Spring Begins to Unfurl and Pizza Recipes

Every spring I make a vow to myself that I am going to watch spring unfurl in my yard, that I will notice how the tree wakes up and spreads its leaves. I am watchful for a few days, then, next time I notice, the tree is fully leafed out and the hosta garden is going full speed. It makes me a bit disappoint that I somehow missed it, even though I walk through my yard every day.

This year it is different. I am making a concerted effort to notice, practically chart, how it changes and develops. I am even trying to document it with photographs.
I am amazed at how it goes. Some nights the plants seem to grow so quickly that you could almost watch the changes. Other nights, indeed,for what seems like many nights, nothing appears to happen. I think this might be the colder nights.

A week and a half ago the hostas were but a small nib poking out of the ground. Some of them have burst forth, sprouting up to six inches high, unfurling themselves to catch the rain that the heavens have offered for the last few days. Other hosta, different varieties, are still a bit more reserved and remain tightly coiled. The peony bushes seem to be having a race to see who can fill out first. My husband trimmed back a wild rose bush and there appeared a small peony bush that I have not noticed before. Funny enough, I found that my bleeding heart had hiked up her skirts and moved over about five inches from where I put here a few years ago. It seems that she would prefer to cozy up and in between the iris.

Friday night arrived and it had rained much of the day. After a long day with kids who were very needy I go to my van only to find that I have a completely flat tire and a broken windshield wiper. A couple of brothers who are strong and know about cars helped me change my tire and I zipped over the Sundance to get both problems fixed. Ethan was with his friends, Ellie was ill, slept most of the day and wanted nothing more than to sit in chair and watch movies. I was in the mood to cook so I made pizzas. Ellie went with a classic cheese pizza. Larr wanted his usual sausage with black olive and I made myself a Margherita pizza with fresh mozzarella. I left off the tomato sauce, opted for a small bit of olive oil, fresh mozzarella and marinated artichoke hearts. I would have added fresh basil leaves and pine nuts if they had been available. I also added lovely, thin slices of Roma tomatoes.


Here's my go to recipe for pizza crusts in the bread maker. It is from More Bread Machine Magic by Linda Rehberg and Lois Conway. It is one of the most used,stained and loved cookbook in my kitchen:



Pizza Crust Dough

1 3/8 cup of Water, warm (about 110 degrees)
3 TBS Olive Oil
1/4 cup Sugar
1 1/2 tea. Salt
4 cup Flour, all purpose
2 1/2 tea. Instant Yeast

1. Place all of the ingredients in the bread pan in the order that they are listed, set to the "dough" setting and press start.

2. Pre-heat the oven to 450 degrees.

3. When it is finished turn it out onto a floured surface. I usually cut it into 2-4 pieces so that we can have a variety of pizzas. Roll them out and add the toppings. If you like, you can let them rise for a while.

4. Bake them on the middle shelf for about 15 minutes, or until the crust is nicely brown and the cheese is melted.

Her are the girls at last week's cotillion class: