Say it with me, “Are you ready for some football?!” Across the pond this takes on a whole other meaning but over here it’s THE biggest sports day. This Sunday even I, as someone who doesn’t even know who’s playing in the Superbowl, will be partaking in the ritual of Super Bowl; Watching, betting, cheering, drinking and eating (healthy food of course!) Don’t believe that you can eat healthy even on Super Bowl Sunday? To prove it, here are some ideas from the last couple of years to help you create a tasty and healthy buffet:

Super Bowl Mo’Rockin’ Meatball Pitas

Lavash Pizza, Homemade Pita Chips & Hummus, Apple Jicama Slaw

Healthy Potato Salad

Turkey & Portobello Burgers with Sweet Potato Fries

Tandoori Chicken Skewers, Asparagus Skewered Shrimp & Mini Beef Sliders

And that’s not all! This week I’m making a pork & poblano stew, tomato marinated flank steak, lamb sliders & Mediterranean meatballs so be sure to check back for these recipes!

Oh yeah, this is why I like American football!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

What a dynamite weekend we had! On Friday night we were invited to our friends, Van & Kelly’s house for some homemade pizza from their brand new wood burning pizza oven. Two years ago we spent Thanksgiving with them–you may remember the spread they put on for nearly 30 of us! They love to entertain so they built an amazing outdoor kitchen (my dream!) which we were excited to check out. One word: MUSTARD!

The deal was they’d make the dough, sauce and provide the cheese, salad & wine. (Did I mention they just got back from a wine trip to France & Italy? Result!) We were to bring the toppings and the beers. It was a lot fun getting creative with the toppings. We brought over grilled veg, roast chicken, broiled balsamic radicchio, Prosciutto, homemade peanut sauce, fresh herbs and shredded carrots. Sounds crazy right? We made a veggie pizza, a chicken & veggie pizza, a hot pepper (straight from their garden) & Prosciutto pizza, a Thai pizza (using the fresh peanut sauce, shredded carrots, Thai basil & cilantro), a radicchio pizza (using the shredded carrots to balance out the bitterness from the radicchio) and well, a mix of everything really for the others.

What a perfect idea for a dinner party even if you don’t have your own wood burning oven. Everyone gets to take a turn making a pizza which is great craic really.

Here’s the standard recipe for homemade pizza:

RECIPE:
Makes 4 pizza crusts

1 pkg active dry yeast
1 cup warm water
1/2 tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
2 1/2 cups flour + additional for dusting

DIRECTIONS:

Mix the yeast and warm water in a mixing bowl. Let stand for 5-10 minutes approx, or until the yeast becomes active (it’ll start to bubble). Once it’s ready, add it to an electric mixer and gradually add in the olive oil, flour & salt. Mix with the dough hook until the dough comes together. Remove from mixer and on a floured surface (to prevent sticking) roll into a large ball. Divide the dough into 4 equally sized balls and place on an oiled oven tray. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and put the tray in a warm dry place until it rises, 45 minutes approx.

Preheat oven to 450°F.

When ready to make your pizzas, sprinkle flour on a clean work surface and roll out the dough to a thin crust using a rolling pin. Be sure to dust your rolling pin with flour to also prevent from sticking. NOTE: The dough rises when baking which is why you want roll it into a thin crust prior.
Place the pizza base on a floured oven tray and add your toppings.

As for how long your pizzas take to bake, just keep an eye on it. I like the bottom of mine to be crispy but not burned.
TIP: The key here is to have your meat and vegetable toppings already cooked. You’re basically baking the dough and warming up the rest so there’s no worry if the meats are cooked through or not.

We had such an amazing time as always. Thinking about asking Santa for a pizza oven—I say I have two hopes: No hope and Bob Hope. Good thing Van & Kelly live close by!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.

Since I started ‘borrowing’ my neighbors figs from their tree, I’ve been using them in all sorts of dishes from frozen yogurt to couscous to salsa and now a simple pizza. When I do venture out to have some pizza (a rarity usually with drink involved) I’ll always go for a thin crust version. Less filling, tastes great (name that ad!)
With all the figs that seem to have ‘arrived’ somehow in my possession I thought this would work great in a pizza, plus I needed something quick to make for my hungry and cranky Missus. I’ve made a similar type pizza before with lavash but I found this multi-grain flat bread version with flax, which I thought would make great alternative. (Turns out it did.) You might think this is a lot of fig but believe me it works and isn’t too sweet especially with the goats cheese. Total  joy–this last minute recipe turned out brilliantly!

RECIPE:

1 sheet wholewheat flat bread (lavash)
5/6 figs -topped, rough chop (for pizza base)
4/5 figs – topped, quartered
large handful of fresh spinach – washed, rough chop
2 ozs goats cheese – crumbled
2 tbsp fresh basil – chiffonade
Olive Oil
S&P

Balsamic reduction:
1 cup balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp agave
Cook on medium low heat for 10 minutes or until thickened.

TO MAKE PIZZA:

Preheat oven to 400°F.

Brush flat bread with olive oil and par bake for 10 minutes. Keep an eye on it. You just want to crisp the bread without browning too much.
Chop the pizza base figs and smear them on the crispy flat bread…GENTLY.

Layer with fresh spinach and top with quartered figs. Crumble cheese over and drizzle with olive oil. Season with S&P.
Bake in oven for 15 minutes until cheese is soft and figs are bubbling.

Remove from oven, drizzle balsamic reduction over the pizza and sprinkle fresh basil.

Delicious!

All recipes are made with the finest quality farmers market whole foods, natural and non-processed ingredients as much as possible.