Date Night In - BYO Pizza & Chocolate Angel Food Cake

What could be better than not having to fool with hair|make & outfit planning for date night? Not much in my opinion!! For my little family date night normally consists of me searching the internet for the next best restaurant adventure. I love food and I usually try to order items on the menu that I have never tried or heard of before. My dad jokes that I have been this way since I was a child and he always ordered the safe item (chicken tenders) so when my food came and I didn't like it we could trade. He tried to pass that torch to my husband when we got married but for some reason when we go out I am stuck with my food choices good or bad. After being on the road for 12 days Jarell was under the impression that I had made dinner reservations at a swanky restaurant downtown to celebrate my birthday. Little did he know I had a surprise up my sleeve, we were staying in! One thing he loves to do is to interrupt me while I'm trying to cook and in his opinion "help" which means adding random spices from the pantry and trying to "flip" the food in the pan like they do on Chopped.  I don't know if anyone else shares my OCD in the kitchen but when I'm working I need to be left alone. I have a system and that system does not include being interrupted by a husband whose sole purpose in life is to annoy the shit out of me...in the most loving way possible.
For the two of us uninterrupted time together doesn't happen often. One of my resolutions this year is to try and make even the littlest time we share memorable. Date night in is one of the ways to do this and what better way to have fun AND work together in the kitchen than pizza night??
I was so excited to surprise him with a BYO (build your own) pizza bar when he arrived home last night that I could hardly stand it. I went out yesterday morning to grab all the things we could possibly want on our pizza to include: prosciutto, pepperoni, peppers, steak, herbs, onions, bacon, and cheeses galore! I grabbed a container of pizza sauce from Whole Foods just to make the process a little quicker but you could totally make you own. 
He was so relieved that we were going to be staying in and doing something fun rather than getting dressed up and going out (toot toot for meeee). I let him take the lead with the pizza dough and he really got into the process. Not to mention he is pretty dag-on handsome and I just about melt over a man working in the kitchen. Can I get an AMEN?
We used a pizza dough recipe from one of my favorite food bloggers, Jenny over at Picky Palate. Her recipes are really user friendly and just delicious!!! Jarell started making her Honey Whole Wheat Pizza Dough which is so delicious! Crust that is soft and fluffy with a hint of sweetness. My favorite part of this recipe is that the dough does not have to rise before you can make pizza. You whip it up in your mixer and then its good to go! Kneading the dough was hands down his favorite part and there is something so satisfying about putting in the work and seeing how it comes together when preparing a meal.  He started assembling his pizza that included: steak, bacon, pepperoni, green peppers and two different types of cheeses. Disclaimer: There are no cheese restrictions in this house!! His turned out so great and he was loving the process. So much so that he wouldn't let me make my own pizza dough. He had to do it and he was immediately "a better dough maker than I was". I choose to use a Burrata cheese (YUM!), prosciutto, pepperoni, basil and red pepper flake. Another one of our favorite things is hard cider and any Crispin brand is delicious. I had so much free time during this whole process last night that I indulged in this pear cider and let him do his thaaang.
Whole wheat pizza dough makes you feel good about eating and we finished the meal with a Chocolate angel food cake with strawberries and whip cream! (say what?!!)  Talk about guilt-free!! 
Date night in was a total success and I wouldn't have wanted to spend my 25th birthday any other way. Looking forward to many more at home date nights with my handsome fella. 

Chocolate Angel Food Cake:
3/4 cup sifted cake flour
1/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1 1/2 cups sugar
12 large egg whites
Pinch of salt
1 1/2 teaspoons cream of tartar
3/4 teaspoon vanilla extractPreheat the oven to 375 degrees F & Grease a 9- inch angel food cake or bundt pan

For the cake: Sift the cake flour with the cocoa and 3/4 cup of the sugar into a large bowl.

Using an electric mixer fitted with the whisk attachment, beat the egg whites with a pinch of salt until foamy. Sprinkle the cream of tartar over the egg whites and continue to beat until they hold a soft peak. Add the vanilla extract and gradually beat in the remaining 3/4 cup sugar, about 2 tablespoons at a time.

Remove the bowl from the mixer and, using a spatula, gradually fold in the flour mixture, sprinkling in about 1/4 cup at a time. Pour the batter into an ungreased 9-inch angel food cake pan and bake until the cake springs back when pressed with your finger, about 30 minutes. Let cool for 1 hour, then loosen the cake from the sides and center of the pan with a knife before unmolding.Serve with macerated strawberries and whipped topping 

Xo.
Elizabeth