one of my favorite things to do is scour the Jules Thin Crust menus for Pizza Friday inspiration. One of our favorites pies is their Veggie #12: Organic edamame, ricotta cheese, organic goat cheese, caramelized onions, fresh mint, mozzarella, lemon vinaigrette. I've been recreating it at home for awhile and this was one of the best iterations so far.



Over the years I've decided to leave off the ricotta so the goat cheese can shine. I'm also realizing that I forgot the little spritz of lemon and/or shaving of lemon zest. I'll have to remember for next time.

Edamame with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese Pizza
Inspired by Jules Thin Crust

1 teaspoon olive oil
1 small onion, thinly sliced
salt and pepper
1/2 ball of pizza dough
1 cup shelled edamame
8 oz mozzarella, shredded
4oz goat cheese
fresh mint, minced, to taste
zest of one lemon

Preheat a pizza stone in a 500-degree oven for at least an hour while you assemble your ingredients.

Heat the oil in a non-stick skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and season with salt and pepper. Allow the onion to cook slowly - you want it to get brown without burning. Lower the heat if the onions are browning too quickly. If the pan seems dry, add a splash of water. The onions should take about 20-30 minutes to turn a nice, caramel color and become soft.

Lay a piece of parchment paper the size of the pizza stone on a work surface. Dust lightly with flour and roll out the pizza dough into a 14-inch circle. Drizzle some olive oil on the dough and rub around so all the dough is lightly coated.

Top with the mozzarella cheese. Dollop the goat cheese by the tablespoon over the cheese then add the caramelized onions and edamame.

Transfer the pizza on the parchment paper to the pizza stone. Bake for 15 minutes, checking often to make sure there are no bubbles forming. I keep a poking stick handy to pop them during the first 5 minutes.

Remove the pizza from the oven. sprinkle the fresh mint and lemon zest on top and slice.

Grilled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Brown Sugar Grilled Onions

From the moment Cassie posted these Grilled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Brown Sugar Grilled Onions on Instagram I fell in love. I hounded her to write up a blog post so I could make them and, happily, she obliged.

I was finally able to put them on the menu recently and all I can say is wow. These are incredible. Absolutely delicious. The citrus from the orange juice really comes through and I love the tang of the BBQ sauce with the pickles and the sweet onions. Heaven.

The only change I made was to sub the Italian dressing in Cassie's recipe for olive oil and the seasonings that go into the dressing. We don't keep bottled Italian dressing on hand and since I had almost all the spices I needed I figured I'd just make my own marinade.

You have got to try these sandwiches. You won't be sorry. I'm already plotting when I can make them again.

Grilled BBQ Chicken Sandwiches with Brown Sugar Grilled Onions
As seen on Cassie Craves, spice mixture adapted from allrecipes

4 chicken breasts
olive oil
1 teaspoon garlic salt
1 teaspoon onion powder
1 teaspoon white sugar
2 teaspoons dried oregano
1/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried parsley
dash of seasoned salt
1 tablespoon Worcestershire sauce
Juice of 1 orange
2 teaspoons chili powder
BBQ sauce

1-2 large sweet Vidalia onions, sliced into thick rings
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons brown sugar
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly-ground black pepper

1 cup shredded cheddar cheese

4 sandwich buns, cut in half
Butter
Sliced pickles
Mayonnaise

In a large food storage bag, combine the oil, seasonings, Worcestershire, orange juice, and chili powder. Add the chicken, close the bag, and toss to combine. Marinate overnight.

Heat grill pan over medium-high heat. Toss together the onion rings, olive oil, brown sugar, and salt and pepper in a bowl. Add the onions and cook until they are tender and charred. Remove to a bowl and cover to keep warm.

Add the chicken to the grill. Cook chicken 5 minutes on one side, brush with BBQ sauce, then flip and cook 4 minutes. Brush the other side with BBQ sauce. With one minute left to cook, top each chicken breast with some of the cheese. Cover the grill pan with foil and let the cheese melt. Remove from the pan.

While the chicken is cooking, butter the cut side of the buns and toast them.

Serve each chicken breast topped with a pile of onions, some more BBQ sauce, pickles and mayonnaise.

Risotto with Caramelized Onions and Spinach

We were all so enamored with Leek and Pea Risotto I made for the last recipe swap, so when I had a bag of baby spinach in the fridge that needed to be used up I immediately thought of risotto. Not surprisingly, Mary Ellen had a few spinach risotto recipes on her blog. Since I love caramelized onions I decided to make her Risotto with Caramelized Onions and Spinach.

SP couldn't believe that the only seasonings in the dish were the salt and pepper I used for the onions. There is just so much flavor from caramelizing them and the taste really shown through. He couldn't stop raving about it and is now a true risotto convert.

Risotto with Caramelized Onions and Spinach
As seen on Mary Ellen's Cooking Creations

2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
3 tablespoons butter, divided
1 large onion sliced into thin rings
Salt and pepper to taste
1 1/4 cups arborio rice
1/4 cup dry white wine
6 cups low sodium chicken broth, warmed
1 6-oz bag baby spinach, chopped
1/2 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Heat 1 tablespoon each of the oil and butter in a large pan over medium heat. Stir the onions often so they brown slowly. This can take 30-40 minutes. Adjust the heat as necessary to keep the onions from burning. I had to add a little water to the pan to keep the onions from burning and that helped pick up the browned bits from the bottom of the pan. Remove the onions from the pan and allow to cool before chopping into small pieces.

Add the other 1 tablespoon of oil to the pan. Add the rice and stir for 1-2 minutes. Add the white wine and stir until it is absorbed.

Start adding the chicken broth one ladle-full at a time, letting it fully absorb before adding more. This process takes anywhere from 17-25 minutes.

Before you add the final ladle of broth, add the caramelized onions and spinach. Taste some of the rice to make sure it's cooked through. Turn off the heat and add the grated cheese and 2 tablespoons of butter.

Thanksgiving Recipes: Creamed Onions with Thyme and Sage

You probably know by now that I'm a sucker for anything in a cream sauce. So what's not to love about creamed onions? These Creamed Onions with Thyme and Sage are so simple to make but pack great flavor.


Since I use frozen pearl onions these require next to no effort. The most time-consuming part is chopping the herbs. And the recipe gets bonus points for being make-ahead friendly.

Creamed Onions with Thyme and Sage
Adapted from Food and Wine

2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 bag frozen pearl onions
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped thyme
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped sage
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground pepper
1 1/2 cups heavy cream
Salt

In a large skillet, melt the butter. Add the onions and cook over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 30 minutes. Add the thyme, sage, nutmeg and white pepper and cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Add the cream and bring to a boil. Simmer over low heat, stirring occasionally, until thickened, about 5 minutes. Season with salt, transfer to a bowl and serve.

Make Ahead - The onions can be refrigerated for up to 2 days. Reheat gently.

Sausage, Peppers and Onions

We went next door for the Super Bowl to hang out with our neighbors. SP wanted to make something fun so he made a huge pot of his delectable sauce for sausage, peppers and onions.


After the sauce cooked for awhile he added cut sausage and sliced green and red peppers and sweet onions to cook. It was absolutely fantastic on soft, pillowy rolls.