This colourful, aromatic vegetarian pizza is made with homemade pizza dough, delicious beet pesto, confit tomatoes, pine nuts, kale and crumbled chvre.
Directions for: Beet Pesto Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza Dough4 cups 00-flour (available at specialty grocery stores)
2 g fresh yeast or 3 g instant dry yeast
1 Tbsp + a pinch salt
3 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
Beet Pesto⅛ cup pine nuts
2 large beets, peeled and cubed
2 bunches basil
cup grated Grana Padano cheese
8 cloves garlic, peeled
2 lemons, juiced
2 Tbsp horseradish
2 tsp salt
1 tsp black pepper
3 cups canola oil
Confit Tomatoes2 pints cherry tomatoes, sliced
cup olive oil
2 Tbsp finely chopped parsley
2 - 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped (1 Tbsp)
Salt and pepper, to taste
Assembly6 kale leaves, torn with ribs removed
1 cups crumbled chvre
cube pine nuts
2 Tbsp chopped dill
2 Tbsp lemon zest
2 Tbsp fennel seeds
Flour, for rolling
Directions
Pizza Dough1. In the bowl of a stand mixer on low speed, stir together the yeast and 1 cups of 50F water.
2. Continue mixing for 5 minutes, until yeast has dissolved.
3. Add the salt and extra virgin olive oil to the bowl and increase mixer speed to medium for 3 minutes, until olive oil and salt is incorporated.
4. Turn dough out onto a lightly-floured surface and divide dough into four 9-ounce balls.
5. Set dough aside to rise at room temperature for 2 hours.
6. Cover dough and refrigerate for 24 hours.
7. Note: At this point, extra dough can be covered and frozen for later use. See thawing instructions below.
Beet Pesto1. Preheat oven to 380F.
2. In a large pan over medium heat, stir pine nuts until lightly browned; remove from heat.
3. Place beets on a baking sheet and season with salt, pepper, and a drizzle of oil.
4. Roast beets in the oven for 20 minutes, or until fork tender.
5. Remove beets from the oven and set aside to cool.
6. Once beets have cooled, transfer beets, basil, Grana Padano, garlic, lemon juice, horseradish, salt, pepper, canola oil, and reserved pine nuts into the bowl of a food processor.
7. Process Beet Pesto until almost smooth.
8. Set pesto aside until pizza assembly.
Confit Tomatoes1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. On a roasting pan, toss olive oil, parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper with sliced tomatoes.
3. Bake for 10 minutes, until tomatoes are blistered.
4. Remove tomatoes from the oven and let rest at room temperature until assembly.
Assembly1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. To make the pizza, remove dough from the refrigerator and let rest at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes.
3. On a lightly floured surface, flatten dough balls with the palm of your hand to press out the air; flip and press out the air on the second side.
4. Working in a clockwise direction, lightly press dough outwards until dough is 7 to 8 inches in diameter.
5. At this point, the dough should be more malleable. Continue pushing the dough outwards from the centre of the pizza, stretching it to 12 inches in diameter.
6. Transfer dough to a pizza stone or large baking sheet.
7. Repeat with remaining dough balls.
8. With a spoon, spread beet pesto to the edge of each pizza.
9. Scatter torn kale and tomato confit evenly over the pizzas.
10. Crumble the chvre over the pizza and add pine nuts, to finish.
11. Place pizza into the oven to bake until crust is a caramelized brown colour, about 4 to 6 minutes.
12. Repeat with remaining pizzas.
13. Garnish pizzas with lemon zest, dill, and fennel seeds, to finish.
14. Slice pizzas into 4 to 6 slices and serve.
Tips and Substitutions
Special Equipment: Stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment, food processor or blender
Leftover pizza dough can be frozen for later use. To thaw dough, remove from freezer and let rest at room temperature until completely thawed before use.
Source and Credits
Recipe courtesy of Maksym Ruzycky of Pizzeria Defina
See more: Bake, Cheese, Comfort Food, Herbs, Italian, Main, Tomatoes, Vegetables, Vegetarian