Pizza Rice Casserole

 submitted by Stephanie Pruitt

Pictured: pizza rice casserole with peppers and mushrooms

Original recipe from The Family Homestead

Ingredients:

• 3 c cooked lentil rice, made with bullion 
• 1 1/2 c cottage cheese
• 1 onion, chopped
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1 14-oz can diced tomatoes
• 1 8-oz can tomato sauce
• 2 t Italian seasoning
• 1/2 t salt
• Parmesan cheese (we use about 1/4 c)
• mozzarella or cheddar cheese to taste 
• opt: pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, green peppers, or other pizza toppings

Directions:

1. In a medium sauce pan, mix rice, lentils, water, and bullion and bring to boil.  Reduce to a simmer and cook about 45 min or until water is gone.
2. Preheat oven to 325.  Combine cooked rice and cottage cheese and spread into the bottom of a 9x13 pan. 
3. Saute onion, garlic (and optional vegetables, if adding). Mix in tomatoes, tomato sauce, Italian seasonings and salt. Spread this over the top of the rice. Layer optional pepperoni and olives.  Top with cheeses.  Bake 20 minutes or until cheese has melted.

White pizza As inspired by Rachael Ray

submitted by cooking club

1 batch pizza dough (recipe follows)

1 TBSP olive oil

1 ½ cups ricotta cheese (whole milk preferably)

2 cloves garlic, minced

½ tsp dried parsley

Salt & pepper

8 oz. fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

½ tsp dried basil or ¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. Roll out pizza dough (following previous directions for pizza stone).

Drizzle olive oil over the surface of the dough, brushing up to the edge. Dot the surface of the pizza with ricotta cheese, going to ½ inch from the edge. Flick the garlic all over the ricotta. Sprinkle parsley and salt and pepper all over the ricotta and garlic. Place the mozzarella slices all over the pizza, leaving about 1 inch between slices.

Bake in preheated oven for 12-20 minutes. Remove when mozzarella is browning and the crust edge is golden brown. Sprinkle basil over the surface of the pizza before serving. Enjoy!

Pizza Dough

(Enough for one-16 inch pizza, though I double it every time I make it and freeze half the dough in a Ziploc bag)

*Note: I use half wheat or oat flour and half all-purpose flour and we love the whole grain flavor and texture. I’ve never made it using all WW flour so I can’t guarantee results going that way, but you’re welcome to try! I also typically end up using right around 2 ½ cups of flour but just keep an eye on it so you don’t over or under flour your dough.

1 cup warm water, about 100-110 degrees

1 tsp active dry yeast

1 tsp sugar

½ tsp salt

3 TBSP olive oil

2-3 cups flour*

Combine water, yeast, and sugar in the bowl of a stand mixer with dough hook attached. Let rest for 5-10 minutes.

To the bowl of your activated yeast, add the salt and oil. Mix to combine. Add your flour, 1 cup at a time initially, then adding in smaller increments as your dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl (see note). Once your dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl and is slightly sticky, knead for 5 minutes.

Place dough in a slightly greased bowl and cover with greased plastic wrap to let dough rise until doubled in size (you can also make your dough the night before or the morning you’re planning on making your pizza and just put this bowl in the fridge until you’re ready to roll out your pizza dough. The more time your dough sits, the better the flavor development of your crust).  If freezing your dough, place dough that has already risen in a gallon or quart sized Ziploc bag and place it in your freezer. When you want to make pizza, take your bag of frozen dough out of the freezer and put in the fridge to thaw in the morning. By evening the dough should be soft and pliable enough to roll into a pizza crust.

Use in pizza recipe as desired.

Pizza Blanca as inspired by Grimaldi’s Pizza

submitted by cooking club

1 batch of pizza dough (recipe follows)

8-12 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced

2 TBSP minced garlic (about 3 generous cloves)

2 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced

¼ cup shredded Parmesan cheese

Freshly grated black pepper

Sea salt

Dried oregano

1 TBSP olive oil

1 leaf fresh basil, chopped finely (about ½ tsp dried basil)

Preheat oven to 475 degrees. If preheating your pizza stone, prepare pizza dough on parchment paper or pizza mat to make transfer to the stone simpler.  On a lightly floured surface, stretch or roll out dough to fit 16 inch pizza stone.

Place mozzarella cheese slices all over the pizza, with about 1 inch between slices and ½ inch from edge. Flick minced garlic all over the surface of the pizza, on top of the mozzarella. Place the tomatoes slices all over the mozzarella and garlic, with about 2 inches between each slice.

Sprinkle the Parmesan cheese, a pinch of each black pepper, salt, and oregano all over the pizza surface. Drizzle the olive oil evenly over the pizza surface.

Bake pizza in oven for 12-20 minutes, depending on your oven. Remove pizza when the mozzarella is speckled with brown spots and the crust is golden brown.  Sprinkle basil over the surface of the cooked pizza. Slice and enjoy!