This issue we’re doing homemade pizza and, as it turns out, the house is sold, and this will also be my final column so we’ll celebrate with a pizza “party” before we return to the U.S.

Whether you’re settling in for a quiet afternoon or evening at home or planning a party there’s always something festive feeling with pizza on the menu! ( In Italian “pizza literally means”pie”). Or it’s handy to have in the freezer so it’s ready for a quick snack or you need a quick bite to eat if you’re in a rush.

It is truly a dish you can make to your own specifications and to include your own preferences. The dough base can be either whole wheat or all-purpose white flour or a 50-50 blend of the two. You can fix a thick-crust, deep dish style pie or roll out the dough for a more traditional thin-crust pizza.

The recipe we use here makes one thin-crust, 10-12 inch pizza base or 3-4 individual size pizzas. You can use a cookie sheet or large skillet for baking.

Your choice of sauce can be a bottled sauce off the shelf at the grocery store, one you make yourself, or can consist of fresh, uncooked ingredients.Either can have its role. Likewise your cheese can be grated and pre-packaged at the store, or bought in a chunk and grated at home as you need it.

My preference, though, is the fresh variety available at L’Angelo’s Italian grocery/restauarant in downtown Quepos, lifted straight out of its brine bath and into the baggie for you to take home. Two tennis-ball size pieces,of mozarella sliced thin, will cover a 10-12 inch pizza beautifully and the light, distinctive flavor is the real thing.

Finally pizza is a fun dish to prepare whether you’re by yourself or you’re making it with a group of family or friends. Everyone can get in on some part of its “construction” or “production”.

Toppings? Whatever you can think of! Though what we’ll use here are fairly traditional.

Homemade Pizza

Pre-heat oven to 500 or high heat.

The dough:

3/4 cup warm water

1/4 tsp. sugar

1 envelope or 1 TBS. dry yeast

2 C white or whole wheat flour, or a mix of the two

Dissolve sugar and yeast in a mixing bowl, cover, and place in a dry, warm location until the water ‘fizzes” with tiny bubbles. (This tells you the yeast is working as it should. If it doesn’t you can still fix an appealing pizza though the dough will be a little heavier — like the familar pie crust most of us grew up with.) Add the flour, stir in with a spoon, and knead briefly into a ball. Pat and stretch into a round, flat pizza base on the cookie sheet or skillet.

Toppings:

7-8 thin slices Italian ham (prosciutto), fresh at L’angelo’s, about 200 grams

2 medium fresh, ripe tomatoes, sliced

One small tin of anchovy filets

Mozarella cheese of yhour choice

Red hot pepper flakes

Dried oregano flakes

Arrange toppings in the dough base in ther order listed and bake for 15-20 minutes until cheese is melted, Slice into wedges and serve at once. Though I Iove cold, leftover pizza, too! Serves 4-6.

Bien provecho y adios amigos!

When it comes to creating salsas, it’s a cook’s opportunity to let the imagination run free, and to be as imaginative and creative as you like. Let your own food preferences be a guide and you can’t make a bad choice!

For myself, I’m fond of the clear, light, clear taste of cold cucumbers, and the fresh brightness of ripe pineapples and mangoes and they often appear in salads here. And if you like certain fruits and vegetables in salads, you will probably enjoy them in a fresh salsa, too.

Our first recipe is for a basic tomato salsa, the one seen most often in grocery stores already made. Just take it home, chill and enjoy it as a dip for chips. A universally versatile and staple snack or garnish for many dishes and foods. If you enjoy the ready-made variety, just think how much more you’ll enjoy your own, freshly made and with your favorite flavor.

Tip: To chill foods quickly, put them in the freezer uncovered for 20 minutes.

With this basic tomato salsa recipe you can build on it to create other types of salsas simply by varying just one or two of the main basic ingredients.

Original Tomato Salsa
2-3 medium tomatoes, washed, cored and chopped coarsely, about 2-3 cups
1/2 medium red onion, peeled and chopped
1 jalapeno pepper, ribs and seed included for hotter flavor or removed for a milder taste
1 small cucumber, washed and diced
5 TBS fresh chopped cilantro leaves
3 TBS fresh lime juice
Salt ad plack pepper to taste.

Combine all ingredients in a covered bowl, chill well before serving as a dip or garnish with meats, fish, poultry or vegetable dishes.

Variations:
Mango salsa is great on grilled or oven-fried chicken. Instead of tomatoes, peel and coarsely chop 2 fresh ripe mangoes.

Cucumber salsa goes well with grilled, broiled or simple baked fish such as congrio or tilapia. Add to the small cumcumber 1-2 medium, washed, peeled chopped cucumbers.

For pork chops or ribs, the pineapple salsa just about puts me in orbit. It’s a knockout! Substitute 2-3 cups chopped fresh pineapple for the tomatoes in the basic recipe.

Next month: Home-made Pizza

Okay, we’re doing Pasta with Capers and Anchovies today. Most people are pretty easy about eating capers but anchovies seem to separate diners into those who  like them and those who don’t — vehemently usually. I happen to be one of those who like  the assertive accents they bring to pizza and pasta dishes.

This recipe is in a different sort of category. The anchovies totally disappear in the short cooking they undergo, leaving behind nothing more than a certain unidentifiable “something” in the flavor of the finished dish, an undertone that accents the tastes of the other ingredients while remaining anonymous in itself. Even if you’re one of those who doesn’t typically like anchovies, this recipe is worth at least a try.

The vegetables go in with the pasta and cook along with it. Drain together.

You  can use any type or shape of pasta you prefer, but somehow my preference has remained with the thin spaghetti or angel hair suggested in the original recipe when I encountered it  some years ago.

Pasta with Capers and Anchovies

2-3 C uncooked broccoli or cauliflower flowerets, or some of each
Pasta for 4

Cook pasta and vegetables, drain, and keep warm

4 TBS olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and chopped
2-3 cloves fresh garlic, peeled and chopped
1/4 C. bottled capers, drained
1 tin flat anchovies
Fresh chopped cilantro, optional

In a heavy skillet, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chopped onion and garlic and saute, stirring until softened.  Mere minutes. Toss in the capers and anchovies and cook stirring, until anchovies dissolve and blend with the chopped onion.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. Stir in the culantro and spoon over the pasta  and vegetables immediately before serving.

Next issue: Three Fresh and Different Salsas — Cucumber, Pineapple and Mango. Don’t miss’em!

I originally began baking this bread as a holiday gift for the neighbors at Christmas until I sampled it for myself, and thought “This is really good!!” The other good thing in addition to its appealing flavor is you don’t need to wait for holidays to make it. You can treat yourself to it any time you like.

With its eggs, butter and milk, it freezes beautifully. Just slice it, and place in a large plastic freezer bag with a small sheet of waxed paper or food wrap between the slices. Freeze and pull out as many slices as you like and place in the toaster or microwave it for 30-45 seconds before you enjoy it. It’s good with or without butter or jam.  Its golden color with bits of orange peel in gives it lots of visual appeal, too.

Classified as a “quick bread” because it’s made with baking powder instead of yeast to leaven it, you don’t have to wait for it to rise before it goes into the oven. Every recipe I’ve seen for Orange Bread yields two loaves– possibly because the cooks decided it was too good to make just one loaf at a time. Just guessing, but so what! Use two 8″x 4″ pans.

The texture of the bread is more cake-like than bread, but what’s in its name? It tastes great no matter what you call it!

Orange Bread

2 ripe oranges
2 C. granulated sugar
2 C. milk
1 C. butter
4 eggs
2 tsp. salt
2 TBS. baking powder
4 C. all-purpose flour

For the glaze:
1 C. sugar
1 C. orange juice
Mix together and set aside.

Preheat oven to 350. Butter and flour the two loaf pans.

To start, wash and zest the two oranges and reserve, then juice them and reserve the juice too. The two oranges you’ve just zested should yield about that amount, give or take.

In a mixing bowl, cream the butter and sugar, mix in the eggs, milk and zested orange peel, blend in the flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix by hand or with an electric beater until blended and divide into the two baking pans.

Bake for 45 minutes or until an inserted toothpick comes out clean. Cool slightly in the pans and pour over the glaze. Let cool completely before removing from the pans and wrapping in plastic to keep fresh before using or freezing.

Next issue: Glorious pasta with capers and anchovies!

I would be very surprised if this main dish does not  immediately become one or your favorites.
It’s a recipe I’ve had for most of my adult life and is a main dish that appears at our table with some frequency.

It  came from a book called Beer and Good Food that a relative gave me when I was in college. Recipes either included beer as an ingredient or went well served  with beer — no better cookbook for a college kid learning to cook for himself. Plus  it’s fun and easy to put together and is always well-received.

bIt  called for a pound of bulk breakfast sausage for the meatballs which is largely unavailable here, but you do have some options. You can buy a one-pound package of  sausage links and squeeze out the filling. Another is the buy a pound of ground pork and season it  with 1/4 to 1/2 a teaspoon each of thyme and sage, and some salt and pepper. Or use the same seasonings in a pound of ground beef. The recipe seems to taste best made with pork, though.
Further, leftovers keep well in the fridge overnight or freeze  without loosing taste or texture.

For  the noodles, either medium or broad flat noodles work best though feel free to try out bowties, shells or any other pasta you like or happen to have on hand. You really can’t go wrong with this recipe and, if you’re having a few friends or family join you, everyone can pitch in with some part of it.

Meatball Noodle Casserole

1 8-ounce package noodles of your choice, cooked al dente, drained and reserved
1 pound of your choice of sausage meat
1 small can or package of tomato paste
1 small bottle green pitted, sliced olives, or stuffed and sliced green olives
12 ounces beer, flat or bubbling

Form sausage meat into small balls with your hands and brown in a heavy skillet with a little cooking spray or teaspoon of oil in the pan. Drain off excess fat. Add the tomato paste, olives and beer. Stir briefly to heat through

Place noodles in an uncovered ovenproof baking dish. Pour on the meatballs with sauce, and bake uncovered for about 20 minutes or until bubbling. Serves 4-6.

Serve with iced beer and a green salad, of course!

Next month: Orange Bread

Now that the holidays are over and their traditionally rich, heavy (but so good) flavors with them, our taste buds and digestive tracts can benefit from lighter fare. Waistlines probably can, too. Coconut Curry Shrimp has the light sweet but not-so-sweet texture and flavor of shrimp enhanced by the piquancy of a hint of curry and the smoothness of coconut milk that  gives a rich flavor without adding calories.

Aside from peeling the shrimp, prep and cooking time are minimal, and the dish can be cooked, set aside and reheated just before serving time. Ideal for guests. With its colors and aromas it looks grandly elegant presented at the table and the tastes meet all your expectations.
If you’re unfamiliar with curry flavoring, Badia and McCormick brand curry powder is available at most local grocery stores. They are mildly flavored without the fire of hot peppers but with the mild tang and pleasing flavor of  curry. Start by  using the 1 teaspoon called for in the recipe, give it a taste, and add more in small increments until you attain the flavor you like.

Coconut Curry Shrimp

Cook and set aside 1 cup white rice, kept warm

1 pound fresh shrimp, peeled and reserved

2 TBS butter or oil
4-5 green onions, washed, trimmed, cut into 1/2-inch pieces
5-6 large fresh mushrooms, washed, cut into 1/2-inch cubes
1 medium potato, washed, unpeeled, cut into 1/2 -cubes
1 stalk celery, washed, trimmed and diced coarsely
1 14-ounce can unsweetened coconut milk
1 tsp curry powder
Optional: one big pinch shredded coconut for garnishing

In a large, heavy skillet melt the butter/heat the oil over medium heat until it “ripples”.
Toss in the onions, mushrooms, potato and celery, and heat 5-7 minutes or until potato pieces are easily pierced with a knifetip. Add the shrimp, and stir cooking until shrimp is pink. Add the coconut milk, and heat, stirring, until heated through. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper if needed  Garnish with shredded rice if desired. Serve over rice to 4 people.

A great salad with this dish is a big handful of shredded lettuce  tossed with peeled sections of chilled orange and grapefruit  and a couple tablespoons of vinaigrette dressing.

Next Issue: Meatball-Beer and Noodle Casserole

With the North American winter holiday season upon us I thought this would be a good time to go over a couple of possibilities for using the leftovers from what will likely include turkey as the featured main course in at least one of the dinners. Problem is the bird is rarely available here, when you do see it it is in limited supply and outrageously expensive though it is raised in the country. That aside, it can be a welcome variation and  treat.

If you have freezer space, there are a couple of ways to compensate for this scarce availability. One is to buy as many birds or parts as you have space for and freeze them for periodic future use. Another is to prepare two or more birds, and cut up and freeze them for finishing up in various dishes later on.

Turkey is a poultry we see so little of here and it’s too bad, too, because it’s so packed with protein and flavor, there are a variety of ways to use it, and, cooked, it freezes well with no loss of flavor or quality when it is reheated. We tend to treasure the meat when we can find it.

And we certainly don’t want to toss the leftovers after the holiday feast is done. In view of this let’s look at a couple of ways to use them. Neither is labor intensive and both are different enough from the main dinner to be served fairly soon after — and remain appealing.

The first is the very simplest turkey hash. You simply saute a chopped onion in some butter, add some rosemary, 2 cups each of cooked, cubed turkey and white potatoes and  form into patties.  Saute in some butter until lightly browned on both sides. Serve as is or topped with a poached egg or two or some of the leftover turkey gravy.

The second involves a little more preparation but it is by no means daunting. And if you wish to add a more  Oriental flair rather than retaining the original Yankee flavor, stir in  2-3 tablespoons of soy sauce before serving.

Turkey Hash

Cook 1 cup white rice and set aside for 4-6 servings (noodles may be used as well)

3 TBS butter
1 small onion, peeled and chopped
1 tsp fresh or dried rosemary leaves
2 C cubed, cooked turkey
2 C cubed, cooked potatoes
1 cubed, cooked carrot
1 C leftover turkey stuffing
2 C leftover turkey gravy

Melt butter in a large saucepan or Dutch oven and saute chopped onion until soft and golden. Stir in the remaining ingredients, heat thoroughly and serve over the hot cooked rice or noodles. Serves 4-6.

Next Issue: Coconut Curry Shrimp

With North American Thanksgiving holidays and Christmas coming up I thought this would be a good time to go over a basic stuffing recipe you can individualize as you wish. Too, the availability of the packaged stuffing mixes can be pretty variable and being able to whip up your own reduces your dependency on its being available or not. And YOU get to decide on its fat and salt content as well. This is the season weight tends to increase as we feast and it can help to be aware of what we’re feasting on.

You can make stuffing ahead of time and store it in the fridge until you stuff the bird and put it in the oven — but don’t stuff the bird more than a few hours ahead of roasting time. Plan on about 3/4 cup of stuffing for each pound of poultry– for example, 9 cups of stuffing for a 12-pound turkey, or 4 cups for a three-plus pound chicken.

If you should end up with more stuffing than will fit into the bird or make more to have extra, place it in a greased casserole dish and bake it along with the bird, basting with pan drippings when you baste the bird. The stuffing lover in your group (like me) will be glad you did. Season the cavity of the bird and pack the stuffing in loosely — it may burst the skin if you overdo it. And truss the bird with heavy string to keep it from drying out. Snip the string just before carving to help retain poultry shape.

To store stuffing after the bird is roasted, remove it to a separate container and fridge it for a few days or freeze it if it will be longer than that. It’s always nice to have it on hand for a quick dinner or to add a bit to turkey soup especially. And for that quick dinner I mentioned you can put it into a casserole dish, top with chicken pieces, add pepper, salt and a little butter, bake at 350 for 45-60 minutes and sit down to a Deep South “Chicken and Dressin’ ” dinner.

The usual recipe calls for dry bread or bread crumbs but you can also use croutons, cracker crumbs, crumbled corn bread, rice or barley. My favorite is a mix of white, whole wheat and cornbread cubes. Taste and correct the seasoning before you stuff the bird.

But let’s get on with the upcoming feasts and prepping the bird you plan serve.

Stuffing for a Three Pound Chicken (makes about 3 cups)

4 cups day old bread or bread cubes dried in a low oven

1 small to medium onion, peeled and chopped

1-2 stalks celery, washed and diced

2 TBS butter or margarine

salt and pepper to taste

2 TBS fresh chopped or 1 TBS dried mixed herbs such as thyme, sage, marjoram

1-1/2 C stock or bouillon

Melt butter or margarine in a skillet and saute the onion and celery until softened. Place all dry ingredients in a large bowl, pour on the liquid, and toss lightly to combine. Increase or decrease the amount of liquid for a more moist or dry stuffing.

Stuff and roast the bird at 325 degrees for 15 minutes per pound. To test for doneness cut a deep slit in the meat between breast and thigh. The juices should run clear and golden.

My caution here is simply not to fool around eating possibly under-done poultry. A meat thermometer doesn’t cost much and ensures well-done poultry, and, believe me, you do not want yourself or anyone you’re sharing with to run the risk of food poisoning or a parasite. To be sure of doneness, use a thermometer. Please.

Insert the thermometer in the thigh or breast, making sure the tip of it is not touching bone. Done meat in the thigh will read out at 185F and the breast at 170F. Allow the bird to rest for 15 minutes before removing the stuffing, then carve the bird and serve the feast!

Variations: 1/2 C raisins and 1/2 C chopped walnuts; giblets simmered for 45 minutes, drained and chopped; 2C chopped fresh mushrooms sauteed with the onion and celery; 2C oysters chopped in bite-size pieces. Just a few ideas to prompt thoughts of your own…

Next month: Turkey Hash ( what else??)

Before I forget again to mention it, a friend took one look at the recipe a few months back for Tuna Pie and immediately thought it could be made using leftover chicken or shrimp instead of the tuna. Either of those variations of the original sound terrific to me, too!

To move on to this issue, this one-dish dinner is a variation of the red-cooked dishes so popular in all regions of China. They all have in common the seasoning of soy sauce as one of the ingredients central to them, but there are also some regional variations. In Shanghai they contain sugar, in Peking just the soy sauce is favored and in Szechwan they are made hot and rich, full of garlic, ginger and scallions or green onions with a flash of hot red pepper.

A dish with those flavors nails my attention hard and fast as I’m one of those people who will use garlic and hot pepper in just about everything but coffee, whipped cream or ice cream.

The One-Dish Chinese Chicken Dinner has been pared down from traditional Chinese red -cooked dishes to appeal to a wider range of tastes and preparation is straight-forward without a lot of fuss and detailing. After it is assembled, it can simmer over low heat on top of the stove or in a 350-degree oven for 45-60 minutes while the cook relaxes with family and friends.

The dish can be cooked ahead of time and reheated at serving time. It can be served by itself or, as we prefer it, with hot fluffy rice to soak up the lavish and flavorsome sauce. To do this, simply prepare 1 cup of plain rice for 4-6 servings according to your preferred method and set aside to re-heat at serving time.

One Dish Chinese Dinner

• 1 chicken, washed in cold running water, cut into serving pieces
• 1 medium onion, peeled, cut in quarters and then across into slices
• 3 cloves garlic, peeled and smashed with the flat edge of your knife
• 4-5 slices of washed fresh ginger root
• 2-3 medium potatoes, scrubbed, unpeeled, cut into 1 inch cubes
• 2 cups fresh green beans, washed and snapped into 1 inch pieces
• 4 TBS soy sauce
• 1 cup water
• 1/2 C sherry, optional

Place all ingredients in a large, heavy skillet or Dutch oven. An electric frying pan works nicely for this and frees up the cook as well. On top of the stove, bring to the boil. Then lower the heat to a gentle simmer, cover and cook for 45-60 minutes. Or transfer to the oven for the same amount of time at 350 degrees. Serve with your pre-cooked rice, if using. Serves 4-6.

Next issue: Home-made Holiday Poultry Stuffing