Margharita² (Lemon Margaritas & Margherita Pizza)

First of all I would like to thank TopShelf Network, Inc for giving me the opportunity to join the family.  I know only good things come from a compilation of great minds and ideas (and food recipes of course).  Check out their site for "entertainment on every level", from everything from fashion, to sports, to True Blood and more.  I wanted to feature this recipe combo first because I felt it would be appropriate to celebrate the cross promotional worlds of food and entertainment.

This blog is a fun combo of Margaritas and Margherita Pizza.  (And YES I know the title is spelled wrong- it is just a combo of both words).  This recipe would be so fun to use if you were throwing a cocktail party or just as an appetizer.  I mean, booze and pizza are a match made in heaven- but this makes it feel a bit posh while you're getting on your slosh. The lemon isn't overwhelming it pairs nice with the fresh light pizza.  I first learned how to make pizza because I felt the price for delivery pizza was truly outrageous (truly truly truly outrageous, oh oh oh).  Anyway, it turned out to be super easy, just something you need to think about an hour before hand- which turns out to be most likely the same amount of time you would wait for delivery anyway.  Margaritas are always fun, they have their own glass and you can make them straight or frozen (mmm frozen, perfect for summer!)  I absolutely love margaritas, and this won't be the only time you see them on my blog.  I already have tons of ideas floating around with what to pair them with.  Since we're having pizza, I wanted to keep it an Italian theme.  Limoncello is an Italian liqueur made with lemons, alcohol (traditionally grain alcohol or you can use vodka), sugar and water.  I'm not using Limoncello liqueur but I did want to let the lemon flavor really shine, without having to buy a whole bunch of different liquors.  Don't worry it won't be super tart, that's why we add sugar to the mix :) 

Margherita Pizza is a classic that was "first made in 1899 when Queen Marghereta visited Napels to escape a cholera epidemic in the north of Italy. The ingredients used to make a Margherita pizza, tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and basil, imitate the colors of the Italian flag. Queen Margherata liked the pizza so much that she wrote a thank you letter to Esposito, who decided to name the pizza after the Queen." (http://www.recipepizza.com/toppings/margherita_pizza.htm)

We'll start with the pizza dough recipe.  If you are pressed for time, or just don't feel like getting your hands dirty, most supermarkets carry fresh pizza dough now, or you can always go to your local pizzeria and buy pizza dough for cheap. 

Pizza Dough Recipe
(this will make two thin crust 16" pizzas, or one thick crust and extra dough for garlic knots)

• 1 ½ cups of all purpose flour
• 2 cups of bread flour (if you don't have bread flour, just use 3 ½ cups of all purpose flour in total)
• 1 tablespoon of sugar
• 1 tsp of salt
• 1 packet of dry active yeast (or about 2 ½ to 3 tsp if you buy in bulk)
• 1 cup of warm water (about 100-110 degrees if you want to get technical)
• 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil

1. Pour the yeast into the warm water and stir to combine.  Let this sit for a couple minutes to reactivate the yeast.
2. In a big bowl combine the flour, salt and sugar with a whisk and make a small well in the middle of the bowl. 
3. Then add the oil and yeast water to the well and combine with a large fork until just combined then use your hands until a sticky ball of dough is formed.
4. If you need to add a little more flour, just add a little at a time.
5. Take out of the bowl and knead the bread for about 5 mins. (Anytime you knead dough you want to sprinkle the counter or work area with flour so the dough doesn't stick) Shape it into a tight ball. Then put back into the bowl and cover entire ball with some oil (I usually just spray it with cooking spray) and cover with plastic wrap where the plastic wrap is touching the dough- not tightly covering the bowl on top, we are just covering the dough from the air so it doesn't form a tough "skin".  You could even drape a kitchen towel over the top of the bowl instead.
6. Let sit for at least 45 mins in a warm place until it has doubled in size.  If you don't have a warm place, turn the oven on to 350 degrees for a couple mins then place the bowl with the dough in there (but obviously shut the oven off- we aren't cooking the dough yet)
7. When it has doubled in size, knead it again for about 5 mins and then divide the dough into two even pieces.  Roll out the dough into the shape of your pan (pizza pans are cheap- I have two: one from Waldbaums, and one from Wal-Mart, but before I had the round pans I just made my pizzas "Sicilian" or rectangle and put on a baking sheet.) *edit* Now I actually have upgraded to a pizza stone. If you make a lot of pizza or really want a quality pizza I HIGHLY suggest you go and spend the $20 on a pizza stone- it will change the way you make pizza, seriously. **  Transfer to your pan or stone and top with toppings.
8. Cook for at least 10 mins at 450-550 degrees.  (Basically crank your oven as high as it will go) Pizza cook time will vary on crust size and what you topped the pizza with.

Margherita Pizza Recipe

• 2 small ripe tomatoes, sliced
• 1 lb of fresh mozzarella, sliced
• fresh basil leaves, about 10 (or about 1-1½ tablespoons of dried)
• salt
• extra virgin olive oil

1. Preheat oven to 450 degrees
2. Make the dough like I showed you before, and try to roll the dough out thin
3. Drizzle a little oil on the dough and cover evenly with your hand or a brush
4. Top with slices of mozzarella and tomato and basil leaves (if using dried just sprinkle the dried over the top)
5. Sprinkle on salt about a tsp or so
6. Put in the oven for about 10-15 mins. Keep an eye on it. When cheese and crust are all nice and brown its done.  I like to let the pizza sit for a minute or two when I take it out of the oven, I feel it helps set up the pizza a bit.  Then slice and serve!

Please use fresh mozzarella, it really makes a difference. And yea I didn't have fresh basil when I took the photos, sorry!

Frozen Lemon Margaritas
(This makes one serving for a standard Margarita glass.  If you need to make more just multiple the recipe by that number)

• 2 lemons (and the zest of one of them)
• 1 lime
• 2 shots (2 oz.) of tequila
• 1 shot (1 oz) of triple sec (or any other orange liqueur, and if you don't have any you could always use orange juice)
• 1 ½ tablespoons of sugar
• about 1-1½ cups of ice (I used 6 large ice cubes)
• salt or sugar for the rims

1. Zest one lemon into a blender
2. Before you squeeze the citrus- use it to line the rim of the glass and then roll the rim in either sugar or salt. I always prefer salt mmmmm.
3. Then add the juice of the lemons and lime into a blender
4. Add the liquor, sugar and ice. Then blend until slushy.

If it's too tart for your taste, add a bit more sugar. Want it stronger? Add more tequila! If no blender is available- shake it up and pour over some ice.  Oh, and believe me, you're gunna wanna make more than one serving  :) Buon appetito!

Pommes Anna (aka Huge Layered Potato Cake)

Pommes Anna is another classic French dish.  Now of course there is a "right" way to make this recipe (which is only potatoes and butter), but I've changed and added a couple things that I liked from a couple different recipes.  The only thing I suggest is using a mandoline because your job will go so much quicker, but if you don't you can always slice these by hand.  This came out so awesome with such little effort- just a little time.  Seriously, next time I have guests over I will definitely be making this.  If you like potato chips- you're going to love this. I served as part of a meal (so I definitely had leftovers- but no worries you could even eat this for breakfast!) or you can make it a whole meal by layering some meat or veggies inside, or along side something else of course.

Special equipment: mandoline and a cast iron pan

(These are not necessary but makes things easier)

http://www.saucyandsweet.com/

• The mandoline is definitely a favorite of mine, I'm so excited when I get to use it!  If I were to just slice the potatoes and fry them in oil- wha-la! potato chips! So if you don't have one just cut the potatoes as thin as you can. Be careful either way you slice it though (No pun intended)
• Cast Iron Skillets: If you don't have one- I'm sure grandma has one that she might hand down to you one day- that's where I got mine anyway.  They aren't too pricey and have many uses.  I'm pretty sure mine is a 10 inch skillet- so this recipe makes for about 4-6 people.  If you want to make it smaller, obviously go for a smaller pan.  The difference of a cast iron skillet (besides being extremely heavy) is the retention and distribution of heat.  Basically it can get really hot and stay really hot for a while and the whole pan gets real hot evenly (even the handle so watch out!) which equals even cooking. And in this case the potatoes get real crispy.

Ingredients

(Remember: bigger the pan, more potatoes you are going to need)

• 5 medium sized potatoes (I used Russet)
• oil, salt, pepper, cooking spray
• a cheese of your choice (I used a mixture of Parmesan and Pecorino Romano)

Directions

1. Preheat the oven to 425°
2. Wash the potatoes (I leave the skin on, you can always peel if you want to). Slice them into coins using your mandoline or a knife. I would say the thicker they are the longer you will want to cook for.
3. Coat the whole skillet with some oil- sides and bottom- I used a basting brush to help me.
4. You need to work fast because you don't want the potatoes to discolor.  You might also know a trick where you soak the potatoes in water with some lemon or vinegar- but don't do this- it will wash off the starch and the cake wont stick together as well. Start by layering the coins in a circular fashion- taking into account that the bottom layer will become the top of the cake- so make it pretty!
5. After each layer spray with cooking spray and sprinkle with some salt and pepper.
6. I did two layers of potato and then a layer of cheese- and repeat.
7. As you go-try and push down and compact the cake as much as possible.
8. When you are all done layering, put it on the stove top for about 7 mins over med-high flame.  We want to just help it start to get crispy.
9. Slide into the oven and bake for 25 mins
10. After 25 mins, take it out and use a lid or dish to help you cover and pour out any excess oil- because we need to flip this cake over and we don't want to be burned by the oil.
11. After the oil is out flip over (I had to flip out onto a cutting board and then slide back into the pan because the cast iron is super heavy) and put back into the oven for another 15 mins.
12. Then just slice and I served with some sour cream!

Almost looks like a pepperoni pizza!

Remember:  You can pick any cheese you like- or omit it all together!

You could also do this with sweet potatoes! I am definitely going to try that next!