Midweek 'Za

The first fifteen pages of my thesis are due on Monday. Thus, this week has been an emotional roller coaster which has included wandering around aimlessly with my shoelaces untied and/or teeth unbrushed wondering why time suddenly seems to be going by at warp speed, and making eating breakfast during class a very acceptable thing. I'm not proud of my behavior this week but I will say that my research is coming along pretty nicely and I have only had one meltdown. Well, two if you include this meal, which involved a very serious buffalo mozzarella meltdown that was truly delicious and much more enjoyable than my sputtering, sniffling "I'LL NEVER BE FUN AGAIN" debacle. 

Excuse my poor photography and paper plate (ugh) but I hope you can see this for the glory that it very much was. I love asparagus SO much and sauteed with a little EVOO, salt and pepper, I can eat it for days. It's crunchy and salty, and the head of it always absorbs all these yummy flavors that make for the perfect side-or star-of a meal. While in Italy, we found the best pizza in the fucking world in Bologna. I'm not joking. Every single item on the menu was outrageously good and we got in the genius unfortunate habit of eating entire pizzas at once there because you just simply could not leave any on the table. My absolute favorite was a glorious creation that had a thin layer of tomato sauce, buffalo mozzarella, thin and crispy asparagus, spicy salami, and a fried egg on top. When I was trying to find pizza inspiration last night in the sad vegetable aisle at Giant, this pizza in all its beautiful, comforting joy came to me in a vision.

This creation did not nearly do its inspiration justice, but it definitely did the trick. The flavors on this cannot be beaten. Salty prosciutto (which I subbed for salami because I couldn't find anything spicy enough at Giant...and it was actually a perfect alternative!), crispy asparagus, a little bit of egg in each bite, and a thin layer of sweet tomato sauce with chewy, melty mozzarella. So good. I also drank roughly a bottle of wine on the side which probably caused this shoddy photography. I wish I knew a better way to cook the fried egg on top-I just fried it separately and then placed it on top. Let me know if you have a better method! 

Ingredients

-1 Pizza crust (snaps for you if you have time to make dough yourself, I just use Boboli because it's so quick.

-4 tbsp. sweet tomato sauce (go light on this! otherwise the other flavors will be outdone)

-4 slices prosciutto

-8-10 asparagus stalks, halved lengthwise and brushed with olive oil, salt, and pepper

-8-10 slices of mozzarella, as thin as you can get them

-1 egg

Instructions

-Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

-Brush the pizza crust with EVOO, spread a thin layer of tomato sauce.

-Spread out mozzarella slices over the crust, do not double-layer them.

-Interweave the asparagus: some under the cheese, some over.

-Lay the slices of prosciutto over the asparagus and cheese.

-Add some more asparagus.

-Put the pizza in the oven for 10-15 minutes, depending upon how crispy you like it.

-Fry an egg on the side.

-Take the pizza out and put the egg in the middle. Tastes GREAT if it's still a bit runny, mine wasn't and I wished it was!

Enjoy!

The Lilly Pulitzer Salad [Spinach, Strawberries, Mozzarella, and Balsamic]

I have some issues/anxieties with salads. I am definitely one of those college girls who will talk your ear off about how I "would totally eat anything, I mean, ANYTHING!!! on a salad!!!!!" whilst ordering a hamburger, but I have stress about this hypocrisy because it really is true. If you slapped that patty on a salad with cherry tomatoes, a little flavorful cheese, some cornichons, and a great mustard vinaigrette? You bet I'd eat it AND be just as happy and way less full than eating the full burger. But sometimes all the switcheroos and custom orders at a restaurant feel a little pushy and I have a weird fear of waiters defacing my food if I'm rude to them. (you never know!!!) so anyways, while sticking to the anything-on-a-salad girl mantra is difficult at a restaurant, I'm actually pretty good at adhering to it at home. I make it a priority on any grocery list to buy a gigantic family sized bag of spinach. I'm lucky to have been one of those weirdos children who enjoyed spinach to the point of asking for it with a dash of olive oil, sea salt and minced garlic, so having it raw in a salad is right up my alley. Also, raw spinach is a really pretty color of green and looks great in pictures. In order to diminish my salad anxiety, I try to choose two or three ingredients and one dressing that pair well together, and then get it goin'. You never want to be that girl who puts fruit, crunchy asian noodles (which for the record, I loathe) olives, cheese, and anchovies in the same salad with heinous blue cheese dressing. SO bad. Do less. Instead, simplicity without being boring is key. Here's one of my favorite creations, which I have aptly named the Lilly Pulitzer salad because it is pink and green and I want a new one every day.

For this masterpiece (there I said it)...

• 2 cups spinach, ripped up and washed to minimize toughness and make bites smaller.
• 8 ripe/somewhat soft strawberries (the softness soaks up the dressing and tastes amazing with the cheese)
• Buffalo mozzarella in water. Gently, with your hands, make small chunks of the cheese and put it on at the last second.
• 2 parts olive oil one part balsamic vinaigrette. Can't go wrong with this, and balsamic and strawberries are definitely winning cutest couple this year.

This salad tastes amazing, satisfies every salt/sweet/sour/ craving you're having, and pairs well with a glass of sauvignon blanc. Then again, I think everything pairs well with a glass of sauvignon blanc. Make this tonight and then tell me your favorite salad!