Good day to you, my fellow Steemian.
Food was scarce in the home by yesterday evening. Hayley was still at work until 6.30pm and she’d suggested eating out after she had finished work. I knew all of this at least by early afternoon. While I’m not averse to a nice meal out, I also know a challenge when I hear one.
Of course, I have no idea if you’re here for the recipe or the story. So I’ll try to separate the two. One of my biggest frustrations is looking for a recipe and finding a two thousand word poem with the recipe tacked on the end, almost as an afterthought. Gah.
Recipe first.
Ingredients (Dough)
400 grams plain flour
2 teaspoons of dried yeast
250 mL warm water (warm water helps the yeasty fermentation process)
30 mL olive oil
1 tsp sugar
1 tsp table salt (you can get all fancy with your Himalayan salts.. but use what you have)
Ingredients (Toppings)
Tomato Paste
1 Onion
1 Tbs Garlic (fresh or minced is OK)
Fresh tomatoes
Sundried tomatoes (MUST HAVE)
Eggplant
Button mushrooms
Capsicum/Pepper
Chilli flakes
Mixed Italian herbs or just use fresh basil and parsley
A few handfuls of rocket (Arugula) or baby spinach
The ‘doing’ bit (dough)
The hardest bit is making the dough. You can do it by hand which requires effort (no time for that) or use a Thermomix. I just followed the instructions on the Thermy (ingredients listed above are the same as what it instructed me to put into it). It does its thing and 2 minutes later, I have dough, clean hands and underdeveloped arms. I rested my dough in an oiled bowl twice the size as the dough ball and covered with a clean dish towel (or a dirty one if you want – you’re the one eating it) and left for an hour. The yeast will begin to consume the available sugars and will produce carbon dioxide making your dough light and fluffy. A bit of alcohol is also produced.. but this is bread, not beer. Calm down.
Tomatoes are intensified when they are dried. Use them in concert with fresh tomatoes for flavour variance.
The ‘doing’ bit (toppings)
Preheat your oven now – 180 degrees C / 350 F
Preparing vegetables for pizza is straight forward. Cut things the size you want to fit in your mouth, add what you enjoy eating and think about how much moisture those veggies have, as some of it may make your dough chewy. Fresh tomatoes are full of water, so drain them a little after you cut them and possibly add a little sparingly unless your love for tomatoes overrides your fear of slightly soggy pizza.
The main thing you want to do it prep the garlic, onion and eggplant right. Chop the onion into small pieces and sauté in a pan with the garlic in a splash of olive oil. The garlic will fizzle and pop and probably burn your hands if it touches you, but seriously the tap’s over there. Just rinse under cool water and get back to business. Set those babies aside and now let’s deal with the eggplant.
In the remaining oil in the pan, throw in your baby finger-sized eggplant pieces and fry off some of that bitterness that eggplants are synonymous with. Don’t burn it or you’ll have to start over. The smell of carbon wasn’t what I was trying to impress Hayley with as she walked through the door.
The rest of your veggies should be sliced and chopped up ready to be added to the base later. Speaking of the base..
The ‘doing’ bit (turning dough to pizza base)
I’m assuming you’ve left your dough for an hour, it will have expanded due to pockets of carbon dioxide forming. Don’t beat them all out. Carefully remove the ball from the bowl and gently roll into a circle to fit your pan. I just stretched mine out without the aid of a rolling implement.
Don't add the toppings now. Der.
This is the part where you blind bake the dough - it's just pre cooking the base otherwise you'll just be eating lovely toppings on pizza dough that may be slightly cooked near the edges. That's gross. Blind baking won't take more than about 10 minutes or so. But you don't want to overcook your dough.
This looked right to me. A little browning of the top is just perfect!
Add generous quantities of tomato paste (I used heaps more than this).
The base is ready for the other toppings!
Add the onion/garlic sauté mix
Eggplant on next.
Mushrooms.
Fresh and sun-dried tomatoes as well as capsicum went on here.
Not much left to do now.
Get that baby back in the oven. Oh I'm hearing you squeak that I forgot the arugula. That's an addition to our pizza after we place it inside a spinach-wiltingly hot oven. Add as much as you want when it comes out.
Well, as you have just experienced, reading my recipes is full of adventures and insults to your intelligence. I didn't even give you a story to go with it - just a really long recipe for one of the easiest dinners in existence.
If you were pleased, annoyed, peeved, educated or just plain entertained, UPVOTES are appreciated!
All the best,
Nick
Great post
Thanks for looking. Have a great day!
Nick
what a pizza looks so delicious, I would like to test it
I'm glad you approve! If you try the recipe, blog your attempt and I'll resteem you!
Get back to me with the outcome!
Nick
This looks incredibly delicious! I love pizza but very often the vegan version is kind of boring. Not the case for this beautiful thing! 😋 Hmmmmm
Oh you're too kind!
Us eccentric little vegans have to keep at it to keep meals bright and full of zest! Pretty much like anything I do.. If no effort goes into it, whatever I've done ends up becoming a huge let-down.
I can't wait to see if you give this recipe a whirl and post photos!! Seek me out again, link me to your efforts and I'll resteem you! Deal?
All the best,
Nick
😊👍🏻 Deal!
brilliantly done. I've had horrible experience in burning my pizza and make it look like charcoal. did a post on it as well ! lol. Great post @nickmorphew ... super-upvoted 100% and you've got my follow
Nice
Thanks for the comment :)
Thank you!
Oh, yes. I know.. I can attest to leaving many a pizza unattended and racing back to smoke alarms and a kitchen I could barely see across. * cough.. cough *
I'm so pleased you're following me. You'll find I write quite widely, have a love for photography and I do like to get out and about!
Take care and I look forward to comments in the future!
Cheers,
Nick
thats great Nick ... keep steeming ! you're content is really good
Fantastics :)
Like tasty food??? https://steemit.com/food/@phoenix69/lithuania-food-cepelinai-recipe
Thanks, Phoenix. Definitely love tasty food!
hello ,
@nickmorphew you pizza .... tipes nice ... up vote me .
Thanks for stopping by.
Delicious!!! I'm hungry right now, haha!! Thanks for sharing, if you want visit my blog, I have delicious food, I hope you like it. Greetings!!
Tell me about it! I'm sorry you're hungry right now -but it's an opportunity to make something amazing. I'll pop on over to your blog to check it out!
Nick
looking delicious
I had leftovers today! haha.
Is nickmorphew agn
Ive tried it n it takes gr8
Kudos
Steem on
Cheers, man. I do love a tasty pizza!
Thanks for stopping in.
Nick
Nicely done . Thank you looks delicious
Thank YOU for saying 'hey'. I have to admit, last night's pizza was not the best I'd made. It wasn't quite spicy enough for me. It appears as though I didn't add quite enough chilli flakes.
Oh well! Better try it again some time!!
Take care,
Nick
welcome
Very Nice ! I like pizza this one looks delicious
Hey!
Thanks for the kind words. I really appreciate it. The photos came out quite well. I have issues trying to take photos while cooking.. especially when my hands are oily or I've been putting my hands in dough :/ It also ends up taking quite a while to actually cook while I'm messing about with the camera.
Cheers,
Nick
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STOPYAY!
A new badge. It's always nice to get awarded. Now I just need the chest to pin it on.
I love pizza! Will have to try this one. Thanks for sharing :)
I know, right! Don't we all!
I have to admit..the hard part really is the base and the Thermomix totally did all the hard work. No worries - I'm glad that sharing this article allowed us to connect.
Cheers, man.
Nick
Thanks for your reply. Will give it a shot soon and see if it works for me. Cheers mate :)
No problems! Always remember -ad the toppings you enjoy and mix and match if you're game to try something new. Keep living the good life, my friend!
Peace,
Nick
Thanks for your advice Nick! All the best to you :)
mmmmm yummy :)
Hey there, Boss Lady!
It sure was.. not quite as good today, though. I'm not a fan of cold pizza so I ended up heating up the cheater's way. The microwave. Mistake. Soggy stuff.
Thanks so much for stopping by!
Nick
I've done that before, reheating in microwave instead of the oven...never comes out as good lol
Yes. Very true!
Hi! I am a robot. I just upvoted you! I found similar content that readers might be interested in:
https://forum.maxmanroe.com/threads/leumohaneukmuda...https://steemit.com/food/@nickmorphew/how-to-make-a-vegan-pizza-it-s-all-about-that-base-and-it-s-easy
I appreciate the upvote tremendously! Thanks for stopping by!
Nick
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STOPShould I really be awarded for the number of comments? I could talk all day.. it's nice to know people are talking back!
Love you all, Steemit people!!
Nick
Good post. Love my pizza! Followed you. Looking forward to seeing more.
Thank you!!
I'll try to keep the recipes going but I also write about an array of other topics. I hope I can keep you entertained in the future!
Cheers,
Nick
i'm not vegan
But i will try this recipe
Hey there!
Wow, really? I'm so glad you're keen to give it a go. My cooking comes from the heart. Yours will too and the people who eat with you will be tasting all that love you put into it!
Make sure you saute those eggplant bits.. the bitterness can be offputting if not cooked a bit first!
Take care,
Nick
Pizza without cheese ins't pizza
Hi Sharon!
Thanks so much for your contribution. There are a vast array of vegan cheeses around, but I opted for a delightful veggie-only one this time around.
Traditionally speaking, the Italian pizza was devoid of dairy products and was highly minimalist. Sparse quantities of tomatoes and basil leaves formed the sum of the toppings.
We have all evolved cooking to our own tastes and ethical choices - thus creating the wide variety of options available today.
Thanks again for reading the article in it's entirety and leaving a message to which I was able to respond in kind.
All the best,
Nick
looks delicious, i would like to eat
Thanks, man. It was great. Steaming hot out of the over with the fresh greens on the top and your body is absolutely singing with health after.
Thanks for stopping by.
Nick
wow great recipe
Hi Pad,
Such kind words. Thanks for looking, even if it was just a brief moment to see what the fuss was about and to glance at the pics. Either way, it means a lot to me. (I know how pressed for time we all are).
All the best,
Nick
Heyy really nice post:) It was verry useful.Please check my little journey that I made soon. I hope you enjoy my photos. @nakedchef89
https://steemit.com/travel/@nakedchef89/travel-challenge-26-metewra-meteora-in-greece-2017813t203920567z
Yes- I just read it! Thanks for sharing it with me. I left a comment over there and UPVOTED you :)
Nice pizza and enjoyed reading your post. :)X
Thanks so much for taking time out to read my post. It's very kind of you to share your thoughts.
All the best,
Nick
You are very welcome. In my eyes that is the whole point of Steemit, the community aspect and meeting new friends. :)X
Yep. I'm absolutely loving the closeness of Steemit.
This looks so good! Though I'm more a thin pizza crust lover, any vegan pizza topped with arugula is a win for me! Thanks for sharing ;)
Thanks for dropping by! Yes, the fresh greens make all the difference!!
Regards,
Nick
Looks soooo good.
Thanks! It's just one of my old faves!
Cheers,
Nick
This looks incredible nick. Can't wait to try that dough recipe.
You should totally go for it! Post your successes!
Cheers,
Nick
QUE RICO !!!
Not sure of the translation.. but THANKS.
Nick
Vegan is the way! Go Vegan !
Yummy thanks for sharing @nickmorphew
I agree! No worries. Thanks so much for reading!
Nick
Yay for yummy vegan pizza!! This looks really tasty!
I've prepared a lot of vegan dishes but I've yet to attempt making my own pizza dough. I'd love to try this recipe and see if I can create a garlic & herb variation, too.