Shrimp Prosciutto and Mushroom Pizza for #NationalPizzaMonth #MadeinFrance

October is a great month!  The weather cools.  The foliage turns into a kaleidoscope of colors.  The houses get all decked out for All Hallow's Eve. The kids are all running around giddy excited.  There is candy and chocolate and goodies galore.

And then to make this month even more fantabulous......It is National Pizza Month!!  Those who know me, know that there is no food that I love more than Pizza.  It beats out chocolate and cookies. It beats out pasta and potatoes.  It beats out steak and lobster.  Not that I don't  love all those foods too but.....C'mon....it's PIZZA!!

Our friend, Colleen of The Redhead Baker feels that same as I about pizza so she decided to throw a party and invite all of us like-minded bloggers to bring a pizza to the bash.  

I made up a batch of homemade pizza dough.  This recipe makes enough for 2 pizzas if you are serving a family.  I used half for our pizza, since it is just me and Frank, and put the other half into the refrigerator to turn into garlic knots to serve with dinner another night.

I sauteed up some mushrooms and onions to add to the pizza.  I like precooking my mushrooms and onions first.  I think the flavor is better.  I'm not a huge raw mushroom and onion person and it doesn't have quite enough time to get cooked to my liking in the 10 minute baking time.

I always try to add some greens to my pizza.  It is a great way to sneak in some extra nutrition and it helps to alleviate some of the guilt of this guilty pleasure of mine.  I had some baby kale in the refrigerator but any tender greens will work.  If you have adult greens, sauté them up first with the mushrooms and onions.

Then I sprinkled on the Mozzarella and Parmesan cheeses, layered several slice of prosciutto on top and covered the entire pizza with 12 large shrimp before popping it into a hot oven. 

While the pizza baked I went into the wine fridge and pulled out this bottle Touraine Sauvignon Blanc from Paul Buisse.  This wine was provided to me from Whole Foods as part of their #MadeinFrance event.  You can learn more about this event in this post or by searching #MadeinFrance on any social media platform.  

While this wine was provided as a sample all opinions in this blog are strictly my own.  This wine is clear, bright and crisp.  Coming from the Loire Valley it pairs well with fresh water fish but I thought it could stand up well to the shrimp and prosciutto on this pizza.  I was right and I was happy that I made this choice.

My pizza didn't want to come off the peel very easily.  Make sure you put down a nice layer of cornmeal on the peel under the pizza dough before you add the toppings. I use a pizza stone and wooden peel when I make pizza.  If you don't have or don't use a pizza stone you can just form this pizza right onto a baking sheet.

As you can see, my pizza is a little misshapen but it tasted absolutely marvelous.  I added additional mushrooms and onions to the top of this pizza when I decided to only make one pie instead of two.

The buttery flavor of the Sauvignon was perfect with the shrimp.  The crispness of the wine helped cut the richness of the cheese and prosciutto.  It was a wonderful dinner.

I can't wait to see what all the others are sharing with us today.  I am excited to have new pizzas to try each month.  You will find links to the recipes right underneath mine.  Pizza anyone??

Shrimp Prosciutto and Mushroom Pizza

1 recipe pizza dough, homemade, store bought or your favorite recipe

1/4 c. pizza sauce, or to taste

5 oz. sliced mushrooms

1/2 small onion, sliced

2 t. olive oil

salt and pepper to taste

2 handfuls of baby kale

1 c. shredded mozzarella cheese

1/4 c. shredded parmesan cheese

4 slices prosciutto

12 large raw shrimp, peeled and deveined

Heat the olive oil in a skillet. Add the mushrooms and onions. Season with salt and pepper and sauté until softened, about 5 minutes.  Remove from heat and set aside.

Roll your dough into a round or square to your desired thickness.  Spread the pizza sauce over the dough, leaving a 1" border.  Sprinkle the mushrooms and onions over the sauce and top with the kale, covering the mushrooms and onions.

Sprinkle the cheese over all and then add a layer of the prosciutto topped with the shrimp.  Bake in a preheated 500* oven for about 10 minutes, until shrimp is pink, cheese is bubbly and crust is golden brown.  Print Recipe

More recipes to celebrate #National Pizza Day

• Buffalo Chicken Naan Bread Pizza by The Freshman Cook 
• Italian Beef Pizza by Cooking With Carlee 
• Margherita Pizza by Making Miracles 
• Mediterranean Flatbread Pizza by Everyday Eileen 
• Pizza with shaved brussels sprouts and bacon by Simple and Savory
• Potato and Leek Pizza by Karen's Kitchen Stories 
• Shrimp Prosciutto and Mushroom Pizza by A Day in the Life on the Farm 
• Spinach, Pancetta and Fontina Pizza by The Redhead Baker 
• Stovetop Skillet Pizzas by Culinary Adventures with Camilla 
• White Pizza Mini Tarts by Take Two Tapas
• World Series Tortilla Pizza by Amy's Cooking Adventures

Pumpkin and Fish Stew #PumpkinWeek #MadeinFrance

Wow....This is it....The Final Day of Pumpkin Week.  Didn't that seem to go very quickly?  I hope you enjoyed it as much as I.  So many amazing recipes.  Good thing that October is just beginning because I have well more than a month's worth of recipes that I want to try.

Please join me in thanking Terri of Love and Confections for all of her hard work on this event.  It is definitely a labor of love.

I wanted to serve another savory dish this week and, since today is Friday, I wanted to include some fish and seafood with my pumpkin.

I cannot begin to tell you how wonderfully delicious this Fish Stew turned out.  I only made a recipe for 2 and was kicking myself because it was so good that we couldn't get enough of it.  This is definitely going on the recipe rotation and I look forward to serving it to guests.

I found this recipe doing a google search.  I found a website out of Florida that listed 6 Must Make Pumpkin Fish Recipes for Fall, which in turn sent me to this recipe at Rachel's Kitchen NZ.  I adapted it to serve only two. You can, and I recommend, doubling or tripling this recipe.  I used cod instead of monkfish and I added some shrimp that I had in the freezer.  The shrimp was a wonderful addition to this stew.

I served this up with some French Bread and a wonderful glass of French Sur Lie that had been provided by Whole Foods for the #MadeinFrance event they sponsored yesterday.  You can read all about that in this post.  

Disclosure:  I received product from Whole Foods for the #MadeinFrance event.  Whole foods is not involved at all in #PumpkinWeek and did not request inclusion in this post.  I wanted to share the pairing because I thought it was lovely.  All content and opinions in this post are exclusively mine.

This stew was quick, easy and comforting.  It is the perfect Fall meal on a Fish Friday and would also be an elegant and beautiful starter or fish course for your next dinner party.  I think the next time I serve it as the main course, I will add some white beans to make it a bit more substantial.

Pumpkin and Fish Stew

adapted from Rachel's Kitchen NZ

2 c. pumpkin, peeled and cubed into bite size pieces

1 small onion, roughly chopped

1 clove garlic, minced

2 t. olive oil

1 (15 oz.) can diced tomatoes with their juices

1 c. water

1 chicken bouillon cube

1/2 t. dried Italian herbs, crushed

2 handfuls of baby spinach leaves

2 (4-6 oz) cod fillets, skinned and cut into bite size pieces

8 large shrimp, peeled, deveined and tails removed

salt and pepper to taste

Place the pumpkin into a microwave safe dish with a 1/2 c. of water. Cover partially and microwave on high for 5 minutes. Remove, drain and set aside.

In a soup pot over med high heat, cook the onions and garlic in the olive oil until softened and fragrant, about 10 minutes.   

Add the tomatoes, with their juices, the water, and the bouillon cube along with the Italian herbs. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat, add the pumpkin, and simmer for about half an hour, until slightly thickened.

Stir in the spinach leaves.  When spinach is wilted add the fish and shrimp, cover and cook until shrimp are pink and fish is easily flaked with a fork.  Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. Print Recipe

All the Final Fabulous Pumpkin Recipes

Pumpkin Drink Recipes:

"Grown Up" Potter Pumpkin Juice from The Crumby Kitchen.
Hot'N'Spicy Pumpkin Margarita from Culinary Adventures with Camilla.

Savory Pumpkin Recipes:

Pumpkin and Fish Stew from A Day in the Life on the Farm.
Pumpkin Chili from Making Miracles.
Pumpkin Crab Soup from Hardly A Goddess.
Pumpkin Pasta from Caroline's Cooking.
Thai Pumpkin Curry from Palatable Pastime.

Sweet Pumpkin Recipes:

Caramel Pecan Pumpkin Bread from The Freshman Cook.
Fall Harvest Pumpkin Sourdough Muffins from Cooking With Carlee.
Pumpkin Spice Milkshake from Family Around The Table.
Pumpkin Pie Cream Horns from Mildly Meandering.

Pumpkin Pie Spice Snowball Cookies from Love and Confections.

Pumpkin Spice Thumbprint Cookies from The Bitter Side of Sweet.
Pumpkin Spiced Banana Bread from Daily Dish Recipes.
Pumpkin Tiramisu from The Redhead Baker.