An hour or two ago, I was on Twitter and saw people asking Shauna of Gluten-Free Girl and the Chef when their posts were due. The answer is, they are due tonight. Shauna’s theme for her roundup is, “First Thing I Cooked”. I thought that was such a sweet concept, first foods we made, and what a nice roundup it would be. I was wishing I had seen it sooner so I could participate.
I finished-up on my laptop, closed it, and helped Zoe with a no-sew project. She is making a knotted blanked out of fleece we found on clearance that has a mermaid print. Then I started making dinner. Zoe sat at the counter island, tying her strands of fleece along the edge like fringe.
After mixing the salad, I put some mini pizzas into the broiler, and like a flash I was a child again. It wasn’t the act of putting the tray into a broiler that sparked the memory, but the image before my eyes: Mini pizzas. Only they had another name to me as a child: English muffin pizzas. Yum.
When I was a child, I had a single mom. She worked as a flight attendant for Eastern Airlines. While she was away on trips my brother and I lived at our grandmother’s house. My grandmother—who we called “Sitti” (pronounced “city”)—was a big fan of the English muffin pizzas. Did you eat those too? We cut the English muffins in half and topped them with sauce and mozzarella that Sitti bought in slices.
Maybe it was the sliced cheese that really reminded me of those pizzas, because the cheese I used tonight came individually sliced too. I used sliced 100% goats milk cheese that I bought at Costco last week. In fact, it was the sliced goat cheese that inspired me to make mini pizzas in the first place 🙂 I can’t even recall using sliced cheese for anything other than mini pizzas (like a sandwich), although we must have.
Zoe and Ashley didn’t help me make these pizzas this time, but I’m sure they will in the near future. When they do, I wonder if the mini pizzas will be a childhood memory of their’s too.
♥, Kelly
Mini Pizzas:
Toast gluten-free bread. I used Udi’s Gluten-Free bread.
Place the toast on a cookie sheet for your broiler.
Top with:
a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil (cold pressed and organic)
a sprinkle of garlic powder
thin sliced vine-ripened tomatoes
a sprinkle of sea salt and a crank of pepper over the tomatoes
bacon or pepperoni if you want (I like Applegate Farms)
100% goats milk cheese or dairy-free cheese (like Daiya)
Broil.
Note: Goats milk is much more similar to human milk than milk from cows, and easier to digest. Goats milk contains only trace amounts of the allergenic Alpha S1 casein protein. Our family tolerates goat milk without trouble, but I suggest you consult your naturopath doctor or nutritionist.
Related reading:
Millie says
that looks fabulous…great job.
http://nuestracena-vegancuisine.blogspot.com
Stephanie Mckenzie says
My mother made these all the time while I was growing up, it was one of her better creations hehe! We called them “Little Pizzas”, gonna have to make them again, they are so easy!
Kim Maes says
These look great. My Mom and I used to make a similar one that had chopped ham and black olives and mayo. This just sparked my memory of it!
Also, I love goat cheese and goat milk. It is what we use here in our house. And to tell you the truth, I get it from a naturopath here that has a farm – and it is raw goat milk! gasp. She only feeds her goats organic gluten free grains and gives them all sorts of great vitamins.
I have had so much fun reading everyone’s great “first foods” posts. Thanks for sharing. It is funny the things we have all remembered!
Brandon says
Thanks for the idea. I also use to make mini pizzas, and just recently thought about doing it again. Just reading this post brings back memories.
Kat says
Yes! The English muffin pizza’s! Loved those as a kid.
Eloquacious says
What gave you the courage to try goat milk cheese? It took me months on the Specific Carbohydrate Diet to get up the courage to try the 24-hour yogurt, first with goat milk and then later with cow. I have done well with those two, and after reading this, I went out and bought some goat milk cheddar at Trader Joe’s. Now it’s sitting in the refrigerator, feeling no love from me. 🙁 Do you eat sheep milk cheeses, too? I would SO dearly love to have access to cheeses again.
Fayinagirl (means Free One) says
What fun! I have no idea what the first thing I cooked was. Probably something terrible. My brother and I used to “create” things for one another to eat…more of a type of torture than love. 😉
Maybe that’s why simple food is my favorite? 🙂 Thanks for taking me down memory lane.
gfe--gluten free easily says
How lovely, Kelly! I didn’t even hear about that event until I saw the last tweets and as I’m on vacation I had to miss out. I can’t remember the first thing I cooked, but I enjoyed English Muffin pizzas right up until eating gluten free. I’m sure the Udi’s bread version is delightful. Love the goats’ milk products and they don’t seem to bother me either.
I love hearing about Zoe’s project. Those fleece blankets are so much fun as well as useful and comforting. A mermaid print sounds just right!
Hugs,
Shirley
Ricki says
Thanks for bringing back such nice memories for me, too. My mom used to make English muffin mini-pizzas every year at my birthday party–I guess they were easy and the kids loved them. Your newer version looks darned good, too! 🙂