Grilled Asparagus Ricotta Pizza

I'm still not exactly sure where summer went, because I think it was pretty much last week that I was planting my herbs and throwing all the windows in the house open...but the leaves are just starting to get that look...

...and so I am laying on the grill recipes while there is still time.  Not that the Southern husband won't go out and grill in the snow...but somehow, it's not the same.  And along with this summer's favorite grill recipe, which is Buttermilk Grilled Chicken, one of my top choices for the grill is grilled pizza.  This summer we have had the classic cheese and basil grilled pizza, a fabulous bacon and rosemary grilled pizza, and most recently that little number pictured above, which is a grilled asparagus and ricotta cheese pizza.

(Side note: I used to drive myself crazy trying to roll the pizza dough out into a perfect little circle, until one day I realized that I actually liked the abstract shapes better.  Which is why that particular pizza kind of looks like Snoopy's head, only without the ears.)

Anyway.  I used my foolproof pizza dough recipe from Cooks Illustrated, which never ever lets me down.  Roast some asparagus in the oven and get your hands on some fresh ricotta (you can buy it at the supermarket, or you can be crazy like me and make your own.  It's not hard, I promise.).  Grill up that pizza dough on your grill, slather it with ricotta, lay the asparagus on top, drizzle it with some olive oil and some grated parmesan cheese and a good grinding of black pepper.  It's almost enough to make the end of summer bearable...that and the thought of all those pumpkin recipes in our near future.

Grilled Asparagus Ricotta Pizza

• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 cup water at room temperature
• 2 cups bread flour
• 2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast
• One large bunch thin asparagus
• 2 cups fresh ricotta
• Olive oil for drizzling
• 1 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
• Fresh ground pepper

1. Mix water and oil

2. Add bread flour, sugar, salt and yeast to food processor. Pulse once or twice to mix.

3. While running, add water mixture through tube.  Process until dough forms a ball that clears the sides of the bowl.  If dough doesn't form a ball, add more flour one tablespoon at a time until it does.

4. Transfer dough to mixing bowl sprayed with olive oil.  Cover and let rise for 2 hours.

5. Right before you are going to make the pizza, roast the asparagus by tossing with a little olive oil and salt and roasting in a 425 degree oven for about 10 minutes.  Set aside.

6. Divide dough into 4 sections.  Roll into balls, dust with flour, and roll each one out to about a 6-8 inch size crust.  Don't worry if the shape isn't perfect, grilled pizza is supposed to look rustic!  Layer crusts in between wax paper.

7. Heat grill to medium high and lay crusts on grill.  Grill for about 5 minutes, lifting up to check every minute to make sure the crusts aren't cooking too fast.  Pop any big dough bubbles with a knife.  When the first side is getting brown and charred, flip over with tongs and cook on other side until done.

8. Spread crust with fresh ricotta, top with asparagus and Parmesan.  Drizzle olive oil over all and top with fresh ground pepper.

Note: you can substitute soft goat cheese for the ricotta if you like.  Yum!

Click here for printable recipe

 

Chicken Confit

This recipe almost didn't get made, because it is one of those recipes you tear out of the paper because it sounds so lovely and elegant, and then every time you come across the clipping it just sounds too fancy and complicated, but there's something about it that makes you hang on to the clipping...repeat as needed. But one day I got up the energy, and decided it was Chicken Confit Day.

What is confit, you may ask? (I definitely had to ask.) "In the savory kitchen, it historically refers to a meat submerged in flavorful rendered fat and cooked slowly until very tender. Confit has recently been expanded to include interpretations such as slowly cooking meat, fish or vegetables in a flavorful oil such as olive oil (which may or may not be infused with secondary flavors)." I got this helpful info from CD Kitchen, which is a great place to go for cooking info, along with some pretty cool recipes (right now they have a recipe up for something called "Death by Garlic Penne." I guess if you gotta go, that's as good a way as any.)

But I digress. So, in this case chicken confit turned out to mean heating up a LOT of olive oil with garlic, shallots, rosemary, thyme and red pepper flakes, and then slowly cooking boneless chicken cutlets in the oil until they are tender. In the meantime you make a simple dressing out of minced anchovies, garlic, parmesan cheese and lemon juice (think Caesar salad-taste) that gets drizzled over the chicken, and I served the whole thing over Bibb lettuce.

I found this recipe in the New York Times and the original link is below, but I did adapt the cooking method here. Their approach was to heat the oil up, drop in the chicken, turn it off and let the chicken cook in the off-the-heat oil. I found that this method did not cook the chicken completely, so MY approach was to leave the heat on medium. But with that change, this recipe makes a very interesting, different and delicious chicken dish.

CHICKEN CONFIT, adapted from The New York Times

1 1/2 pounds boneless, skinless chicken cutlets

Kosher salt to taste

Freshly ground black pepper to taste

3 cups extra virgin olive oil, more if needed

4 garlic cloves, coarsely chopped

2 shallots, thinly sliced

3 rosemary sprigs

1/2 bunch thyme

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

5 anchovy fillets

3 tablespoons grated parmesan cheese

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice, more to taste

Salad greens, for serving.

1. Season chicken well with salt and pepper. In a very large skillet or stock pot with a lid, heat oil over medium-high heat with half the garlic and all the shallots, rosemary, thyme and crushed red pepper flakes until there are small bubbles on surface and around garlic.

2. Carefully slip in the chicken cutlets, making sure they are submerged in oil (add more oil if necessary.) Cover skillet or pot and turn heat to medium.

3 Cook chicken for 10 minutes. Make a small cut into middle of a cutlet. If chicken is not done, return to pot for another 2 minutes and check again. When cooked through, drain chicken on paper towels; remove cooked garlic, shallots, herbs and red pepper flakes from oil and discard, reserving oil itself for dressing.

4. Prepare dressing by mincing anchovies and remaining garlic and mixing them together with a large pinch of salt until you get a rough paste. Put paste in bowl and whisk in the parmesan, lemon juice and another pinch of salt and pepper. Slowly drizzle in 7 tablespoons olive oil from pan. Taste and add more lemon juice or salt, or both, if needed.

5. Serve chicken over a bed of greens drizzled with anchovy dressing.

Yields: 4 servings.

Click here for printable recipe