Fig & Pancetta Pizza

Summer 2012 and one of my favorite restaurants in Chicago has finally opened up its rooftop dining area. It was allegedly scheduled to be finished last summer before I moved to LA, but obviously there were some delays. Needless to say, the space is awesome and worth the wait! 


The flip side of your favorite place getting a rooftop area is that it's now even more busy. Oh, and with the 100+ degree temperatures in Chicago last week, there was no way I was going to eat outside! So, riding on the wave of success of that strawberry pizza I made, I decided to try and recreate my favorite flatbread from this here favorite restaurant. With a few changes, I have to say...success!

Ingredients
Pizza dough
8 oz. fontina cheese
2oz. bleu cheese
15 dried mission figs
3 oz. pancetta
Balsamic vinegar
Salt
Olive oil
Truffle oil


Directions
1. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
2. Place pancetta in a single layer on a baking sheet, and bake in the oven for 6 minutes or until shriveled and browned. Remove and set aside to cool on a plate lined with paper towel.
3. Meanwhile, remove the stems from the dried figs.
4. Place the figs in a small saucepan and cover with balsamic vinegar and a pinch of salt.
*Note: you can also add 3 parts vinegar to 1 part water if you want to conserve some of those more expensive ingredients.
5. Bring the vinegar to a boil and then reduce to a high simmer. Let the figs simmer for 5 minutes so that they reconstitute a bit.
6. Drain and set the figs aside to cool.
7. Meanwhile, shred the fontina cheese and set aside.
8. Roll out your pizza dough and place on a pizza stone or baking sheet.
9. Brush with olive oil and bake for 8-10 minutes.
*Note: it will likely bubble up, but that's okay. Most will deflate once you take it out.
10. Meanwhile, quarter the figs and set aside.
11. Remove the crust from the oven and sprinkle half of the fontina cheese on top.
12. Then crush the pancetta over top, followed by the dried figs, bleu cheese and the remainder of the fontina.
13. Bake for another 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown on the edges.
14. Remove from the oven and lightly drizzle with truffle oil.
15. Let stand for a few minutes and then slice. Enjoy!

Turkey Burgers with Dill Mayonnaise

I've been making turkey burgers at home for awhile now as an easy, filling meal that I can add anything to in order to vary it little by little. You basically take a generic burger recipe, with ground turkey and seasonings, and you can add in whatever you want. I do have a favorite combination, which is what I'm going to list here, along with some toppings that I have recently tried.

Ingredients

For the burgers:

1 lb. ground turkey (completely thawed if you keep a supply in your freezer like I do)

1/2 cup crumbled feta cheese

1/2 banana pepper, seeded and finely chopped

Olive oil

Salt, pepper and onion powder

*Note: In the past, I have also experimented with adding different amounts of cumin, garlic powder, chili powder, parsley, etc. Get creative and decide what combination you like best!

For the toppings:

1/2 cup mayonnaise

Juice of 1/2 a lemon

Salt and black pepper

2 tbsp. fresh dill

1/2 red onion, thinly sliced

Red wine vinegar

Directions

1. Thinly slice the red onion and place in a small bowl. Add a generous amount of red wine vinegar and salt, and let sit for at least 20 minutes.

2. Preheat grill-pan or skillet over medium heat. Lightly grease with olive oil or Pam grilling spray. You'll want it nice and hot before you add the burger patties in order to trap the juice inside (otherwise, you won't be able to sear them and a lot of the juice will seep out during cooking).

3. In a medium bowl, add the ground turkey, feta cheese and banana pepper.

4. Drizzle a couple tsp. of olive oil on top, and add salt, pepper and onion to desired amount (depending on how salty, etc. you want the patties to be).

5. With clean hands or a fork, combine all of the ingredients. Do not over mix or your burger patties will wind up tough.

6. Divide the mixture into 4-6 equal parts (depending on how big you want your patties).

7. Gently form the mixture into burger-shaped patties, one at a time. Set aside until all patties have been formed.

8. Place all patties on the grill and cook 8-10 minutes per side until cooked through.

9. Prepare the mayonnaise by combining it in a small bowl with the lemon juice, fresh dill, salt and black pepper. Stir to combine and refrigerate until ready to use on the burgers.