I love pizza. Like really, really love it. Because I tend to prefer crazy, out-there, and somewhat exotic foods to mainstream foods(burgers, chicken fingers, grilled cheese), that might surprise you. But the thing is, I don’t just like any pizza.

Dominoes? Meh, the cardboard box probably tastes better.

Georgetown Dining Hall (a.k.a. Leo’s)? Burnt crust.

Tuscany’s in DC? Whatevs.

Pizza Paradiso (in DC)? Too pricey for what you get.

But homemade pizza is different. It’s customizably delicious, and I’ve taken to craving it whenever I’m away from home. As a family, we’ve made everything from Pear & Gorgonzola, Thai Peanut Chicken, and BBQ Chicken varieties a la California Pizza Kitchen. But prior to this Mediterranean pizza, we mainly stuck to copycats. Then, this pizza came along. It was a game-changer.

It doesn’t sound all that exotic, but something about the combination of flavors—olives, artichokes, cherry tomatoes, and fresh pesto—takes things to a whole ‘nother level.

Like other homemade pizzas, there is some prep time involved, but don’t be daunted—the end result is worth it.

We use Trader Joe’s Herbed Pizza Dough because a) it saves time and b) it’s simply superb/better than any other dough, homemade or otherwise, that we’ve tried. If you don’t have a TJ’s near you, you could try Whole Foods or your regular grocer. Just don’t skip any of the components, including making the homemade pesto. It’s a little time consuming, but oh-so-AMAZINGLY-delicious.

Mediterranean Dreamin’ Pizza

Adapted from the LA Times’ Culinary SOS on Café del Ray

I’ve tried my fair share of pizza—both in restaurants, from take out places, and at home—but this one takes the cake. The mixture of the garlicky pesto, melty cheese, salty olives, and sweet tomatoes makes this pizza simply amazing. While it takes a little bit of time to prepare (like most other homemade pizzas), it has quickly become my favorite!

Ingredients:

1 Trader Joes’s pizza dough (or homemade/storebought if you can’t find this)
2 cups spaghetti or pizza sauce, reduced***

Basil Pesto:
2 garlic cloves
2 tsp pine nuts (toasted)
pinch red chile flakes
2 tbsp parmesan, grated
2 tbsp olive oil
2 cups packed basil leaves

1 cup shredded mozzarella
¼ cup crumbled feta
2/3 cup cherry tomatoes, sliced in half
¾ cup olives
1 small jar artichoke hearts, sliced in half

***For the sauce, we use Prego Heart Smart. Because spaghetti sauce is more watery than pizza sauce, we put it in a strainer lined with a coffee filter for at least 1 hour (or as long as overnight). This drains some of the water from the sauce, resulting in a thicker consistency that will ensure that your pizza doesn’t come out soggy.

Directions:

1) Preheat the oven to 450 degrees. Follow instructions for prepping pizza dough. (For the TJ’s one, we take the dough out of the fridge and let it rest on the counter for 15 minutes before stretching it out onto a circular pan.

2) To make the pesto, place the garlic cloves, pine nuts, chili flakes, parmesan, olive oil, and basil leaves in a food processor. Blend until a smooth paste is formed.

3) On your prepared pizza dough, spread the sauce evenly, being careful to not put too much in the middle. Then, layer pizza ingredients in this order: mozzarella, feta, tomatoes, olives, and artichokes.

4) Bake for 10-15 minutes. Drizzle pesto over pizza before serving.

I know you're a little bit scared for these soup pictures, considering the graphical horrors in my last post. But we're gonna make it through this mess together. Cause ya know...that's what friends are for.

...Did I really just say that the purpose of having friends is to survive mediocre split pea soup pictures?

Well dang, my friends deserve gold medals.

But since I'm out of medals, they'll just have to settle for carrots. I wouldn't complain :)

Unfortunately, there's really no way for me to do this soup justice in pictures. Well, hmph. I suppose words will just have to be good enough this time 'round.

This soup is totally, completely, incredibly, amazingly: a) Delicious b) Simple c) Comforting d) Unpretentious e) Soul-soothing

Never mind the fact that it is unattractive. After all, it's not the soup's fault. Blame it on the blogger :)

The Ultimate Kitchen Sink Split Pea Soup

Despite this soup's unassuming (ahem.) looks, it's actually quite lovely in the flavor department! I wanted to stick with traditional split pea soup ingredients and flavors, but feel free to add whatever vegetables or grains you have on hand. When ASOS Mum makes her variation of this soup, she typically uses both ham and chicken broth. Though this version is good in its own right, I wanted to experiment with a vegetarian version that would be on par in both taste and texture. I'm happy to say that said experiment was a success!

Yield: Serves 2 hungry people for dinner or 3 not-deathly-famished people for lunch

Ingredients:

- 1 onion, diced - 2 cloves of garlic, minced - 2 carrots, diced - 2 small potatoes, diced (I used russet potatoes and left the skin, scrubbing them well rather than peeling. If you'd prefer, peel the potatoes.) - 1 tbsp oil or butter/margarine OR cooking spray - 1/2 cup split peas - 1/2 cup pearled barley - 7-8 cups water - 3 tbsp vegetarian "chicken-flavored" broth mix/bouillon (Use less if your bouillon is strong) - 1/2 tsp dried basil - 1/2 tsp salt - pepper to taste

Directions:

1) Wash, scrub, and prepare the onion, garlic, carrots, and potatoes. Place a medium pot over medium-high heat; add the oil/butter or cooking spray. (Use just enough to grease the pan, so the veggies won't stick.) When the pot is hot, add the vegetables and saute until slightly softened (~3 minutes).

2) Add the split peas, barley, water, broth, dried basil, salt, and pepper to the pot. Keep the heat on medium, waiting for the mixture to come to a boil.

3) Once the soup is boiling, reduce heat to low-medium, making sure that it is still at an active simmer. Simmer for 1+ hour.* Season with salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!

*Add a cup of water as needed, if the liquid level in the soup starts to get too low (at or below the level of the vegetables/split peas). The longer you simmer, the lower the level of liquid. Thus, if you want your split peas really soft and smushy, add more water and cook longer.