Tag Archives: basil

Super good Italian bread pizza

Posted on by
2

This post wasn’t supposed to happen. I was too hungry to stop and take a picture. And I knew Heather was too, so I didn’t want to ask her to wait. But, it turns out that pizzas made with that leftover loaf of Italian bread on your counter are very filling! So after we gobbled through 3/4 of the pizza, we were stuffed and there were two pieces left. They were still warm enough to look delicious…so here they are! I highly recommend using up your day old bread this way (this one was a loaf of Pane Italian from Wegmans). Top it with whatever you have left over in the fridge. This half of the loaf had sauce, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, grated parmesan, peppadews, prosciutto, olive oil, salt, crushed red pepper, and basil. The other half (which we ate first, and hence is missing from this post) had sauce, tomatoes, summer squash, mushrooms, asparagus, shredded mozzarella, grated parmesan, olive oil, salt, crushed red pepper, and arugula.

Don’t forget the wine…salut!

2eat2drink-pane italian pizza-p

Osteria Rocco (Neapolitan pizza, part three)

Posted on by
Reply

And for the final installment of Heather’s Neapolitan pizza article written for CITIZEN magazine:

Osteria Rocco, 165 Monroe Ave., Rochester, 585-454-3510, roccorochester.com

            Okay, so this pizza wasn’t cooked in a wood-fired oven, but was it ever good! The cooking method here is to use a brick-lined gas oven that runs at about 700 degrees. Yes, 700 degrees. That’s hot, and the nicely charred crust is evidence. This crust was a bit denser than at the other two places. It was crisp on the outside and super chewy on the inside, and we loved it!

First up was the margherita, which had crushed California tomatoes, basil leaves, and – cue the choir of angels – FRESH mozzarella. I did say we were pizza snobs, right? To me, a margherita just isn’t quite the same without the fresh mozzarella. The Rocco margherita was, therefore, my favorite.

Heather cutting the margherita!

Our chef’s choice pizza was the vongole. Its toppings consisted of clams (yes, clams!), pancetta, parsley, chili peppers, and garlic oil. This pizza had a really nice heat to it. The toppings made for a delightfully unusual flavor combination.

The vongole, fresh from the kitchen. Clams on a pizza!

The pizza at Rocco is served in the traditional Neapolitan style, which means that it comes whole, and is meant to be eaten with a knife and fork. This reminded us of our beloved Una Pizza, where the pizza is also served whole. However, Rocco helps you out by providing you with a pair of kitchen shears with which to cut your pizza into slices, if you so choose. How fun!

We had an appetizer before our pizza. Fresh homemade ricotta. It’s worth a trip all on its own!

Fresh homemade ricotta. Incredible.

We’re sure that there are many more Neapolitan-style pizzas out there for us to try, no matter where you are. If you have any recommendations, leave us a comment!

Lucca Wood-fire Bistro (Neapolitan pizza, part two)

Posted on by
Reply

Sorry for the delay (we’ve been a bit busy!) – here is the second installment of Heather’s Neapolitan pizza article for CITIZEN magazine:

Lucca Wood-fire Bistro, 90 W. Main St., Victor, 585-924-9009, luccawfpizza.com

Like at Ember, this pizza is cooked in a wood-fired oven, this one reaching temperatures of around 550 to 650 degrees. We really like this crust, which is a great blend of crunchy and chewy.

For the margherita, the toppings were sliced plum tomatoes, grated mozzarella, chopped basil, garlic, and olive oil. We liked that the basil was put on after the pizza came out of the oven, keeping it nice and fresh, and that there was lots of it! We’re kind of partial to basil.

The funghi, along with the margherita, and a couple glasses of old vine zin!

Our second pizza, chosen by the chef, was the funghi. The toppings for this pizza are garlic and oil, mozzarella and asiago cheeses, roasted red peppers, spinach, prosciutto, white and portobello mushrooms, finished with truffle oil and parmesan. Wow! What a pizza! It is rich, creamy, and decadent, and one that we will certainly go back for.

This is a wonderful time of year to visit Lucca. They have plenty of outdoor seating, and we adore sitting on the porch and watching the world go by while we enjoy our delicious meal.

Good pizza AND good dessert!

I just have to add that while we were there, we also had the chocolate chip cannolis for dessert. They were excellent! Oh, and the boys enjoyed their cheese pizza, too!

The “my father is a photographer” syndrome.

After giving it much thought and consideration, we consider Lucca Pizza to be our favorite pizza this side of the Mississippi. Tell chef/owner Matt Gervasi we sent you!

A little more watermelon avocado salsa, please.

Posted on by
Reply

Summer calls for lighter meals and this was an excellent example! Most fish falls in the category of lighter fare for me. The corvina (from the Pacific coast of South America) was no exception;  meaty, but extremely light in flavor, flaking off in large chunks. It looks and tastes like a cross between mahi and red snapper.

The watermelon avocado salsa was a last minute addition (luckily remembering the watermelon and avocado were sitting on the counter). Our meal was postponed for a half hour to let it chill, but it was worth the wait! A serving for 2 included half an avocado (chunked), the juice of 2 limes, 2 diced slices of watermelon (mini seedless variety), some very thinly sliced white onion, mint and cilantro, salt and pepper to taste, and a touch of extra virgin olive oil. Serve on top of the fish, in many heaping spoonfuls, for a nice contrast to the silkiness of the corvina.

Pink wine! I have to say (due to previous experience some years ago), I had a preconceived notion that pink wine is sweet and not very good.  However, I’ve been hearing excellent things about rosés (especially from the Finger Lakes), and wanted to give one a try. The Hermann J. Wiemer Dry Rosé is actually quite full bodied, and dry, as per the name. It had very slight hints of floral notes, as well as apricot and raspberry. The acidity paired well with the fish and the lime in the salsa. I love finding a Finger Lakes wine I will purchase again!

As it hit 100˚F in Rochester yesterday…….happy hot summer to everyone! Hope you get a chance to enjoy this meal soon!

Corvina topped with watermelon avocado salsa!

Hermann J. Wiemer Dry Rosé. Pink wine is good!

Mid-summer watermelon is wonderfully refreshing.

Fresh basil from the garden! Sliced super fine.

Just a few paper thin slices of onion.

An avocado just looks like summer.

Chef Mark….cookin’ the birthday food.

Posted on by
2

Our good friend Chef Mark recently had his birthday, and we were fortunate enough to host his gathering. So what does a chef want for his birthday meal? To make his own pizza! Chef Russell generously offered to make some of his “secret recipe” pizza dough (thanks Russell!), Chef Mark brought over some delectable toppings, and we were off to start cookin’ the birthday meal! Since the recipe for the dough is top secret, for now I’ll suggest picking up some pre-made dough at the store. Be sure to bake it on a pizza stone for best results. Place the pizza stone in the oven prior to pre-heating, and heat your oven as high as it can go. We had ours at 550 degrees. This will create a pizza with a crisp outside and a nice tender center. Top with whatever your heart (and stomach) desires. For this particular pizza, we created a version of the margherite with tomato sauce, tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil, olive oil and sea salt. Get creative….make your own masterpiece! Let me know what you come up with…

Chef Mark making his own birthday pizza!

The homemade sourdough margherite pizza. Yum!!

The juicy, finger-licking good caprese burger!

Posted on by
6

It’s fun to make a burger that’s way bigger than you can easily take a bite out of. It just looks really good! But then…you have to eat it. So, you smush it down, with the juices and dressing dripping all over, and take a bite. It’s so flavorful and finger-licking good, you don’t care what a mess it is!

Using irradiated ground beef has become mandatory for us. You can use the 90% lean (to keep it almost relatively healthy), cover it in spices of your choosing, cook it medium, and it’s incredibly juicy and flavorful. Next choose your toppings. For the caprese burger, we used fresh mozzarella, grilled onions, tomato, and fresh basil topped with balsamic vinaigrette dressing. As an added bonus, the “bun” became grilled rosemary olive oil bread! Skip the fries and grill some fresh pineapple wedges for a healthier side.

This will be the first of many burger posts for the upcoming summer season. Let us know what you’d like to see on the next one. Cheers!

The caprese burger! Yum!

Rosemary olive oil bread becomes the perfect "bun".

2008 The Stump Jump, G.S.M. 90 points in Wine Spectator and a great match for the burger.

Caprese!

Posted on by
6

Fresh. That’s how we describe the caprese salad, and making it with fresh ingredients is key! Tomatoes on  the vine, fresh mozzarella, fresh basil, sea salt, crushed peppercorns, a nice extra virgin olive oil, and (ok, this is obviously not fresh) some aged balsamic vinegar. That’s it. Super simple and delicious! Eating this just feels like summer. I know it’s not (since it’s snowing outside as I write this), but it will get you in the mood for a change of season. Enjoy!

The caprese salad prep.

Fresh tomatoes on the vine!

The caprese salad, ready to enjoy!