DIY #1

On my first day in Vancouver, Sam took me to Granville Island for lunch, grocery shopping and a little site-seeing. While we were there I ate a slice of Margherita Pizza and it was so delicious that I decided to eat it on a regular basis. Now to avoid the wallet-gauging and waistline-expanding situation that takeout pizza can so easily contribute to, this Margherita pizza must be made at home... by me. It looked easy and delicious enough that I could take the experiment on, even in a kitchen as broken as mine right now, and it became the first attempt in my cooking series called 'DIY: Do It Yourself.' This series will showcase me attempting recipes that look pretty common and easy but that I have never done before... making pizza, frying something in hot oil, making a pie crust from scratch. I believe this series will also help me learn the basics in cooking, the things we take for granted, pretty much by trial and error.

DIY Experiment #1: MARGHERITA PIZZA

I love when foods have a great story detailing their origin and this pizza does not disappoint. In 1899, Queen Margherita came to Naples to escape the cholera epidemic that had gripped the north of Italy and was served this pizza by Chef Raffaelle Esposito. To honour her visit, the chef used tomatoes (red), fresh basil (green) and fresh mozzerella cheese (white) to mimic the colours of the Italian flag. The Queen was so effusive in her praise of the chef and his pizza that he named the pizza after her.

My favourite part about this pizza is that it is so easy to make! You can always make it a little more complicated by whipping up your own pizza sauce and pizza dough but as I was making this (and another tray of the Strawberry Tart with Vanilla Mint Cream from my Vancouver entry) for the family before running off to a soccer game 60 minutes away, I needed it as simple as possible.

Note: I am not the pizzamaker in the family, my brother is. So I knew this would have its ups and downs and since it was my first attempt, would most likely not turn out like any of Neil's creations. Stay tuned for my thoughts.

Margherita Pizza

Fresh basil: 1 bunch
Fresh baby mozzarella cheese: 200-250 grams
Tomato: 2 medium, thinly sliced (or enough to cover the whole pizza)
Tomato Sauce: 1 cup, or enough to cover the pizza dough
Pizza Dough: 1 large
Salt and pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface. Transfer to a baking tray and bake until puffed and beginning to color, 8 to 10 minutes.
3. Spread the pizza sauce over the pizza crust. Arrange basil leaves on the pizza and top with tomatoes and baby mozzarella slices. Sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. Bake for 15-20 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese has melted.

The above recipe is the official version I got from the web but I didn't follow it verbatim. The most important thing to remember that isn't listed in the directions to grease the baking pan you are baking the pizza on. My parents dished up the pizza while I was at soccer so I wasn't able to witness this for myself but they apparently lost 1/6 of the pizza since it was stuck to the pan. Grease the pan people!

I couldn't find any baby mozzerella at the grocery store but I did get a gorgeous large ball of fresh mozzerella. I almost didn't want to cut it up for the pizza as it looked too good but I definitely snuck a few pieces for myself while I was setting everything up.



Parental verdict: Delicious! I also thinked they liked not doing any of the cooking or cleaning.
My verdict: Good, not great, not crappy. In my rush I forgot to add the salt and pepper and I think those are necessary for that little extra touch. I also didn't prebake the dough before putting the ingredients on it but that's because I was following the directions I got on the dough bag, not in the recipe, so I am not sure if this would have done anything else. I also believe I went a little overboard with the basil but my parents didn't think so. To each their own I guess!

All in all, I would call my first DIY experiment a success. I also did another batch of the Strawberry Tart with Vanilla Mint Cream as I wasn't super happy with how the Vancouver batch turned out (something about the tart part was a little off.) I wanted to do them on biscuits like in a strawberry shortcake recipe but our local Longos was either out of or didn't stock any Bisquick (how is that possible?) I felt like an idiot when I got home and saw we had our own box but I really didn't have time to make biscuits as I would find out. To fill the void I grabbed some premade individual Angel Food cakes; I cut them in half and layered the cream and strawberries to make a dessert sandwich. They turned out so awesome! The Angel Food cakelets added a necessary touch of extra sweetness.



My parents will be going away soon to Newfoundland for a little over a week, leaving Neil and I to fend for ourselves in our wasteland of a kitchen. I am foreseeing a lot of premade casseroles or takeout in my future. However after an awful fish n' chips incident at Swiss Chalet (don't try them, ever!), I have decided to make Fish and Chips my next DIY adventure. Yum yum!

Until next time, may all your experiments work out!
Lisa