Ingredient: baby arugula

BLT Naan Bread Pizza

The BLT pizza is a variation of the classic BLT sandwich, which is made with bacon, lettuce, and tomato, and is often served on toast.

The BLT is believed to have originated in the U.S. restaurant industry in the 1940s, when waitstaff used the initials ‘BLT’ as shorthand to convey orders to the kitchen. 

The BLT pizza is made with the same ingredients as the BLT sandwich, but with the addition of pizza dough and cheese. Some pizza places add a top layer of crust to make the pizza more like a sandwich. 

You’ve likely eaten naan bread at some time. The tasty Indian flatbread is traditionally cooked in the tandoor, carries a slight smoky aroma, and has a soft texture with pillow-like pockets studded over the top. Puffed flatbread has the power to move beyond a dinner accompaniment. It’s worthy of a role far better — like actually being the main course.

It proves to be super versatile — naan is soft and sturdy enough to take the place of bread, thin enough to be used as a flatbread or pizza dough, and pliable enough to work as a tortilla. It can be soaked, baked, fried, and folded to take on some surprising and delicious forms such as French toast, savory bread pudding, paninis, nachos or even as a dessert naan bread with bananas, strawberries & chocolate.

Ever since Brion & I got ‘tuned in’ to savory naan bread pizzas, we love them no matter what the topping is. Using Smoky Bacon Mayo on the naan bread is such an added bonus in the allover flavor. This BLT Pizza will remind you of the classic Bacon, Lettuce and Tomato sandwich that we all love, just in pizza format! 

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 BLT Naan Bread Pizza
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course Lunch
Cuisine Iran
Keyword BLT naan bread pizza
Servings
Ingredients
Course Lunch
Cuisine Iran
Keyword BLT naan bread pizza
Servings
Ingredients
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
  1. Cook bacon in a skillet or in the microwave until slightly crispy. Drain on paper towel. Chop & set aside.
  2. Preheat oven to 400 F.
  3. On a small foil lined baking pan place halved tomatoes. Sprinkle with salt & pepper & drizzle with golden Italian dressing. Place in oven & roast until starting to soften. Remove from oven.
  4. Shred cheese.
  5. Spread top side of each naan bread with a generous amount of Smoky Bacon mayo. Sprinkle each with chopped bacon then transfer partially roasted tomatoes on top of bacon. Sprinkle each with Italian seasoning & salt & pepper to taste.
  6. Place on a parchment lined baking sheet & place in the oven for about 10 minutes to heat everything through & finish roasting the tomatoes.
  7. Remove from oven & sprinkle baby arugula over pizzas then drizzle with ranch dressing. Serve immediately.

Roasted Grape Pizza w/ Ground Meat & Arugula

Gone are the days when the only association with grapes was a glass of wine.

The origin of grapes on pizza is unclear but is presumably related to the Tuscan dish, ‘schiacciata all’uva’ (flattened bread or focaccia with grapes). During the harvest season in Italy, grapes (with seeds) are baked into flatbreads to create a slightly sweet snack or dessert. The crunch and tartness of the grapes add a layer of complexity to the dough.

Today’s blog recipe is for a gourmet-style pizza that features roasted red grapes with 2 different cheeses, a ground meat combo & arugula which make it quite unique and irresistible.

Grapes have an extremely high natural sugar content, so roasting causes the skin of the grapes to burst a bit in the oven and become lightly blistered and caramelized. The inside is juicy, with a jam-like consistency (a bit like a wine flavored jam). Roasted grapes are amazing over grilled meats, easy-yet-elegant desserts, next-level salads and toasts, cheese boards, roast meat, or…pizza.

In Alberta, Canada, where we live, the colder climate historically posed challenges to grape ‘farming’. However, with the advent of cold-hardy grape varieties and innovative farming techniques, the Alberta grape and wine industry, though niche, is showing promising growth and resilience.

Fresh grapes are wonderful on their own, but their culinary versatility is broad. When roasted it concentrates their sweetness. When frozen, grapes turn into bite-sized sorbets, a cool treat for summer. Grape juice, with its sweet and tart profile, is a base for many beverages and sauces. And of course, grapes are paramount in winemaking.

Brion & I have been growing Valiant grapes in our back yard for about thirteen years now. I have featured various savory recipes using grapes before but today I thought it was a good time for another Roasted Grape Pizza .

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 Roasted Grape Pizza w/ Ground Meat & Arugula
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course Lunch
Cuisine Canadian
Keyword roasted grape pizza w/ ground meat & arugula
Servings
Ingredients
Course Lunch
Cuisine Canadian
Keyword roasted grape pizza w/ ground meat & arugula
Servings
Ingredients
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
  1. Preheat oven to 400 F.
  2. Toss the grapes with 1 Tbsp olive oil & salt & place on a parchment lined baking sheet. Roast 20-25 minutes until the skins start to burst & the juices begin to caramelize. Set aside to cool slightly.
  3. In a saucepan over medium heat, cook the ground meat until fully browned. Break meat into small pieces as it cooks. Drain any excess fat to prevent a soggy crust. Stir in the garlic powder & herbs during the last minute of cooking.
  4. Spread ricotta evenly over Naan breads & season with salt & pepper. Add a thin layer of shredded cheese followed by the cooked meat & onion. Scatter roasted grapes & fresh thyme over the top
  5. Bake at 400 F. for 8-12 minutes until filling is hot & melty.
  6. Immediately after removing the pizza from the oven scatter fresh arugula over the top[ for a peppery bite. The residual heat will slightly wilt the greens. Drizzle with honey for an extra layer of flavor.

Shrimp Taco Salad

When you think of Mexican food you probably think of the standard burritos, nachos and quesadillas. While those dishes are definitely tasty why not do the summer ‘thing’ and incorporate these ingredients in a salad.

The idea of a full meal salad has always appealed to me. Of course, there are many of these using a variety of ingredients. Probably one of the most popular was the taco salad. The earliest record of it dates back to the 1960’s with its predecessor being the small teacup sized ‘Tacup’. It consisted of beef, beans, sour cream and cheese, served in a small ‘bowl’ made entirely of a Fritos tortilla.

The taco in a Tacup was invented by Charles Elmer Doolin, the founder of Fritos (tortilla chips). He created a device that looked like tongs but with two tart molds at the end of each tong. One mold would fit within the other mold with a tortilla sandwiched between them. The scalloped-edged shell was dipped into hot oil. Holes in the bottom mold exposed the tortilla to the hot oil, enabling it to cook evenly.

Tacups were first served in Dallas, Texas in the early 1950’s and by 1955, he was selling them in Fritos’ flagship restaurant, ‘Casa de Fritos’, at Disneyland in Anaheim, California. It became popular enough that the Tacup was made bigger and served as a full, main-dish sized salad bowl.

Today’s salad is a satisfying meal, a seriously feel-good dinner salad that’s crisp, spicy, and fresh all at once. Tacos de camarones (‘shrimp tacos’) originated in Baja California in Mexico. But these shrimp tacos in salad form gives you that full meal deal. All the very best elements —seasoned shrimp, healthy fresh veggies, in an edible tortilla bowl with a homemade cilantro lime dressing.

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 Shrimp Taco Salad
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
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Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword shrimp taco salad
Servings
Ingredients
Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
Shrimp
Salad Ingredients
Tortilla Bowls
Course Main Dish
Cuisine American
Keyword shrimp taco salad
Servings
Ingredients
Creamy Cilantro Lime Dressing
Shrimp
Salad Ingredients
Tortilla Bowls
Votes: 1
Rating: 5
You:
Rate this recipe!
Instructions
Cilantro Dressing
  1. In a food processor, place the cilantro, garlic, avocado, lime juice, honey, coriander & salt. Pulse to combine. With the machine is running, pour in the olive oil & process until smooth.
Shrimp
  1. In a medium bowl, add all marinade ingredients (except shrimp) & blend well. Add shrimp tossing well to coat. Set aside to marinate for 15 minutes. In a saucepan, melt a Tbsp butter then sauté shrimp over medium-high heat for 5 minutes or just until shrimp is cooked.
Salad Ingredients
  1. In a saucepan, fry bacon until cooked but not too crisp, drain on paper towel & chop. Drain canned or cook fresh corn on the cob & remove kernels from cob. Peel, pit & cube avocado. Sprinkle a bit of lime juice on it to keep it from going brown. Halve grape tomatoes. Slice green onions, chives & dill. Drain sliced black olives. Cube cheese.
Tortilla Bowls
  1. Preheat oven to 350 F.
  2. Brush inside of 2 heat resistant glass bowls with oil. Place one tortilla in each bowl so that the shape more or less adheres to the bowl. Line each tortilla with cheese slices then place a second tortilla on top.
  3. Place the bowls with the layered tortillas in the oven & bake for 7 minutes. Remove the bowls from the oven & allow to cool before removing the 'edible tortilla bowls'.
Assembly
  1. Place tortilla bowls on serving plates. In a large mixing bowl place shrimp & all salad ingredients. Toss gently, then divide between tortilla bowls. Drizzle with cilantro dressing (or dressing of choice) & serve.