Sunday, July 3, 2011

The Best Pizza Ever!

Saturday:


Somehow it was another busy day for us. What happened to our peaceful and relaxing weekends? ;-) On the bright side we have selected a marina in Baltimore now which is fantastic. Dan and I are both looking forward to having the boat downtown. It will be nice to have her close rather than driving more than an hour and crossing the Bay Bridge to the Eastern Shore as we have done in the past.

To celebrate crossing another item off our to-do list we went to dinner. Have you noticed that we need very little provocation to go out to eat? ;-) Even though Ian is off you know where we went right? We really can’t stay away it seems.

The weather was a little warm so many patrons wanted to eat inside last night. Wimps! Needless to say we sat outside. It was incredibly nice outside I have no idea why anyone would have wanted to be inside last night.


Dani (Ian’s sous chef) made a us a vegan version of the antipasti plate they have on the menu. This version included: marinated mushrooms, cherry tomatoes, pickled banana pickles which I love, olives, artichokes with dill and chickpea salad. Delicious as always. We both loved the marinated mushrooms in place of the roasted peppers.  :-)



I made up our pizza tonight from items on the menu. Dan and I both think this may be one of my best creations yet. This whole wheat pizza crust included: a base of cilantro-lime sauce (that they serve with the samosas), caramelized pineapple, candied jalapenos, greens tossed with lime juice, avocado slices, pickled radishes and sliced almonds. We both loved the all the contrasts specifically: heat and cold temperature variation, soft and crunchy textures, and sweet and hot flavors. It was a winner all around. Now I may have to make my own cilantro lime sauce and candied jalapenos so I can have something similar at home.

We had a chance to chat with Aimee and her fiancĂ© Michael this evening. It is always great to see them both. Michael grew up on the water and he is all set to sail. Aimee on the other hand isn’t too sure but she said she would try since it was important to us. One day we may just have to adopt those two.  :-)

Sunday:

It was a great trip to the farmers’ market this morning. We came home w/ peaches, beets, basil, zucchini, tomatoes, green onions, purslane, lambs quarters (a wild green), collards, raspberries, spinach, kale, yellow French beans, banana peppers and cucumbers. I managed to stuff 4 large reusable grocery bags with local produce. It always looks like we are feeding an army when we leave the market.

I made Dan a green smoothie but with some acai and frozen berries in addition to the kale, banana, cinnamon, powdered ginger, wheat germ and freshly ground flaxseeds.


My smoothie was more veg and less fruit. Here is what I did: fill the Vitamix container about 2/3 full with raw kale. Next I added 4 carrots that I have roughly cut into chunks. I also added a big spoon of wheat germ and another spoon of chia seeds. A splash of acai juice, ½ lemon (peel removed) and some cinnamon went in next. I buzzed this until it was smooth. While it tasted good it was an unpleasant muddy brown color. This happens often when I make uber healthy smoothies. When it does I add frozen wild blueberries, about a cup this time) and process again. The blueberries are there to add a little sweetness but mostly color. What do you add to your smoothies to change the color?

After breakfast we had to deal with a plumbing issue for my parents. Why is it that these things always take longer than you expect them to?

Other than that there were just errands and miscellaneous tasks. I am really hoping Monday will be a little more laid back.

Happy thoughts:

• We are thrilled to have the local marina finalized. That is one huge item crossed off our to-do list. We have been checking places out for the last three weeks and think we made the right decision. Only time will tell right? *finger crossed*

• The trip to the farmer’s market was fantastic as usual. Rudy is excited about the boat and will definitely be joining us when he can. Pam sailed in college and is also game for a trip though her husband is a power boat sort of guy…we still like him though. ;-)

• It was good to cross the plumbing issue for my folks off our to-do list. That has been hanging around since earlier this week.

Signing out:

Needless to say we have a lot to do this weekend so I really shouldn’t be spending too much time on the computer. I should have time to write another post tomorrow. I hope you are having a fantastic weekend. Talk with you again soon! :-)

16 comments:

  1. You know what? I just drink the weirdly-colored smoothies! As long as they taste terrific and are healthy, I'm a happy girl. I just chuckle to myself when the smoothies are the color of mud or sludge. (I have decided, though, that a chard-based smoothie is a little to "earthy" tasting for me. Kale, spinach, a collard leaf or two and/or romaine are the way to go!)

    ReplyDelete
  2. tsweeney,

    When Dan isn't home I just drink the mud colored ones a lot. However if he sees them he as a lot to say about them. Husbands are a bit like having little boys. I can't say I have tried chard in a smoothie...but now I am curious. I will let you if I think they are too earthy as well. :-)

    Hope you are having a great weekend,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  3. Can you say a little more about the chickpea salad? It looks really tasty!

    have you noticed that blueberries make smoothies a little more gelatinous? Not that I mind...but they definitely change the texture.

    ReplyDelete
  4. To add a bit of colour to my smoothies, I like to add a bit of beet! I often make veggie smoothies lately, [thanks to you! I'm quite enjoying them! :)], and even if they are mostly kale, they look just like fruit smoothies, all because of some beet.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Hi!!!! your pizza is fantastic!!!! I'm italian and I really like USA and vegan diet. Your blog is really nice: so full of colours!!!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Ah, I suggest you to try blended ripe apple with cocoa powder, but without sugar: it is glutton and light dessert

    ReplyDelete
  7. That smoothie you made sounds like it would be super-thick without the addition of more liquid--was it drinkable? How long did you process it? I normally don't process mine for very long because I don't like a foamy texture...although running it on low for awhile can get rid of some bubbles.

    My husband and I will drink any colored smoothie, but I prefer them to be either reddish or greenish. My frozen beet/carrot/celery/cuke juice will redden almost any other additions. For a greenish smoothie, I leave out my frozen juice and use mostly yellow/orange fruits.

    ReplyDelete
  8. Jackie,

    I wasn't paying attention to the chickpea salad Saturday night and Dan ate most of it, sorry. They change it all the time though, sometimes it is flavored with lemon, wine vinegar or sriracha. It always has finely minced fresh herbs, sometimes minced garlic, sometime finely diced onion. I hope that helped.

    I had not noticed that blueberries change the texture but it makes sense since they are a good source of soluble fiber. My smoothies tend to be very thick since I like to eat them with a spoon. ;-)

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  9. Sarah,

    I was hoping someone was going to say beet since I do that too. ;-)

    Yay for mostly veggie smoothies! It is nice to know I have such good company. :-)

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  10. Hi princessile,

    Nice to meet you! I am part Italian which you may not know since you are a new reader. Italy is my favorite place to go on vacation; we have been many times.

    Thank you for letting me know you enjoy the blog. That was very kind of you to say. :-)

    Apple and cocoa powder isn't something that I have tried but I will. Thank you for sharing it.

    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  11. Laura,

    I think when you use less liquid they don't seem to foam, mine had no foam actually. I process mine until they are smooth, whatever time that turns out to be. We tend to like very thick spoonable smoothies but you could always add more liquid.

    Dan also prefers green or purple smoothies. He claims the brown ones don't taste good. I am sure it is all in his head. ;-)

    hope you are having a nice long weekend,
    Ali

    ReplyDelete
  12. That antipasto plate looks amazing, as does the pizza. YUM! I've got to try more vegan restaurants. The only one I've tried lately is Borrowed Earth, which was very good. Hope you are having a great holiday weekend.

    ReplyDelete
  13. Hi Ali,
    I am definitely like the Smoothie recipe. I will have to make it and see if it spikes my blood sugar. The pizza looks lovely too.

    Peace :)

    ReplyDelete
  14. Even when our smoothies are a lovely green color, our 16 year old says they look like the contents of a baby diaper! ;-O

    I would suggest kettlebells for the boat.

    ReplyDelete
  15. Ali-
    We are all settled into our new home and I'm looking forward to keeping up with you once again!
    All the best,
    Meg

    ReplyDelete
  16. Meg,

    Yay for getting settled in your new home! I hope all is going well with you. Nice to have you back. :-)

    Ali

    ReplyDelete

Related Posts with Thumbnails