Home made Pizza.

For Valentines Day this year, we decided to that instead of fighting the love bird crowds at all the restaurants we would rather stay home and cook home made pizza’s.  From scratch people.  Yes, this mean’s the dough too!  No woolies already made bases.

They actually turned out amazingly.  And surprisingly the base wasn’t that difficult to make.  We used a recipe of Jamie Oliver’s for the dough, tomato sauce and then added what we liked on top.

Ingredients : { serves 8 – we halved it }

For the dough-

800g strong white bread flour

200g fine ground semolina flour or strong white bread flour

1 level tablespoon fine sea salt

2x 7 sachets dried yeast

1 tablespoon golden caster sugar

650ml luke warm water

For the tomato sauce-

1 clove garlic

1 small bunch fresh basil

Olive oil

400g good-quality tinned plum tomatoes

sea salt

freshly ground black pepper

For the topping-

85g mozzarella

Extra virgin olive oil

Method:  

To make the dough:

1. Pile the flour and salt on to a clean surface and make an 18cm well in the centre. Add your yeast and sugar to the lukewarm water, mix up with a fork and leave for a few minutes, then pour into the well.

2. Using a fork and a circular movement, slowly bring in the flour from the inner edge of the well and mix into the water. It will look like thick porridge. Continue to mix, bringing in all the flour. When the dough comes together and becomes too hard to mix with your fork, flour your hands and begin to pat it into a ball.

3. Knead the dough by rolling it backward and forward, using your left hand to stretch the dough toward you and your right hand to push the dough away from you at the same time. Repeat this for 10 minutes, until you have a smooth, springy, soft dough.

4. Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl. Cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and let double in size for about 45 minutes.

To make the sauce:

5. Peel and finely slice the garlic. Pick the basil leaves and discard the stalks. Heat a saucepan on a medium-low heat and add a splash of olive oil and the garlic. Cook gently until the garlic starts to turn golden, then add most of the basil leaves, the tomatoes, and a good pinch of salt and pepper. Cook gently for around 20 minutes, or until smooth, mashing the tomatoes up with a wooden spoon as it cooks.

6. When done, have a little taste, and season again if needed.

To make the pizza:

7. Divide the dough in two. Wrap one half in plastic wrap and freeze for another batch (see Jamie’s tips above). With the other half, divide the dough into 4 balls. Flour and cover each ball with plastic wrap, and let it rest for about 15 minutes. This will make it easier to roll it thinly.

8. Take a piece of the dough, dust your surface and the dough with a little flour or semolina, and roll it out into a rough circle about 0.5cm thick. Tear off an appropriately sized piece of tin foil, rub it with olive oil, dust it well with flour or semolina and place the pizza base on top. Continue doing the same with the other pieces and then, if you dust them with a little flour, you can pile them up into a stack, cover them with cling film and put them in the fridge

9. When you’re ready to cook them, preheat your oven to 250°C/500°F/gas 9.

10. Put two of the rolled-out dough rounds onto each of two oiled baking sheets. At this stage you can apply your topping. Smear the tomato sauce over the base of your pizzas and spread it out to the edges. Tear over the mozzarella and scatter with the remaining basil leaves. Drizzle with a tiny bit of extra virgin olive oil and add a pinch of salt and pepper. If you can, cook the pizzas on a piece of granite in your conventional oven – if not, do them one by one on pieces of tin foil directly on the bars of the oven shelf, towards the bottom of the oven (If you’re going to cook your pizzas on the bars of the oven, make sure they’re not too big – otherwise they’ll be difficult to manoeuvre). Cook for 7 to 10 minutes, until the pizzas are golden and crispy.

Above is one of the one’s we made.

{ Recipe from Jamie Oliver }

Banana Jam.

When I saw this Banana Jam recipe, I was sold. I have always been a fan of banana on toast {strange I know} so when I found this recipe, thanks to the wonders of Pinterest, I thought I had to try it.  I’m hoping to make this recipe next week, but after the photos posted on this food blog, its obvious that its going to be delicious..

In a small pot combine banana, brown sugar, lime juice and butter. Whisk over medium heat for 5-8 minutes or until the sugar has dissolved and the the banana has softened. Adjust the heat as necessary to prevent burning. Using the whisk thoroughly smoosh the banana. Once the mixture is smooth-ish, you are simply thickening without burning. The mixture will bubble 3-4 minutes over medium heat and it should be about ready at this stage. Refrigerate and use within one to two weeks.

Lola’s.

If you needed any more reason to book a ticket to London, then this is it.  Lola’s is enough reason to fly to London for tea. Yes tea.. just saying!

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Happy Friday mouth watering ladies.

Have a fun filled foodie weekend.

Baskins Robbins

Think Ben and Jerry’s, think Haagen-daars, think better. Yes that’s Baskins Robbins.  The first time I sunk my teeth into this delicious little taste of heaven was in Beijing, China.  And ever.since.then I have been meaning to share this little jem with you.  For any of you ever visiting the east.  I highly recommend stopping by this ice cream franchise. The flavour’s they have are some you couldn’t even dream of. You’r welcome!

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Sweet Mandy B’s.

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Chicago’s little sweet wonderland, Sweet Mandy B’s is a place you can go to, to satisfy your sweet cravings.  Cindy Levine named her piece of heaven after her daughter Mandy and her son B.  This home away from home bakery has freshly baked treats made to put a smile on your face.  Chicago, I think I need to give you a visit.. .

Lulu Cake Boutique.

LULU Cake Boutique is a little bit of cake heaven.  Honestly, If i need any more reason to go to New York, it’s to try out LULU’s.  Tell them your fantasy and they will make magic happen and turn your dream into a reality.  Not only can they custom-design anything you can dream up, you can also pop in for a quick cupcake and tea. How tempted are you?

“A cake from Lulu is a feast for the eyes and a triumph for the tongue. Let us indulge your every fancy with the objects of our confection!”

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pink milkshakes.

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As far back as I can remember, milkshakes have always brought about happy occasions for me. They remind me of my childhood and staying at my grandparents.  After dinner us kids would be allowed to make up any milkshake we could think of – these memories I didnt think could be topped, really. Up until now, my home-made milkshakes have consisted of a scoop of vanilla ice cream, milo (or a chocolate of my choice) and a splash of milk. While there’s no need to mess with a classic combination (one as easy as can be, and so simple that I made it up at about the age of 4), I think it’s time I try kicking them up a notch just for fun – an adult milkshake, if you will.  When I found this recipe on Joy’s blog, I knew it would be the perfect contender. The combination of rhubarb purée and a vanilla bean turns this childhood dessert into a special treat and I can’t wait to make them as much as possible while summer is still here.

blueberry breakfast loaf.

I came across this quick and easy blueberry breakfast loaf recipe the other day and thought I must try it.  Not only is it delicious for breakfast with a little strawberry jam but kinda healthy too! Well… its got blueberry’s in it?

 what you’ll need:

1 cup rolled oats 1 1/2 cup flour (of your choice)

1 tsp. baking soda 2/3 cup plain yogurt

1 cup milk (soy/rice/cows) 4 tbsp. sweetener (honey/maple syrup/apple sauce)

1 egg

2 tsp. vanilla

1/2 cup blueberries (or fruit of your choice)

what you’ll do:

Preheat oven to 180′C .

Grease or line a bread loaf pan with baking paper .

Combine oats, flour, baking soda, yogurt, milk, sweetener, the egg and the vanilla .

Fold in blueberries .

Bake for 20-25 mins or until toothpick, inserted into centre, comes out clean.