Friday 13 January 2012

Instinctive Cooking

Just recently I have been doing a lot more instinctive cooking and been very pleased with the results.  For years, I have been a slave to the cookery book carefully measuring out and buying the exact ingredients.  I think when it comes to baking a special cake then it is wise to follow accurate measurements but in everyday cooking I don't think it is necessary.

Over the last couple of weeks I have 'instinctively' made a shepherds pie, roast dinner, chicken curry, pizza, bolognese and chilli without referring to a recipe book.  I have just looked up cooking temperatures and timings.

Pizza is getting to be a bit of a speciality.  I just put a quantity of bread flour into a bowl with a packet of dried yeast that has been added to a cup of warm water.  I add a splash of olive oil to the flour and then mix together and knead for about 5 minutes.  I put the dough into a greased bowl, cover and leave for about half an hour or until ready to use.  Meanwhile I prepare the toppings.  I like to pre-cook some of my toppings such as the onions and  sweet peppers which I fry in a little olive oil.

Spread the dough out onto one or two greased baking sheets by pressing down and out with your fingers.  Add a can of chopped (drained) tomatoes on to the base.  Tear up some mozzarella cheese or cheese of your choice and sprinkle over the tomato.  Add any other toppings that you like.  Bake in a hot oven at about 220 degrees C for about 20 minutes.  You will smell the pizza when it is ready!

Have a lovely weekend.  I am off to experiment some more!

9 comments:

  1. Pizzas are great aren't they! We often have pizza, I always cook onions and peppers first. I mix a spoonful of Garlic and Tomato Puree (both from a tube) and spread thinly on the dough then put whatever on top and cover all in cheese that way the toppings do not burn
    Julie xxxxxxx

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  2. I don't think I vet the cook books out at all unless it's for a cake or pie. Happy cooking.

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  3. Looks good. I make my own pizza base too - or rather, the bread-maker does it for me. (It doesn't roll it out, though!) I just bung all my toppings on raw - but I'm a very lazy cook, as you may have gathered! It always smells and tastes great!

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  4. Mmmmm!
    Making my own pizza base is something I've never done, must give it a go sometime.
    V x

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  5. Pizza is one of the favourites in our house, I have started to eat peppers and enjoy them on pizza.
    Lisa x

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  6. Gosh, I'd almost forgotten about pizza! I couldn't eat green peppers though, any other colour, yes.

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  7. This looks delicious! I do instinctive cooking too....though sometimes it goes wrong, mostly it works now!
    Hope you're having a lovely weekend.
    Helen x

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  8. Yummy!! I love to cook instinctively. I'll consult recipes for ideas, but usually I disagree with parts of recipes or want different ingredients or flavors. I always figure that if you choose tasty, fresh ingredients whatever you're making will end up being good. Pizza is one of my favorites. So versatile and easy to adapt and change. Yours is making my stomach growl (and it's way too early for my lunch)!

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  9. I think istinctive cooking is perfect especially for leftovers! You can always get some yummy combos!
    x

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