A Taster’s Journey

Pizza is one of the most debated items in the food world. In New York there is always a fiery discussion about the best restaurant for pizza. Chicago chimes in that pizza should be more of a deep dish variety. Personally, I prefer a thin crust. So the other night I made three of my favorites: goat cheese & caramelized onion; sausage, onion & fontina; and meatball & mozzarella. Which is the best? I love them all, so I will leave it up to you to decide.

The trick to serving several pies in one night is to prepare all the toppings ahead of time. Pizza dough is pretty easy to make, but if I am cooking three pizzas I want to save as much time as possible…in other words, I bought my dough at Lazy Acres. When I make my own dough, I typically use a recipe by Wolfgang Puck. His recipe adds a little honey to the dough which is a nice touch. Below are the three pies..

Goat Cheese & Caramelized Onion Pizza is probably the pie I make most often. I slice one large onion into half rounds then saute in olive oil and butter till caramelized, about 30 minutes. You need to cook the onions slowly which will bring out the sweetness; the onions will be brown but not burnt. Next, I roll my dough till it is ultra thin, you can almost see through it. Add cornmeal to the top of your pizza peel and then the pizza on top. Oil the entire surface of the pie then spread your onions around evenly. Add small chunks of a good goat cheese on top of the onions next drizzle a bit more olive oil over the pie so it isn’t too dry. Now, season with Herbes de Provence, salt and pepper. Cook in a 500 - 500 degree oven till the crust turns brown.

Goat Cheese & Caramelized Onion Pizza

Sausage, onion, and fontina pizza is a twist on the classic sausage pizza.  First, remove the Italian sausage from its casing and saute till brown. I make the onions the same way as the pie above but I cook them for 10 minutes less. They are not brown, but translucent with a slight slight crunch. For the tomatoes, you can use fresh, but I would bake them first to remove some moisture. I use Rao’s Marinara Sauce, but first I cook over low heat for about 15 minutes to remove some moisture (if too wet, the pizza will be soggy). Lastly, I grate an imported fontina cheese.

Sausage, Onion & Fontina Pizza

After the prep work is complete, roll the dough out like above and cover with a bit of olive oil. Then add a light coat of tomato sauce, then onion, sausage, and fontina. Add red chili flakes or salt if desired. Bake till brown and bubbly.

Pizza with meatball and mozzarella is the last pie I made. I was lucky to have leftover meatballs. I treated the tomato sauce the same as above. I prefer to use fresh mozzarella because it will have better flavor than the supermarket varieties, but it will also contain more moisture. Either will be delicious. After slicing the mozzarella, be sure to use paper towels to remove excess moisture from the fresh cheese. You can also grate the mozzarella if you prefer.

By now you should be a pizza expert. Roll out your dough, add olive oil, tomato sauce, meatballs, and cheese. Again, bake until bubbly and brown.

I have made pizza with friends a dozen times; it’s a great way to entertain. Everyone gets involved and has a lot of fun. An added benefit is that meal is spectacular! Do you have a favorite pizza recipe? I’d love to hear about it.