Bar b que Chicken Pizza

I am already aware the Italians would cringe and scoff at me for this recipe. However, good food is good food and sometimes good food is "trashy". Bar b que chicken pizza is one of those foods. Sweet sticky bar b que sauce with roasted chicken, red onions, mozzarella and a flourish of fresh herbs in the form of parsely and cilantro.

I got the recipe for the pizza dough from Everyday Food and I think it's brilliant because it contradicts everything the pizza pundits chant. For one, this dough is ready in 1 hour which is a winner in my eyes and it uses an abundance of olive oil (always a good thing) and it essentially means you can make pizza when you get that pizza whim. Nowadays the body of knowledge of pizza making is exhausting and it leaves you feeling like an idiot if you don't line your oven with quary tiles or try your hardest to create that perfect crispy crust. I say to hell with all of that rubbish! You can make a perfectly respectable dough using this recipe and you will end up with a very crispy crust and a delicious pizza. So fear not, take courage and create your own pizza...the possibilities are endless.

So for this recipe I chose bar b que chicken as my topping but I can be here for hours suggesting toppings. Why not try a lamb merguez/mozzarella topping or go with something traditional like tomato sauce, basil and parma ham. Or you can go vegetarian if so inclined and create a spinach, garlic and mozzarella pizza. Your palate and imagination will be your guiding light but what I gift you with is a wonderful, dependable and most of all easy pizza dough. Enjoy!

Pizza Dough (adapted from Everyday Food)
1 packet instant yeast (10g)
2 tbsp sugar
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp salt
1 1/2 cups warm water
4 cups all purpose flour

1. Whisk together the yeast, sugar, oil and warm water. Add one cup of flour then the salt and stir with a wooden spoon. Gradually add the rest of the flour until a very sticky mass of dough is formed. Don't be tempted to add more flour, this is a no knead dough so it's meant to be extremely sticky. Transfer dough to a heavily oiled bowl then cover with more oil then kling. Leave to rise for 1 hour after which you r dough will be ready to top. To shape dough simply divide the dough in half then press it out to desired thickness. I made 2 12 inch pizzas with this recipe.

Chicken Bar B Que Topping:
2 large bone in chicken breasts
2 stalks of green onions
3 cloves of garlic minced
1 1/2 cups bar b que sauce sweetened with sugar or honey to taste
1 large onion thinly sliced
Salt and pepper
8 ozs of grated mozzarella (not fresh)
Freshy chopped parsley (flat leaf Italian) and cilantro to your taste

Preheat oven to 425.
1. Season the chicken breasts well with salt and pepper. Add the scallions/gree onions which should be chopped as well as the garlic and bar b que sauce. Cover the dish with foil and bake for 25 minutes. After this time the chicken breasts will not be completely cooked but that ok. Let them cool completely then cube them and place them back into the bar b que sauce. Discard the chicken bones.
2. When ready to bake the pizza, top the pizza with the chicken and bar b que sauce. Bake for 10 minutes then top with the red onion slices. Bake for another 10 minutes then top with the cheese and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes. If  after all this time your pizza is not a nice brown colour simply preheat your broiler and broil pizza for no more than 2- 3 minutes. To garnish, top the pizza with the chopped herbs. Don't under utilize the fresh herbs, they give the dish a real fresh flavour.

Icebox Cookies

Here is an addition to your cookie/biscuit collection. The convenience of these alone are worth the little effort it takes to prepare them. You can prepare your dough and bake it after a couple hours in the freezer or simply freeze it and slice and bake them when guests come round.

I have made this recipe from "Cook's Illustrated Holiday Baking". I highly recommend the Cook's Illustrated books or America's Test Kitchen series if you want to become a better cook. They are all about acumen and troubleshooting and their recipes are generally foolproof. I made my cookies with a cinnamon sugar variation but you can bake them plain or if you would like to do chocolate biscuits then simply reduce the flour to 2 cups and add to it 1/4 cup of sifted Dutch processed cocoa. Add 2 ounces of melted and cooled semisweet chocolate to the batter along with the yolks and vanilla. Enjoy!

Vanilla Icebox Cookies (recipe adapted from Cook's Illustrated Holiday Baking)

Ingredients:
2 1/4 cups unbleached all purpose flour
1/2 tsp table salt
16 tbsp (8oz) unsalted butter, softened but cool
3/4 cup granulated sugar
1/2 cup confectioner's sugar
2 large egg yolks
2 tsp vanilla extract

1. Whisk together flour and salt in medium bowl; set aside.
2. In bowl of electric mixer, beat butter and sugars at medium speed until light and fluffy, 1 to 1 1/2 minutes. Scrape the sides of bowl with rubber spatula. Add yolks and vanilla and beat until incorporated, 15 to 20 seconds. Add dry ingredients and mix at low speed until dough forms and is thoroughly mixed, 25 to 30 seconds. (Dough will be soft but not sticky. If dough is sticky, chill for 10 to 15 minutes).
3. Divide dough in half. Working with one half at a time, roll dough on clean work surface into log measuring about 6 inches long and 2 inches thick. Wrap each log in plastic and refrigerate at least 2 hours or up to 3 days. (Dough can be frozen up to 1 month. Wrap logs in plastic wrap then foil before freezing.)
4. Adjust oven racks to upper and lower middle positions and heat oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or spray with nonstick cooking spray.
5. Unwrap dough logs one at a time and with sharp knife cut each dough in half, then into 1/4 inch slices. Place slices on baking sheets, spacing them 1/2 to 1 inch apart.
6. Bake until edges begin to brown, about 14 minutes, rotating baking sheets front to back and top to bottom halfway through baking time. Cool cookies on baking sheets for 2 minutes then transfer to wire rack with wide metal spatula.

Variation : Cinnamon Sugar Icebox Cookies
Save the egg whites when separating eggs for the dough. Follow the recipe brushing the chilled logs with the beaten egg whites. Roll logs in mixture of 3 tbsp sugar and 2 tsp ground cinnamon.

Arabesque Braised Beef

Sunday lunch is always a conundrum as to what to serve. Lately, I have been revisiting some of my beloved Middle Eastern cookbooks. My prized possessions are Claudia Roden's New book Of Middle Eastern Food, Recipes And Remembrances by Sonia Uvezian off the top of my head but I own many more.  What I adore about this type of cuisine is the gentle fragrance of the lightly spiced food. You can detect spices but somehow your palate is not overwhelmed by them.

So with that in mind my lunch table today was very arabesque. I prepared beef braised with carrots in a spice scented sauce and to partner with I prepared green beans with tomatoes. I felt the two worked magically as the tomato flavour of the beans complemented the spicy beef. I suppose this can be similar to a tagine or a khoresht but I felt that it really was neither of the two in the end. Not quite a tagine because I sometimes feel a tagine should also include nuts or fruit and definitely not a khoresht because of the absence of dried limes and saffron. However, what it does have in common with the Moroccan and Persian stews is the technique. The fact that it is a braised dish and beautifully balanced with the right amount of spices.

This dish is a nice starting point for you if you are curious about Middle Eastern cuisine. Although I have posted a recipe I do hope you simply use it as a guide and try to improvise in whatever way you wish. For instance if you feel you want to add more of any of the spices then do. If you require more chilis then add. All you need to understand from the recipe is the technique. It is a braised dish which requires a small amount of liquid to cook the beef and a low and slow cooking time. I urge you to pair this dish with the grean beans and tomatoes and of course the quintessential side dish of the Middle East - basmati rice.

Arabesque Braised Beef

Ingredients:
2lbs cubed beef clod/chuck
1 large onion thinly sliced
6 cloves of garlic minced
1 large carrot sliced
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
2 red chilis (or to your taste)
Salt and pepper to taste
pinch of sugar
juice of 1 lime

Spice Blend:
2 tbsp coriander seeds
1/2 tbsp ground cardamom
1/2 tsp ground nutmeg
1 tsp ground allspice
1/2 tsp smoked paprika
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1 tsp ground ginger

Heat the coriander seeds in a dry skillet until fragrant then blend in a grinder with the other spices. Set aside.

To make the Beef:
1. Heat the oil in a fairly large pan over medium high heat. Add the onions and the garlic with a little salt. Add to the spice mixture about 3 tbsp of water and add that to the onion mixture.
2. Once the water has evaporated from the spice mixture then add the beef and saute. Season the meat well with salt and pepper and add about 1 cup of water. Add the carrots and bring the mixture to a boil. Once it has come to a boil reduce to a simmer on a gentle heat and let it cook for about 1 1/2 hours. Check the pot and stir it every 30 minutes or so. I doubt you would require more water - I didn't.
3. Once the meat is tender, turn off the stove and just let the meat sit until it is warm. Do not eat this dish piping hot as the flavours meld better as it cools. I did not have fresh chopped coriander which I usually garnish with but I urge you to garnish with it as the coriander further enhances the flavour of the dish. Enjoy!

Green Beans With Tomatoes
Ingredient:
1/2 lb green beans ( I always cut mine in half lenghtways)
4 medium tomatoes chopped
1 medium onion sliced
4 cloves of garlic minced
salt and pepper to taste
pinch of sugar
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Heat the oil in a pan over a medium heat then add the tomatoes, onions and garlic. Let this mixture cook for about 10 minutes adding salt, pepper and a tip of sugar to reduce the acidity of the tomates. Once the tomatoes have softened and released their liquid add the green beans and more salt to taste. Let this cook for a further 10 minutes or until the beans are soft enough for your taste. Enjoy!