Familar Food: Making Pizza

Pizza is a Friday night tradition at home. Even though the pizza selection in Westborough, MA is quite limited, I always looked forward to this ritual as the true beginning of the weekend. As I grew up and my palette matured, I started to realize that pizza in Westborough really is not good. At all. To keep up with our Friday ritual without sacrificing taste, I started to make pizzas for my family. The best part about this was that I could easily customize our pizzas to fit the varied (and limited) taste buds of everyone--peppers and mushrooms for me, broccoli and ricotta for mom, plain ol' cheese for Emma. Pizza Fridays made for a stress-free, yet tasty (and much better than Papa Gino's) kick-off to the weekend.

Now that I no longer live at home, Emma has taken on the role of pizza-master. While both delicious, we each have our signature pies (mine has a crispier crust; Emma's a little softer). But just because I live in Pizza Paradise, also known as New York City, doesn't mean I can't carry on the family tradition here.

Luckily, homemade pizza is a cheap and easy solution to cooking with friends. Everyone can chip in with favorite toppings, and everyone can take on a task: rolling out the dough, chopping the veggies, sprinkling the cheese. It's a fun and nostalgic way to get those friends in the kitchen who don't usually cook for themselves. So that's just what me and a few of my friends did this Monday night. Albeit, it wasn't a Friday night and it wasn't with my family, but sharing laughs and good food with friends made the next 4 days until Friday seem just a little less threatening.

Veggin' it up!

Teamwork

Classic cheese pizza with fresh tomatoes, red and yellow peppers, and mushrooms

Feta cheese and pesto pizza with sliced tomatoes and mushrooms--the favorite!

You Grill, Girl!

Who ever said that girls can't grill? My women's studies classes in college taught me well that gender is not defined by biology, but by the societal and structural demands and expectations placed on the so-called genders. As a feminist who loves a good burger, you better believe no societal expectations were getting in the way of me learning how to man the grill.

I have to admit, it was a little scary the first time my dad taught me how to light it. It probably didn't help that my mom was fretting through the window, waiting for the flames to blow up in my face. Like any cooking technique, it's taken me some time to figure out all of its intricacies--how hot to heat it up, or how to know when your burger is done. But there are a few female-gendered qualities that just might be a little more helpful on the grill. (Boys, listen up. Take a lesson from these qualities not only at the grill, but also in real life...)

1. Patience is extremely important on the grill. Flipping your burgers over and over again won't make them cook any faster. Let the meat/veggies/etc sit for a good few minutes to get that nice char on one side before flipping.

2. Be gentle with your food, especially burgers and fish. Pressing the burgers into the grill only causes all the tasty juices to drip out. Make sure the grill is lightly oiled or sprayed before placing fish on the grate--if it sticks, it will crumble apart when you try to move it.

3. Organization A little planning can get you a long way in the kitchen, whether cooking inside or out. Before you throw all your food on the grill at once, make sure you know the cooking times for each item. Also, the more you crowd the grill, the longer everything will take to cook. Keep food evenly spaced for accurate cooking times.

So go forth women, and show that grill what you're made of!

Grilled Vegetable Skewers
Makes 6-7 skewers


Ingredients:
1 pint cherry tomatoes
1 summer squash
1 zucchini
1 tbs finely chopped fresh rosemary
1 tbs finely chopped fresh thyme
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
1/3 cup olive oil

1. Cut the squash and zucchini into 3/4-inch cubes, so they're about the same time as the cherry tomatoes. Place in a boll with tomatoes.
2. In a small bowl, whisk together balsamic vinegar, olive oil, herbs, garlic, salt and pepper. Pour the marinade over the vegetables and stir to coat. Refrigerate for 20 minutes to allow the vegetables to absorb the flavors.
3. Assemble the skewers as desired.
4. Over a medium grill that's been lightly brushed with olive oil or sprayed with cooking spray, place the skewers so they run perpendicular to the grate. Flip every 2-3 minutes, so that all sides are nicely charred and cooked through.

Cheddar burgers and vegetable skewers

Grilled sweet potato fries

S'mores! (these were deceivingly not prepared on the grill)