Strawberry Balsamic Pizza

My brother-in-law and I have back-to-back birthdays (7/15 and 7/16) so this past weekend was packed with incredible friends, entirely too much fun and so much love. This dinner was supposed to be Sunday night's dinner, but Josh and I were both too exhausted from the weekend's festivities and decided it was the perfect meal for Monday night instead - an obvious choice to start the week off right, in my opinion. I have been dreaming of making a strawberry pizza since the beginning of summer and this was the incredibly delicious result of all that dreaming. A little bit of heat, not too much sweet and the perfect amount of salt. Enjoy!

Ingredients
GF pizza crust of your choice
3 ounces pancetta, cooked
1 yellow onion, thinly sliced
4 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (I actually used the pearl-sized balls)
1 handful fresh basil, rough chopped
1/2 cup hulled strawberries, diced

2 TBSPs balsamic glaze (I use Trader Joe's - or you can make your own by reducing balsamic vinegar)
1/4 cup good quality strawberry jam or preserves
1 tsp sriracha chili sauce

1 TBSP olive oil

1 TBSP brown sugar

Preparation Instructions

Preheat your oven according to package instructions of dough.

In a small bowl, combine the balsamic glaze, strawberry jam and sriracha chili sauce.  Set aside.

Heat olive oil in a large skillet. Add onions and brown sugar and cook slowly until onions are brown and soft. Set aside.

Spread the balsamic-strawberry mixture in a thin layer over the crust.  Layer with the basil, pancetta, cheese, onion, and strawberries. 

Transfer the pizza to the oven (I use a preheated pizza stone) and bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling and the crust is lightly browned, following package instructions for pizza dough. Remove from the oven and let cool slightly before slicing and serving.


ps: this is being shared over at Tasty Tuesday!

Olive Tapenade-Stuffed Avocado Salad

This summer has been all about stuffing yummy veggies with delicious goodies. This one in particular holds a special place in my heart because as most people close to me know, I am obsessed with olives, in particular Trader Joe's Olive Tapenade. If you don't like olives, then this recipe is not for you. But, I might be judging you a little bit. Regardless, this salad is super easy, surprisingly delicious and perfect for entertaining your foodie friends. I can’t take all of the credit for this recipe, my mom made it recently for my home-cooked early birthday celebratory meal…my mom’s meals > than any restaurants. True story.

Ingredients (for two servings)

1 avocado, halved and pit and skin removed 

1/2 pint cherry tomatoes, chopped

1/3 cup olive tapenade (homemade or store-bought, Trader Joe's is the best!)

1/4 cup grated parmesan cheese 

6 romaine lettuce leaves

Italian-style salad dressing of choice (I used Garlic Expressions, which is amazing!)

Preparation Instructions

Combine the chopped cherry tomatoes, olive tapenade and cheese in a small bowl. Arrange some lettuce leaves on a small plate. Place an avocado on top and fill the center of the avocado with the tomato mixture (and perhaps some on the lettuce too). Pour a little dressing over the lettuce leaves. Serve immediately.

Pesto Shrimp Pasta

I actually was not intending on blogging this meal because it is similar to the Summer Risotto I did last August. However, this turned out so delicious, so summery and so pretty, I couldn't resist. It was the perfect kick off to an ideal summer weekend - celebrating a birthday with some incredible friends, getting to our favorite dog park with our puppies, conquering challenging workouts, eating delicious food and laughing lots. Life is good! Enjoy. 

Ingredients

1 pound shrimp, peeled, deveined, shells removed

1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved

2-3 ears of corn, corn removed off cob

1/2 onion, chopped

1/4 cup dry white wine

4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed

1 handful of fresh mint and fresh basil, chopped

1/3 - 1/2 cup mint basil pesto (my recipe, but this time I didn't use parmesan cheese)

gluten free spaghetti pasta, cooked per package instructions

Preparation Instructions

Season the shrimp on both sides with some coarse salt and fresh ground black pepper. Heat a little olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the shrimp to the pan and sauté until cooked, about two minutes per side. Remove the shrimp from the pan and set aside. 

Turn up the heat to high. In the same pan, add the onion, corn and tomatoes. Sauté for a bit until the onions are soft. Then press down the mixture into the pan to get a good char on the veggies. After letting it set for a few minutes, mix it around and add the wine to release the char/bits from the bottom of the pan. (At this point I added a few dashes of crushed red pepper because I'm weird like that, but you don't have to!)

In a bowl, combine the cooked pasta, corn mixture, mozzarella cheese cubes, chopped mint and basil and pesto (we used about 1/3 cup, but use whatever your taste buds prefer!). Serve immediately. 


ps: this is being shared over at Tasty Tuesday!