When the snow moved in on Friday, it was fast and furious. One second, I was lamenting that school was pre-emptively canceled and the next the lawn had a full-on dusting of snow. Throughout the day it snowed and snowed, becoming more treacherous by the moment. As dinner neared, it was clear that we weren’t going anywhere for awhile. And despite planning for dinner, all I could think about was takeout.

Of course, it was purely takeout — nothing more specific than that — that I wanted. It could have been a pizza from a favorite local joint, veggie dumplings from the Chinese place in town, Pad Thai from the new Thai place, sushi … as long as it was take out. Of course, with the snow and worsening conditions, takeout wasn’t a possibility.

On Saturday? Even though the snow had stopped, takeout was still out of the question. After all, it’s kind of hard to get takeout when all roads in the state (yes, all!) are closed and your way-too-long-and-wide driveway is still snowed in. It took all day to shovel out. And by then, all I wanted to do was sleep.

Thankfully we are all shoveled out now. And our road is plowed too. My thoughts are with those who are still snowed in — which is a lot of folks especially near the Connecticut shoreline.

And as for the takeout desire? I haven’t given in yet — but I did make a little homemade takeout in the form of a Herb and Cheese Crust Hawaiian Pizza.

This Hawaiian pizza? It’s a step outside the ordinary.

The crust is crisp and rich. Olive oil, minced parsley, asiago and salt are baked into it, creating a firm, flavorful base. Then it’s topped with marinara, diced ham and sweet pineapple — and a layer of mozzarella too. It’s that favorite flavor we love, but better.

And best of all? You can have this amazing homemade pizza in just 30 minutes. Quick is good, right?

Be sure to use a really good marinara (or a pizza sauce). You want something that’s flavorful and that you like. It really can make or break a pizza.

Ready to dig in?

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Disclosure: I was compensated by Pillsbury/General Mills for creating this recipe using Pillsbury Pizza Crust. All opinions are my own.

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Paige’s gleeful giggles have a pure melodic quality to them. When they fill the kitchen, it echos across the house — a sweet sound that never fails to make me smile. Hers are quickly joined by Will’s uncontrollable laughter. His laughter is loud and unwieldy and so, so happy. It’s joy, unleashed.

We are so lucky. So incredibly lucky. But it’s more than that. We are blessed — and it’s something I remember every single day. I try never to let myself head down the rabbit hole of what-if, but it’s practically unavoidable. So instead, I have taken to reminding myself to be thankful every time the thought crosses my mind of what could have been.

Even when it gets really noisy in here.

This afternoon, as the kids played a loud and raucous made up game, their giggles and laughter spread through the four walls of our home. They share an incredible bond, and come up with so many imaginative pursuits.

They’d already dug into this homemade pizza, enjoying the mix of garlic, cheese, tomatoes and sauce.

Making Cheese and Tomato Pizza with Garlic Bread Crust

I love me some good stringy, melted cheese. Don’t you?

This pizza starts with an easy and flavorful garlic bread crust. Roasted garlic, melted butter and salt are brushed all over the dough and then baked in. Then, the crust is spread with tomato sauce, mozzarella and fresh tomatoes and baked to perfection. The resulting cheese pizza is a turned-up classic that’s perfect for movie night or a fab game day snack (like the Super Bowl on Sunday!). And since it can be whipped up in just 20 minutes, it’s a fabulous last minute homemade pizza too.

For the roasted garlic in this, I buy already roasted garlic at Whole Foods or a local purveyor, Stew Leonard’s. It makes infusing dishes like this with the caramelized goodness of roasted garlic a cinch.

What Super Bowl recipes will you be serving up this weekend? Any special game day plans?

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Over the last week, our small town has come together time and again to mourn, cry and laugh. There have been long, meaningful hugs. We’ve rehashed where our kids were and what they saw and heard. And we’ve found moments of levity to laugh about. Those have been so important.  Over the last week, we’ve shared little moments that meant so much.

Yesterday, the kids and I stopped at the grocery store for dinner. Like many in our community, we have yet to do a full grocery shop so we drop in and only pick up a few things at a time. Last night, we needed chicken.

After making our way around the store, we headed to a checkout lane. While loading our few purchases onto the conveyer belt, I noticed the man in front of us looking meaningfully at my kids. He had the deep sadness rooted behind his kind eyes that I’ve seen on so many in our community. With a soft voice and subdued tone, he thanked the bag checker and was about to leave. But then he stepped back and leaned in to me, as if sharing an important confidence. “Hug your children tight,” he said so softly, I almost didn’t hear. And then he was gone. I nearly broke down then and there. While each day gets easier, there’s so much simmering below the surface.

All this said, we’re okay. And we will get through this. When I started writing Monday’s post, I wasn’t sure how or when I would return to writing about food. Everything was still so fresh and raw. And then I wondered how I could break my silence. Did it need to be something special? Something meaningful? Something comforting?

But in the end, I realized that there’s no better way to break this silence than to do so with something that’s just normal for us — like pizza.

We love pizza and make it often. Not only is it an economical meal, but it’s fun to make. And really, food should be fun. This one combines leftover steak with super thin onion slices and diced peppers on a Pillsbury pizza crust (super easy — just unroll and go!). The onions sort of melt into the crust and cheese, creating an amazing array of flavors and textures. It’s just the thing for a Friday night, or whenever you want an easy dinner.

Hope you are well.

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Disclosure: I am being compensated by Pillsbury for the creation of this recipe. All opinions are my own.

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Weeknights can get so crazy. When the kids get home from school, it always seems like a mad rush to do homework, sometimes have a snack and get dinner going. But I am usually still working. And trying to oversee said homework. And managing a house full of kids and dogs.

This all creates a sort of push-pull of responsibilities and wanting a really delicious dinner. Fortunately, you can have both — without eating super late or spending a ton of time cooking. These calzones are a perfect answer.

Using a refrigerated pizza crust, this is so simple. You just cut the dough into four pieces, stretch them all out (until about double in size) and then top them with ricotta, kalamata olives, roasted red peppers and mozzarella. Fold. Seal. Bake. Done.

They bake up to have a crisp outside and soft interior. The dough has a slight sweetness to it, which is a nice contrast to the salty, creamy, cheesy insides. And dipped in marinara sauce, the hot-cold contrast is just right. Serve them with a salad and you are all set for a quick and easy dinner for a busy weeknight.

What’s your favorite high-flavor, low-time dish to make for busy nights?

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Disclosure: I was compensated by Pillsbury for creating this recipe with Pillsbury Artisan Pizza Crust with Whole Grain. All opinions are my own.

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Thanksgiving is now less than a week away. But we’re going to take a tiny break from all the Stress-Free Thanksgiving discussion to talk about something equally important: Friday night fun. Just about every Friday, the kids and I dash off to the library for books and movies after school. And when we return, we pop a movie in and have a little fun family time.

And what goes with that fun family time? Well, popcorn – natch. But also pizza.

Takeout can get pricey — especially when your son seems to be in an inhale-everything-in-sight phase (we’re working on that one …). But making it at home? It’s quick, easy and economical. And you can really have fun with the toppings. This Garlicky Shrimp, Spinach and Asiago Pizza version is practically addictive.

I think I might just be a white pizza addict. Like seriously — I will take a cheesy slice sans sauce (or maybe with sauce for dipping) any day. And bonus points if it comes with plenty of delicious garlic and bold cheese.

This one is super simple because I use a premade dough from Pillsbury that only needs to be unrolled. For the toppings, you need to saute the garlic and shrimp, then just pile everything on the dough and bake. It’s ready in about 20 minutes — including the prep time.

What do you like on your pizza?

Garlicky Shrimp, Spinach and Asiago Pizza
serves 4

1 Pillsbury Classic Pizza Crust
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 clove garlic, minced
1/4 lb jumbo shrimp, peeled, deveined and cut into quarters
1/2 cup baby spinach
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1/2 cup shredded asiago

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Grease a nonstick baking sheet with butter. Spread out the pizza crust on the baking sheet. Bake for 8 minutes.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Add the shrimp and cook, stirring frequently, until opaque – 4-6 minutes.

Sprinkle the mozzarella over the partially baked crust. Top with the garlic and shrimp (including the oil!). Tear the spinach into smaller pieces and sprinkle on the pizza. Top with asiago. Bake for 7-10 minutes until the crust is golden and the cheeses are melted.

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Disclosure: I was compensated by Pillsbury for creating this recipe but, as always, all opinions are my own.

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I hate talking about the weather. It seems like such a menial thing — like I can’t think of anything else to say. But over the past few days, the weather has been weighing heavily on my mind. I’ve paid a little more attention to forecasts because there’s a storm coming. It’s a big one that could be very serious — and it may or may not hit Connecticut hard. And if it does, it could mean similar things to what Hurricane Irene and the Nor’easter of 2011 did just last year. Power outages. No running water. Intense debris clean up. Flooding. So, forgive me if I am just a little wrapped up in thinking about the weather and preparedness. It’s reality right now.

See, we’ve been here before. One year ago, give or take a few days, we learned of a snowstorm coming our way. Snowstorms in October are rare in the northeast. They bring heavy snow, and heavy snow downs trees and power lines. So what that we have buried lines on our street? That means nothing when the above ground lines that carry power to here are down. We were without power for a little more than five days and six hours. Some of our relatives, friends and neighbors were without it for days longer. What made it both better (we knew what to do) and worse (we had to do it again) was that it was the second lengthy power outage in less than three months — we were still recovering from Hurricane Irene.

So this time, I’m leaving nothing to chance. I’m not waiting for what ifs or maybes to become certainties. Instead, I have my head down, working hard to get ahead on my freelance assignments. Should the storm come and we are without power, I won’t be missing my deadlines. I’ll work through the weekend to get as far ahead as I can, while also making sure we’re ready with flashlights, gas for the generator and plans. There’s already water and some emergency food in the basement — some leftover from last year. We have enough dog food for two weeks. We’re ready.

Our town was forever changed last year. It’s evident in the emails I’ve received today from our officials, who are already knee-deep in contingency plans and readiness. Halloween — which may seem like the least of all concerns — is being discussed too. Because last year when town officials first postponed trick or treating and then cancelled it, our town rose up and said no, creating our own alternative event because we needed that lightheartedness. Should October 31 be inhospitable for traditions this year, Halloween will still go on … even if it’s a few days late and held in an alternative format again.

All this said, I am not panicking. Between our generator, space heater and hot plate, we have everything we need. We know how to survive things like this now. And even the lack of running water is no longer daunting. We know just what to do.

And in the meantime, while we wait for more concrete answers about the storm’s path, life goes on. We laugh, have family movie nights and enjoy simple delights — like this Mushroom Tomato Flatbread Pizza. It’s a quick and easy pizza for one with meaty sauteed mushrooms, sweet tomatoes and creamy cheeses. I love it on a spicy flatbread, but it’s great on wheat and other flatbreads too. It’s crazy simple to make, but so addictive too. When we had this as part of dinner recently, Will devoured piece after piece — he loved it too.

Mushroom Tomato Flatbread Pizza
serves 1

1 flatbread (I used Flatout’s Thin Crust Spicy Italian Flatbread)
1/2 cup ricotta cheese
4 grape tomatoes, quartered
1/4-1/2 cup sauteed mushrooms
1/2 cup mozzarella cheese

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Lay the flatbread on a rimmed baking sheet. Spread ricotta over the flatbread. Sprinkle with tomatoes, mushrooms and cheese.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until golden at the edges. Let sit for 5 minutes before slicing with a pizza wheel. Devour.

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Friday night in our house is Family Movie Night. It’s a family tradition that started in the dark days of winter a few years ago when I felt like work was encroaching too much on life. So I decided to do something about it … and one Friday, I announced it was Family Movie Night, whipped up a big bowl of popcorn and cuddled on the couch with the kids watching a movie. We’ve been doing it nearly every Friday (well, at least during the school year) ever since.

What I love most about our Family Movie Nights is that it encourages us to stop and just be for a little. We all need that downtime to connect, I think.

Besides our movie (tonight is Cinderella!), we also eat during the movie as well. Sometimes I still pop up popcorn, but these days we often have dinner too. One thing I have learned since we started this though is that fast and easy dinners are the perfect choice for our Friday night celebrations. Anything else takes me away from the movie — and the relaxing time I have with the kids.

Flatbread pizzas? They are the ultimate in fast, easy Family Movie Night dinners since they use already cooked flatbreads and take less than 10 minutes to cook. One of my personal favorites is Two Cheese Steak Flatbread Pizza with Swiss Chard Chimichurri. It has it all — creamy cheese, meaty steak and a tangy chimichurri sauce that gives it that wow factor.

Of course, the cool thing about making individual flatbread pizzas is that everyone can customize the recipe to their liking too, so there’s that option too. But why would anyone want something other than this?

Does your family have any special movie night traditions?

Two Cheese Steak Flatbread Pizza with Swiss Chard Chimichurri
serves 4

4 Flatout Thin Crust Flatbreads in Rustic White
1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
1/3 lb cooked and thinly sliced steak
2 oz thinly sliced Jarlsberg deli cheese (8 very thin slices)
1/4-1/2 cup Swiss Chard Chimichurri Sauce

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Place the flatbreads on a baking sheet in a single layer (use more than one baking sheet, if necessary). Bake for 4 minutes.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle the flatbreads with mozzarella and then thinly sliced steak. Top each with 1/2 oz (2 very thin slices) of Jarlsberg cheese. Return to the oven and bake for 3-4 minutes until just golden at the edges.

Remove from the oven and drizzle with Swiss Chard Chimichurri Sauce.

Use a pizza cutter to cut the flatbread pizza into pieces. Devour.

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Disclosure: I was compensated for creating this recipe by Flatout and The Motherhood. All opinions are, as always, my own.

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Can we talk about gardening for a sec? Look, I totally failed at it this year. Miserably. How about you?

In the past, I have made a good effort to grow some of our own food. And every season I have put up at least a little fresh, local produce for winter. But this year? I just didn’t. Overwhelmed by my yard and the state of my gardens, I just ignored it all. Of course, that hasn’t worked out so well either. (How could it? Ignoring the garden means … weeds!) So, now I am in the throws of cleaning up the gardens, preparing for winter and also readying everything for a good growing season in the spring. It’s not an easy job, but the promise of juicy tomatoes from my own garden and my kids’ favorite dill pickles makes it worth it.

Because I didn’t do any growing this year, all our tomatoes came from farmer’s market, our CSA and occasionally the grocery store this summer. Fortunately, my cousin’s farm had a good tomato season — and even grew some of my favorite tomatoes: green zebra. And our locally owned grocery store? They source as much produce as they can locally during our growing season. So we enjoyed a lot of tomatoes this summer anyway. Wherever the source, BLT sandwiches (and caprese salad) are among the finer delights of any summer and early fall.

When I was asked to create a new pizza recipe highlighting bacon, I jumped to the BLT that I love so much. Darling BLT, meet my friend, pizza. After all, bacon and tomatoes really go well together. But the lettuce? Well, that transforms this into salad pizza … and I really love salad pizza.

Salad pizza and I were first introduced in the Reader’s Digest cafeteria, back when I was an editor for the Weekly Reader division. We’d recently moved offices from Stamford, Connecticut, to Pleasantville, New York, and everything was new there — the scenery, the environment, the food. I remember looking skeptically at the square slice of  pizza piled high with salad and thinking the cafeteria staff must be crazy. How could you eat that?

But then I did try it at the beckoning of one of the chefs, and I fell in love with the combination of pizza crust, melted mozzarella and vinaigrette-dressed salad on top. (Note, I added the vinaigrette … a delicious addition). After that, I enjoyed salad pizza on a semi-regular basis for lunch.

This warm pizza is so easy to make, which I say about many things I cook — but only because it’s true. Pillsbury Artisan Pizza Crust (it’s whole grain!) is baked, then topped with ricotta, mozzarella, sweet grape tomatoes and crispy, salty bacon. Then it’s baked a little more. When it comes out of the oven, you sprinkle on the lettuce — a cool contrast to the hot pizza. It’s rich, but refreshing all at once.

And hey, if you like BLTs, hold the mayo, as much as I do … you’ll probably love this too.

BLT Salad Pizza
serves 4

1 Pillsbury Artisan Pizza Crust
1/2 cup part skim ricotta cheese
1 cup part skim mozzarella cheese
1/2 cup halved grape tomatoes
5 slices bacon, browned and crumbled
1 cup shredded iceberg lettuce

Preheat the oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with nonstick aluminum foil.

Spread out the Artisan Pizza Crust on the baking sheet and bake for 8 minutes. Remove from the oven.

Spread the ricotta over the crust. Sprinkle with mozzarella, tomatoes and bacon (in that order).

Bake for an additional 8-10 minutes.

Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the shredded iceberg. Let cool slightly. Then slice, and serve.

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Disclosure: I was compensated by Pillsbury for creating this recipe.

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Sometimes, cooking with kids is all about teaching them measuring, mixing and knife skills. We do this a lot. The kids and I talk about the different measurements we use and measure things out together. They are often the ones to whisk-shift dry ingredients for me or to stir together whatever needs stirring. But cooking with kids isn’t just about learning. It’s about having fun in the kitchen too. So other times cooking with kids is about letting go. I don’t do that nearly enough.

But I try. Last Friday, I’d been thinking of ordering a pizza all afternoon, but with the holiday season here and our budget already strained I just couldn’t justify spending the money. So, I did the next best thing: making homemade English muffin pizzas with the kids. Actually, Will and Paige did most of the doing and I just handled the oven, the hot tray and laying out the toppings.

See how happy they are? And they hadn’t even started doing anything yet. They love being in the kitchen and having a hand in whatever we’re eating. But they love it even more when they are super-hands-on for a meal, as with these English muffin pizzas.

With a simple, flexible ingredients list and a super-fast cooking time, these pizzas are perfect for an any-night treat. Of course, being easy doesn’t hurt either.

You start by spreading sauce on English muffin halves. We used honey wheat ones, but any variety works. Well, except maybe cinnamon raisin. That could be weird.

Then the kids topped their pizzas however they liked. Will did mozzarella on both and black olives on one. Paige did Romano cheese, olives, tomatoes and a little mozzarella.

Then you broil them really quickly. It only takes about 3-5 minutes for the pizzas to be done, so I highly suggest flipping the oven light on and watching them cook with the kids. They’ll love it. And you’ll make sure you don’t accidentally char them. Win-win.

What have you been cooking with kids lately?

Easy English Muffin Pizzas
perfect for cooking with kids
yields as many as you want

English muffins, fork split in half
pizza sauce
cheese (mozzarella, parmesan, or whatever you like)
toppings such as ham, bacon, sliced olives, sliced sausage, tomatoes, broccoli bits, onions, etc

Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil. Start the oven boiler on high.

Have kids spread a little sauce on their English muffin halves. Top as desired with cheese and toppings.

Place all the English muffin pizzas on the baking sheet. Place under the broiler (about 6″ from it) and cook until the cheese is melted and golden in spots — about 3-5 minutes. Be sure to watch them closely so that they don’t burn.

Let cool slightly before eating.

Enjoy!

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When Will stepped off the bus today, I was shoveling the mush at the end of my driveway (courtesy of the kindly town plows!) for the fourth time today. “Guess what, Mommy?” he asked. “What, Wills?” I answered. “I am going to go down to the house and get my snow stuff on and go right outside to play,” he answered. And off he went.

A few minutes later, I followed. And sure enough, when I stepped inside our hall, there were Will and Paige preparing for some fun in the snow. And who am I to say no to outdoor play? So off they went (I went outside too … there was still more shoveling to be done).

I love that my kids love to play outside. I love that they love it so much that they will take initiative and get themselves ready and out the door. And I love that they love to play outside together. I swear, sometimes Paige just waits for Will to come home to have that special play time together. I hope that never changes.

Tonight’s dinner was a Puffy Prosciutto and Tomato Pizza. Why is it puffy? Well, if you poke holes in the dough with a fork before adding the toppings, the center of the pizza doesn’t puff up … but if you skip that, you get this fabulously bready pizza that’s filling, firm and flavorful. This particular pizza uses diced tomatoes instead of pizza sauce, which is a practical thing … not only are the diced tomatoes sweet and lovely, but instead of only using a partial can of sauce, you use a whole (cheaper) can of diced tomatoes. (Remember, it’s winter here, so fresh aren’t really an option.) And the salty prosciutto is a lovely contrasting flavor … Yum.

Have a lovely weekend!

Puffy Prosciutto and Tomato Pizza
serves 4

1 pizza dough (from the deli section)
1 can diced tomatoes, drained
2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
2 slices prosciutto, torn into pieces

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Line a baking sheet with nonstick aluminum foil.

Stretch the pizza dough to form a large rectangle and fit onto the cookie sheet. Spread the tomatoes all over. Sprinkle the cheese evenly over top, and then add the prosciutto — careful to get it all over the pizza.

Bake the pizza for 15-20 minutes, until golden brown and cooked through. Let cool for 10 minutes before slicing and serving.

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