Asparagus & Dried Tomato Pizza

A new combination of pizza toppings may not really be a recipe, but it's what I made and it was tasty.

This time, the pizza crust turned out better than ever before: thin, crispy, chewy, and with nice air bubbles in the outer crust. It is the same basic recipe I've been using for a while (this one without the Sriracha), but I did a few things differently. First, I let it rise for a while -- usually we are in a hurry to eat and so I don't bother, knowing that it'll make a crust that's serviceable but not spectacular. Today I had time, so I let it rise until doubled (first on the counter, then in the fridge because it was hot and I was going out for a while). Second, I added a couple tablespoons of vital wheat gluten. Third, I baked it for a full ten minutes, instead of my usual seven. I have to recommend doing all these things -- the payoff is great.

Asparagus & Dried Tomato Pizza

One recipe crust, linked above. This will make 2x what you need.

1/2 cup dried tomatoes, soaked about 5 minutes in boiling water
1/2 lb asparagus, cut into lengths just under an inch
2 oz. feta cheese, crumbled
1/4 medium sweet onion (I used Vidalia), chopped
1/2 tsp olive oil

While you are soaking the tomatoes, saute the asparagus in the oil over high heat, until tender and beginning to blacken. Remove from heat and reserve.

Preheat oven to 450.

Your dough will be very, very sticky. Heavily flour a surface and turn the dough onto it; flour the top of the dough. Divide the dough in half; save half for another use (such as making a calzone for lunch the next day with your extra tomatoes and onions). Roll the dough out as thinly as you can into an approximate circle. You can also stretch it a bit the way they do it pizza parlors. The idea is to have about a 10 inch circle that's very thin but a bit thicker around the edges.

Sprinkle cornmeal heavily on a cookie sheet . Transfer your dough to the sheet. Cover with tomato slices (there will be gaps), asparagus, onions, and feta. Bake 10 minutes. Let cool a few minutes and eat!

Serves one, realistically. Two if you have other components to the meal, perhaps.

Turkish-Vacation Salmon

Finally used the dried tomatoes we brought back from Turkey last year -- as well as almost the last of the pomegranate molasses!

Turkish-Vacation Salmon

1 1-lb salmon fillet, frozen
1 very large or 2 medium zucchini, cut into quarters lengthwise and then sliced
1 cup dried tomatoes, shredded (not reconstituted)
1.5 medium onions, diced
1 tbsp canola oil
1 tbsp sesame oil
large pinch dried hyssop or oregano
salt
juice of 1/2 lemon
drizzle of pomegranate molasses

Preheat a George Forman type grill. Meanwhile, saute the zucchini and onion in the canola oil about 5 minutes. At this point, put the frozen fish directly on the grill. Cook it for 8-10 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillet. While it is cooking, add the dried tomatoes and sesame oil to the vegetables, along with about a quarter cup of water. Continue to cook until the salmon is done or until you decide the zucchini is too soft. Add a large pinch of hyssop to the vegetables; salt to taste.

Pile the vegetables onto a platter and lay the fish on top. Drizzle with lemon juice and pomegranate molasses. Serve hot.

Serves 2.