Doesn’t that sound incredibly delicious? When you find out just how simple and fast this recipe is to pull together, you will be raving about it to all your friends. Big, big news.
Or... you may choose to keep it all to yourself, tell no one and file it in your back pocket ready to impress when company is on the way and you are short on time. Feel free to get creative with your stuffing too. Now that summer’s here, there are so many amazing vegetables on hand that almost anything goes, especially if you jazz it up with some cheese or spicy accents. Here I use the traditional combo of prosciutto, arugula and provolone, but I’ve outlined a few more combos for inspiration or feel free to get creative and try your own!
I use store bought pizza dough from a local artisan bakery to really make this super easy. It keeps in the fridge for a day before, and I can roll it out and stuff it a few hours before hand and pop it in the oven or on the BBQ a half hour before I need it. You can serve a salad on the side and have a ready made lunch or dinner, or slice it up for an impressive addition to an appetizer or Charcuterie platter. Yum, yum, yum!
Ingredients:
makes 1 medium sized, ciabatta like roll
1 store bought multi grain pizza dough
8 slices provolone cheese
8 slices excellent quality prosciutto
3 cups baby arugula, loosely packed
salt and pepper to taste
3 tbsps olive oil, 1 tbsp set aside
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1/2 tsp coarse raw sugar
1 tbsp garlic powder
1 tbsp dried rosemary, crushed in a mortar and pestle
Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees.
Roll out pizza dough to a large rectangle, as close to 1/4 inch thin as possible. Season the arugula with 2 tbsps olive oil, balsamic vinegar, sugar, and salt and pepper to taste. Toss gently.
Lay out the slices of provolone across the middle of the dough, 4 X 4. Layer the prosciutto slices overtop. Spread the seasoned arugula over the prosciutto.
Take the short ends of the dough and fold them towards the centre. Roll up the remaining dough. You should end up with a roughly shaped log similar to a ciabatta bread.
Top the bread with the remaining olive oil, garlic powder and rosemary.
Place on a piece of parchment over a baking sheet for 35 minutes or until golden brown. The bread should be crispy to the touch. Let cool slightly, for 10-15 minutes and slice before serving.
Enjoy!
For a little inspiration, here are a few of my other favourite combos:
1. Sundried tomato, mushroom and parmesan cheese
2. Roasted zucchini, roasted garlic and ricotta cheese
3. Wilted spinach, brie and walnuts
4. BBQ’d sausage, rapini and hot peppers
Want to try a few more of my favorite recipes?
This is one of my all-time favourite summer recipes. This salad finds its way to my table several times a week these days. It is so hard to resist throwing this together when the tomato season hits and fresh corn is everywhere. It is a sensational combination and super easy to whip together. During the summer season, I always make a little extra corn on the cob, grill it, shear it, and keep it in the fridge. It is a fantastic sweet and crunchy addition to any salad, but is super fantastic with tomatoes and bacon. Try serving this at your next BBQ or weeknight dinner and watch it disappear! I paired this with pea shoots here, but feel free to use any greens to add a little colour and crunch.
Ingredients:
Choose a large wide serving plate to assemble your salad.
Loosely spread out your greens across the plate.
Slice tomatoes and spread out over greens.
Boil corn, BBQ to brown, and shear. Sprinkle over tomatoes.
Roughly chop bacon. I like to put some aside in the fridge from breakfast to make this salad another day.
To make dressing, gently heat olive oil in a pan, add balsamic vinegar, bacon, and salt and pepper.
When dressing is warm, pour over salad and serve immediately.
Looking for a great entrée to accompany this salad? Try these finger-licking delicious, messy—but worth it—short ribs.
Spend more time with family and friends instead of prepping in the kitchen by using this tip to keep your veggies fresh.
This dessert is a nod to some wonderful flavours I first experienced on my honeymoon. Beaches, southern India and fresh pineapple slices dusted with spices, nuts and hot pepper. Perfect inspiration for a new spin on a familiar dessert. Summer puts me in the mood to grill almost everything, including dessert. This is a wonderful twist on an old classic, where I grill the pineapple before I add it to the cake. A little extra punch? Indian inspired hot and spicy flavours added to the pineapple while still on the grill which takes this classic over the top. Try it and I guarantee, it will become a summer family favourite.
Spicy Sweet Pineapple Upside Down Cake
Ingredients:
1/4 cup butter
3/4 cup brown sugar
9 pineapple slices, (I like mine extra thick) dusted with coconut sugar and a pinch of salt and grilled until caramelized
1/2 tbsp cayenne pepper
1/4 tsp groung nutmeg
1/2 sweet paprika
1 1/2 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
6 eggs
1/2 cup yogurt
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions: Pre-heat oven to 350. Generously butter a 9 in. square pan, taking special attention to the bottom of the pan where you will place the pineapple.
Scatter a generous layer of sugar over the bottom of the pan. Sprinkle cayenne, paprika and nutmeg over pineapple slices.
Grill over high heat for 2 minutes, until pineapple begins to caramelize and you get a little smoky flavour. Arrange pineapple slices across the bottom of the baking pan.
In a medium bowl sift together the dry ingredients; flour, baking soda and salt, set aside.
In a large bowl beat the eggs, yogurt and vanilla together, then add the dry ingredients and whisk on medium-high in a mixer until batter is smooth, making sure to scrape the sides and bottom of bowl.
Evenly pour batter over the pineapple slices.
Bake at 350 degrees for 45 minutes or until a knife comes out clean when inserted into the middle of cake.
Serve when cooled.
Want to check out more of my recipes? Try a couple of my favorites:
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