Hi everyone! I am currently in Northern Ireland. Please welcome Emily from A Cambridge Story as today’s wonderful guest poster!
Good things come in small packages and, as we near Superbowl weekend, I have been brainstorming ways to shrink game-time favorites into tiny, bite-sized snacks. Since pizza is a routine crowd pleaser, I thought mini pizza bites were a good place to start.
I made two varieties:tomato, pepperoni with parmesan cheese and balsamic glazed caramelized onions with goat cheese.
To start, cut a ball of whole-wheat pizza dough in quarters and let the dough sit until you have four, round balls. With the aim of mini-pizzas, I found working with smaller batches of dough much more manageable.
Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 400 degrees and begin caramelizing 1 medium onion (15 minutes or until brown and sweet).
Roll each ball of dough until thin (perhaps slightly thinner than you would for a regular pizza). You will want to cut small circles of dough to fit a min-muffin pan. A 3″ diameter drinking glass served as a great stencil.
Place dough circles in greased muffin tin.
At this point, begin assembling. For the tomato-pepperoni pizzas, simply layer 1/2 tsp of pepperoni-flavored pesto (purchased at Whole Foods), a thin slice of a cherry tomato and a pinch of parmesan cheese.
For the other pizzas, layer 1/2 tsp of caramelized onions and a crumble of goat cheese. The balsamic glaze will be added once pizzas are cooked.
Bake in oven for 15-18 minutes until crusts are baked and cheese is melted/browned. Five minutes before the pizzas are done cooking, reduce 1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar on the stovetop until thick and sweet. Dollop the glaze on top of the goat cheese pizzas (or both, if you’re so inclined!).
The topping possibilities are endless, though I really enjoyed the basic pepperoni variety, which was strangely reminiscent of Elio’s pizza. (Wait, is that a good or a bad thing?)
Perhaps a bit higher up on the sophistication ladder, the caramelized onion, goat cheese and balsamic glaze pizzas offered a great balance of sweet and tart. Fresh rosemary would be perfect with them!
Whatever flavors you desire, these little nuggets of pizza-y goodness can be easily popped in your mouth and consumed while screaming at Tom Brady to cut his hair rooting for your favorite team. Or, perhaps more realistically, while you are gabbing about anything other than football as the game blares in the background.
Are you planning on watching the Super Bowl? What snacks will you be making?
