"Easy Peasy" Pizzadilla with Herbed Ricotta Stuffed Double Flour Tortilla, Homemade Brown Butter Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Grated Parmesan, Pepperoni, Italian Herbs, + Balsamic Reduction

"Easy Peasy" Pizzadilla with Herbed Ricotta Stuffed Double Flour Tortilla, Homemade Brown
Butter Tomato Sauce, Mozzarella, Grated Parmesan, Pepperoni, Italian Herbs, + Balsamic Reduction 

Raise your hand if you hate me or are mad at me. Seriously, do it. You can't see me now, but my hand is high up to the sky because I'm ashamed I left you high and dry over the last year. I think I posted less recipes in an entire year than I used to in an entire month, and I promise I'm going to change that. It has been a difficult year to say the least, one day my world was completely normal, and then I woke up and my world came crashing down. I struggled, I struggled a lot. I don't quite think struggle actually depicts on how depressed and sad I have been. Thank god for my amazing husband and the unbreakable friendships with my best friends because I was surely losing my sanity every hour that passed by. So, 2015 was a learning experience to say the least, but I think that it has made me a stronger person in the long run. I never thought in a million years that my mid-life crisis would occur at age 25, but hey, maybe that means I just got mine out of the way before everyone else goes through it. However, I do not want to make this blog post sad or kind of a drag, so the second the clock his midnight on New Years Eve, my year of hell was over. I was ready to begin the next chapter of my life and put my energy into what I love doing, starting a family, and experiencing as much as I can. So here is a list of my resolutions for 2016...

1. Be a better blogger
2. Learn how to make cute embroidery hoops
3. Bake more; Cook more
4. Try to let go of the bitterness and move onto the next chapter of my life
5. Learn how to control my stress and anxiety
6. Show how much I love my husband every single day
7. Begin a healthy lifestyle and feature some healthy recipes on the blog
8. Never EVER take my best friends for granted. They keep me sane and have been there for me during the worst year of my life. They are my family.
9. Do whatever I can to help my father through this difficult time 
10. Become a “half glass full” kind of girl AND stay positive no matter what!

The University of Alabama won the National Championship... ROLL TIDE!

With his hand in mine, I feel like the luckiest girl alive.

Meet Hercules: our brand spankin' new Blue Merle Great Dane puppy who sports an
Alabama themed bow tie on game days! How handsome is he??

fratty daddy + flower child

At the Farmer's Market with our doggie version of Biggie-Smalls

At our one year anniversary dinner party with our closest friends
celebrating where we got married, JCT Kitchen + Bar

We love our Dirty Birds!

Our wedding anniversary Celebration... fit with an amazing floral crown!

My Whole Damn Fam... Hercules, Cleetus, Eloise, + I

Okay, so now that we've caught up a little, it's finally time to move onto the first recipe post of the year, yippee!! There's a funny story behind this and it has to involve my diva of a niece, Miss Mollywood, as I like to call her because it's her world and we're all just living in it. When my husband and I babysit her, she always requests a pizza on a flour tortilla with tomato sauce, cheese, and pepperoni. I had never heard of the concoction, but I figured if she loves them that much, then heck I should make a grown-up version. And I trust her advice because she's 4 going on 30. I started off by making my famous brown butter-fresh tomato sauce (which I will post the recipe for that tomorrow, just in case you want to make it... if not grab a your favorite jar of sauce from the store). You can buy any kind of tortilla... I use super soft flour tortillas, but surely you can make it healthy by getting whole wheat, low-carb, or gluten free! Now, moving onto the cheese, I use three different types. The first is a homemade herbed ricotta cheese that I spread on top of the bottom tortilla "crust", and then I press the second tortilla onto the ricotta, so that they stay together. Warm up a big enough skillet to low-to-medium heat and place a few tablespoons of butter in the pan until they have melted. Continue assembling the "Pizzadilla" by spreading on a few generous spoonfuls of the brown butter tomato sauce, making sure to leave an edge for a crispy crust. Generously sprinkle about 1-2 handfuls of shredded mozzarella and as much freshly grated Parmesan, as you want. But hey, the more cheese, the better... right? Spice up the pizzadilla with Italian herbs, such as dried oregano, dried basil, red pepper flake, kosher salt, + fresh cracked pepper. Just a little dab of each will do ya, so it's up to you how much you use! As for the toppings, this is way you can go crazy... add ANYTHING you want :) I had pepperoni on hand and it was just a great pizza alternative with a classic pizza topping. Place the assembled pizzadilla into the skillet of the melted butter and slowly let the bottom tortilla to turn perfectly golden brown and crispy. Don't keep it on there to long because you don't want a burnt pizzadilla, y'all. You just don't. I think I kept it on there for about 5 minutes, but just keep checking occasionally until the desired crust color has been reached (and don't worry about getting the whole p'dilla done in the skillet). After your crust in perfect, slide the p'dilla onto a baking sheet, lined with a Silpat, and place it in the oven. Turn your broiler on and watch it carefully, like really, don't leave its side. You will want your cheese melted, your pepperoni slightly crisping up, and an outside crunchy ring of tortilla "crust". Remove it from the oven and slide it onto a cutting board. I recommend letting it sit for a few minutes, so that when you cut it into slices, none of the cheese oozes out and the pepperoni doesn't slide off. Finish it all off by slicing it into triangle pizza wedges and add a healthy drizzle of yummy balsamic reduction for a little bit of sweetness! I hope y'all enjoy this easy peasy recipe, y'all! I know my niece and I sure do! Enjoy :)

For the Herbed Ricotta Cheesy Yum:

8oz Whole Milk Ricotta, Strained for Excess Water

½C Freshly Grated Parmesan

¼-½C Fresh Mixed Herbs, Minced (do this to taste; we used basil, oregano, parsley, & chives)

Kosher Salt + Fresh Cracked Pepper, To Taste

For the Pizzadillas:

2T Unsalted Butter

2 10-inch Super Soft Tortillas

Prepared Herbed Ricotta Cheesy Yum (to your liking)

¼C Homemade Brown Butter Tomato Sauce

½-1C Shredded Mozzarella (to your liking)

Freshly Grated Parmesan (to your liking)

10-15 Slices of Pepperoni

A Sprinkling of Dried Oregano, Dried Basil, & Red Pepper Flakes

Pinch of Kosher Salt + Fresh Cracked Pepper

Homemade or Store-bought Balsamic Reduction, For Drizzling

Directions:

1. Assembling the Pizzadilla: Place one super soft flour tortilla on a cutting board and spread on some of the herbed ricotta cheesy yum on top, following this step, press a second tortilla onto the ricotta until they have completely adhered to one another. Next, spoon on some of the brown butter tomato sauce on top of the second tortilla, making sure to leave an edge in order to achieve a crispy outer crust. Mound a big ‘ole pile of mozzarella cheese all over the tomato sauce until it is covered, and then freshly grate some parmesan to finish it off. Don’t forget those slices of pepperoni, so make sure squeeze as many of those as you can onto the pizzadilla. Lastly, sprinkle the top of the assembled pizzadilla with the dried oregano, dried basil, red pepper flakes, kosher salt, and fresh cracked pepper.

2. Crisping the Tortilla: Heat a large, non-stick skillet over medium-low heat. Add in the unsalted butter and let it melt completely. Place the pizzadilla into the pan and cook it until the bottom tortilla is golden brown and crispy, about 3-5 minutes. Watch this carefully by checking the bottom of the tortilla “crust” with a spatula… trust me, you do not want a ruined, burnt pizzadilla.

3. Preheat your oven to broil and slide the pizzadilla out of the skillet and onto a Silpat lined baking sheet. Once the oven is up to the correct temperature, it’s time to put the pizzadilla in to finish cooking.

4. Finishing the Pizzadilla: Broil the pizzadilla until the cheese has completely melted, the pepperoni has started to slightly crisp up, and the outside tortilla “crust” has reached a delightful golden brown color and is crunchy in texture. Do not leave the oven while this is broiling because it can burn quite quickly, so stay there and watch until it is perfectly done. Remove the pizzadilla from the oven and put it on a cutting board. Let the pizzadilla cool for a few minutes, just to ensure that the cheese doesn’t ooze out and the toppings don’t slide off. After cooling, cut the pizzadilla into triangle-like slices. Drizzle the top with some balsamic reduction for a touch of sweetness and devour immediately.