I've been MIA from the blog the past two weeks. I'm sorry!
The school year started and I've been glued to my computer doing virtual teaching. I'm teaching all new course material, so I'm not only spending a lot of time writing lesson plans, but also creating them in a completely virtual environment that was just introduced to me less than two weeks ago. I've surrendered weeknights and weekends to accomplish what I need to accomplish so the school day runs smoothly - and thankfully, everything has been smooth. *crosses fingers, prays I didn't just jinx myself*
Unfortunately, my course schedule is front-loaded the first trimester; out of 8 periods, I teach 6. This gives me less designated time during my work hours to plan since I'm spending more time in front of kids than teachers who are only teaching 5 of the 8 periods. It's a mess on my end. And probably not something I should be advertising on the internet, but I'm just thrilled that I actually had the opportunity to sit down this morning and write that I frankly don't care what opinions start flying out of my fingers onto the keyboard.
Needless to say, time has fled. I no longer have countless hours to think, plan, and prepare meals the way I did over the summer. The long-simmering stews are leaving my repertoire right as the temperature is dropping, leaving me disgruntled. My mother's solution: The Instant Pot, which she recently purchased for us. She came up from Florida to help out with the baby while I swing back into work, and has been preparing most of our meals. She made us Chicken Fricassee with her treasured 6-in-1 robot, and though I still have my reservations about the contraption, her results were devoured quickly.
I'm still afraid of pressure cookers (let's face it, they're like mini bombs), but I've found other ways to get dinner on the table fast. Hence, my adaptation of Claire Saffitz's cast iron pizza. I've never actually made Claire's recipe exact, but I've used her technique multiple times, tweaking it as needed to match my home oven. I'm sure Clare's toppings are lovely and delicious, but when I'm starving after having stared at my computer for 10 hours straight (God, I wish that was an exaggeration), I'm going for something that doesn't require making sure raw meat is fully cooked.
It was actually my wife's idea to make a pizza with Brussels sprouts and soppressata, harkening to some of the fancier pies you can get at upscale Philly joints. Like a true collaborator, I dolloped fig preserves for sweetness, and opted for a white pie that leans on ricotta straight from the tub. The result, which was tested several times over the summer, is now in our rotation.
A few nuggets of wisdom from recipe testing:
Don't use Pillsbury's pizza dough. Out of sheer laziness, I started my tests reaching for the dough boy's concoction nestled with the biscuits, but it always burned. My only guess as to why this happened was its sugar content. Instead, get the pre-made dough you find near the deli. Or, if you're that person, you can use homemade dough you've got socked away in your fridge. Or if you're THAT person, you can make it fresh that morning.
Claire's recipe only uses 12 oz of dough, but since dough is usually sold in pound portions and I like a thicker crust, I use the full pound. If you want something a bit thinner, lob off a few ounces and make garlic knots.
Get creative with your toppings! You're not chained to my creation. I've also used this method to make margharita pizza, pepperoni, or anything I can find on the internet or a magazine, as demonstrated when the cast iron pan materialized on my doorstep.
If you don't love pizza, you're not human. And this method yields a pizza lover's pizza. Plus, it saves so much time. Preheat the oven and walk away until it beeps, then get to work assembling. You'll have dinner on the table in about 20 minutes.
With no time to lose,
~c.j.
FIG SOPPRESSATA PIZZA
Adapted from Cast Iron Pizza with Fennel and Sausage by Claire Saffitz
PREP TIME: 5 mins
ACTIVE COOK TIME: 5 mins
INACTIVE COOK TIME: 10-12 mins
YIELD: 1 10-inch pizza
INGREDIENTS
16 oz store bought pizza dough, room temperature
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, divided
1/4 c to 1/2 c. ricotta cheese
kosher salt
cracked black pepper
2 oz sweet or spicy Soppressata, finely diced
10 oz Brussels sprouts, halved
3 tbsp fig jam
chili oil, for drizzling
DIRECTIONS
Place a rack in the top-third position of the oven and preheat to 475°F. Place dough on a work surface and drizzle with 1 tbsp oil, turning to coat. Stretch out to a 10-inch round and cover loosely with plastic wrap.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a large cast iron skillet over medium. Once warm, carefully lay dough inside. Spread ricotta overtop and season with salt and pepper. Sprinkle Soppressata on top, followed by strategic placement of Brussels sprouts. Place 1/2 tsp sized globs of fig jam all over the pizza. Check the bottom of the pizza - it should be on its way to golden if not already there.
Transfer pizza to the oven and bake on the top rack until the crust is golden, roughly 10-12 minutes. Remove from oven and allow to cool about 5 minutes. Drizzle with chili oil, then slice and serve.
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