Pizza Archives

I get asked what my favorite food is often.

Odd? Maybe.

But, I work in the food industry. There it’s a pretty normal question.

It’s an ice breaker.

Part of an introduction.

An interview question.

Or, just dropped in conversation.

Two issues with this:

1. Because of the industry, I sometimes feel pressure to have some super hip, trendy and edgy answer.

Like Kim Chi or Kombucha.

I feel like the chefs I work with might be judging me and my, presumed, undeveloped palate.

And two?

I can’t pick just one.

A better question would be what my least favorite food is.

Maybe…

But, now that I think about it, that one is tough too.

I love a lot of things.

Cheese.

Wine.

August Tomatoes.

Fresh Basil.

A good steak.

Well prepared fish.

Sushi.

Ice Cream.

Fresh baked bread.

Vibrant salads.

Over easy eggs.

Chocolate.

Guacamole.

Buffalo Wings with lots of blue cheese.

Hummus.

Crunchy Cucumbers.

Old fashioned cheese burger.

Super fresh fruit.

Okay. Okay. I like a lot of food. I promise, I will only list one more.

But, I could go on and on.

But, I get it, that probably would be annoying.

And, it could potentially have you running to the fridge for a snack because I have made you hungry.

This would be bad, because you’re going to want to stick around for this one.

… In fact, it might be one of your favorites too.

Flat bread pizza.

Flat bread pizza might be the front runner for my favorite food because there are so many ways you can make it and it is a great combination of many of my listed favorites.

I am a big fan of the traditional margherita. With good old fashioned tomatoes, mozzarella cheese and basil. We also like to sub fresh made pesto for the sauce and top with Parmesan and sliced tomatoes from the garden.

The garden tomatoes aren’t ready yet, but the arugula is and it also happens to be an excellent topping for flat breads.

Arugula is a baby green that is planted right into the ground that has a spicy flavor that I think is similar to horseradish. They don’t take too long from seed to ready to eat. Maybe four weeks or so.

This flat bread gets great flavor from the saltiness in the Parmesan and prosciutto balanced with the bite from the arugula and lemon’s tartness. Perfect for a light summer dinner.

Arugula Flat Bread Pizza

2014-06-20 07:56:32

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Crust

1 Tablespoon of Yeast
1 3/4 cups of warm water
4 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp of salt
Olive Oil

Toppings

Parmesan cheese
Prosciutto
Arugula
Lemon
Salt and Pepper

Instructions

Dissolve yeast in warm water.
Once dissolved and foamy, add all ingredients to mixer with dough hook. Kneed on medium until dough is combined and pulls from the sides of the bowl.
Let rise in bowl covered with a damp towel for at least 30 minutes.
Set oven to 425.
Oil pan and dough, roll onto pan until desired thickness. For thin crust I sometime divide the dough to make two pizza's.

For Toppings

Add more oil to pizza.
Top with shredded Parmesan. I use my veggie peeler on a block of cheese.
Add torn pieces of prosciutto.
Cook about ten minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese has melted.
Toss arugula with juice of one lemon, salt and pepper and place on top of pizza after removed from the oven.
Serve right away.

Notes

Oil is the key to crispy crust!

Bloom. https://www.theblogbloom.com/

Weekends are great for pizza.

Adam and I used to order pizza often, but last summer I canned some pizza sauce and we began making pizza more and more often. We love to make pizza at home so much that if we were to ever able to design the patio of our dreams it would include a large stone pizza oven.

Unfortunately for us, this, and the remainder of our dream patio, would probably require winning the lottery…

But, it doesn’t stop us from making pizza at home.

There are plenty of mixes for pizza crust, but it’s so easy to make from scratch. Not to mention, worlds cheaper.

Here is my go to for a fluffy, thick pizza crust similar to Chicago Style pizza. (… Still working on perfecting a great thin crust dough. Any rec’s out there?!)

Pizza Crust
¾ cups of warm water
1 tablespoon of dry yeast
1 teaspoon of sugar
2 ¼ cup of flour
1 teaspoon of salt
3 tablespoons of olive oil

In a small bowl, mix together water, yeast and sugar. Let sit for about 5 minutes or until it gets foamy.
Mix flour and salt in a large bowl or using a stand mixer with a dough hook.
Add yeast mixture and oil. Mix until dough is smooth. Should take about five minutes.
Add a tablespoon of olive oil to a large bowl. Transfer the dough to the bowl and turn it to coat in the oil.
Cover with either saran wrap or a slightly damp towel. Let the dough rise until it has doubled in size, about 25 minutes.
Add dough to cookie sheet or pizza stone, pressing outward to create crust. Let rise for another 20 minutes. You may have to press it back into shape. (We like to use a cast iron skillet for the Chicago Style effect. It also ensures the crust cooks evenly really well.)
Add pizza toppings and bake at 400 degrees for about 25 minutes.

Cast iron is honestly the best.

Instead of sauce on this weekend’s pizza, I busted out some frozen pesto I had made last August when the basil plant was booming. The pesto recipe is here.

It’s so good and I love the smell of it thanks to the strong, fragrant basil. I used about a cup to cover the crust.

Other toppings included some shredded chicken from the birds that we raised last fall that was cooked a few days earlier, mushrooms, red onions, some crushed red pepper and feta cheese. Random stuff, yes. But, I was just trying to get some stuff out of the fridge.

The pizza was perfect for a relaxing weekend night. The dough had a great texture and taste.

But, if you are not cleaning the refrigerator out like me, sliced tomato and fresh mozzarella are also excellent toppings for a pesto pizza.

Hope you are all having a fabulous weekend!