don't be a hater: bannock-wrapped hot dogs

I like hot dogs. Judge me if you will. The other day we needed a quick lunch and we had some hot dogs but no buns, so I decided to improvise. Last year I had made bannock (which is a traditional native quick bread) and went with a modified version that would work to wrap the hot dogs like the old school Pillsbury dough wraps of my youth. I had my doubts, but it worked wonderfully! It would be a great recipe to make with kids, as it's simple and they can get their hands dirty.

The dough was light and flaky like a biscuit and I had hidden in some cheese inside so we were greeted with melty cheesy goodness nestled around the hot dog. Mmmmm! I divided the dough into 4 but I think it could be streched a bit to cover 5 or even 6 if you pat the dough thin, as the dough did puff up during baking and eating just one was enough for a meal. It definitely made for a filling, super delicious and unusual lunch.

Pssst, just in case you haven't voted for my blog at the 2009 bloggies (nominated for Best Canadian Weblog), today at 10pm EST is the last day to vote. So please please do. I know it's just a stupid popularity contest and all, but winning would make me oh so happy.

bannock-wrapped hot dogs
3 c flour
1 1/2 T baking powder
1/2 t salt
1/4 c butter or vegan margarine
1 1/4 c water, milk or soy milk
slices of cheese (optional)
4 hot dogs (vegan or meaty)

Preheat oven to 375. In a large bowl, combine the flour, baking powder and salt together, whisking well so it's all blended. Add the butter and crumble it together with your hands until it resembles tiny peas or crumbs. Make a well in the centre of the mixture and pour in the milk or water and use a fork or a wooden spoon to blend it gently until it forms into a lump of dough.

Meanwhile, boil up the hotdogs and when they're hot, remove from water and set aside. Divide the dough into four lumps and shape into a hotdog sized shape. Flatten the dough until it's large enough to roll up a hot dog, place a slice of cheese on the dough and then roll up the hotdog in the dough. Pinch the ends so the hot dog is encased and place on a cookie sheet. Repeat for all the following hot dogs and bake in the oven for 10 minutes, flip the dogs and bake for another 5-10 minutes until slightly golden. Serve with your favorite condiments.

easy as pie: the best pizza ever

Making pizza is a snap. Once you've got some dough made, putting the ingredients together and making something truly sensational that you've made from scratch isn't very difficult or time-consuming at all. And it tastes way better than anything you'd find in the Yellow Pages.

For me, a thin crust pizza is best without tomato sauce. Deep dish pizza? Well, that's something else entirely. Keeping it thin...just some olive oil and some fresh vegetable toppings and a smattering of cheese, thank you very much. As for the pizza dough, it takes just over 2 hours to make, including rise-time, so if you plan your day in advance, you will have pizza for dinner and another pizza the next day. This dough recipe makes enough for 2 pizzas, so it's definitely worth making. You can also freeze the dough after you've let it rise. Just tightly wrap the dough in plastic wrap and put it in the freezer for future use.

And if you are interested in knowing a bit more about me, Marilyn over at Simmer Till Done interviewed me.

basic (but wonderful) pizza dough
1 envelope active dry yeast
1 1/4 c warm water
2 1/2 c all-purpose flour, plus extra for kneading
2 T olive oil, plus extra for greasing
1/2 t salt
cornmeal

1. In a large bowl, combine the yeast and 1 cup of the warm water. Stir in flour, salt and olive oil and mix with a wooden spoon until a sticky dough begins to form at the bottom of the bowl. Add the rest of the warm water and shape the dough into a ball using your hands. Flour up your hands if it becomes too sticky and knead, baby knead! Knead for about 5 minutes until the dough gets nice and elastic.

2. Oil up another large bowl. Place dough ball inside and cover with plastic wrap. Set in a warm-ish place and let it rise for 2 hours. Once it has doubled in size, you've reached gold. Spread cornmeal and a bit of flour on your work surface and plop dough on top. Cut dough in half with a knife. You can put the second half of dough back in the oiled bowl covered with plastic wrap to let it rise again in the fridge, so that you can have pizza the next day. Or just oil up 2 pans or baking sheets and have 2 pizzas right now.

3. Using a rolling pin, roll out the 1/2 lump of dough until it reaches a lovely thickness. I like it fairly thin, yet sturdy enough that you can't see through the dough. Transfer dough to your greased baking sheet and throw on your favorite toppings. Bake for 15 minutes or so at 400 degrees. Pull it out when the cheese gets all bubbly and the crust gets golden around the edges.

my favorite pizza toppings (of the moment):
As this is a thin-crust pizza you want to keep the toppings light, so don't go crazy adding everything in the fridge. You must keep a perfect balance of crust and topping. For me, I spread a little bit of really good olive oil over the top, followed by a bit of pesto, chopped tomatoes, dried red chili flakes, thinly sliced red onions, fresh basil leaves (torn), a bit of kosher salt, and because it was the only cheese in my house at the time, old orange cheddar thinly strewn about.

it's not delivery: deep dish skillet pizza

When I told my husband that we'd be having pizza for dinner, he assumed we'd be ordering in some delivery. Nope, this was going to be the real deal with homemade crust and all. While I've made homemade pizza in the past, my dough usually comes from a bakery that does all the labour for me....I just need to let it rise, punch it down and stretch it out. Not too much hassle. But now that I've primed my yeast-baking skills, I figured it was time for me to branch out and bake a real pizza with real dough made from my 2 hands. Exciting times in this household!


I always thought making dough would be tough but really it's pretty simple. Just a few repetitive steps: stir, knead, rise, punch, knead...ta-da!! I had spotted a recipe for a deep dish sausage pizza in the Gourmet Cookbook (my go-to cookbook edited by my muse, Ruth Reichl), and decided that I'd create my own sauce and toppings but definitely follow the dough recipe step by step. While I followed the directions carefully, this dough was unlike any of the bakery dough that I had used in the past. While it was much easier to work with, it certainly wasn't as elastic and stretchy so that made me slightly fearful that I had somehow screwed up this pizza attempt. Luckily, the crust was perfect and even tastier than its bakery counterpart!


As for the toppings, I just went with what I had in the fridge. I love pineapple on pizza, but you could certainly substitute your favorite toppings to make the pizza of your dreams. Instead of mozzarella cheese, I used a farmer's cheese recommended to me by the proprietor of my favorite local Italian deli. He not only sold me some lean pancetta, but told me that the farmer's cheese would go great on pizza. It was perfect!

deep dish tomato, pancetta & pineapple skillet pizza
dough:
1/4 t sugar
1/2 c warm water (105° - 115°F)
1 pkg active dry yeast
1 1/2 c flour, plus additional for dusting
1/4 c cornmeal
1/2 t salt
1 T olive oil

topping:
1 T olive oil
1/4 c chopped pancetta (or bacon)
1 small onion, sliced thinly
4 cloves of garlic, crushed
1 small can of diced tomatoes
1 t dried oregano
1 t dried basil
salt & pepper to taste
1 c fresh pineapple, diced
1 small green pepper, diced
1½ - 2 c grated farmer's or mozzarella cheese

1. Make the dough by stirring together the sugar, warm water and yeast in a large bowl. Let stand for about 5 minutes or until the surface appears creamy. Add flour, cornmeal, salt and oil and stir until dough forms. Knead dough on a floured surface until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Dust occasionally with flour to prevent sticking.

2. Place dough in a large oiled bowl and turn dough to coat with oil. Let rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm location until doubled in bulk, about 1 hour. While dough is rising, start making the sauce.

3. In a large skillet, heat oil and fry up pancetta. If you use a fatty pancetta or bacon, you may not need oil at all. Add in onion and turn down heat slightly, letting the onions get soft and slightly caramelized. Add in garlic, tomatoes, spices and salt and pepper and simmer for 30 minutes.

4. Preheat oven to 500°. Oil up a cast iron skillet. Punch down dough and knead 4 times. Press dough into oiled skillet with oiled fingers until it comes 2 inches up the sides and is an even thickness on the bottom. Let dough rise in a warm place for 15 minutes, covered loosely in plastic wrap.

5. Sprinkle dough with half of the cheese then top with tomato sauce. Evenly sprinkle pineapple and green pepper on top and then cover with remaining cheese. Bake for 12 minutes and then lower oven temperature to 400° and bake for 8 minutes more or until edges of crust are golden. Remove from oven and let sit for at least 5 minutes before cutting.