Chicken & Peach Tortilla Pizza

Chicken & Peach Tortilla Pizza

adapted from WW.com

The creaminess of the ricotta pairs perfectly with the sweetness  of the peaches. If you do not have a pizza stone cook it directly on the rack in the oven to get the tortilla crispy.

Makes 1 serving                                                       3 WW Blue points / serving

2 Tbsp. part-skim ricotta cheese

1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh basil

1 1/2 tsp. chopped fresh parsley

2 Tbsp. G. Hughes Carolina Style Barbecue Sauce Sweet Heat or your favorite

2 3/4 Tbsp. reduced fat mozzarella cheese

1 Tbsp. chopped onion

1 1/2 oz. leftover or rotisserie chicken

1/3 peach, sliced

1 tsp. Parmesan cheese

1 Tumaro's tortilla wrap

1. Preheat the oven and pizza stone to 425F.
2. Meanwhile, spread the wrap with the BBQ sauce leaving about 1/2 inch border.
3. Sprinkle evenly with mozzarella.
4. Place small mounds of ricotta around the pizza.
5. Top with the chicken, basil and parsley.
6. Arrange the peaches decoratively on the top.
7. Sprinkle with Parmesan cheese.
8. Bake in preheated oven for about 8 minutes or until the tortilla is crisp and the cheese is melted.

Enjoy!

Loaded Cheese Steak Tortilla Pizza

 Loaded Cheese Steak Tortilla Pizza

Sometimes you just want pizza. We have tried the cauliflower crusts with limited success and still a lot of calories. In this recipe a tortilla takes the place of the pizza dough. It has many fewer carbs but still creates a thin crisp crust.

Makes 1 serving                                                     11 WW Blue points / serving

1 large tortilla

1/4 bell pepper, sliced

1/4 small onion, sliced

2 oz. leftover lean cooked beef

2-3 Tbsp. Classic Fat Free Marinara, No Cook Pizza Sauce, Easy Pantry Sauce or your favorite red sauce

1/4 cup reduced fate shredded mozzarella cheese

1 3/4 tsp. shredded parmesan cheese

Additional topping to pas at the table, optional

Penzeys Frozen Pizza Seasoning, dried oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, hot sauce

1. Preheat the oven to 425F.
2. Spread the tortilla with the sauce; top of pepper, onion, beef and cheeses.
3. Using a pizza peel transfer the tortilla to a baking stone or place directly on the oven grates; cook about 10-12 minutes or until the cheese is melted and tortilla is crisp.
4. Season to taste with salt and pepper.
5. Serve passing additional toppings as desired.

Enjoy!

No Cook Pizza Sauce

No Cook Pizza Sauce

adapted from Bon Appetit April 2017

Although there is no cooking involved does need substantial time to sit in the refrigerator for the flavors to meld.

Makes about 2 cups                                                  0 WW Blue points / serving

1 garlic clove, grated finely

2 cups canned strained or crushed tomatoes

2 Tbsp. water

1 tsp.. Kosher salt

1. Combine all ingredients in a small container; stir to combine.
2. Refrigerator for at least 3 hours before using.

Enjoy!

Make Your Own Pizza Night !

I love pizza  but still try to keep it on the healthy and not totally anti - weight watchers. The pizza crust at Fig's - Todd English's restaurant in Boston and Charlestown, MA is to die for. It does take some time to let the dough rise but if you have a stand mixer or a food processor with a dough hook, it is a snap to pull together.

Fig's Pizza Dough
¼ cup whole wheat flour
3½ cups all-purpose flour, plus additional for rolling
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 2/3 cups lukewarm water
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons active-dry yeast
2 teaspoons olive oil

Place the flours and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Combine the water, sugar and yeast in a small bowl and let sit for five minutes until the mixture bubbles slightly. Add the olive oil and stir. With the mixer on low, gradually add the oil-water mixture into the bowl. Knead until the dough is firm and smooth, about 5 minutes. The dough is wet and difficult to work with. Coat your work surface and hands with flour before removing the dough. It usually comes out in a few pices so gather them together and knead back into a ball using the flours on the surface.
Divide the dough into four balls, about 7½ ounces each. Line two cookie sheets with waxed paper spritzed with cooking spray. Place two balls on each sheet and cover loosely with a damp kitchen towel. Let the balls rise in a warm spot until they have doubled in bulk, about two hours.

Each ball makes a pizza that will feed 1-2 people.


Roasted Vegetables
I roasted eggplant and zucchini coated with cooking spray and seasoned with Penzey's Tuscan Sunset - a no salt Italian seasoning blend in a 450 degree oven until cooked thru about 15-20 minutes.

One roasted red pepper under the broiler until charrer on all sides, then resting in a plastic bag for about 20 minutes and finally peeled, seeded and sliced.

Carmelized onions in cooking spray.

Sauteed mushrooms also in cooking spray.


Roasted Tomato - Garlic Sauce
adapted from Cooking Light Annual Cookbook 1998

1/2 cup chopped onion
1 tsp olive oil
13 garlic cloves, peeled
1 1/2 lbs tomatoes, cut into wedges
1/4 cup water
1/2 Tbsp balsamic water
1/4 tsp salt
1/2 Tbsp salt free Italian seasoning

Preheat the oven to 450F. Combine the tomatoes, onions, garlic and oil in a baking dish. Bake for 20 minutes.
Combine the tomato mixture with the remaining ingredients in a saucepan. Cook over high heat for 10 minutes.
Transfer to a blender or food processor, cover and process until desired consistency. Adjust seasoning as needed.
1/2 cup of sauce is 1 Weight Watchers Points Plus

Now to assemble.

What to do with leftover Buffalo Wings ........ Buffalo Chicken Pizza ... and Half Cheese Half Pepperoni for the kids!

If you every have the opportunity to visit Todd English's Figs Restaurant, I would highly recommend it. It has some of the best pizza and pasta I have ever tasted. Since I can't just pop in Boston, I purchased his cookbook, The Fig's Table and make his pizza dough. There are many great pizza ideas in the book but we just to get the buffalo chicken pizza at Il Giadiano in Wilbraham (which has since closed and moved up the street as Abruzzo's with pretty much the same menu)

This is our absolute favorite pizza dough!

Figs Pizza Dough
Makes 4 eight-to-ten-inch pizzas
1/4 cup whole-wheat flour
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional flour for rolling
2 teaspoons (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
2 teaspoons salt
2 teaspoons sugar
2 teaspoons olive oil
In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the dough-hook attachment, combine the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour, yeast, salt, and sugar. With the mixer on low speed, gradually add the oil and 1 1/3 cups lukewarm water. Knead on low speed until the dough is firm and smooth, about 10 minutes.
Divide the dough into four balls, each about 7 1/2 ounces. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper. Place two balls on each sheet, and cover with a damp towel. Allow the dough balls to rise in a warm spot until they have doubled in size, about 2 hours.
To roll out the dough, cover your fingers with flour, then place a ball on a generously floured work surface. Press down on the center of the ball with the tips of your fingers, simultaneously stretching the dough out with your hands. When the dough has doubled in width, use a floured rolling pin to roll the dough out until it is very thin. The outer border should be slightly thicker than the center. Transfer the dough on a spatula (allowing the dough to fold up almost like an umbrella) to a pizza peel or another flat, wide surface. The dough will be more oval than round. If any holes have appeared, pinch them closed. Repeat with the remaining balls.
From “The Figs Table,” by Todd English and Sally Sampson. Copyright ©1998 by Todd English and Sally Sampson. 

 For the buffalo chicken pizza, I topped the pizza dough with buffalo wing sauce, topped with reduced fat Mexican blend shredded cheese, the meat from the leftover buffalo wings and a light sprinkle of blue cheese.

 For the pepperoni and cheese, I chopped a clove of garlic and rubbed it over the dough before topping with Francis Coppola Mammarella Arrabbiata Sauce , reduced fat Italian Blend cheese and pillow pack pepperoni.

Shrimp and Red Pepper Pesto Tortilla Pizza

Still being in a healthy eating mode, I combined a variety of different recipes to reduce the number of calories in pizza but still retaining all of the flavor.

1 red bell peppers
1 1/2  tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2  pound large shrimp

Paul Prudhomme's Seafood Magic™
Salt and pepper
1 cups shredded reduced fat four cheese blend cheese

1/4 cup basil leaves, 2 Tbsp thinly sliced
1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

1/4 cup corn kernels

Cooking spray

2 burrito size tortillas

Preheat grill. Roast the red bell pepper until charred all over.  When charred place in a paper bag for about 20 minutes. When cool enough to handle remove and discard the skin.

Meanwhile peel and devein the shrimp (see video link for a demonstration). Thread shrimp on to 2 skewers with each skewer going through each shrimp. Using two parallel skewers will prevent the shrimp from curling up tight. Lightly brush with olive oil and sprinkle generously with seafood magic™.

Using a food processor, make the red pepper pesto by pureeing the bell pepper, 1/4 cup mozzarella, 1/4 cup basil leaves and the lemon juice. With the machine on, gradually add 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil; season with salt and freshly ground pepper. 

Grill the shrimp over medium high heat for about 5 minutes or until just opaque. Remove from skewers and coarsely chop.

Lightly coat one side of the tortilla with cooking spray. Place on grill until just starting to brown. Remove from the grill. Flip over and coat other side with cooking spray. Top each tortilla with half of the red pepper pesto then top with equal amounts of shrimp, corn, cheese and basil.

Reduce the grill to low. Return the tortilla to the grill, cover and cook just until the cheese melts.

And of course, a pepperoni tortilla pizza for Nick!