Meat On The Side Cookbook

Meet Nikki

I am a chef, mom, TV host, cookbook author, blogger, professional voice over artist and terrace gardener. I cook in a way I call "Meat on the Side" which focuses on veggies, making them unique and the star of the plate. 

More about Nikki...

      

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    Mar282014

    Poblano Pizza

     

     

    There are not often tears shed in my kitchen, but the event has taken place before. It actually became a frequent occurence years ago when I really got on a pizza making kick.

     


     

     

     

    I had acquired the ESSENTIAL pizza making tool- the pizza stone. The magical stone that when pizza is cooked upon- the crust is crisp on the outside but remains chewy on the inside. It had changed my pizza making experience. There was only one problem, transferring the perfectly topped raw pizza onto the stone that had to be preheated in the oven...

     

    And this is where the tears came in...

     

     

     

     

    There is nothing sadder than making a homemade sauce, spreading it on your perfectly tossed dough, topping it with the best of ingredients and then in the final step completely ruining it trying to transfer it to the pizza stone.

     

    My husband would console me as we ate deformed, inside-out, raw-on-one-side/cooked-on-the-other pizzas.

     

     

     

     

    So though I do NOT have the space for it, I finally acquired a pizza peel, just like the guy maning the oven at my favorite NYC pizzeria. And now I am a pizza producing machine.

     

     

     

    So after mastering the classics, it's time to have a little fun, thus, the Poblano Pizza...

     

     

     

    RECIPE:

     

    2Tbs Butter

    2Tbs Flour

    1 cup 1% Milk

    1tsp Kosher Salt

    ½ tsp Ancho Chili Powder

    1Lbs Pizza Dough

    2 Poblano peppers, roasted, sliced

    ½ small Red Onion, thinly sliced

    3Tbs Cilantro, chopped

    6oz Queso Fresco cheese

     

    In a small sauce pan melt the butter and whisk in the flour.  Let cook together for 1-2minutes and then whisk in the milk. Let come to a boil and thicken, 3minutes. Add salt and Ancho chili powder and set aside.

    Roast the poblano’s by putting under your broiler or on an open flame until charred on all sides. Put in a Ziploc bag and let cool. Remove the seeds and skin and use.

    Roll out pizza dough to 1/2inch thick, sprinkle bottom with cornmeal and put on a pizza peel. Top with half of the sauce mixture and the roasted poblanos. Bake on a pizza stone or a baking pan for 10minutes at 500degrees. Add the rest of the sauce and continue baking until crust is golden brown and cooked through, approx. 5-10minutes. Remove pizza and top with onions, cilantro and queso fresco. Slice and serve! Enjoy!!

     

     

    Notes:

     

    • You can use any kind of milk you have on hand, I had 1% and it worked fine
    • Slice the onions as thin as possible. They don’t actually cook so you don’t want them too thick

     

     

     

     

     

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    You might also like these recipes:

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    • Carrot Cake
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    • Enchiladas

    Reader Comments (7)

    You can also put down corn meal on the surface where you roll out the pizza to ease the transfer. Looks great!

    September 3, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterChris Brown

    Just wondering what brand of pizza peel you purchased? I have been looking into getting one myself (because I too hate trying to figure out putting pizza on a hot stone) but I haven't been able to decide on one.


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    I don't remember where I got it, but it's an all wood one, with a thin edge, it was cheap, nothing fancy.

    - Nikki

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    September 3, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterEM

    Do you have a recipe for egg free popovers?

    September 6, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterAnonymus

    Hi I'm an 11 year old who watched food network star and i had really hoped you would win. I just found your site! Maybe I'll make this with my mom :-)

    September 11, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterSarah

    Hi I'm an 11 year old who watched food network star and i had really hoped you would win. I just found your site! Maybe I'll make this with my mom :-)

    September 11, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterSarah

    Hi Nikki,
    Tip from Brian Boitano - corn meal on the pizza peel, pizza with toppings on top and then slide pizza from the peel to the hot stone...and if you feel the peel is to much money to justify only one use, I also cover the pizza peel with flat parchment paper (King Arthur) and serve cheese and meats on it like Eataly in New York City...

    September 26, 2013 | Unregistered CommenterDebora Basini-Herman

    Nikki,
    I think of you quite often and hope you are doing well. You were always my very favorite to win the Next Food Network Star. I hope to see you on one of their upcoming shows!! Take care!
    Always remembering sweet Willa,
    Jane Carden

    November 1, 2014 | Unregistered CommenterJane Carden

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