Avery Unlimited

Well, it’s another NASCAR Sunday. Aside from the pleasure of watching the race, especially if my favorite Carl Edwards wins, it means PIZZA! I started this tradition because I like having something we can just gnosh on, that requires little effort. DeGiorno (not delivery - no such thing this far from civilization) was doing fine for us, as long as I doctored it a bit (fresh tomatoes, lots of cheese).

Last week, I decided to stretch a little and make homemade pizza. I had cooked a wonderful cornish game hen with fig glaze (thanks to Tyler on the Food Network) but we only ate one of the two I made. What do do with the leftovers? PIZZA.

Well, with an allowance for too much crust, it turned out great. So this week I decided to make an eggplant one, although when I checked the garden there was only one small eggplant. It still turned out great.

Here’s the recipe.

First, the crust. Warning! this is hand made. No machine mixing - hey, it’s not that hard and feels and smells great. Relaxing.

OK, use one pack of yeast dissolved in about a cup of warm water in the bowl you plan to use to mix the dough. You may need a little more water later. Add a couple of tablespoons of sugar to feed the little devils and stir it up.

After it proofs (i.e fuzzy, creamy), first stir in about a quarter cup of olive oil, then it’s time to add the flour. I used about a half pound (you know, half of one of those little bags. I get those because they easily fit in a plastic storage bag, a requisite when you live in a bug infested environment. Nothing more discouraging than pulling out flour where a bunch of fluttering bugs have taken residence. Yuk!).

Anyway, sprinkle the flour over the yeast, then add about a tablespoon of salt. With a spoon start stirring the mixture and incorporate all the flour and water/yeast mixture. You’ll have flour left over; try to press the mixture to make sure you have gotten as much flour in as possible, then add small amounts of water until all the flour is incorporated, but don’t let it get sticky.

Press it around with your hands in the bowl, then turn it out onto a floured (lightly) surface. I use one of my trays. It’s plastic, and its high sides keep the mess of flour etc. from getting all over. Flatten the ball of dough with your fist, then start kneading by pulling half the dough over onto the other then pressing it together with the balls of your palm.

Hey, sorry for the detail to those that know, but so many people don’t cook! Cant believe that they actually think they can eat healthily and still pay rent going out to eat so much, or eating that horrible frozen prepared stuff. It’s so easy to cook. End of editorial.

So knead it about 10 minutes (think of it as a form of lovemaking, sensual, rhythmic… and all to create something delicious for those you love). Then put some olive oil in the bowl you mixed it in to begin with, about a quarter cup, and turn the ball of dough in it (this keeps the dough from drying out while its rising). Cover with a towel and set in a warm place to rise.

After the dough is about two/two and a half times bigger (45 minutes to an hour), put a little flour on your surface and turn it out. Repeat the kneading and return it to the bowl for a second rising.

Interjection. Karl just won the race! YES!!! Another flip - second of the weekend, since he won the Nationwide race yesterday. The first time I watched a Nascar race, he won his first Nascar race and did his signature back flip. I was hooked on him and the racing! Still my favy-fave racer, so wholesomely handsome, a “son-figure”. Would love to cook him some pizza !

Well I know cooking this pizza sounds like a lot of trouble, but it’s Sunday, and the idea is to just pace it along with the rest of whatever there is to do. When its done, its done. It serves as lunch and dinner, so just a relaxing fun thing.

For example, this morning as ever, Geoff woke me with cappucino and company. He’d already been up a while, and was full of all sorts of commentary on his dreams (I mean real sleep dreams as in meeting Kelsey Grammer and getting him sober, I won’t say how, and ideas for a series with him; yesterday it was a nightmare where the Second Life vampires were after him, but he prevailed. I won’t say how - not giving away his secrets), as well as about the TV shows we were watching. First Norm, finishing his shop bench. Then Tyler, cooking chicken cacciatore. Boy, I can’t wait for the new stove/kitchen! So much great food, such small appetites. But that leaves leftovers for pizza!

I guess I was talking about organizing, sort of, and anyhow, after watching the CBS morning show (after taking care of the horses and dogs/cats) I got started on pizza by getting the dough, above, going. Once it was out rising, I pulled out my one small eggplant, peeled it, sliced it (1/4 inch) and quartered the pieces. Got a skillet hot and put in olive oil. While it was heating I chopped up about 4 garlic cloves and tossed them in the skillet. Then the eggplant.

Now eggplant will absorb the oil, so flavor it. I threw in a lot of pepper, a little salt. I let it cook until soft and a little browned. Then turned it out onto paper towels to absorb the excess oil. then I took about a half pound (I think) of fresh mild Italian style sausage and cooked it in the same oil I had used for the eggplant. I added more garlic in the form of powder, some pepper, lots of dried basil and Italian seasoning. Break up the sausage so it’s crumbly pieces. After it had cooked I added some Alfredo style sauce, maybe half a jar. You could also use any spaghetti sauce - just enough to make it creamyish.

So that’s it except for slicing fresh tomatoes and assembling it with lots of cheese on top at the end.

Once the dough has risen the second time knead it again, only this time, at the end, start pulling it into the shape of the pizza pan you are using. Mine was square. Set it in the pan and push and press it evenly into the pan, making sure to have a lip at the edge to hold in any juices. Let it rise in the pan while you slice the tomatoes (I used 2 that I had just picked in the garden) and pull the cheeses out of the fridge. I used some Asiago, about half a bag of 6 Cheese Italian mix, and 3 or 4 handfuls of mozarella.

While I was waiting for the dough to rise in the pizza pan, I was watching the pre-race show and copying CDs into my laptop for syncing into Geoff’s Shuffle and my Iphone. Hey, just getting it done.

Well, I preheated the oven (currently located in the laundry room while the kitchen is redone) at 500 degrees. It has a pizza stone in it and the idea is to get it as hot as possible so the bottom cooks in the short pizza cooking time (15-20 minutes, keep an eye on it).

To assemble the pizza, spread the sausage mixture over the bottom, then place tomatoes on the center of each piece with pieces in between. Then put the cooked eggplant on the tomatoes and if you have more, just spread them around. I would have liked to use more. Then the Asiago, then 6-cheese, then mozzarella. Pop in the oven, onto the pizza stone if you have one, and TURN DOWN the temperature to 400 degrees. 20 minutes and YUM-YUM!

And all worth it to watch Carl win and have a pleasant afternoon at the races!