baker's dozen...

...or not really. For a couple of reasons:
1. I do not usually bake, nor do I really like to.
2. I only have two items for you, not 13.

However, summertime has left me with quite a bit of time on my hands. One can only watch so many Golden Girls episodes (but not really; I can never get enough of those ladies!!)..or at least until one feels really lazy. I baked for two specific reasons. One being a get-together with some grad school friends and the other being that I had a significant amount of pesto sauce left after I made it last week. Therefore, I baked. I made cookies for the friends and pizza dough for a pesto pizza (complete with lots of cheese, bell peppers, shrimp, and tomato slices-yum!). Here you go:

Chocolate-mint wafers
(makes 44ish)

1 c all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled)
1/2 c unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 t baking powder
1/4 t plus 1/8 t salt
6 tb unsalted butter, room temp.
1/2 c sugar
1 large egg
1/2 t pure vanilla extract
12 oz. semi-sweet or bittersweet chocolate
1/4 t pure peppermint extract
sprinkles (optional, but SO yummy and fun!)

Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cocoa, baking powder, and 1/4 t salt. Set aside.
Using an electric mixer, beat butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg and vanilla. With mixer on low, gradually add flour mixture just until combined.
Form balls of dough (equal to about 1 t) and place on two baking sheets, about 2 inches apart. Dip the bottom of a glass in water and flatten balls into 1 1/2-inch rounds (about 1/4 inch thick). Bake until slightly firm to the touch, 8-10 minutes, rotating sheets halfway through. Transfer to wire rack to cool.
Make chocolate coating: place chocolate, peppermint extract, and remaining 1/8 t salt in double boiler. Heat, stirring occasionally until smooth, 2-3 minutes. Remove from heat.
Line a baking sheet with parchment or wax paper. Set each cookie across the tines of a fork,dip fork in chocolate, then tap underside of fork on side of boiler bowl to allow excess chocolate to drip off. Place cookies on prepared baking sheet, and decorate with sprinkles, if desired. Refrigerate until chocolate has hardened, about 30 minutes. Keep chilled until ready to serve.

Whole-wheat pizza dough
(makes 2 one-pound balls)

1 1/2 cups warm (115 degrees) water
2 packets ( ounce each) active dry yeast
1/4 cup olive oil, plus more for bowl
2 tablespoons sugar
2 teaspoons coarse salt
2 cups all-purpose flour (spooned and leveled), plus more for kneading
2 cups whole-wheat flour (spooned and leveled)

Place water in a large bowl; sprinkle with yeast. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Brush another large bowl with oil. In bowl with yeast, whisk sugar, oil, and salt. Stir in flours with a wooden spoon until a sticky dough forms. Transfer to oiled bowl; brush top of dough with oil. Cover bowl with plastic wrap; let stand in a warm spot until dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Turn dough out onto a well-floured surface. With floured hands, knead until smooth, about 15 seconds; divide into two balls. Set balls on a plate (they should not touch); freeze until firm, about 1 hour.

You can do what you want for the next part:
-Then freeze in a freezer bag up to 3 months. Thaw overnight in refrigerator.
-Divide each ball of dough into 4 pieces. Using your hands, stretch each piece into a 5-inch disk (if dough becomes too elastic to work with, let it rest a few minutes). Freeze shells on two parchment-lined baking sheets. Bake from frozen.