Cheesy Dreams

We had a great time at the Cape last weekend and got to eat at all of our favorite places. The Post Office Cafe in Provencetown, Box Lunch in Wellfleet (where I discovered my new favorite "rollwich" the Cheese Dream, thanks to our friend Ry for pointing it out) and Cooke's in Orleans. We also totally lucked out on the weather, it rained the first night we were there but was gorgeous the rest of the weekend.

When we got married we rented two houses in the center of Wellfleet for the week and we had the wedding right at one of the houses. Every time we drive past it now we refer to it as "Our" house and we get jealous when we see other people there. It was a dream location and we always talk about renting it again for our anniversary and inviting our friends and family back to stay.

The menu this week was a good one. I love it when I succeed at making a plan where the meals build upon each other and share ingredients. This one does.

Enjoy.

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Oh Boy! This was go-oo-od! All of the flavors worked so well together and I especially loved the squeeze of lime at the end. It made it taste very summery and I never would have thought lime on pizza. I love it when I make a new discovery like this.

1. Corn and Zucchini Pizza with Lime and Cilantro

from The Cheese Board Collective Works

makes 2 large pizzas

For the Dough:

1 T (1 package) active dry yeast

1 1/2 cups warm water

2 T extra-virgin olive oil

1 1/2 t kosher salt

3 1/2 - 4 cups bread flour

In the bowl of a stand mixer mix the yeast with the warm water until dissolved. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Add the olive oil, salt and 2 cups of the flour to the bowl and mix on low speed, using the paddle attachment, for 5 minutes to form a wet dough. Switch to the dough hook and, add 1 1/2 cups more flour and mix on medium speed for 5 minutes. Add the remaining 1/2 cup flour by the tablespoon as needed to form and soft dough that is a little sticky but not too wet. (I didn't have to add any f the last 1/2 cup of flour.)

Form the dough into a ball and place it in a large oiled bowl. Turn the dough over to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a damp kitchen towel and let rise in a warm place for 1 hour, or until doubled in size. (You can also put it in the refrigerator at this point and let it rise overnight. Let it stand at room temp for 2 hours before making your pizza.)

For the Pizza:

1 clove garlic, minced

2 T extra-virgin olive oil

yellow corn meal

1 ear of corn, kernels removed

pinch of black pepper

1/2 t red pepper flakes (I used a little more)

1 lb Mozzarella, shredded

1/2 yellow onion, thinly sliced

3 small zucchini, thinly sliced

6 oz. Feta, crumbled

fresh cilantro leaves, coarsely chopped

1 lime, cut into quarters

Arrange the oven racks in the upper and lower thirds of the oven. Preheat to 450 degrees. In a small bowl, combine the garlic and olive oil and set aside. Sprinkle corn meal on two baking sheets. Divide the pizza dough in half and roll out each section to roughly the size of a each sheet. In a bowl, toss the corn kernels with the black pepper and red pepper. Scatter half of the Mozzarella over the pizzas, leaving a 1/2" rim. Place the onion over the cheese and the zucchini over the onion. Scatter the remaining Mozzarella over the zucchini. Sprinkle with the feta and the corn. Place one of the pizzas on the lower oven rack and bake for 8 minutes. Move that pizza to the upper rack and place the second pizza on the lower rack. Continue baking for 8 minutes. Finish baking the first pizza by sliding it off of the pan directly onto the lower rack for 5 minutes. Move the second pizza to the upper rack. Finish baking the second pizza the same as the first. Immediately after removing the pizza from the oven, brush the garlic oil onto the rim, squeeze the lime juice over the top and garnish with the cilantro.

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I first saw this sauce on foodgawker and followed the link over to Delish. It looked so good and I couldn't wait to give it a try. I made four chicken breasts and the leftovers lasted the rest of the week in various dishes. The day after, for lunch, I brought another strawberry salad and had a piece of chicken on the side and then for dinner I put some in the quesidillas (more on this below) and then for lunch the day after that I had the rest on another salad, this time with a few kalamata olives and red onion. I couldn't believe how far 4 pieces of chicken could stretch.

By the way, I *love* strawberries on salad (any kind of fruit really, but strawberries especially) and to keep the whole "white" theme going I made a dressing out of white balsamic vinegar. (About 1 T of olive oil, 1 1/2 t vinegar and a pinch of sugar.) The salad also had spring greens, spinach, pecans, red onion and feta. Mmm mm!

2. White BBQ Chicken

from Delish

makes 4 servings

For the Brine:

1/2 cup apple juice

1/2 cup water

1 1/2 t kosher salt

1/8 t garlic powder

1 1/2 t honey

1/4 t dark brown sugar

1/4 t soy sauce

4 boneless skinless chicken breasts

Combine all ingredients and mix well. Add chicken and refrigerate for at least 1 hour and up to 5.

For the White BBQ Sauce:

1 cup mayonnaise

1/2 cup distilled white vinegar

1/4 cup apple juice

1 t prepared horseradish

1 t lemon juice

1/2 t kosher salt

1/4 t cayenne pepper (I used more like 1/2 t)

Combine all of the ingredients and mix well. Heat the grill. Remove the chicken from the brine and pound to an even thickness. (It should be pretty easy to do this after brining because the vinegar in the brine is going to tenderize the meat.) Place the chicken on the grill and brush with the BBQ sauce. Cook 6-7 minutes. Flip and cook another 6-7 minutes, or until chicken is cooked through. (160 degrees in the middle) Let rest 5-10 minutes. Top with more BBQ sauce.

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I was in Spain for three weeks when I was in college and I think I ate at least one bowl of gazpacho every day that I was there. It isn't that I love it so much, but there was something about it there. It was unlike any I had had before. I have since been trying to recreate it but so far not I have not gotten it quite right. This version was good but again, it wasn't the same. It has been a number of years since I was there and I feel like I am forgetting what it even was that made the soup there so unique from what I have had here. I guess I will just have to go back for another taste!

A girl can dream, right?

3. Gazpacho with Chicken and Cheese Quesidillas

soup modified from Simply Soup

makes 4 servings

5 slices white bread, crust removed

1 can chopped tomatoes or 12 oz fresh tomatoes, peeled and roughly chopped

2 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

1 red bell pepper, seeded and chopped

1/2 cucumber, peeled, seeded and chopped

2 1/2 T extra virgin olive oil

2 1/2 T red wine vinegar

2 t tomato paste

2-3 cups cold water

1/2 t cayenne pepper

kosher salt and black pepper

Tear the bread into pieces and process briefly in a food processor to make fine breadcrumbs. Transfer to a bowl. Add the tomatoes, garlic, bell pepper, cucumber, olive oil, vinegar and tomato paste. Mix well.

Working in batches, place the tomato mixture and about 1 cup of water in the food processor and process to a puree. Transfer to another bowl and repeat until all of the tomato mixture has been processed. Add the cayenne and season o taste with salt and pepper. Cover and refrigerate at least 2 hours.

For the quesidillas, I chopped some of the chicken from the night before into bite sized bits, heated it up in the microwave and tossed it with a little of the leftover BBQ sauce. I used this with some pepper jack cheese.

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The last time I made this was the week I started this blog. I was happy to look back and see how much my photography has improved since then. It helps that it is actually still light outside when I make dinner these days and I can shoot with natural light. I got the eggs a little over done but they were still pretty good. I modified the recipe a little from last time too.

4. Huevos Avogados in Salsa Verde

makes 2 servings

1 12oz jar of salsa verde

1/4 cup chicken broth

4 eggs

flour tortillas

Blend the salsa and chicken broth together until it is about the consistency of tomato soup. Bring to a simmer in a sauce pan and carefully slide each egg into the mixture. Cover and cook until the whites are cooked through, about 4 minutes. Serve with the warmed tortillas.