This is 1000% a kid dinner. But sometimes that’s exactly what you need. It’s a huge hit - especially if you have everyone choose their own toppings. Go more elegant with prosciutto and pesto - or keep it basic with pepperoni and black olives. All that’s really needed is the sauce and cheese - everything else is up to you!

When layering up the waffles, the size of your waffle maker will determine a lot. I used this Belgian maker that has really deep wells. The deeper the wells, the more filling I can get into the waffles and the more batter I can use. If yours has shallow wells, just use slightly less batter.

I also push down super gently and let it cook and melt as I push. If you get too forceful, the hinge will break and then you’re out of luck.

Don’t forget to serve with extra sauce! The best part is dipping bites into the sauce!

Calzone Waffles

serves 4

2 cups flour

2 tbs sugar

1 tbs Baking powder

½ tsp salt

2 cups buttermilk

8 tablespoons butter

2 eggs, beaten

½ cup grated parmesan cheese

1 cup Pizza sauce

¼ cup olive tapanade

¼ lb sliced Salami

2 cups Shredded mozzarella

STEP 1

Preheat your waffle maker.  Mix together buttermilk, melted butter and eggs.

STEP 2

In a separate bowl, mix together flour, sugar, baking powder, salt and cheese.  Pour in wet ingredients and stir until just combined.  Let rest 5 mins. 

STEP 3

Place ¼ cup waffle batter on the hot waffle maker.  Top with pizza sauce, salami, tapenade, shredded mozzarella, and another scoop of pizza sauce.  Cover everything with another ¼ cup of waffle batter.

STEP 4

Press waffle maker top down and cook 10 minutes or until waffle is done. Serve with more tomato sauce on the side.

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These are actually the perfect appetizer. I had forgotten about them for years and then I was scrambling for the perfect appetizer for a party and remembered I used to make these all the time. Like ALL THE TIME. The first time I made them for a group people - twenty years ago - everyone was RAVING about them. And that was one of the critical moments in my life when I realized food was my special skill.

These are not hard. My go-to ingredients are tomato paste + tapenade. It’s salty, mostly premade, simple, and kind of tastes like pizza. But I also use pesto when that’s what I have. I have tried fresh vegetables - spinach, tomato, even fresh basil leaves and that doesn’t work. It’s too liquid-y and it makes the pastry all weird. You’re always welcome to try it, but I tried it for you.

Flaky Tapenade Bites

makes 2 dozen

1 package puff pastry

1/2 cup tomato paste

1/2 cup tapanade

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

Unroll the puff pastry sheet onto a floured cutting board and roll out slightly until you can’t see the lines anymore.

STEP 2

Use half of the tomato paste on each roll. Spread it out evenly over the sheet. Top with the tapenade in an even coat. Roll up the pastry and slice into 1/2 inch pieces.

STEP 3

Pop each slice on a lined baking sheet. Bake 20 minutes until puffed and crispy. Remove from the baking sheet and cool on a cooling rack.

Serve warm or room temperature.

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Americano Cocktail

Delightfully simple and totally refreshing. Simple enough to make a batch of them, and a perfect compliment with the flaky tapenade bites!

I cannot get enough of loaded tots. Loaded with pizza toppings seemed like a perfect new way to try out my favorite tots! What I had in the house was yellow bell pepper, pepperoni, cheese and pizza sauce. If I had black olives or green bell pepper, I might have gone with that instead. Or sausage. Or caramelized onions. You literally can’t go wrong with pizza toppings on anything and you can’t go wrong topping tots! It’s a win win.

Pizza Tots

1 package frozen tater tots

1/2 cup pizza sauce

8 oz shredded mozzarella

1/2 cup chopped pepperoni

1/2 cup chopped bell pepper

any other pizza toppings

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Pour tots in one layer on a baking sheet. Bake 15-20 minutes until crispy.

STEP 2

Top the tots with with pizza sauce first then add your toppings until they feel loaded. Make sure cheese is on top.

STEP 3

Bake the tots until the cheese is bubbly and slightly brown. Serve hot!

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I’ve seen several versions of this over the summer but all of them are smothered in cheese. If you are not a cheese eater - or non dairy completely - then it feels tricky. While I’m sure a cheese version is delicious, it’s not an option for my house so I used the saltiness of anchovy paste to stand in for cheese and it worked fabulously. Seriously, the dairy eaters in my house didn’t even notice it was missing anything. In fact, my teenager declared it “the best pizza ever.” So there’s that…

While it’s basically a pizza, it’s the fancy bougie kind made with fresh tomatoes and fresh basil. And a crispy crust that seems impossible outside of Italy. I hope you love it!

Heirloom Tomato Tart

1 sheet puff pastry

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tablespoon anchovy paste

1 clove garlic, grated

2 large heirloom tomatoes, sliced

1 egg, beaten

pinch of salt

chopped fresh basil

STEP 1

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Roll out the puff pastry until about a third larger. Fold over the edge all the way around to create a ‘crust.’

STEP 2

Whisk together the oil, anchovy paste and garlic. Spread it evenly over the top of the pastry, avoiding the crust.

STEP 3

Layer the tomato slices over the olive oil so the center of the tart is filled. Sprinkle the top of the tomatoes with salt. Brush the crust with the beaten egg and pop in the oven.

STEP 4

Bake 15-20 minutes until the crust is browned and the tomatoes are bubbly. Let cool a few minutes before cutting and serve warm. Sprinkle the top with fresh cut basil.

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Summer dinners are the best dinners - light and refreshing. I happen to think a homemade pizza with a little salad is a great summer dinner. This is especially simple if you skip making your own pizza dough and pick up one in the refridgerated case at the grocery store.

Fig & Prosciutto Pizza + arugula salad

Serves 4

For the pizza dough

1 package active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup very warm water

2 ½ cups flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

½ cup Fig Jam

2-4 Figs

2 oz Prosciutto

4 oz Blue Cheese

4 cups Arugula

1 cup Blackberries

2 tbs Lemon juice

¼ cup Olive oil

2 tbs white wine vinegar

1 tsp Dijon mustard

1 ounce Shreds of Parm

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and water.  Let sit 10 minutes until foamy.  Stir flour and salt together and add yeast mixture and olive oil to dry ingredients.  Combine until smooth dough has formed.

STEP 2

Remove dough from bowl and divide in half. Roll into rounds and let rest for about 20 minutes.

STEP 3

Roll out pizza dough and spread a thin layer of fig jam.  Top with slices of prosciutto, sliced figs, and crumbled blue cheese.

STEP 4

Pop into the oven and cook 8-10 minutes until crust is crispy. 

STEP 5

In a jar or small bowl combine oil, white wine vinegar, lemon juice, and mustard.  Mix dressing well.  In a bowl, combine arugula and blackberries and toss with dressing.  Top with flakes of parmesan cheese.

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When the moon hits your eye like a big pizza pie, That’s Amore!

Is pesto gorgonzola a thing in your house? If not, it should be! Pesto Gorgonzola is A T.H.I.N.G. in our house. My mom used to make it all the time for parties. It’s the ultimate simple appetizer and if you don’t know about it - here’s a link where I made it for an appetizer. You need to have this in your tool kit.

Is make-your-own pizza the best thing ever? It’s definitely my children’s favorite dinner which is probably why we end up making it for Valentine’s Day almost every year. We shape the dough into hearts if we’re feeling cheeky. The kids like theirs with pepperoni and black olives - but I only like when it’s delivery. If I’m making my own, I want something more interesting. That’s when I thought… Pesto Gorgonzola pizza! It’s amazing. I added bacon (because, bacon) and green onions to spice things up.

I can’t tell you how good this pizza is. It’s a super indulgent dinner - or a delish appetizer.

You can absolutely make your own dough - the one here is a 30 minute dough - or just buy it done already. It’s super simple either way. You do you.

PESTO GORGONZOLA PIZZA

makes four small pizzas

For the pizza dough

1 package active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup very warm water

2 ½ cups flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup pesto

1 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese

4 strips cooked bacon

4 sliced green onions

STEP 1

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

In a small bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and water.  Let sit 10 minutes until foamy.  Stir flour and salt together and add yeast mixture and olive oil to dry ingredients.  Combine until smooth dough has formed.  Let rest for five minutes.

1 package active dry yeast

1 tablespoon sugar

1 cup very warm water

2 ½ cups flour

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 teaspoon salt

STEP 2

Divide the dough into four equal portions. Shape, gently, into flat circles. Top with pesto, cheese, bacon and green onions. Pop into the oven and bake 10-12 minutes until the crust is brown and the pesto is bubbly.

Bon Appetit!

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