Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza

Every time I've ended up in the Dr. Phillips area recently, I've spotted Anthony's Coal Fired Pizza and thought about how I needed to try it the next time we went out to eat. Of course, my silly overloaded brain always forgot when the time came to choose. So, just imagine how excited I was when I got the opportunity to try them out last night! I brought my dad with me (he is a fellow foodie and also a lover of beer, so it was perfect), and I have to say, we had an absolute blast. We were overwhelmed by the quality of both the service and the food.

We had gone in planning to try two of their newer items, the roasted cauliflower pizza and the craft beers. Try those we did, but we also got to try several of their other menu items during our meal. First we sampled two of their salad options: the classic Italian salad and the mozzarella and tomato salad. This may sound silly, but I could not believe how good the Italian salad was. If I hadn't known I needed to save room for more food, I would have devoured the entire thing. It was not your normal house salad at all, as it had basics like romaine lettuce and red onion slices but was then embellished with garbanzo beans, olives (pitted!! Hooray!!), hard-boiled egg slices, and even gorgonzola cheese (on the side, and it is an extra addition; I highly suggest getting it). Not only did it have these extras, the simple vinegarette was delicious. Seriously. Freakin' AWESOME. The mozzarella and tomato salad was also wonderfully fresh tasting. I don't normally like raw tomatoes, but I ate the entire thing. The combination of the fresh (and generously sliced!) mozzarella, tomato, green pepper, and basil was perfectly balanced. Try it. Go. Now. Do it.

Recipe Quickie: Homemade Hot Pockets

When I cook at home (cook, not bake!) I do try to use fresh and relatively healthy ingredients as often as possible. Last night, however, I found myself with limited time and threw together a quickie meal. I went with the idea of a pizza hot pocket, but instead of just popping one full of preservatives and such into the microwave, I quickly created this out of items I had on hand, including a container of Philly Savory Garlic Cooking Creme that C purchased by accident awhile ago. Since this is a quickie recipe, none of the ingredients require accurate measuring; just toss them together in whatever amount looks good to you!

Ingredients:

Ricotta cheese (I used Sargento part-skim ricotta, but any would do just fine)
Philly Savory Garlic Cooking Creme (or another garlic cheese spread of your choice)
Shredded cheese (I used a "pizza mix")
Mini pepperonis (turkey pepperoni works great, too!)
Tube of crescent rolls (I had Pillsbury extra large crescent rolls on hand)

Directions:

Preheat the oven to the temperature listed on the tube of dough (mine was 350).
Mix the ricotta with enough of the cooking creme to add the garlic flavor and enough creaminess for your liking.
Unroll the crescent roll dough and use your fingers to pinch every two triangle rolls together so that you have several rectangles of dough. You could also use a tube of thin crust pizza dough for this, which would give you a crispier crust, or really almost any biscuit/roll/crust dough. I just used what I had in the house.
Spread a generous amount of the ricotta/creme mixture over about two thirds of each dough rectangle, leaving space around the edges to seal the crust (see photo below).
Sprinkle the mixture with mini pepperoni and shredded cheese.

Fold the dough over on top of itself, carefully sealing around the edges and moving each little packet to a cookie sheet covered with parchment paper and sprayed with cooking spray.
Using a sharp knife, cut a slit or two for venting into the top of each packet.

Slide these goodies into the oven and let them bake for 15-20 minutes or until golden brown and crispy. Let cool for a few minutes, and then dig in!