Pizza...with a Vermont twist:)

Hi everyone!  Hope you guys are doing OK.  Sooooo...it is with tentative steps that I thought I'd jump back in the blogging world todayJ  I can't promise I'll be here EVERY day, but as long as I'm feeling good, I'll be trying my best to get back in the swing of thingsJ  I DO feel like I'm turning a bit of a corner...so here's hopin it's all UPHILL from hereJ hahahahahhaa....(well, for the next few months, at leastJ)

So anyways, I thought for my first blog post in over a month, that at least I had a pretty interesting one to show you!  If you were following my "blast from the past" posts on Facebook, you may have noticed how excited I was that Food Network magazine named my beloved Delorenzo's best pizza in NJ! J

Butttt, I must say...one (well...a FEW) other stood out the MOST on this list... 

Vermont pizza made with apples, cheddar, bacon and maple syrup???  Ummmm....hello????????  SIGN ME UP!!!!!!!!!!!!!  (Very FALL like too, no??)

But since a trip to Vermont isn't on the radar at the moment (PRAYING FOR YOU, VERMONT!), I thought I'd just attempt to create my own!

After Scott grilled the bottom of my rolled out pizza crust, the first topping was my own spin on things:  Caramelized onions...

Scott slow cooked a sliced up onion for about 15 minutes in a small skillet.  After the onions were removed, I added the next layer:  Thin, sliced apples...

I let them get a little "coat" from the onion 'oil' before adding about a half cup of water to the pan, covering it up and letting them simmer on medium heat for about 5 minutes...

...onto the dough they go...

...although, only on half.  Scott was a little leery about the applesJ

Next up:  a sprinkle of crisped up/chopped up TJ's bacon...

And finally...a sprinkle of Cabot extra sharp Cheddar cheese (gotta get real Vermont ingredients in there SOMEHOW!)  A few minutes on the grill to crisp up the bottom of the dough and melt the cheese and WALLAH!!!!!

From Jersey to Vermont...all in about a 1/2 hour!

And now...the part we were both SUPERRRRR tentative about:  The drizzle of maple syrupJ  I skipped the 'pour over' and just went with a little 'pool' of the sweet stuff...

...perfect for dipping!

Maple syrup or not, everything about this pizza was AWEEEEESOME!  Crisp crust, gooey savory cheese, salty bacon, sweet caramelized onions & just a TOUCH of sweetness from the apples (although not NEARLY as much as I thought)...this was just SPOT ON!  The only change I would make would be to add MORE ONIONS!  They were just sooo good!

And how bout even SCOTT got into the maple syrup (AND APPLE!) action??  It added JUST enough sweetness to go along with all the savory/crispy pizza....YUM! 

After dinner, we headed out for our recent nightly tradition of a 45 minute around the park.  Jersey has been just GORGEOUS (aka-FALL-like) since that blasted ole Hurricane Irene blew through over the weekend.  We have had no need for air conditioning since Sunday.  BLISS!  Here's hoping it stays like that from here on out!!!!  

And one other benefit from our nightly walks:  This happens...

WORN OUT!  hahahhahahahhaha....

And speaking of walking, I thought I'd share with you guys my work out schedule from last week.  Not gonna lie for a couple of weeks there IT. WAS. ROUGH!  I was just barely squeaking in exercise about 2-3 times per week.  But thankfully, now that I'm feeling better, I'm starting to get back on a more normal pace!

Sunday (8/21):  45 minute walk

Monday (8/22):  45 minute walk

Tuesday (8/23):  35 minutes of Bethenny yoga (skipping the back bends & ab work, for now) + 45 minutes park walk + a round of 8 pound weights

Wednesday (8/24):  30 minutes dance/jog/stretch/weights + 45 minute walk

Thursday (8/25):  30 minute walk

Saturday (8/27):  1+ hour yoga class

I can honestly say I ALWAYS feel better when I work out then when I don't.  Grant it, it's been A LOT tougher to actually get out of bed and get started recently...but my energy levels have shot through the roof since I got back into the real swing of things.  Hey, I'll take it J hahahahhaahhaha

Alright....well, hopefully I'll be back tomorrow with more new blog posts!  Hope you guys have a GREAT Wednesday!  (It's Wednesday, right??  I'm so confusedJ hahahhahahahah)

Quick Update...

Sooooooo...hey everyone!  It feels like so long since I've typed up a blog post.  And I can FINALLY reveal why there has been SUCH a long delay:  Scott & I are having a baby!!  We found out before July 4th and I think I'm still in shockJ hahahahahahhahaha  Only "problem":  This child does NOT. LIKE. FOOD!  I can't see it, smell it, describe it, think about it, browse food blogs, visit farmer's markets, look up recipes without feeling queasy.  THE IRONY, right????  I NEVER thought I'd see the day when I actually had to LEAVE the room when Scott dished out a bowl of ice cream for himself! hahahahahaha....and I'd be lying if I said my DREAM meal at the moment wasn't a poppy seed bagel with cream cheese from Tina's:) hahahahahhahahaha  Sooooo...I was hoping to be back to "normal" around this time, but food is still no bueno for meL  Hopefully soon, but I don't want to set "another return date" without knowing for sure that I'll be able to EAT dinner, let alone having to describe it!J

Until then, follow me on Facebook & Twitter for all my "blast to the pasts" posts, as well as for when I'm ready to blog again!  Take care and thanks for following along!!

Just a little bit longer...

Hey everyone...again, I'm sorry to do this, but my blogger break is going to have to continue for another couple weeks.  I should be back up to speed on Monday, August 22nd.  In the meantime, you can follow me on Facebook & Twitter to catch all my 'latest' "Blast from the Past" entries.  Hope they hold you over till then!  See you SOON!