This pizza was definitely my best so far. I made the dough again using this Eggs on Sunday recipe. Instead of dividing it into two bases like last time, I just used it to make one. I think this was best as it gave the dough more body and a great crust.
I still have an abundance of cheese left over from our engagement party, thus the extravagent use of double cream Brie from King Island Dairy on a pizza… If you don’t have Brie, or don’t like it I would suggest that parmesan or even a strong cheddar or goat’s cheese would work well.
Another beautiful thing about this recipe is that it’s vegetarian friendly. However, if you are in the mood for meat you could always add bacon when you cook the spinach.
Details
- :
60 min - :
8 min - :
1 h, 8 min
Ingredients
- 1 bunch Silverbeet, stems removed and chopped roughly
- pinch Nutmeg
- pinch Salt
- pinch Cracked pepper
- handful Mixed herbs - I used basil, parsley and oregano
- tsp Butter
- clove Garlic, chopped
- dash Olive oil
- dozen Pieces of Brie
- 2-3 larges Field mushrooms, chopped
Directions
- Prepare pizza dough (if making from scratch). I use this recipe.
- Preheat your oven to very hot - I had mine at about 240*C.
- Prepare silverbeet by gently wilting in a saucepan with butter, a splash of olive oil, salt, pepper, nutmeg. I think it is useful to squeeze the spinach to get rid of excess water at this stage. Add herbs and garlic towards the end so they don't burn or wilt too much.
- For extra crispyness, put your pizza tray into the oven to preheat a little.
- Flatten your pizza dough out into a round and put on your tray.
- Sprinkle some olive oil over the base and then spread the spinach across it. Make sure you leave a gap at the edges of the pizza so it makes a nice crust.
- Scatter your sliced mushrooms over the base and then your Brie cheese.
- Pop in the oven for about 8 minutes, until the dough is crispy and the Brie is melted.
- Enjoy with a glass of your favourite wine.
Friday night is usually our night to get takeaway – we have an amazing Thai restaurant just down the road (Thai Chada if you’re interested) and that is our standby. However, as we are eating out a fair bit in the next couple of weeks, I decided to try my hand at homemade pizza this time.
I made the dough using this recipe. The dough turned out well, and cooked up nicely – it was thin and crispy. However, I don’t think it my house was hot enough and it didn’t rise as much as I would have liked. At first it wasn’t rising at all, so I tried various places around the house with no success, and ended up putting the bowl into a sink of hot water. This seemed to do the trick – I’ll have to remember it in future.
We made two pizzas. Both were tomato based, although I think we probably used a bit too much tomato paste. Into the tomato paste we mixed fresh oregano and finely chopped local garlic. What a revelation that garlic has been – it has 10 times the flavour of bleached garlic from China, and yet has a subtle sweetness that I really enjoy.
One pizza we topped with butternut pumpkin, green capsicum, sundried tomatoes and feta cheese. The other had fried bacon, salt-dried olives (richer and more intense in flavour than regular olives), fresh tomato, potato and parmesan.
Both pizzas cooked in about 15 minutes in our ancient oven, although it was be less in a fan-forced oven. We served the bacon, potato pizza with a drizzle of balsamic, and enjoyed numerous pieces with a delicious Reisling (Annie’s Lane, from the Clare Valley in South Australia).
I really encourage you to have a go at making your own dough. It’s a bit labour intensive due to the kneading, but think of it this way – you’re burning off the calories you’ll consume when you eat your pizza!
This is a very easy recipe, but it’s one of our favourites. It’s adapted from Frances Mayes “Under the Tuscan Sun”, a lovely book which made me want to move to Tuscany!
I used a store-bought pizza base – it was a weeknight and I was feeling lazy. However, you can make your own dough if you would prefer.
It hardly seems fair to call this a recipe – it’s more a combination of ingredients that work well together. I do recommend using the best ingredients you have available. Our sausages (and all our beef) are from Honest Beef.
- 2 cups of onions, sliced
- 2 bags balsamic vinegar (more as needed). Use good quality balsamic vinegar - it will make or break the dish.
- 3-4 whole sausages (Frances Mayes recommends fennel and pork, which is a traditional Italian combination. However, I've used plain beef sausages and they work well too).
- handful Grated cheese to taste - I probably use 1/2 to 1 cup (parmesan works wonderfully, but in a pinch a sharp cheddar will do)
- pinch Pepper
- pinch Fennel seeds, crushed (optional - I know lots of people don't really like fennel. I wouldn't add these if I had used fennel and pork sausages either).
- pinch Dried majoram, to taste
Directions
- Preheat oven to 200*. Put your pizza stone or pizza tray in the oven to heat up
- In a frying pan spray some olive oil, or pour in about 1 tsp of oil. Add the onions and balsamic vinegar to the pan and gently "melt" over a medium-low heat for about 20 minutes. You don't want the heat up too high or the onions will brown - that isn't the objective here.
- Meanwhile, cook your sausages until they are browned and cooked through. Chop into small pieces.
- On your pizza base, spread the melted onions, top with some of the crushed fennel and pepper. Scatter the pieces of sausage over the onions. Sprinkle grated cheese over the top, as much as you'd like. Finally, sprinkle a bit of majoram on.
- Bake on your stone or tray in the oven until the base is cooked to your preference (I like mine a bit crispy) and the cheese is melted.
- Serve with a light green salad and a glass of red wine.
- Enjoy!
06.05.10 | 
Of: 
5 comments
Leave a comment
by email:
Share