Crispy Cheesy Pan Pizza from King Arthur Flour

Weekends were made for pizza.

At the end of a long week, pizza is a tasty and comforting way to start the weekend, even if our workweek is spent in a home office or teaching and entertaining your kids.

 

While takeout from at your favorite local pizzeria is an option—one I take advantage of all the time!—making homemade pizza is also fun and satisfying. An added bonus is you have kitchen clean-up time while the pie bakes, so once dinner is served you can relax.

 

I’ve posted my favorite homemade pizza recipe before, but I think this one is the winner! I first saw it on the Food 52 website, with this great video on how to make it.

 

The original recipe is from the King Arthur Four folks. (Find it here.) What I love most about this pizza is the focaccia-like crust. The dough needs to rest in the refrigerator for 12 to 72 hours, which means you can mix it up when you have a free moment and then let it hang out for a couple of days until you need it. In fact, the longer it’s in the fridge, the more flavor it develops.

                                                                                    

I used a store brand part-skim mozzarella, along with some grated Parmigiano-Reggiano. The sauce was a can of Hunts Tomato Sauce

with Basil, Garlic and Oregano I had in my pantry.

The result was a seriously delicious pizza with a crunchy, browned bottom and a crispy, cheesy edge around the top. 

This is now my number one pizza to make!

 

 

Aunt Mable’s Vegetable Beef Soup

This week we said goodbye to my Great-Aunt Mable. She was 103 years old when she passed!

I wrote about Aunt Mable in the past, when I shared her Honey Fruit Salad Dressing. She was a go-getter! She reminded me of the Energizer bunny. I guess her batteries finally wore out.

At the gathering before the funeral, I asked her daughter, Sue, if there was a recipe Aunt Mable made that was her favorite. She instantly replied, “Homemade vegetable beef soup. When I came home from college, she would have it waiting for me on the stove. Even though it was late, the soup was waiting, nice and hot. It tasted wonderful, but I don’t remember just the taste. I remember the comfort eating the soup gave me.”

I know what she means. I feel that way every time I make my Slow Cooker Vegetable Beef Soup. It was inspired by one my mom made and it gives me a lot of comfort, too

Here is Aunt Mable’s version. Give it a try and let me know what you think! I can’t wait to give it a go!

Goodbye Aunt Mable. You were a wonderful lady. It feels like the world has lost a little of its energy without you.

Aunt Mable’s Vegetable Beef Soup

This recipe is shown just how she made it. Feel free to adjust it to your taste. I’m sure she did through the years!

Beef shanks, approximately 2 pounds

1 to 2 carrots, shredded or chopped small

1 large onion, chopped small

3 to 4 stalks of celery, chopped small

1 can tomatoes, diced with juice

1 teaspoon sugar

3 to 4 potatoes, chopped

1/2 cup alphabet macaroni

Salt, pepper, Accent, to taste

3 to 4 drops Tabasco sauce

1 can beef broth

Brown beef shanks in a little oil in a large heavy pan. Cover fully with hot water. Cook on low til tender, 1 1/2 to 2 hours. Watch water to make sure it does not evaporate. Remove meat to mixing bowl and cover.

Add the carrots, onion, and celery to the broth and cook til partly done. Add tomatoes sugar, potatoes, and macaroni. Add some salt, pepper, and Accent. Cook til done. Add a can of beef broth, then add more water if needed.

Chop meat on a board, sprinkle with salt and pepper and add to the soup. You can also add any leftover peas, corn, etc. Important: Add 3 to 4 drops Tabasco sauce. (It warms the tummy and adds flavor.)

Mamaw’s Chocolate Meringue Pie

Inspired by my last post, I asked the blog’s Facebook followers to tell me about their favorite pies. Many of them not only said a flavor but also told a family story to go with it. It seems that pie inspires a lot of memories.

For the Spring 2016 issue of Topeka Magazine, I wrote about Easter on my maternal grandparents’ farm. I also included Mamaw’s Chocolate Meringue Pie recipe. This is what I wrote:

“Mamaw’s country dinners were always delicious, but what everyone most anticipated was the dessert. Her chocolate meringue pie made an appearance at every holiday meal. It was mandatory. The meal wasn’t officially a celebration until the pie made it to the table.

Each of the pie's components was made from scratch. The crust was brown and flaky, the chocolate filling rich and creamy, and the meringue topping light, fluffy, and golden brown. Mamaw never used a mixer to make the meringue. Instead, she put the egg whites into her deep-blue, depression glass bowl, and whisked them until light and airy with a flat metal whisk full of holes. Everyone knew the rapid ting, ting sound of metal against glass meant she was making meringue

(That's Mamaw holding me a long, long, long time ago.)

I remember Mamaw's pies being perfect, but admit that my memory may be clouded by my love and admiration. My pies never seem to turn out as perfect as hers. Still, I make them and remember her kitchen and the holiday in muted color images.”

Mamaw’s Chocolate Meringue Pie

Serves 6 to 8 people

1 9-inch pie shell, baked until golden brown

For the meringue:

3 large egg whites, room temperature

1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar

6 tablespoons sugar

For the filling:

3/4 cup sugar

5 tablespoons unsweetened cocoa powder

3 tablespoons cornstarch

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 cups whole milk

3 large egg yolks, beaten

1 teaspoon vanilla

In a large bowl, place the egg whites and the cream of tartar. Turn the mixer on to medium-high and beat until the egg whites form soft peaks. Continue beating while slowing adding the sugar 1 tablespoon at a time. Beat until the egg whites are glossy and form stiff peaks. Set aside.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F. In a heavy-bottomed saucepan, place the sugar, cocoa powder, cornstarch, and salt. Whisk together. Slowly whisk in the milk. Place the pan over medium-high heat and cook, stirring constantly, until the mixture thickens and starts to bubble. Reduce the heat to medium and continue to cook for 2 minutes. Remove from the heat. Stir about 1 cup of the hot mixture into the egg yolks, and then pour the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan with the remaining filling. Return to the heat and bring to just a boil. Cook for 2 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from the heat and stir in the vanilla.

Pour the hot filling into the prepared pie crust. Spoon the meringue over the hot filling, making sure to spread it out so it adheres to the edge of the crust. Create swirls with the back of a spoon.

Place the pie in the oven and bake until the meringue is golden brown, about 20 minutes. Cool on a rack for at least two hours before serving.