Avocado Sandwich With Arugula Pesto

I get over zealous about grocery shopping every once in a while and buy more produce than we can consume. Okay, it happens more often than I would like <smh>. I stocked my fridge to its full capacity after getting back from vacation. Using up most perishable items was in order over the weekend.

I made Ghavan on saturday, using chopped spinach instead of zucchini. This is such a great item to sneak in veggies! Make a note, all you moms! The only addition to the recipe was a spoonful of toasted cumin seeds. 

A bag of baby arugula, already yellowing in one corner, was next to finish. Arugula is my all time favorite green. Its distinct peppery flavor pairs well with fruits such as pear, nectarine, or citrus in salads. Fully grown leaves can be a tad bit bitter and pungent, so I purchase the baby ones. They are much milder in comparison. Arugula, actually an herb, makes a great choice for pesto. It seemed like a great way to use up that bag of greens. There were no pine nuts in the pantry, so I settled on using walnuts after reading Elise's recipe. I prefer my pesto with lots of garlic, although I used one less clove for arugula is spicy already. This pesto slathered generously was fantastic in a sandwich. I kept it simple - just avocado for creaminess and tomatoes for a bit of acidity and let pesto take over most of the flavor part.

Avocado Sandwich With Arugula Pesto

Ingredients:
Pesto:
1 Cup packed baby arugula
1/4 Cup walnuts
2 Cloves of garlic
1/4 Cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/4 Cup olive oil
Salt to taste

Sandwich:
Ripe avocado - sliced
Tomato - sliced
Multi-grain bread.

• Add all the ingredients to the food processor, except olive oil. 
• Grind everything coarsely, adding oil little by little. 
• Smear pesto on two slices of multi-grain bread. My favorite multi-grain from the local grocery store has all sorts of seeds sprinkled on them - sesame, sunflower etc. Add sliced avocados and tomatoes and grill until crispy. You can even add roasted red bell peppers to this sandwich.

The sandwich is extremely simple to make yet fancy enough that you'd order it in a fine Deli. We enjoyed it with savory banana chips on the side - our latest addiction!


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On a different note - Husband recently discovered vinyl photography backdrops online. These vinyl sheets come in all sorts of wooden finish looks and are perfect to take food photos. Not that I take any effort in shooting my food, but husband has been pushing me to do better. Getting these vinyl backdrops is the first step. If you are looking for something like this, just google and you'll find plenty of sites out there selling this stuff. Mine came from Swanky Prints right here in Temecula. They are quite fabulous!

Pizza Night

When I lived in NY, pizza was my go-to meal. It was the most accessible food choice when I was on a time crunch, was lazy to cook one day, or made last minute dinner plans with friends. My numerous sleepovers with school buddies were never complete without ordering a variety of thin crust pizzas from the 'Famous Pizzeria' (it was famous too =D). The crispy, baked to perfection pizzas would be gobbled up amid 5-6 girls chattering all at the same time! My favorite pizza had lots of veggies and wasn't drowned in out-of-the-can tomato sauce. Post school, as I started making healthier diet choices, I cut down my pizza consumption considerably. But on Friday, when my friend came down from LA to stay over, I wanted to have some pizza for old time's sake. Only this time, I made it from scratch at home.

I love thin crust pizzas since you get to enjoy more of the good stuff (the toppings) without filling yourself with dough! Previously when I made the crust at home, it was more like a roti dough that I used. This time, it was authentic with yeast, and yet had the healthy whole wheat component. I switched things up with a creamy garlic sauce instead of the typical tomato pizza sauce. You don't have to tell anyone that there's hardly any cheese in it. The recipe is extremely easy and a favorite of mine. I often add it to my pasta when I'm craving a luscious, yet not too cheesy sauce.

Making this pizza seems like a long process. And it is, but most of it just calls for sitting and waiting for the dough to rise or the pizza to bake. Everything else is pretty simple and the effort is worth every tasty bite! The great thing about making pizza at home is you can add whatever and how many ever toppings as you like. If you have friends over, have fun with them making your own pizzas. Keep the dough and the toppings ready, and each person can build their own. The garlicky gooey goodness of the sauce tastes perfect with baked crunchy veggies.

Note: This recipe makes around 4 small or 3 medium pizzas.

Thin Crust Pizza with Creamy Garlic Sauce

Ingredients:
Crust:
1 1/2 Cups warm water
1 Packet active dry yeast
1 Teaspoon sugar
2 Cups whole wheat flour
1 Cup all purpose flour
2 Tablespoons EVOO
Salt to taste
All purpose flour/corn flour for dusting

Garlic Sauce:
1 Tablespoon butter
1 Teaspoon all purpose flour
1 Cup milk
3 Garlic cloves - grated
Fistful (about 1/4 cup) of shredded cheese - Used a 4 cheese blend. Go for simple mozzarella if you like.
Mrs. Dash seasoning blend or any other herbs and spices blend
Salt to taste

Toppings:
Any veggies you like really! I used a mix of thinly sliced mushrooms, red onions, tomatoes, green bell pepper, avocado, olives, jalapeno (as you can tell, I love my veggies!)

To make the crust:

• Add active dry yeast and sugar to the water and keep aside for 10-15 minutes until the yeast bubbles. 
• Once the water is frothy, add the two flours, EVOO and salt and knead really well for a few minutes. You can add a little bit of warm water if needed to form a soft, elastic dough ball. Cover the dough and let it rise for about 45 minute or until the dough doubles in size. 
• Punch the dough and knead again for a minute until soft. Keep aside until you work on the sauce. 

To make the sauce:

• Heat butter in a sauce pan on low-medium flame. Once the butter melts, add all purpose flour and whisk continuously until the flour cooks through and turns a golden color. 
• Add milk and grated garlic to the pan and keep stirring, breaking any lumps. The sauce, or rue as it is called, starts to thicken quickly. Turn the heat off when you achieve the desired consistency. 
• Season with some salt and your favorite seasoning blend (simple Italian herbs will do), and add a little bit of cheese and stir. The heat will help the cheese melt and blend into the sauce. If the sauce becomes too thick, simply add some warm milk and whisk. The sauce is ready!

To put the pizza together:

• Preheat over at 400F. 
• Flour a pizza stone if you have one, or a wooden surface to roll the dough. Divide your dough in three or four parts depending on how big you want the pizzas. Roll each dough ball into a thin crust (about 1/4 inch) using a gentle hand on the rolling pin. 
• Transfer the crust to your baking tray (don't try to lift it after building your pizza - wisdom learned from a stupid mistake =D ), then spread that yummy sauce generously, your choice of thinly sliced veggies and sprinkle just a little bit of shredded cheese. I used only a tablespoon or so for each pizza. 
• Bake for 20 minutes or until the crust is golden brown on the sides and the veggies are baked crispy. 

Some chili flakes on top, a drink on the side, and some fun conversations are all you need for great dinner time.