For the last couple of weeks I've wanted to write about the wonderful benefits of a daily walk for physical and mental health. As I look out the window this morning, Mud Bay is iced over, the thermometer reads -8, there is a stiff wind blowing out of the north and I am writing this in my long underwear. Needless to say, my exercise sessions of late have been indoors and my ventures out into the great outdoors have been brief. I will save the walking column for a warmer week. Time for another story from the kitchen.
My journey to better health hasn't changed the fact that I still love to cook and enjoy perfecting recipes. The ultimate pizza crust still hasn't popped out of my oven and I had a craving, so pizza was on the menu.
Should Hollywood sitcom producers ever decide they would like to bring back new episodes of the "I Love Lucy" show, they would have enough material for an entire month if they spent a single week with me. Years ago a dear friend nicknamed me Lucy. Very appropriate.
Zany and ridiculous stuff goes on in my life on a regular basis. I have a hard time focusing on one task at a time, I go through life at mach one, I used to have red hair, I am loud and rather obnoxious and have more energy than I know what to do with. Some of these attributes are good to possess, like lots of energy, but some are just downright dangerous -- like the speed at which I usually do things. I have two speeds, sleeping and fast. The fast thing gets me in lots of predicaments, like the time I ironed my arm (still have a nice scar from that), numerous scars from kitchen knife oops, many pieces of glassware long since broken, and many dishes over-salted and -spiced from being in a hurry. My mantra in life is to have fun and I figure the faster I live life, the more fun I will have. Lucy loved life and so do I.
Pizza making is fun. I can use my pizza peel, which is this big thin sheet of metal the size of a pizza on the end of a wooden stick a couple feet long. The trick is to sprinkle the peel with cornmeal, place an unbaked crust on it and then once the pizza stone is hotter than ever in the oven, slide the crust with all its toppings from the peel onto the stone for baking.
The cornmeal is supposed to act as little ball bearings, helping to slide the pizza from the peel to the stone. This is a challenging endeavor for us amateurs. The dough has to be the right size and consistency, the toppings shouldn't be too heavy on the dough and you should be quick with a snap of the wrist.
I've made every mistake doing this you can imagine. Pizza has ended up rolled up in one big glob on the stone, the entire pizza has failed to come off the peel, or toppings have ending up on the bottom of the oven floor burning as the dough stuck to the peel. You get the idea here of how things can go wrong real fast.
Take last night's newest Lucy episode. The dough was a little too large for the peel and draped over the edges a bit. I didn't think it would be a problem. I sprinkled plenty of cornmeal on the peel and was ready to slide my pizza onto the hot stone in the oven. Here we go, the moment that separates the amateurs from the professionals, the transfer of the pizza, sort of like a slide and snap. It made it onto the stone in relatively good shape, with only a few of the toppings sliding over from one side and some of the crust draped over the side of the stone. Quick, shut the oven door.
As the pizza baked and I anticipated enjoying this tasty pie, I cleaned up the kitchen, the Other Fisherman lounged in his chair deeply engrossed in reading his "How to build a Tolman skiff" book (and all I wanted to do was build a pizza for dinner) and the black labs snored at his feet. Next thing I know, there is smoke spilling from the oven and the fire alarms starts screeching at a really loud decibel. The dogs start freaking out as they do when they hear loud noises, (you should see them react to fireworks) and both try jumping into the chair with Mark. Crazy!
I open the window and a gust of subarctic wind blows into the kitchen. I turn the range hood vent to high, which makes even more noise, and grab the first thing I see to fan the alarms with to quiet them -- the pizza peel. OK, do the visual here: two 90-pound dogs trying to jump onto Mark's lap while I spastically wave the pizza peel back and forth below the fire alarm scattering the cornmeal that stuck to the peel all over the kitchen.
Like I said, that was just what happened last night. I am cleaning the oven right now, but I didn't burn myself. I did discover the pizza peel is much more effective at fanning the fire alarms into quietness than a magazine or newspaper. The pizza turned out great, by the way.
Even those of us eating healthy can enjoy our favorite foods. A favorite of mine is pizza. You also can make it healthy by using small amounts of cheese, fat free cheese and other lower fat versions of ingredients such as turkey pepperoni and incorporating lots of veggies. You also can make it as decadent as you want, using gobs of gooey mozzarella and spicy meat toppings of Italian sausage and pepperoni, whatever you like. You're only limited by your imagination.
The other issue here is quantity consumed. You can limit yourself to a piece or two, but anything more than that is in the downright overeating category. Usually eating pizza in moderation is something hard to do, so I only indulge occasionally.
A new combination based on a favorite pizza eatery pie is a chipotle steak pizza made with steak pieces, red onion, a little mozzarella and parmesan cheeses, and mushrooms. After it comes out of the oven, sprinkle on some chopped cilantro and fresh tomato and drizzle with a chipotle- and lime-flavored sour cream sauce. The after-baking addition makes it extra tasty and provides a nice contrast in flavors, textures and temperatures.
Lucy's Chipotle Steak Pizza
Oven 450 degrees | Serves 4
Crusty Pizza Dough
1 package active dry yeast
1 cup warm water, (105 to 115 F)
One teaspoon salt
2 teaspoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/2 cup whole wheat flour
Cormeal
Flour
Toppings
Mozzarella cheese or fat free mozzarella
Parmesan cheese
Left over steak pieces (leave them off if you want to make it all veggie)
Red onion slices
Sliced fresh mushrooms
Fresh Cilantro
Fresh Tomato
chipotle sauce
Mix about one-third cup sour cream (try nonfat yogurt if you're attempting to cut out fat) in a medium size bowl with enough milk to form the consistency of heavy cream. Add 1 teaspoon ground chipotle spice, a little garlic salt and paprika, and 2 teaspoons of freshly squeezed lime juice. Adjust seasonings to your taste. If you would like it spicier, add more of each spice.
Dissolve the yeast in warm water in warmed mixing bowl. Add salt, olive oil, 1 cup of the flour and all the wheat flour. Beat with heavy duty mixing paddle, scraping sides of bowl occasionally about 2 minutes until smooth. Add remaining dough. Mix until combined.
Remove from bowl to surface dusted with flour and knead dough until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Place dough in greased bowl, turning to grease top of dough after placing in bowl. Cover with a damp towel or wax paper or plastic wrap in set in a warm, draft free area for an hour or until doubled in bulk. Once risen, punch dough down with floured fist.
If you have a pizza stone and pizza peel, you know what to do with the dough after this step. For those of us who should best stick with the tried and true process of baking your pizza, brush a 14 inch pizza plan with oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal.
On the floured surface, roll your pizza dough out with a rolling pin until is just about the size of pan. Transfer the dough to the prepared pizza pan and finish pressing the dough across the pan, forming a little collar around the edge to hold the toppings.
Scatter crust with about 1 cup shredded mozzarella and one quarter cup parmesan cheese. Place little pieces of left over steak, roast or prime rib over the cheese. Place thin slices of red onion and your favorite sliced mushrooms over all. Bake at 450 until cheese is brown and bubbly, and crust is crispy on the bottom, about 15 minutes.
Remove pizza from oven and sprinkle with two tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro and some diced fresh tomato. Drizzle the chipotle topping over all and enjoy.
Progress report: I indulged a bit over the holidays, but managed to hold on to the 70-pound weight loss as I was committed to getting at least an hour of daily exercise. I was much more mindful of what went into my mouth this year as well and think my healthy eating habits really have made themselves into habits. This year will be the year I lose those last few 10 pounds. Hopefully the weather will warm a bit and I can get outdoors for more skiing, as it is a great way to get some outdoorphins.
Until next time, do whatever you can to stay active and be careful having fun in the kitchen.
