Pizza Cakes

Featured Ingredient: Olives

There used to be a time when I hated olives. Not sure why. But then again, I was once a hater of balsamic vinegar and that’s just wrong. Now for every olive that goes into a recipe I’m making, one is popped into my mouth as I find their briny flavor somewhat addicting. You’ll most often find better flavors if you scoop up olives from the olive bar at supermarkets instead of turning to those packed in a can or jar.

Obviously olives are a perfect fit for pizza, which brings me to these tasty pizza cakes. It’s basically many of the classic pizza flavors jammed into a muffin tin to create a wonderful riff on pizza night. These are also really great served straight out of the fridge as a snack or quick lunch bite. You can use store-bought pizza sauce, but I have to say that this no-fuss marinara sauce brought this cook much approbation.

I’d love to hear some more great pizza flavors that you think would work in a recipe like this.

Pizza Cakes with Marinara Sauce

1 cup chopped cremini mushrooms

1 cup whole wheat pastry flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1 teaspoon baking powder

2 teaspoons dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon chipotle chili powder (optional)

1/4 teaspoon salt

2 large eggs
1 cup low-fat milk
1 1/2 cups shredded mozzarella
1 cup finely chopped pepperettes or pepperoni, hot or mild

1/2 cup pitted olives, chopped (black or Kalamata)

Marinara Sauce:

1 pound plum tomatoes, quartered

4 garlic cloves, chopped

2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh thyme

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon black pepper

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Preheat oven to 375°F. In a skillet cook mushrooms with a small amount of oil over medium heat until softened, about 4 minutes. In a large bowl, stir together flour, cornmeal, oregano, baking powder, chipotle powder and salt.

In a separate bowl, lightly beat egg and stir in milk. Add wet ingredients to the dry ingredients and mix. Fold in mozzarella cheese, chopped pepperettes or pepperoni, olives and mushrooms. Divide mixture among 12 standard sized muffin cups and bake for 25 minutes, or until puffed and golden.

To make the marinara sauce, add tomatoes, garlic, vinegar, thyme, salt and pepper to a blender or food processor container and blend until smooth. Pour mixture into a saucepan and stir in olive oil. Bring to a boil, reduced heat and maintain a strong simmer until slightly thickened, about 30 minutes. Serve with pizza cakes.