I’ve had stitches two times in my life and both were bagel related traumas.
The first time, I was 12, attempting to slice a frozen bagel (real bad idea) when the knife slipped – gouging my left index finger and dripping blood down the kitchen cabinets (and tears down my cheeks*.)
Anyway, my sister was about 4 months old at the time, and my stepmom was nursing her. As soon as my gory cacophony rang, she sprang into action, tossing the infant (gently) onto the couch to assume pressure on my seeping wound. A few hours later and I had a new finger.
Incident number 2:
Last week. I was attempting to cut a freshly made bagel from the little cafe in town. My salivary glands were in on it as soon as we grabbed our salty bakers dozen and headed home. Garlic herb cream cheese was on the menu too. I was so excited.
And then, out of nowhere, the knife slipped, taking a swan dive directly into the dorsal aspect of my right foot. It was so sharp I didn’t even feel it. Glob, the blog dog was first to my aid, slurping up puddles of blood and salt. Not his finest moment. A few hours later and I had a new foot.
Saddened by ironic misfortune and unable to ambulate accordingly, I pondered what would make me feel better? Wine? Probably. Bagels? Not a chance. We’re making pizza.
Feeds 2; Takes 35 min
Ingredients For Spicy Chicken Pizza
- 1 lb ground chicken
- 1 tbsp garlic powder
- 1/2 tbsp onion powder
- 1 tsp caraway seeds (optional)
- 1 tsp ground mustard
- 12 oz fontina cheese, shredded
- Your fav store bought pizza dough — or my Beer Dough
- 10-12 castelvetrano olives, sliced
- 2 tbsp giardiniera oil (I like Marconi)
- 1/3 cup full fat ricotta
- small handful cherry tomatoes, optional
- Good olive oil, salt, pepper
Method
Sauté the chicken in a bit of olive oil with salt, garlic, onion, mustard powder, caraway, and pepper until browned – about 7 min. It does not need to be fully cooked at this point. Set aside.
Preheat oven to 400F.
Roll out pizza dough on oiled parchment paper and place on a sheet tray.
Drizzle the giardiniera oil on the top of the dough.
Top with chicken, then fontina, then olives.
Bake for 20-22min or until golden brown. Remove and top with ricotta dollops and tomatoes.
*Side note, I also broke this finger trying to jump over the velvet ropes at the Adler Planetarium. My foot caught the ropes, I tripped (like a prized idiot) and the post came crashing down on my sad little forefinger. (12 was not my best year.)
Looking more of a classic pie? How about the always perfect Margherita with All Day Marinara Sauce? Or do it up Detroit Style with my Big D Pie with Pepperoni, Jalapeños and Honey.
