A Pizza for All Seasons

Sometimes too much pizza is just too much (yeah, that's a lie, I would never say that).

But, I would agree to the suggestion to at least change it up every once in a while. Which is why this post will focus on a ground-breaking pizza discovery that I have recently made.

Pizza cookies.

No I didn't find it on Pinterest (although, I'm sure there's something on there), I didn't read it on Buzzfeed, and I didn't call my mom and ask her to make me pizza cookies for my blog...like I would do that!

I simply said (as many great scientists have), "What if?". 

So, with a few guests coming over earlier this week, I rounded up the following ingredients and rolled the dice. Here's how it all shook out:

- Red Icing (holidays came in clutch on this one, that stuff's everywhere)
- Holiday M&M's (for "pepperoni" and "green pepper")
- Sugar cookies (pre-made...ain't nobody got time fo' that!)
- Annnnnnd shredded coconut for cheese (the wife hatched this idea, love you babe!)

And then assemble! All in all, it was very simple to get. Total cost was $17 at Meijer (noticing a trend? I love me some Meijer).

It took about 20 minutes to put together: spread icing, add "cheese", M&M's, and dunzo.

I served them up on plates and the company I had over ate them up! These suckers are RICH, and a serving size should probably only be 0.32 cookies. I had one and needed a nap afterwards. It all depends on what kind of sugar cookie you get. The ones I bought were plump to put it frankly. 

So, there you have it! Pizza...but not really. Changing it up is good, and seeing pizza in a new light is part the exploration of pizza possibilities. I hope you try this yourself and if you do, please feel free to add photos of your cookies! I'd love to see what you all cook up.

Happy Holidays everyone! 

Pizza in the Mornin' - How to make delicious breakfast pizza

Good Morning. If you're reading this, then you likely look past the Cheerios and Greek Yogurt when you start your day. You need something more, something perhaps more like what you had last night for dinner. You need all that breakfast can offer, but in a way that only pizza can deliver.

I too have been there, and on one morning I decided to take action. I shall now share my secret to what I proclaim to be the best breakfast food I've eaten...and you can eat it too!

Sure it may look like rabbit droppings on scrambled eggs (quite the visual eh?), but I assure you, it will be one of the best breakfast pies you taste. And here's how I did it:

1. Pizza crust from Meijer (WHOLE GRAIN!)

• The Whole Grain Pizza crust from Meijer (or "Meijer's" as Michiganders say) is pre-made and does very well for this breakfast meal. Hearty, quick, and still good quality, this crust is a must.

2. Fresh Spinach

• Spinach gives this pie an omelette feel, plus, pizza is traditionally ignored as a healthy meal. Add some spinach and even Popeye can stand behind this idea!

3. Meijer brand Pizza Sauce

• Once again I've got to go with Meijer for ingredients. This sauce is GREAT! 

NOW I HAVE TO STOP YOU RIGHT THERE! PIZZA SAUCE?! FOR BREAKFAST?!

Okay folks, put the gun down and walk away...just trust me. I know your first inkling is to use sausage gravy, or just to butter the crust like toast, or whatever. But we're talking about pizza here! And pizza has, sauce. So, now that it's out there, I'll continue...

4. Scrambled Eggs

• Get eggs....they come from chickens? Just buy some? 

5. Hash Browns from Trader Joe's

• McDonald's has famously made hash browns for decades with breakfast. Trader Joe's (I promise you) has frozen hash browns that taste exactly like Micky D's! Fry them, or bake, it makes no difference. But once they're ready, cut them into small squares as you see here, and spread as a topping around the pizza.

6. Sausage!

• Believe it or not, what you see in that picture is NOT real sausage. It's actually Morningstar Vegan Sausage. I know, I just lost half of my readers...but stay with me I beg of you! Any sausage will do! I tried the vegan stuff in the pursuit of creativity and variety, It actually tasted pretty good! 

7. CHEESE!!!

• Once again I would direct you to Trader Joe's...they have a Quattro Formaggio shredded cheese which I submit to you will change your life (at least improve your golf swing). I used this specific cheese on my breakfast pizza, and I haven't gone back.

So, all in all, you throw it together like a pizza, and put it in the oven for 10 minutes at 425 degrees. It comes out looking incredible. Now, the flavor is equally as good, but prepare yourselves folks (remember the sauce vs. gravy freak out about 300 words ago?), the pizza sauce will add a slight sweet character to the pizza, but it is not a distraction. The slight sweet plays nicely off the salty cheese and savory sausage. The spinach adds an earthy flavor and the hash browns bring tears to your lacrimal ducts. You will not be disappointed! It all takes about 40 mins (AT MOST) to put together and prepare. That's mostly because of the hash browns. But if you have the time on a Saturday/Sunday morning, you deserve to east this well. Especially, as a pizza fanatic!

Pick-up or Delivery

It starts with a simple question..."what do I want to eat?", well, actually for me, there's never a need to ask. Nonetheless, the next issue at hand is "how?". You talk to your friends, your girlfriend/boyfriend, husband/wife, dog (no cats...sorry gang), imaginary friend, mom/dad, sister/brother, and you do the math. 

"What will feed all these people?" 

And then you make the call...

The butterflies, the anticipation, it's exciting, and at times agonizing (being put on hold), but in what is usually no longer than 90 seconds, your genie of dinner greets you and grants you one wish. All that remains is to tell the genie the answer to my favorite question:

"Will this be Pick-up, or Delivery?", and your mind races.

Well, if I do pick-up, I can grab a six-pack at 7-11, and get some gas, I'll have the pizza sooner, and I don't have to pay a tip...but if I do drive and get gas, then I can't use the excuse with my friends, "oh, I can drive, but I'd have to get gas", which is a beautiful way of avoiding being the driver for any social outing, and that's leverage I don't quite want to surrender...although, I could negotiate for my friends to drive if I give them an extra slice or two, I mean they don't eat more than 3-4 slices on average, and at 10 slices per large, that still leaves me 6-7 pieces, and that would be worth not driving OR getting gas, but then, how can I be sure? What if they are extra hungry and eat 4-5 pieces, well then I'll have to order breadsticks as an insurance policy against my own appetite, yeah, that could work! ...hmm, but delivery, oh delivery, delivery adds an element that pick-up can't possibly live up to, delivery adds an uncertainty element, from the estimate of the 15 year old taking my order, "alright, we'll have that ready in about 30-45 minutes", to waiting anxiously by the phone for it to ring, waiting to meet the stranger in the night who will never know the full extent of the happiness they're bringing into my life, the absolute euphoria that a hot steaming pie (wait, why does everything sound gross when "steaming" is put in front of it?), can bring to the lives of those who enjoy it...but then again, estimates are estimates, and 15 yr olds often fail to realize the fixed construct of time and it's many variables, perhaps delivery could make or break this whole thing...okay, it's decided then...

"Pick-up"

Perfect! But my friends do seem extra hungry...

"...and can I add some breadsticks?"

Ladies and Gentlemen, Millennials and Gen Xers, Hipsters and Bieber fans, this is my blog. A blog about Pizza, the greatest food on planet earth. I hope you will enjoy the passion for the pie as I compose my thoughts (and expertise) and leave them here for all to read. 

So, what will it be? Pick-up? Or Delivery?

Let's eat!