Balsamic BBQ Sauce

Just a quick note about this BBQ sauce. While it is absolutely delicious and I would drink it by the gallon- no joke- it's a huge source of sugar that I do not need in my diet.

After two horrific years in nursing school that packed on pounds, I'm committed to getting healthy and in shape again. Of course, my wedding coming up in less than 11 months is also a *slight* motivator. I'm absolutely being sarcastic. The last thing I want is to look at my wedding photos in 20 years and think about how unfit and unhealthy I was!

The problem for me is that I absolutely must have flavor in everything I eat. Luckily, I found a way to morph this sauce into a BBQ sauce that has slightly less calories. How did I do it?

Balsamic vinegar, when reduced on low heat, turns into a gorgeous syrup that resembles chocolate. Based on this, I decided to omit the brown sugar from the original recipe. Another hidden source of sugar: KETCHUP. I love ketchup and it does as a necessary flavor component that makes the BBQ sauce taste well rounded. Instead of putting 3/4 cup of ketchup as per instructions, I added 1 tablespoon.

I've made this BBQ sauce so much that now, I just start dumping ingredients- except for the ingredients that I know will pack on calories I don't need! I measure those like I'm baking a cake!

I have started taking this approach with essentially everything I cook now. I'm very picky about my salt content. I suppose it was expected after 4 rotations on a cardiac unit. I measure my oils, etc. These small steps have kept my desire for tasty foods satisfied while keeping the calories down.

Well, I guess this wasn't a quick note.... hope you're dealing with your Monday without a case of the "Mundaaays" okay, I'll stop being corny and go make dinner... which is....

PAAV BHAJI!!!! One of my favorite Gujrati dishes.... I guess that will be my next post :)

Balsamic BBQ Chicken Pizza

This pizza had several inspirations.

1. I was craving CPK's BBQ Chicken Pizza!
2. I was craving Giada de Laurentiis' Balsamic BBQ sauce (the recipe can be found on FoodNetwork.com).

I have a new found respect for pizzerias... pizza dough is relatively easy to make however getting it to taste unforgettable is hard! This dough was sweet since I used honey and it worked well with the Balsamic BBQ sauce.

I made the pizza in steps. First, I made the basalmic BBQ sauce. The recipe doesn't call for any crushed red pepper flakes, but I love the subtle heat they give, so I added approximately 1 teaspoon.

While the sauce was coming to room temperature, I made the pizza dough. I don't have a stand mixer, so I used my hands! Those who know me are familiar with the fact that I CANNOT stand the texture of flour. It creeps me out. For the sake of my cravings, I put my fears aside.

Turned out to be a very wise decision. As the dough was left to rise, I coated the chicken in the balsamic bbq sauce, and baked them off. The baking took approximately 20-30mins, as I used boneless skinless tenders (they were on sale!).

On a baking sheet lined with aluminum foil, I stretched out the pizza dough, slathered it with BBQ sauce, topped it with the diced chicken (thoroughly cooked at this point), added some red onion and jalapenos on one half (my fiance eats spicer than I do), and finally put some shredded cheese (use what you like- I used mixed shredded cheese I got from Costco- I'm a woman on a budget!). Put the pizza in the oven and in 20min it was done. In 30 minutes, my craving was satisfied!

This tasted so delicious... only thing I forgot to add was cilantro. There was plenty of dried basil, oregano, crushed red pepper flakes but fresh cilantro would have added a whole other layer of flavor!

Find your favorite pizza dough (store bought, homemade, whatever you prefer) and try this pizza. Comments welcome :)

I thought of a name!

Welcome to my blog! This is my first entry and I am so excited to be starting up! I'll post something more creative later :) Happy Sunday!