Please pass the ...

When summer transitions into fall, there are so many more opportunities to reconnect with friends. Art openings, book club gatherings, put lucks of all kinds that have little dishes of this and that to sample from.  The way I think...the friends, the events, they all circle back to pottery and what those tasty tidbits will be served on.

Please pass the.... food: tiny tomato tarts on the pottery: see below 

Dish with Leaf Motif

Please pass the.... 
food: chewy caramel apple cookies on the pottery: see below

"Stripes and Dots" oval plate

 
Please pass the....
food: eggplant, pesto and goat cheese pizza on the pottery: see below 

Square Plate with all over floral design

My Plates (for passing) are one of a kind, dishwasher and microwave safe, and for sale at my guild's gallery: the Dedham Square Artist Guild in Dedham, MA. One could be the perfect piece to serve your favorite food on at your next gathering. (And no one else will have the same one...)

The HAND made connection

Over the weekend I decided to make homemade pizzas.  It was a first time adventure for our whole family.  Making the pizza dough was so much like working with clay, I must admit I was having a hard time sharing.  I found a great recipe in a new cookbook I bought recently called Cooking for Teens.  

Here's the recipe for pizza dough (found on page 92)

kneading dough

Sprinkle 1x1/4oz package dry yeast over

1 3/4 cup warm water. 

Set aside for 10 Minutes.

Combine 6 cups white bread flour,

1 tsp salt,

1 tsp sugar,

2 Tbs Olive Oil then add water/yeast.

Knead 10 minutes on a floured surface. 

Oil bowl, place dough in, cover, rest 30 minutes til doubled.

Divide into 4 balls. Cover and rest 1 hour.

wedging clay

Such Similarities!

When the dough had risen, we each made our own pizzas and shared with each other.  Our favorite was the Margharita.   

Here is the recipe for Margharita Pizza:

Preheat oven to 425. 

Roll out ball of dough to 10 inches.

Place on greased cookie sheet. 

Spread with pizza sauce. 

Top with slices of mozzarella cheese and torn fresh basil leaves. 

Bake in oven 12-20 minutes. 

Sprinkle with extra torn basil leaves before serving.

The Food and Pottery Connection:

Food: Making Pizza!

Pottery: Play with Clay!

The Hand Made Connection!

Try your HAND in clay at one of my workshops this week:

Create a Clay Bunny/Animal on Wednesday and Carve a Clay Tile on Saturday.  Signs up are still ongoing so Sign Up! Come Play with Clay with me in Dedham this week!

Photos for this blog were found using search on google images.

BLUE in NYC

By BLUE, I mean Blue Man Group, Blue skys, Blue colors, but not a feeling of being blue by any means... They were some of the many sights and sounds from my recent trip to New York City.  My recipe posting today is inspired by the fantastic Italian food of New York City.

Pizza Margherita - serves 1
Recipe adapted from Mario Batali recipe

pizza dough
1/4 cup red sauce
2 ounces fresh mozzarella, sliced into 4 equal pieces
2 leaves fresh basil

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place a clean pizza stone in oven to preheat.

Dust a clean work surface lightly with flour. With your fingers and palms, flatten dough into a 10-inch oval about 1/4-inch thick. Spread 1/4 cup of the red sauce evenly on entire surface of dough, leaving 1/4-inch of dough to form edge of pizza. Take one piece of mozzarella, slice into 4 uniform slices and put on top of sauce. Rip 2 leaves of basil into smaller pieces and sprinkle on top of mozzarella. Slide pizza directly onto pizza stone and bake 15 to 18 minutes, until edge of pizza is golden brown and cheese is bubbling. 

creating serving dishes for summer time parties with friends and family...