Turkish Ground-Lamb Pizzas

Posted by Sheri on Saturday, April 28th, 2012

Another pick from Larry, and it was a good one. I don’t eat lamb so we used ground beef instead. And we loved this dinner.

The pizza doesn’t have a sauce – it’s just a seasoned ground meat mixture that’s moist enough to stand on its own. An egg on top is a nice addition (we did one pizza with and one without).

The dough is pretty simple, a honey wheat dough that takes an hour to rise. I had some more fresh yeast on hand so I had to do the math to convert a tablespoon of dry yeast to the fresh equivalent (approximately 23 grams if you’re curious). I don’t mind math, but it sure would make cooking easier if every recipe standardized in metric weights.

We’re still getting kale from the CSA but Larry’s sick of beans and greens. So this time, a raw kale salad from the folks at Foodzie. This is their version of a favorite neighborhood salad. Manchego and pancetta adds salt and flavor. I had seconds of the salad, and I rarely have seconds of anything. It’s that good. If I was in their neighborhood I’d stand in a long line to get it, too.

Foodzie’s Favorite Kale Salad
Massaging the greens helps to tenderize the kale, which otherwise can be a little tough; it also allows the dressing to penetrate into the greens.

2 bunches of dino (lacinato) kale
1 small head radicchio
1/2 c. shaved manchego
3 – 1/4″ slices of pancetta, cut into 1/4″ cubes
Juice of 1/2 lemon
1 tsp of olive oil
1 Tbsp Balsamic Glaze (see below)
salt and pepper to taste

Rinse, dry and slice kale and radicchio into approximately 1″ squares. Fry the pancetta until crispy; remove from heat and remove pancetta cubes to a paper towel to cool. Add pancetta and rendered fat to greens. Add cheese, olive oil, balsamic, and lemon. Massage for two minutes, using your hands to gently crush the greens. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve immediately. Enjoy!

Balsamic Glaze
You can easily make this with inexpensive, store-bought balsamic vinegar. Just pour some balsamic in a small saucepan, put over medium heat, bring to a simmer and reduce to about half. Allow to cool, and use to flavor salad dressings, or drizzle over roasted meats, hard cheeses or even macerated strawberries.