I’m not of the pancakes-for-dinner set. There are advocates, of course (mostly among kids), but my breakfast-for-dinner craving runs more toward huevos rancheros.
Whether you’re leaning toward the sweet end of the spectrum or the savoury, the idea of a breakfast dish for dinner has a certain naughty appeal, like we’re getting away with something. It’s a topsy-turvy treat. Cookbook authors Lindsay Landis and Taylor Hackbarth play to that desire in the straightforwardly titled Breakfast for Dinner (Quirk, $19.95).
While some of the 70-plus recipes may stretch the theme (can bananas Foster crêpe cake be considered breakfast?), many appeal to the kid in all of us.
Pizza Over Easy
Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 8-12 minutes per pizza
Makes: 4 to 6 servings (two 10-inch pizzas)
4 oz baby arugula, plus more for topping
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 cup shelled pistachios
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped
1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes
1/4 teaspoon salt
• freshly ground pepper
2 balls (9 to 10 oz each) pizza dough, store-bought
Cornmeal or semolina flour
8 oz mozzarella cheese, grated or thinly sliced, about 1 cup
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
2 large eggs
Place a pizza stone (or baking sheet) on the middle rack in the oven. Heat oven to 500 degrees.
For the pesto, place arugula, oil, pistachios, garlic and red pepper flakes in a food processor. Pulse until smooth. Season with the salt and pepper to taste.
Roll or stretch dough into disks, about 10 inches in diameter, on a lightly floured work surface. Generously dust a pizza peel or the underside of a cookie sheet with cornmeal or semolina. Lay one dough disk on top. Spread half the pesto over the dough; sprinkle with half the cheeses. Crack one egg in the centre.
Gently slide pizza onto pizza stone. Bake until cheese is melted and egg white is cooked through, eight to 12 minutes; edges of crust should be golden brown. Remove from oven; cool slightly. Top with fresh arugula. Repeat for second pizza.
