Pizza Night!

So pizza night has become quite the tradition in our little home. There is something so satisfying and fun about making your own pizza; it will never arrive cold, it's less greasy, and you can use a little imagination and get creative. Though it would be optimal to have my own wood fire oven, fresh dough rising, and sauce made from scratch I've done some experimenting in my quest for the perfect (and quick) pizza.

This week we invited our neighbors over to join us. We went to Whole Foods to pick up some groceries, and I had a strange craving for bacon and onion pizza. I'm going to give turkey bacon a try, since bacon-bacon should be kept to limited quantities! For my second pie, a margarita is always a safe bet.

1. The Dough- Store bought dough is pretty handy and easy to find, especially if your in a hurry. The Whole Foods dough has a lot of air in it so it gets really bubbly.
2. The Sauce- Any pizza or marinara sauce will do, but hands down the best sauce is the Trader Joe's pizza sauce. It's kind of zesty, nice and thick, and it's fat free! It's so good, you don't need that much cheese!
3. The Cheese- I've become a big fan of using fresh mozzarella instead of the grated. It makes the pizza taste fresher and it looks pretty.
4. The Toppings-This is usually my opportunity to get creative, while I do love a good 'ole plain cheese, we need some variety if we're making pizza every week.

Favorite Toppers
Turkey bacon and onion
Cheese and garlic
Mushroom and chicken sausage
Shitake, goat cheese, and chive
Artichoke and caper

No, it's not delivery, it's definitely not Digiorno...it's homemade (kinda)! Short cuts are great, but stay tuned for when I take on a true pizza challenge: making my own dough and sauce! EEK!

Who Are The Hungry Yuppies?

My boyfriend Rich and I are huge foodies. We love going out to restaurants and watching cooking shows (Top Chef is our fave). Food has always been something we've shared, our "thing," since we started dating. We make a pretty good team-I am the mad scientist always whipping up crazy experiments, he is the willing test participant and always hungry. My love for cooking started when I was young, my mom always had a delicious dinner at the table every night and was a fabulous baker to boot. For quite a few years I have been cooking for myself, taking what I learned from my mom, cookbooks, The Food Network, and the Internet. Rich and I are living together now, and I have to face the same question every day at 6:00 pm, "What's for dinner?" Even after a long, hard day at the office I find nothing more satisfying that firing up the stove and cooking up some comfort. But it's not that easy to keep a stocked fridge, or whip up gourmet dishes every night especially with our busy work schedules. We occasionally succumb to ordering in when the cabinets are bare and the only thing left in the fridge are condiments. I am on a mission to ramp up my cooking skills, eat food that's fresher (maybe healthier, depending on my mood), and take some culinary risks. I will document both my successes and failures, using my own recipes or testing others I may come across. It's nice to know how to cook for yourself, and it's even better to be able to share your cooking for others (especially if it's yummy)! That is the goal of this blog, and I hope it inspires some of you out there too.