"Pizza is always 'was awesome'"

Or so says my dear friend B., and in this case he's right. I'm in cleaning out the pantry mode, seeing as I'm about to leave the country for six months, and pizza dough does wonders for emptying the flour jar. Two of the three incarnations were smashing successes; the third, a cheeseburger stromboli, wasn't half bad but probably not worth repeating. The base in all cases was this recipe from the NY Times, which makes two or three normal-thickness crusts. The recipe says to let it rise an hour or two; if you're foresighted enough let it go in the fridge overnight. Or if not, y'know, don't. Save these for a day when you don't mind having a 500-degree oven going. I've gotta say they're pretty damn awesome.


Sausage Pizza 
Half a batch of dough
One Italian sausage (hot Italian, if you're me)
Half a can of diced tomatoes (the good kind, no sugar or salt or other crap added)
Fennel seeds
Good pecorino romano cheese (Locatelli's best)
Sea salt, pepper, olive oil
 
Bring the dough up to room temperature. Preheat the oven as high as it goes, around 500-550 degrees if you can, with a pizza stone in it if you've got. Roll out the dough as thin as possible. Cover with tomatoes, fennel seeds, the innards of the sausage, cheese, salt and cracked pepper to taste. Next time maybe I'll add some fresh oregano too. Bake it til the crust it golden brown, maybe 20-25 minutes. About 10 minutes in, brush the exposed crust with olive oil. Let it cool a bit before you take a bite; I burned the crap out of the roof of my mouth on this one. Which is a good sign with pizza, I think. The leftovers were fantastic cold the next day for lunch.

Bacon/Onion/Olive Pizza, aka the Umami Bomb
Sort of  a cross between a pissaladiere and a deep-dish pizza. And for the love of god, don't add any extra salt.

The other half batch of dough
The other half can (unsalted!) tomatoes
Half an onion
8 or 10 chopped black olives (good herby ones, not crap from a can)
Chopped fresh sage
4 slices bacon, chopped
Fresh pepper
More romano

Let the dough come to room temperature. Meanwhile, chop the onion and saute it in a cast iron skillet. When it gets soft, set it aside but leave the pan oiled. Give the bacon a minute or two on the heat to crisp the edges but don't cook it through. Set aside.


Preheat the oven to 550. Sprinkle some polenta grains/grits in the skillet to stop the dough sticking (optional, the oil itself will do fine). Roll the dough out to just larger than the skillet and set it in, making sure there's a raised edge. Cover with the tomatoes first, then the other stuff, bacon on top. Bake about 25 minutes, til the crust is golden and the bacon is cooked. I pit the bacon on the bottom and ended up putting it under the broiler to make sure things were cooked through and it got a bit charred, not that that's entirely a bad thing for pizza crust.

I love avocados more than life itself

So here are some things I've been doing with them:

Mediterranean Veggie Sandwich
I got one of these at Pret a Manger in the DC train station a while back, so here's my version. It tastes better on a good buttery baguette, but is far less messy as a wrap. Your call.

Avocado
Finely sliced red onion or shallots
Chopped black olives - for christ sake use the good marinated herby kind, not that crap out of a can
Hummus
Spinach
Tomato slices
Cucumber slices
S&P to taste
A few shakes of cayenne
Drizzle of olive oil

Put all of the above on a baguette or wrap. Bring napkins

Guacamole
I know everybody has their own guacamole recipe. This is mine, and it's really good. If you're a purist who says guac should contain only avocados, lime juice, and salt, then I have nothing to say to you.

Avocados
Garlic, roughly 1 clove per avocado
Cumin - 2 shakes per avocado
Salt
Lime juice - 1tsp per avocado
Cayenne - 1 shake per avocado
Chopped tomatoes.

Slice ripe avocados into a bowl. Add minced or garlic-pressed garlic, salt to taste, lime juice, cayenne, and cumin. Mash well (fork or pastry blender, or food processor if you like it totally smooth, which I don't.) Taste, preferably using a tortilla chip, so you get the context. Add more of whatever it needs, probably lime & salt. Mix in the chopped tomatoes at the end.

Bacon Burgers
I had burgers the other day made with bacon ground into the meat, and they were awesome. I put avocado on top.

Mix two parts ground beef to one part finely chopped raw bacon. Mix in shredded sharp cheddar and a dollop of bbq and/or Worcestershire sauce if you're feeling adventurous. Grill. Admire drippy cheese stalactites. If you're me, top with sliced tomato, mashed avocado, ketchup, bbq sauce, pickle flavored potato chips, and more cheese on seeded rye bread. Drool.

On Toast with Eggs
My favorite breakfast ever. Slow-scramble an egg or two (egg + salt + black pepper + a splash  of water/milk/almond milk/cream; beat; cook over the lowest heat you have the patience for so they're nice and soft, stirring often). Toast some sourdough bread. Find one of those avocados that's about two hours short of being overripe and spreads like butter. Toast + thick layer of said avocado + scrambled eggs + a little more salt & pepper on top. Also good with a few strips of bacon if you're feeling decadent, and/or melted cheddar, salsa, seasoning of your choice. But no embellishment required.


Etc.
And in that same vein, here's a link to bacon guacamole grilled cheese, which I can't believe I didn't think of sooner:  www.closetcooking.com/2012/01/bacon-guacamole-grilled-cheese-sandwich.html

Also I ate camel sausage this past weekend. Check that one off the life list. And thanks to my little sister for a spot-on birthday present.