Pizza with aragula, goatcheese and sundried tomatoes

The first time I made my own pizza I fell in love all over again with it. It is so simple to make. Granted, you need time, a lot of time, but since that is not an issue any more I have made quite a few pizzas. Most of them are simple, but I am also trying to think out-of-the-box.

I do feel a little awkward posting a recipe for pizza, but I've noticed that it happens quite often so I'm just going to give it a shot.

Like I said I try to make new combinations every time and if at all possible with ingredients I have left-over. So the last time I wanted to make pizza I had several ingredients at my dispossal, including my own home-grown aragula which had to be used before it grew too big.

I ended up with a combination of aragula, soft goatcheese and sundried tomatoes. A combination I would normally use in a salad. But you know what? It actually works great on a pizza!

I realize it is a very sloppy recipe, but you should consider it more as a guideline. Just let it inspire you.

So, if you're looking for a new, fresh combination for a pizza, that is great on summer days.... Look no further!

Recipe

Pizza with aragula, goatcheese and sundried tomatoes

Ingredients:

1 portion pizza dough
Pizza sauce (will post a simple recipe soon)
50-100 gram (2 ounces) soft goatcheese like Bettine blanc
Sundried tomatoes, to taste
A couple of handsful of aragula
A handful of chopped walnuts
Some honey

Instructions:

Prepare the pizza dough.

Preheat the oven (and your pizza stone) as high as your oven can go.

When you have laid out the dough, put on some pizza sauce.

Put chunks of the goatcheese on the pizza. Add the tomatoes and the chopped walnuts.

Bake the pizza for about 8 minutes.

When you've taken the pizza out of the oven, put the aragula on top and drizzle some honey over it.

Serve immediately.

Thin Crust Pizza Dough

For some time now I've been making my own pizza dough and to tell you the truth.... I had not thought it was so easy... I've tried out a couple of recipes, which all worked out great, but most of them were a little bready and I really like my pizza thin.

So, when looking for another recipe I found one at Smitten Kitchen. What appealed to me most was a picture where she was rolling out the dough with a rolling pin. Most pizza doughs are way too sticky to roll out with a rolling pin, but it looked okay! This opened the possibility to roll the dough very thin! I was sold. I immediately thought of some things I could put on top of the pizza and set to work. I have to say... I was very pleased with the end result. I'll definitely be using this recipe from now on! I did find the dough to be a bit salty, so I'm tuning that down next time. I also doubled the recipe, so I ended up with two pizzas, instead of one which works out better with the four of us.

Recipe

Thin Crust Pizza Dough

Yield: 1 pizza, not too big

Ingredients:

1 1/2 cup flour
1 teaspoon salt (or a little less)
3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
1/2 cup lukewarm water
1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions:

In a stand mixer stir the flour, salt and yeast briefly.

Add the water and olive oil and mix with the dough hook on low speed for two-three minutes.

Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, turn once to coat and cover the bowl with plastic wrap.

Let the dough rise for 1-2 hours until the dough has doubled in size.

Put the dough on a floured surface and gently press the air out.

Shape the dough into a ball, cover with plastic wrap and let rest for 20 minutes.

Sprinkle a pizza stone or baking sheet with cornmeal and preheat your oven to it's top temperature.

Roll out the dough and top with your favourite toppings and seasonings.

Bake for 8-10 minutes until the crust is slightly blistered and golden brown.