Monday, August 18, 2014

Chopped Challenge: Pita Pizza?

This was one of those weeks where I feel like I never really stopped rushing about. Added to the fact that even though I was rushing about, this week took FOREVER. How is that even possible, dear reader, that I could feel like I haven't sat down all week and yet the week just stretched on. So when The Farm Box came, I barely looked at it except to say "oh great... kale."
Needless to say, when The Husband brought home this week's basket, I just wanted to make something quick and easy. I was hoping for an obvious stir fry. Something yummy but FAST, with a good deal of mindless knife work. What I actually got was the following:
Bing Cherries, Pita Bread, Sugar Snap Peas, and  crazy spicy chicken sausage. I took one look a the Pita bread and thought. Frick it, I'm making Pizza.


First step was to devise a sauce. I wanted to use the bing cherries because they were this nice dark red and I figured they would break down nicely into a chunky sauce. First things first, I needed to wash, pit, and chop. Pitting cherries is difficult without a cherry pitter, or so I hear, I've never owned one. If you need your cherries to be picture perfect you can use a chopstick or a straw to push out the pits as you hold a cherry in your fists. You WILL stab yourself several times, but it is your best chance of keeping the cherry whole. If you don't need to keep the cherry pretty, just use a knife and slice to the pit. Then just dig the darn thing out with your fingers. Messy but effective.

I tossed the cherries into a small pot and gave them a quick taste, they were really sweet. I was worried about that. Spicy and sweet go well together but if you go too sweet it just starts getting funky. To counteract the sweetness I pulled two of the tomatoes out of The Farm Box, gave them a quick chop and added it in along with a glug of red wine. I then set the thing to boil and break down.
I turned back to the sugar snap peas, which are a delicious snack in their own right but don't take kindly to being cooked in my opinion. I cut a handful of them on the bias and set them aside.
For the Sausage, I went the easy route. Splitting open the cases and frying up the insides into nice chunks till cooked through.
 Once that was set I took a look at my sauce, it had started to break down but needed a little bit of help. Quick shot with the stick blender and I had a nice sweet but still savory sauce with a dark purple hue. I was hoping it would look more like a play on tomato sauce, but I was hungry and it tasted good, so why change a good thing.
Now to arrage the "pizza". I started with the pita and covered it with a layer of goat cheese. Then I stuck it in the oven for a few minutes hoping it would crisp. In hindsight I should probably have toasted the pita first, then added the toppings, but I didn't, so there.
Next I put on the sausage pieces, and covered it with some of the sauce. Final step was to sprinkle on the Snap Peas and put the whole thing back in the oven to warm through.

All that was left was to plate. I had ideas, oh the IDEAS I had... they didn't work out.
Ah well, not everything is pretty.

The Judge's Corner

COMING SOON

The Recipe:

(Makes 4 pita pizzas)

  • 1 Cup Pitted and Chopped Cherries
  • 2 Medium Tomatoes, cored and roughly chopped
  • 1/4 cup red wine
  • 8 oz of goat cheese (divided into 2oz chunks)
  • 1/2 cup sliced sugar snap peas
  • 1lb hot chicken sausage, removed from casing
  • 4 Pitas
  1. Preheat oven to 425 degrees
  2. In a small saucepan combine cherries, tomatoes and wine and place over low heat until the mixture comes to a boil. Using a stick blender or a regular blender, blend until it reaches "tomato sauce" consistency. Then Place back on the burner to simmer for about 10-15 minutes until thick and shiny. 
  3. In a skillet, break up the chicken sausage and cook through. About 5-7 minutes.
  4. Toast Pitas for a few minutes in the oven then cover with a thin layer of the goat cheese. Top with Sausage, cherry sauce, and then a scatering of the snap peas. 
  5. Bake in the oven for another 3-5 minutes or until cheese is melty
  6. Serve in cut into wedges with more sauce. 


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