Savory Stiletto

I never call in sick to work. Never. In fact, I rarely ever miss a day of work (for jobs I really enjoy at least…). My parents instilled me with one of the strongest, greatest, most amazing work ethics, which might explain why I am a workaholic. Anyway, I didn’t go into work tonight. I went to my full time day job most of the day, but I didn’t go into the restaurant tonight. Apparently, I threw my back out. So I can’t stand up, sit down, fight, Fight, FIGHT! Sorry, I was a cheerleader…for a week…in high school…to win a dare. But for real, can’t sit comfortably, can’t stand up comfortably, can’t lay down comfortably. In fact, everything I do causes these lightening bolts to shoot down my legs.

There are a few pluses to this though. The first, I got a massage today. From this crazy Lithuanian woman who cracked my back with her THUMBS! It hasn’t immediately helped my back, but who cares? She cracked my back with just her thumbs! Second, I get to sit on the couch and not feel bad about doing absolutely nothing besides watching girlie movies and writing. Third, I got to order pizza!

Yup, that’s right…eating pizza. Yum yum yum! The problem with living in the North Shore and NOT in downtown Chicago is there are no good places to get pizza to deliver. Or even good places to pick up pizza at. Enter Homemade Pizza Company. First of all, talk about yummy toppings! They have everything from poblano peppers and chorizo to caramelized onions, artichoke hearts, and prosciutto! And you can even get whole wheat crust! But the best part of all? You can cook it at home. Which means that if you want yours cooked well done, less done, or just right, it’s all up to you.

Since I got to be the pampered princess all night, I got to decide what was going on the pizza. Hmmmm, Don Juan, you sound delicious with your poblano peppers, chorizo, smoked bacon, tomatoes (yup, I ate tomatoes on my pizza, can you believe it? Me either!!!!), shaved garlic…mmmmmm….so good! Then I decided maybe the traditional route wouldn’t be so bad…Italian sausage with caramelized onions and Asiago cheese? Yes please!

Even though I’m in severe pain, this was a great way to wrap up a chilly, rainy Midwest afternoon that started with tweaking my back, followed by being told to ‘you wear nothing for massage, ok? You take off everything.’ Not much beats pampering and pizza! Although, having this awesome pizza tonight has me itching to try my hand at a Don Juan….although I think I’ll call my version ‘The Most Interesting Man in the World’.

Both of these mouth-watering pizzas best savored with, in my case, a muscle relaxer. For everyone else, an ice cold beer or a big glass of Chianti. Enjoy!!

My thoughts:

Coming from a person who almost never lets anyone do anything for her, I was able to sit back, relax, and enjoy the fact that I was being waited on hand and foot. They were both so delicious that I almost forgot how much my back hurts. If you are fortunate enough to have a Homemade Pizza Company near you, go order from them ASAP! If you don't have one nearby, then take the dough recipe from my Messy Monsters night and try making your own version of both of these pizzas. They are sooo worth it!