Photo by Lorelle Del Matto
Caramelized Onion and Fennel Pizza with Sausage
I love pizza and I’m not alone – 94% of Americans eat pizza on a regular basis according to pizza.com (Reference 1) which also posts:
•The average American eats 46 slices per year
•Kids between the ages of 3 and 11 prefer pizza over all other foods for lunch and dinner
•36% of people think pizza is the perfect breakfast
•Women are more likely to order vegetables on pizza
•Halloween is one of the top 5 pizza sales days; What are the other 4? (answers follow recipe).
Photo by Lorelle Del Matto
A USDA Dietary Data Brief (Reference 2) reports that 13% of Americans aged 2 and over consume pizza on any given day. Given its frequent consumption, pizza contributes a significant amount of nutrients to the average American diet.
On the day it is eaten, pizza provides about 25% of one’s calories, 33% of calcium, saturated fat and sodium and 50% of one’s lycopene intake.
Saturday is the most popular night for pizza. That’s when I generally have it- and most of the time I make my own, often with family or friends.
Making your own pizza allows you to use more interesting and higher quality toppings than you find in most pizza restaurants, even the “authentic” and artisan ones.
I always make at least three varieties. Photo by Lorelle Del Matto
If you think pizza is a “junk food” and feel guilty about eating it – load it with veggies, lean proteins and start with a whole grain crust.
Photo by Lorelle Del Matto
A good crust is essential. Over the years I’ve experimented with various flours and flavorings, including imported Italian 00 flour, herbs, spices, potatoes, cornmeal, cheese and more.
Make your own dough and you can match the crust to the topping – such as a dill crust with a smoked salmon pizza or a cornmeal crust with barbecued chicken tenders.
My current go-to recipe for the crust is Thin Crust Whole Wheat Pizza (Reference 3) made with whole wheat (I use white whole wheat) and bread flour. Made and chilled for a day or two before baking, it develops a full flavor and spreads easily to a thin crust.
A common complaint about homemade pizza is a soggy crust. Avoid this by using sauces and toppings sparingly and pre-cooking water-loaded veggies. I get a crisp crust by baking pizza on my gas grill or on a baking steel in the oven at about 500°.
Here is one of my favorite pizza recipes:
Photo by Lorelle Del Matto
Caramelized Onion and Fennel Pizza with Sausage
I suggest a blend of half part-skim mozzarella and half of a more pungent cheese such as an imported provolone or a syrah-soaked or balsamic soaked cheese. There’s no sauce on this pizza, just a layer of cheese covered by the onion-fennel-sausage topping.
2 tablespoons olive oil, more for greasing pan
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper, optional
1 large onion, thinly sliced
1 large bulb fennel, thinly sliced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 to 2 ready-to-eat or precooked lean Italian sausages, chopped
3 to 4 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or thyme
About 2 1/2 cups shredded cheese*, more to taste
1 pizza dough, about 10 ounces for a thin crust
1. In a large skillet with lid, heat olive oil over medium heat. Add crushed red pepper, onion and fennel slices. Sprinkle vegetables with a pinch or two of salt and stir once or twice. Cover skillet and cook for 5 to 10 minutes, stirring once or twice and adjusting heat as needed, until vegetables release some of their liquid and begin to soften. Uncover and continue to cook, stirring often, until vegetables turn golden brown, about 30 minutes. Add garlic and sausage and cook, stirring often, for a minute or two to cook garlic and heat sausage. Remove from heat. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. Roll or spread dough to a 14-inch circle. Sprinkle cheese evenly on dough. Spread topping over cheese. Bake pizza according to what works best with your oven or grill and other equipment. (See my Oven and Grill methods below.) Bake until crust is golden brown, cheese melts and topping is hot. Cook time will vary. Remove from oven and sprinkle with herbs. Place pizza on cutting board and cut into wedges. Makes 1 (14-inch) pizza.
Oven with Baking Steel: Place baking steel in middle position of oven and preheat to 500°. Place dough on an oiled piece of parchment paper and roll or spread to a 14-inch circle. (Cooking on parchment paper makes it easy to slide the pizza from the peel to the steel and the steel stays clean.) Sprinkle cheese evenly on dough. Top with vegetable-sausage mixture. With a pizza peel, slide parchment with pizza onto steel. Bake 7 to 10 minutes or until done as described in step 2. With pizza peel, remove pizza to cutting board.
Gas Grill: Preheat grill to medium hot. Place dough on an oiled piece of parchment paper and roll or spread to a 14-inch circle. With pizza peel transfer dough and parchment to grill. When the dough is firm, use grilling tools to flip crust over, and discard the parchment. Carefully add toppings to the prebaked side of the crust. Cover grill and cook until done. For best results, use a light hand with toppings and make sure the toppings are pre-cooked (not raw), and at room temperature, not straight from the refrigerator.
ANSWER: Top 5 pizza sales days: Super Bowl Sunday, New Year’s Eve, Halloween, the day before Thanksgiving, New Year’s Day
References
1. http://pizza.com/fun-facts
2. Consumption of Pizza, What We Eat in America, NHANES 2007-2010Highlights, Food Surveys Research Group, Dietary Data Brief No. 11, February 2014 Donna G. Rhodes, MS, RD; Meghan E. Adler, MS, RD; John C. Clemens, MS; Randy P. LaComb, MS; and Alanna J. Moshfegh, MS, RD
http://www.ars.usda.gov/SP2UserFiles/Place/80400530/pdf/DBrief/11_consumption_of_pizza_0710.pdf
3. Cook’s Illustrated Magazine, May-June, 2015, p. 24 OR The Complete America’s Test Kitchen TV Show Cookbook, 2001-2015 by the Editors at America’s Test Kitchen., 2014, p. 334.
© Lorelle Del Matto 2015
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