This month at Style Theory Salon my good friend Celleste (Manager/Owner) has set the theme of ‘Heroes’ to focus her conversations and blog posts. As the food blogger for her upcoming Style Theory Magazine I figured I should tell the story of my own hero – my dad.
After my mom died of colon cancer in the fall of 1985 my dad did everything in his power to provide for my younger brother and I. Mike was 4 and I was 7 when my mom died. Dad would cook supper, make our lunches, make us do our homework, and teach us how to help around the house – to clean, cook, and haul in wood for the fireplace. We learned the value of hard work, respect, and even though he was rather stoic, we always felt loved and cared for.
I’m sure I got some of my love of food from my dad. He never cooked fancy things, but he cooked well. Having cooked in a restaurant in the 1970’s, he knew all the basics and started teaching me at a young age. My specialty was a casserole with macaroni, canned tomatoes, canned mushrooms, canned tuna, garlic & onion powder, and cheese melted on top… and it was actually pretty good! I remember that we would have Chinese food nights, and he’d make everything from scratch. I remember the egg foo young the most because I thought the bean sprouts in it tasted like dirt (I still avoid egg foo young in restaurants).
And, I remember his pizzas. These never did seem to change over the years… He’d buy frozen pre-made crusts, coat them with tomato paste (to this day I don’t like tomato paste on my pizza LOL), and pile the pizzas high with ground beef, onions, pepperoni, canned mushrooms, and on special occasions he’d add canned shrimp (to note, we lived in a very small town in northern BC and ingredients were rather limited, especially in the winter).
I don’t know that my dad specifically inspired my love for pizza (I mean, who doesn’t love a good pizza?!?), but the memories that I have of his homemade pizza definitely have a place in my heart.
Nowadays when I crave pizza at home I most often don’t have everything I’d prefer to use, easily available (no, that would take some planning…). So, I’ll use naan bread, flatbread, really thin wraps, or soft tacos as a crust – whatever I have to use up. Sometimes I have pre-made crusts in the freezer (the ones from Costco), but I never make my own dough (I despise dough – it’s way too messy for me…). I’ll use pesto, pasta sauce, store-bought alfredo sauce or even salad dressing, salsa or ricotta cheese (yum!) as the base. Mushrooms, bell peppers, veggie crumble, crumbled veggie patties, tomatoes, pickled jalapeños, chicken, leeks, fresh herbs – you name it – it can probably go on a pizza. And for cheese? Again – whatever is in the fridge! I love to be creative and think outside the box… there are so many things that can go on a pizza, it’s just finding the right flavour combinations to make it work. Have fun with it!
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