Tortilla Pizza

Usually when Dave and I make pizza, we get the fresh dough from the supermarket or local deli and rock the pizza stone.  Of course, the result is always delicious (especially when we add the cornmeal underneath the crust...love that!).  

However, if we are short on time, this recipe is a great stand in!  Made with flour tortillas and cooked in a cast iron skillet, the total preparation AND cook time goes down to about 10 minutes.

Last night - Super Bowl Sunday - we made 2 varieties of this tortilla pizza (and no, we did not watch the game).  Dave made the point that caramelizing onions defeated the whole "quick and easy" idea, but it was tasty nonetheless.  

Ingredients

Large flour tortillas

Pizza stuff (sauce, cheese, toppings, etc)

Directions:

• Preheat the broiler
• On the stove top, heat a small amount of oil in a cast iron pan, over high heat until it starts to shimmer.

• Once hot, drop the heat to low and spread around the oil with a paper towel, absorbing any excess.

• Place a tortilla in the pan, with the small bubbles facing down

In the pic above, the small bubbles are on the left, and the large bubbles are on the right.

The large bubbles should be facing up.

• Add your toppings!  Our first pizza used pizza sauce, with mozzarella and Pecorino Romano cheeses.  We also threw on some hot pepper flakes.

• By this point, the cheese will start to melt and the bottom will crisp up a bit.  Now it's time for the broiler!

• Cook under the broiler for about 1-3 minutes.  Ours were done in 1 min 30 seconds.

The pizza ends up so crispy that you can hold the whole thing without it flopping over!!

Our second variety uses this awesome fig jam we picked up at Wegman's:

I caramelized some onions...

...then deglazed the pan with beer:

 I spread a thin layer of the fig jam onto the tortilla, followed by the onions and cheeses.  This one was a little sweet for me, but Dave loved it!

Pizza Hats

Ingredients

Large flour tortillas

Pizza stuff (sauce, cheese, toppings, etc)

Directions: 

1. Preheat the broiler 
2. On the stove top, heat a small amount of oil in a cast iron pan, over high heat until it starts to shimmer. Once hot, drop the heat to low and spread around the oil with a paper towel, absorbing any excess. 
3. Place a tortilla in the pan, with the small bubbles facing down 
4. Add your sauce and toppings. 
5. Cook under the broiler for about 1-3 minutes. Check it to make sure it doesn't burn!

Awesome Granola Bars

Dave and I used to buy granola bars all the time, but sadly they were never 100% satisfying.  I have always wanted to try to make my own, but I thought it wouldn't be worth the effort.   I was wrong!! :)

Ingredients

8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats (approx. 2 cups) 

1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds (approx. 1/2 cup)

3 ounces sliced almonds  (approx. 1 cup)

1 1/2 ounces wheat germ  (approx. 1/2 cup) 

6 ounces honey  (approx. 1/2 cup) 

1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar  (approx. 1/4 cup packed)

1 ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan 

2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 

toppings, such as chocolate or shaved coconut

Directions:

• Cut parchment paper to fit a 9"x13" baking dish, and rub on a thin layer of butter. (We used a smaller dish, and thought the bars came out too thick. Next time we will use the 9"x13")
• Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 
• Mix the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ together, and spread out on a sheet pan. Toast for 15 minutes, making sure to stir the mixture occasionally. 

• Combine the honey, brown sugar, butter, vanilla bean paste, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved. 

• Reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. 
• Combine the oat mixture with the liquid mixture, and spread out in prepared baking dish (press firmly).  Sprinkle any other additional ingredients on top  

• Bake for 25 minutes.

• Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares while it is still a bit warm.

We stored the granola bars in a plastic container, and enjoyed them all week.  Since they were so thick, it was a little hard to bite through them, so we warmed them up in the microwave for about 15 seconds.  I think if we use the bigger pan next time, we won't have that issue!

Ingredients

8 ounces old-fashioned rolled oats (approx. 2 cups) 

1 1/2 ounces raw sunflower seeds (approx. 1/2 cup)

3 ounces sliced almonds  (approx. 1 cup)

1 1/2 ounces wheat germ  (approx. 1/2 cup) 

6 ounces honey  (approx. 1/2 cup) 

1 3/4 ounces dark brown sugar  (approx. 1/4 cup packed)

1 ounce unsalted butter, plus extra for pan 

2 teaspoons vanilla bean paste

1/2 teaspoon kosher salt 

toppings, such as chocolate or shaved coconut

Directions:

1. Cut parchment paper to fit a 9"x13" baking dish, and rub on a thin layer of butter. (We used a smaller dish, and thought the bars came out too thick. Next time we will use the 9"x13")
2. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. 
3. Mix the oats, sunflower seeds, almonds, and wheat germ together, and spread out on a sheet pan. Toast for 15 minutes, making sure to stir the mixture occasionally. 
4. Combine the honey, brown sugar, butter, vanilla bean paste, and salt in a saucepan over medium heat. Cook until the sugar has dissolved. 
5. Reduce the heat to 300 degrees F. 
6. Combine the oat mixture with the liquid mixture, and spread out in prepared baking dish (press firmly).  Sprinkle any other additional ingredients on top  
7. Bake for 25 minutes.
8. Remove from the oven and allow to cool completely. Cut into squares while it is still a bit warm.

Adapted from Alton Brown