Challenge No. 28 – Pizza

Posted on July 16, 2015 by MyGastroAdventure

I don’t know about you, but I absolutely love pizza! My dad is a pizza supplier and there was always a lot of pizza in the house growing up, so much so that I think my brother and I perhaps share a slightly unhealthy love for pizza. If I had to choose one meal to live on for the rest of my life, I’m pretty sure it would be pizza. So when my mum suggested this as one of the challenges, I thought it was brilliant.

I had a quick search online and found a recipe for a mozzarella and pesto pizza with homemade base and sauce. I used different toppings but the dough and sauce recipe was just perfect for what I wanted. So to make this recipe, you will need the following ingredients:-

500g bread flour (plus more for kneading)
1tbsp salt
330ml tepid water
2 tbsp olive oil
1tbsp golden sugar
1 7g sachet of dried yeast
1 tin of tomatoes
1 tsp of oregano
1 clove of garlic
1 tsp of salt

I started by sifting my flour and salt into a large bowl and then made a well in the centre.

I mixed the water, oil and sugar together and then added the yeast. I gave it a good mix and waited 3 minutes before pouring the mixture into my flour well.

I used a metal spoon to slowly stir the flour into the liquid until it was well combined. I ended up having to add a little bit more water as it seemed a bit too dry. I just added a few drops at a time until it came together as a relatively sticky dough.

I floured my work top and tipped out the dough ball. I gave it a good knead for about 10 minutes until it was smooth and springy. I popped it in a clean bowl which I had covered with a fine coating of flour, sprinkled some flour on top of the dough and then I covered the bowl with a damp tea towel. I put the bowl in the hottest part of my flat, in front of the working tumble dryer and set the timer for 1 hour.

Practical tip: in case you missed Challenge No. 16, remember to develop your own method of kneading. This may sound silly but when I first starting making bread, I tried to replicate other people’s kneading styles. Unfortunately, I have bad joints, particularly bad in my hands and I found it painful to use some of the methods I’d seen on TV. Instead I found I rolled and stretched the dough between my two hands, using more of the heel of my hand than my fingers. It takes a little longer for me to knead like this but I always get there in the end and it is less painful 🙂 So find a method that works for you and just go with that.

Whilst the dough was proving, I set about making the pizza sauce. I drained the juices from the tinned tomatoes and popped the leftover tomatoes into a jug. I added the oregano, garlic and salt and then blitzed it with my handheld mixer. The smell was absolutely beautiful and instantly reminded me of a lovely fresh cooked Italian pizza! Just what you want from a pizza sauce 🙂

When the timer went off for my dough, I turned the oven on to 220 degrees celsius and put in two tray upside down. According to the recipe I found, this helps crisp up the base of the pizza.

I tipped out the dough onto a well floured surface and divided the mixture into 4 equal balls. I took the first one a kneaded it for about 5 minutes until it felt right to start stretching. I gave it a bit of a roll with the rolling pin and then decided that, if I am making pizza, I’m going to do it properly…so I started throwing it in the air, spinning it into a flat oval. It kind of worked too!! I still had to give it a bit of a stretch to get it to the right size but I soon had a base ready to be topped. I popped it onto some floured foil and got started on the toppings.

Practical tip: this recipe makes 4 pizza bases. If you don’t want to eat all four at once, just knead and shape any extra dough. Layered the extra bases together with foil to separate them and then pop them in the freezer for another day.

I made Dave’s pizza first and added some sauce before layering up some grated cheddar, pepperoni slices, ham slices, some barbecue chicken, some pulled mozzarella and then a drizzle of chilli oil.

Practical tip: don’t cut your mozzarella, always pull it. I’ll be honest I don’t know why this is but its something my dad always says to do when topping a pizza and having been in the industry for a long time, I’m inclined to listen to him 🙂

With Dave’s pizza put to one side, I took the next ball of dough to knead and stretch into my base. I topped it with some of the sauce and then added my ingredients. I covered a quarter of the pizza with goats cheese, a quarter with gorgonzola, a quarter with mozzarella and a quarter with a cheddar/parmesan mix. I then topped it all with ham and some chilli oil.

I put each pizza onto one of the heated trays and put them in the oven. I set the timer for 8 minutes and when this went off, I broke an egg into the centre of my pizza. Trust me, don’t knock this until you have tried it. Egg on a pizza is one of life’s little food secrets that no-one should miss out on (although Dave still wont try it!).

I let the pizzas cook for another couple of minutes and then decided they needed a little longer. I hadn’t made my bases quite as thin as the recipe suggests and I know Dave prefers his pizza slightly overdone. I ended up cooking the pizzas for about 16 minutes in total and this was just about right for us.

These were absolutely amazing! They was much less greasy than a takeaway pizza and I’m amazed at how simple it was to do. Once I’ve used the 2 extra bases I have in the freezer, I will definitely be making some more.

Coming up next week, Challenge No. 29 – panda cupcakes (gluten free).

Challenge No. 27 – Knickerbocker Glory

Posted on July 9, 2015 by MyGastroAdventure

This challenge was suggested by Dave, my better half. We will be celebrating our 7 year anniversary this weekend and a common theme throughout our relationship has been Dave saying “what you’ve never tried/seen/heard this or that”. Until Dave, I hadn’t tried hotdogs from a tin or corned beef, I hadn’t seen The Breakfast Club, ET, Jurassic Park (to name but a few films that escaped my childhood) and I’d never heard of the Smiths. But for once, it was my turn to educate Dave; whilst he suggested this challenge, he’s never actually had a knickerbocker glory! This has now been corrected.

A knickerbocker glory was a common treat throughout my childhood and it instantly makes me think of my nan. My brother and I used to go and stay with my nan every summer and she would always make us this yummy desert. There was however a caveat, we could only have it if we pronounced it properly! We soon learned to say knickerbocker glory without stumbling 🙂

When I started looking for recipes to make this challenge, I realised they are all very different and really what I wanted to do was recreate my nan’s version. I text my brother and mum to see if they could remember what was in it and after some input from them both, we decided on the following ingredients:-

Vanilla ice cream
Strawberry jelly
Fruit (fresh or tinned cocktail mix)
Strawberry sauce
Whipped cream
Hundreds and thousands

I always remember my nan using tinned fruit cocktail, although I think she would use fresh fruit if she had some in. I opted for the tinned fruit because this is what came to mind when I tried to remember my nan’s version 🙂

I also cheated a little and used shop bought ice cream but if you’re feeling adventures why not check out Challenge 19 to see how to make ice cream from scratch without an ice cream maker! Just leave out the rum and raisins, unless you want a more adult version of the knickerbocker glory.

Another important aspect of the knickerbocker glory is the serving dish. I didn’t have anything suitable at home so popped out and bought some special glasses which reminded me of the ones my nan used to use.

Anyway, with all the elements ready, I started building my knickerbocker glory. Firstly, I added a little bit of ice cream.

Then I added some jelly.

Next up I added some fruit (I drained off the liquid first).

I then put in a little strawberry sauce. I added more ice cream, jelly and fruit to fill to the top of the glass.

Finally, I added my whipped cream, topped it with some more sauce and then sprinkled over a handful of hundreds.

Doesn’t it look pretty! 🙂

Now I know this didn’t take much skill but it does hold so many fond memories for me that it was nice to be able to share it with Dave. He loved it by the way, although he managed to get in a right mess trying to eat it!

Coming up next week, Challenge No. 28 – homemade pizza. I hope to see you then.

Challenge No. 26 – Chilli Con Carne

Posted on July 2, 2015 by MyGastroAdventure

This challenge was suggested by my dad and I was really happy to have a go at this one. Dave and I quite often have chilli con carne but I always cheat and use one of the sachet powder mixes. Dad’s suggestion was the final push I needed to actually have a go at making it from scratch.

I did a little google search and found a huge selection of recipes to choose from. If I’m honest there were too many and I didn’t know which one to go for. Eventually, I opted for this one by Susie Amy.

To make this recipe you will need the following:-

4 tbsp vegetable oil
500g/1lb 2oz good-quality beef mince
2 onions, diced
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 carrots, diced
2 celery stalks, diced
2 red peppers, diced
1 heaped tsp chilli powder
1 heaped tsp ground cumin
1 heaped tsp ground cinnamon
salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 x 400g/14oz can red kidney beans, drained
2 x 400g/14oz cans chopped tomatoes

I also added 160g bacon lardons and I left out the kidney beans because neither Dave or I like them. The bacon always adds a lovely taste to my cheats chilli con carne and I thought it would be a nice edition.

I had planned to make this on a Sunday so I could give it a nice long slow cook but my parents decided to pop up for a last minute visit and we went out for dinner because they had eaten chilli con carne the night before. I therefore ended up making this after work on Monday night.

I started by frying of the bacon lardons in a little oil in a large frying pan. Whilst the bacon was cooking, I started chopping up all the vegetables, making sure they were nice and small.

Once the bacon was nicely browned, I tipped them into a big sauce pan along with the fat they had released. I then returned the frying pan to the heat and added the beef.

I then added all the vegetables (except the garlic) to the saucepan with the bacon and let this cook over a medium heat for around 10 minutes to soften. After about 8 minutes, I added the crushed garlic.

Once the vegetables were soft, I added the spices and some salt and pepper. I gave it a good stir and then let it cook for 5 minutes. At this point, I contemplated adding another ingredient. I thought it would be nice to add some paprika, however, I decided to stick to the recipe.

Next up I added the browned mince to the saucepan along with the tinned tomatoes. I brought the mixture to the boil, covered it with a lid and let it cook for one hour.

With everything done, I served up with some rice and we tucked in.

Dave and I both agreed this was really nice but to be honest it just tasted like a slightly spicy bolognese. Personally we like our chilli a little thicker and smokier. Next time I’m going to try adding some smoked paprika and perhaps take the lid off part way through to allow some of the moisture to escape. My cheats chilli con carne is really good (even if I do say so myself, although Dave and my friend Nikki will also vouch for this!) so it was always going to be tough trying to make something as nice from scratch.

This is the first recipe I’ve tried in Challenge 52 where I really wasn’t very happy with the result. The recipe did however make enough for another four portions and chilli is better when its been left for the flavours to blend and strengthen. So, I now have four portions of chilli in the freezer to try another day.

Coming up next week, Challenge No. 27 – knickerbocker glory! 🙂

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