Snow: March 17, 2007

I spent the fall of 2006 waiting to find out the date of my spinal fusion. I didn’t know exactly when it would occur, but I knew that it was likely to happen before the first snow of the winter. Feeling bad that I wouldn’t be able to help with the shoveling, I overcompensated by filling eight bags of leaves at once. My mom was out, but had she been home she certainly would have stopped me sometime before my back locked into the raking position.

By the first snow of 2006 I still hadn’t entered the hospital, but wasn’t allowed to participate in the shoveling anyway. Since my raking disaster, I’ve had two major back surgeries and “dodged” another year of shoveling snow (not to mention raking leaves). It’s not that I enjoy shoveling snow or even enjoy snow in general, but I definitely don’t enjoy hanging out in bed while my mother is digging her way from the doorstep to the car without my help.

Meet me in the buffet line.

Why I’m twenty-four years OLD:
1. I can’t help but “Oomph” when getting out of a low chair.
2. I called myself an old fogy and only old fogies would actually use the word fogy.
3. I’m not up on internet lingo like HAWT and GYI. Hint: GYI doesn’t mean anything. Yet.
4. I forgot the rest of this list.

BARBEQUE CHICKEN PIZZA

All the credit for this awesome recipe goes to the Cheesecake Factory, where I celebrated my 24th birthday. Their Barbeque Chicken Pizza (with smoked Gouda and red onions) was one of the best pizza’s I’ve ever had, and seemed incredibly easy. Because my mom had used most of my smoked Gouda in a Mac & Cheese recipe, that particular flavor didn’t come through as much as I would have liked. But every bite of this pizza elicited and audible Mmmm, and that’s how I know the recipe’s a keeper.

The sweet tanginess of the barbeque sauce gave this pizza a surprising flavor and the red onion added a pop of bright color.

Ingredients

• Pizza Dough – I buy mine from a local bakery for just over a dollar, but your favorite store brand or homemade dough would work just as well.
• Olive oil
• About a 1/2 cup of BBQ sauce (homemade or store bought)
• About three cups of mozzarella (I used half mozzarella and half cheddar but I think that I’ll eliminate the cheddar next time).
• 1/4 cup smoked gouda (I ran out of gouda, but next time I would use at least a 1/2 cup)
• Three cloves of garlic, minced
• Enough leftover chicken to cover the pizza
• 1/2 a red onion

Preheat the over to 400º.

Stretch the pizza dough over a baking sheet lined with foil. Brush the dough with olive oil. Bake for twelve minutes.


Meanwhile, chop the chicken into half inch cubes and coat with BBQ sauce. Grate in the garlic (or mince it) and mix together.




Grate the cheese.

Thinly slice the red onion.

Remove the pizza from the oven and turn the temp up to about 425º.

Spread the chicken evenly over the dough. You can add more BBQ sauce if desired. Grind fresh black pepper over the chicken and top with the cheese and onion. If you want to experiment, add some chopped pineapple as well.

Bake for 15 minutes or until the cheese is starting to bubble and crisp.

You can withhold the onion until the last five minutes for a crunchier bite.

Baking is for winners.

So this is my blog. It seems that everybody has a blog these days. Lakshmi emailed me the other day to ask if I minded that she posted my crepe recipe on her blog. My first thought was, “Lakshmi has a blog?” I said that I didn’t mind as long as she didn’t say that I was a terrible crepe maker. Sure, I’d like a blog too, but isn’t my life too boring to post on the internet?

Then yesterday I was looking at Christina’s blog and she had pictures of things that she had baked. I thought, “I bake.” It’s about the only thing that I do. I mean, I watch TV, go to Costco and take walks but I’m not sure that’s gripping reading material either. So this is my blog. If I actually maintain it, I’ll post new recipes (and hopefully pictures) and anything else that I think might be just as boring.