Taking a Moment....To Study

So today was going to be all about the VERY tasty eats on the gorgeous Caribbean Island of Curaçao but I have a busy week full of studying and need to get cracking on it. I'm excited to be taking the Servsafe exam on Wednesday! One step forward toward my goals. That and because the laws are changing, I'd like to be a step ahead and be prepared. And so I'm taking it seriously because one, I don't want to take it again, of course, and two, the fact that you have to pay for it and since I'm heading to Bolivia and other surrounding countries in three weeks, I really don't want to be spending money on tests and unnecessary stuff when I can be spending it on good food, Yungas Road, and buses, you know.

So next time, I'll be writing about the good eats and posting some recipes of mine. Will be making my Pistachio Marshmallows, Edamame hummus, Turon, and anything else that comes to mind and what I can fit in before I leave. CAN'T WAIT!

So I leave you on this beautiful and VERY HOT Southern California Sunday morning with some pictures of very sweet, delicious delights, and something interesting too.


Mardi Gras style cupcakes

Birthday cupcakes for my friends son for his 1st birthday. I'm his favorite aunt! :)

Bacon Wrapped Dates with a Balsamic Reduction Sauce. Perfect Combination.

Lemon, Fresh Rosemary, and Garlic making an appearance...

...In this wonderful Garlic Sauce which also included olive oil, salt, and three more garlic bulbs. Easy to make and adds tremendously good flavor to any dish you decide to indulge in. In this case, I used it in a mixed seafood dish. This sauce goes with anything or well, almost anything!

Raw Oyster Rockefeller with a Shallot Vinaigrette Shooter. Tried it at a meeting I went to. Pretty tasty to me. Just have to work on my gagging reflex!

My homemade Black Forest Cake. Everything by scratch. Now this cake will always be my guilty pleasure. I've got somewhat non-dessert eaters craving this. I've been having multiple dreams about making this cake soon just for me to eat it all by myself. It's that bad. Trust me when I tell you this is the best cake ever. I'm up for a challenge if you don't believe. You will be a believer when I'm done with you!

Made this birthday cake for my travel bud Vanessa for her party I attended last night. Dyed the whipped cream to a turquoise color cause it's her favorite. Made her cake all shiny with sugar and shaped her V with black sugar. Semi-sweet chocolate cake with cinnamon and cayenne and had strawberries and cream between the layers.

When the weather is cool, I ride my bike to work to get that fresh air, wonderful exercise, and get to listen to all my super cool music too. The last time I took the ride, I caught a glimpse of this lizard while riding up the first of two hills going home and I had to stop. The tail is such an incredibly beautiful color. Tried to get close to it and this was the best picture I could get. I discovered later it is a blue tailed skink. A very interesting spotting, indeed.

Pizza of the Sea

There have been many instances that I have had a chance to try any type of seafood on a pizza and I always passed it up. Seafood on pizza? Naw, I'm more of a cook it quick kinda girl so I can eat it right away! SHRIMP. LOBSTER. CLAMS. SCALLOPS. SQUID. SUSHI. ETC. My weakness. :) I also don't like sharing! I'm working on that...

Again saw it in the Galapagos but passed because of my fear of cheese at the time. DON'T get me wrong. I absolutely love all cheeses! Well except for the processed. GROSS. Velveeta and Kraft Singles are not cheese. Sorry. It's because, at that time, it was my 2nd trip after Argentina and Brazil and I came home from that trip pretty much lactose intolerant. And didn't want to do anything that could cause pain to the stomach. Finally, gave into it in Montezuma, Costa Rica. Lactose pills have been a good friend to me! Anyway, the Shrimp and Mushroom Pizza with Mozzarella and Goat Cheese was waaay too good to be true. Possibly the best pizza I've ever had in my life? No doubt! Of course, Lou Malnati's in Chicago is on top as well. Do it.

After this experience, I decided to make my own Seafood Pizza. I chose my seafood mix. I chose my toppings and cheese. I took a basic pizza sauce and amplified it. And found a good pizza dough from scratch and just kept it smart and simple. Added LOTS of garlic powder! Oh yeaaah. Here it goes:

Seafood Pizza



Seafood:

Shrimp
Scallops
Squid

Cheese:

Mozzarella
Provolone
Asiago
Parmesan
Goat

Other Toppings That Were Included:

Mushrooms
Scallions
Fresh Basil

Pizza Sauce:

1 6oz tomato paste
6oz warm water
3 T minced garlic, more or less of course
1 t sugar (or honey, your preference)
2 t Anchovy paste
1 T fresh rosemary
1 T fresh basil
1 T fresh oregano
3 T olive oil
1/4 t pepper
1/8 t cayenne pepper
1/8 t dried red pepper flakes
3/4 t onion powder
Salt, to taste

Combine and let set ~ 30 minutes

Pizza Dough:

I actually got the recipe here: http://www.101cookbooks.com/archives/001199.html. I changed it up by adding my personal touch: lots of garlic powder! No need to measure it out. Do to your liking.

Directions:

Day Before-
Follow the pizza recipe. I made the dough a day earlier.

Day of-
1. Preheat oven to its highest temp. Oven needs to be really hot. At the time, I didn't have a pizza stone so I moved the rack to the bottom of the oven. I received a pizza stone on my birthday and can't wait to use it!
2.Combine the pizza sauce ingredients and set aside.
3. Sauté two garlic cloves in 2 T of olive oil over medium low heat until soft. Lower heat and first add the mushrooms and scallions. Remove to a plate to cool when soft.
4. Repeat the same steps and add in the seafood. I estimate the seafood to be about a cup or so of each: shrimp, scallops, and squid. Count wise, I don't know. I usually always eyeball everything. Except, cook the seafood for a couple minutes. They will thoroughly cook in the oven. If cooked well done on the stove, they will come out rubbery and dry. Remove to a plate to cool as well.
5. Since I didn't use a pizza stone, I lined a pizza pan with foil and covered it with cornmeal. The pizza did not stick to the foil so you should be fine. Use your hands and play with the dough until it is stretched out to your size liking. Place on the pizza pan. Follow the recipe.
6. Pour on the sauce, but not too much. A little goes a long way and the dough won't be soggy. The pizza sauce recipe can be used up to two-to-three separate pizzas.
7. Sprinkled on all the cheese. Any amount to your liking again. I believe it adds up to a total of 2 cups or so.
8. Add the mushrooms, scallions, and freshly chopped basil.
9. Place on the shrimp, scallops, and squid.
10. (Optional) Brush the crust with a garlic olive oil blend.
11. Place in the oven and bake for about 7-9 minutes. Once out, allow to cool for a minute until slicing with a pizza cutter. And enjoy! The crust ended up being both doughy and crispy at the same time. Just fine the way it was.



Now that you have excess pizza sauce and dough, what other pizza creations will you come up with? Make it interesting..