Apple, Goat Cheese, and Pecan Pizza

Last week I made a delicious pizza from the September issue of Cooking Light.  This was a delicious, healthy and different pizza with a twist on taste.  Try it out! It calls for storebought pizza dough, but I made a quick homeade whole wheat crust.

Apple, Goat Cheese, and Pecan Pizza

Ingredients

• 1 (1-pound) six-grain pizza crust
• Cooking spray
• 3 cups thinly sliced Fuji apple (about 8 ounces)
• 1 cup (4 ounces) crumbled goat cheese
• 2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
• 1 1/2 teaspoons honey
• 2 cups baby arugula
• 3 tablespoons chopped pecans, toasted

Preparation

• 1. Preheat oven to 450°.
• 2. Place pizza crust on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Arrange apple slices evenly over pizza crust; top with cheese. Sprinkle thyme evenly over cheese. Bake at 450° for 8 minutes or until cheese melts and begins to brown.
• 3. Combine oil and next 3 ingredients (through honey) in a medium bowl, stirring with a whisk. Add arugula; toss gently to coat. Sprinkle pecans evenly over pizza; top with arugula mixture. Cut pizza into 6 wedges.

Enjoy!
http://www.myrecipes.com/recipe/apple-goat-cheese-pecan-pizza-50400000115789/

Tomato and Goat Cheese Tart

Okay, before I give you this recipe, I must tell you that I changed a LOT to turn it from an appetizer to an entree.  But I will give you the original recipe and then let you know the changes that I made later on.

Ingredients

all-purpose flour, for rolling

1 sheet frozen puff pastry, thawed

1 T sour cream

1 t. grainy mustard

coarse salt and ground pepper

2 large leeks, white and light-green parts only

1 T unsalted butter

3/4 lb. grape tomatoes, halved, or plum tomatoes, sliced 1/4 inch thick, or a combination

2 oz. fresh goat cheese, crumbled

2 t. fresh thyme or basil leaves

Preparation

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees.  On a lightly floured work surface, roll out puff pastry to a 12-inch square; transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.  In a small bowl, stir together sour cream and mustard and season with salt and pepper.  Spread sour cream mixture evenly over pastry.  Fold over 1/2-inch border on all sides and press edges to seal.  Refrigerate 10 minutes.

2. Meanwhile, halve leeks lengthwise; rinse thoroughly, pat dry, and slice 1/4 inch thick.  In a large skillet, melt butter over medium-high.  Add leeks, season with salt and pepper, and cook, stirring frequently, until soft, 5 minutes.  Arrange leeks evenly over sour cream mixture on pastry.  Top with tomatoes and season with salt and pepper.  Bake until pastry is golden brown and crisp, 25 minutes.  Let cool slightly.  Top with goat cheese and herbs before cutting into squares.  Serve warm or at room temperature.

Okay, here are the things I changed:

1. I used feta instead of goat cheese.

2. I used 8 oz. of feta instead of 2 oz. of goat cheese (I love cheese!  2 ounces is not enough!).

3. I put the cheese on before putting it in the oven so that it would be melted in.

4. I added salami slices to make it more substantial and entree-like.

It was delicious!  I'm sure the original recipe is good too, but the changes I made were quite good.  The leeks add a tangy flavor, plus lots of greens to the "pizza".  It was really good.

*Recipe adapted from Everyday Food Issue 75*

- Sarah