Two Pizzas and Strawberry Lemonade

For some strange reason, I've been wanting to try a new pizza recipe for quite a while.  I had a craving for Feta and spinach.  After a good deal of searching, I found a great Greek Pizza online. It sounded great (much like a Greek salad I've had before).  After making this pizza, I must say that it really is quite good.  I wouldn't say it's one of my favorites, but if you like Greek style food, you'll enjoy this pizza.  Unfortunately, I forgot the rosemary.  I'm sure it would have only added to the already flavorful pizza, but I'll have to wait until next time to know for sure. Recipe from Fields of Greens by Annie Somerville.

Greek Pizza

1 Tbs. extra virgin olive oil

½ medium-size red onion, thinly sliced

Salt and pepper

2 garlic cloves, finely chopped

1 lg bunch spinach, washed, 8 to 10 cups

1 tsp. minced lemon zest

Pizza Dough, ready to roll out

Garlic Oil

6 Kalamata olives, pitted and chopped

3 ounces feta, crumbled, 1 ½ cups

¼ lb. mozzarella, grated, 1 ½ cups

½ oz. Parmesan cheese, grated, 3 Tbs.

1 tsp. chopped fresh rosemary

Heat 2 tsp. of the olive oil in a sauté pan. Add the red onion, ¼ tsp. salt, and a few pinches of pepper. Sauté over medium heat for 4 to 5 minutes, until tender. Add half of the garlic and sauté for 1 minute. Transfer to a bowl.

Heat the remaining tsp. of olive oil in the pan. Wilt the spinach over high heat with ¼ tsp. salt, a few pinches of pepper, and the remaining garlic. When the spinach is wilted but still bright green, in about 1 minute, remove it from the pan and place it in a strainer to cool. Squeeze out the excess moisture with your hands, then coarsely chop and toss with the lemon zest.

Preheat oven to 450°F. Roll out the dough and place it on a lightly oiled pizza pan or well-floured wooden peel; brush with the Garlic Oil. Spread the onion on the dough, followed by the spinach. Sprinkle the olives over the spinach, follow with the crumbled feta, then add the mozzarella cheese.

Bake the pizza, in the pan or on a preheated pizza stone, for 8 to 12 minutes, until the crust is golden and crisp. Remove it from the oven and sprinkle with the Parmesan cheese and fresh rosemary.

The other pizza is an old favorite of mine. I  sort of made this recipe myself based on the Barbecue Chicken pizza from Village Tavern in Winston-Salem, NC. I've ordered this pizza so many times, that I could easily remember the toppings on my own.  I'm sure that you'll enjoy this pizza.  As I've stated in previous posts, I use Sweet Baby Ray's Hickory and Brown Sugar BBQ Sauce.  It's the absolute best (everybody says so).  This time, I did not use the Pillsbury Pizza Crust (usually I do).  I decided to try the pizza crusts that are hanging up unrefrigerated.  If you get them at Walmart as I did, I think it's near the pastas. They were delicious and baked up a little crispier than the Pillsbury.

Barbecue Chicken Pizza

1 Pillsbury Pizza Dough

½ cup spaghetti sauce

2 boneless skinless chicken breasts

1 ½ cups Italian Blend of Cheeses

Barbecue Sauce

5 – 7 slices of bacon

Cilantro

Preheat Oven to 425º or whatever your pizza recipe says. Spread pizza dough onto large cookie sheet with nonstick mat. Prebake the pizza crust for 5 minutes. Spread spaghetti sauce onto crust. Cook chicken breasts and bacon. Cut chicken into small cubes and add to pizza. Spread cheese blend (Italian blend: Provolone, Mozzarella, Parmesan and Romano) onto pizza evenly. Sparingly spread the BBQ sauce over the pizza. You don’t need to use a lot. Using kitchen shears cut the bacon into bits and spread evenly on pizza. Also using kitchen shears cut cilantro and add some to pizza (Don’t go overboard with fresh cilantro, a little goes a long way).

One the way home today from work, I heard a commercial on the radio that mentioned sweet strawberry lemonade.  It sounded so delicious and refreshing that I knew I need to make some when I got home.  I had purchased a lemon to use for the Greek Pizza so I thought I could slice it right up and add it to the lemonade.  I had leftover strawberries from the cobbler and another dessert that someone else made for a friend's birthday.  What better way is there to celebrate Summer?  I keep lemon juice on hand for various recipes (and just recently purchased more from Costco), so I knew that making this delicious and quenching beverage would be no problem. 

I hope you enjoy all the recipes I have given you so far.  Please feel free to comment and try them.  If you need any assistance or have questions, feel free to send me a message. Enjoy!!