5. Sauteed Vegetable Pizza with Barbecued Beef
Recipe courtesy Wolfgang Puck
Twenty-two restaurants in nine states
Created for TIME Magazine
Yield: Makes four 8-in. pizzas
1 lb. cooked, shredded beef
¼ cup barbecue sauce
About ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
¼ lb. fresh mushrooms, stemmed, cleaned, and thinly sliced (about 1-1/2 cups)
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 Asian eggplant (3 oz.), trimmed and thinly sliced
1 large or 2 small green zucchini (8 to 10 oz.), trimmed and cut into cubes
1 large or 2 small yellow zucchini (8 to 10 oz.), trimmed and cut into cubes
1 small red or yellow bell pepper (about 4 oz.), trimmed, seeded, and cut into thin slices
2 cups grated mozzarella cheese (8 oz.)
2 cups grated Fontina cheese (8 oz.)
1 lb. Roma tomatoes, ends trimmed and sliced
4 tsp. freshly grated Parmesan cheese
pizza dough (recipe follows)
2 tbsp. chili and garlic oil (recipe follows)
Season the meat with salt and pepper to taste. Toss it with the barbecue sauce and set aside.
In a small skillet, heat 2-1/2 tbsp. olive oil. Sauté the mushrooms for 3 or 4 minutes, adding a bit more oil if necessary. The mushrooms should be al dente. Season lightly with salt and pepper, drain, and set aside.
Wipe the skillet and heat 2 more tablespoons of the oil. Sauté the eggplant until al dente, for 3 to 4 minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper, drain, and set aside.
In a medium skillet, heat 2 tbsp. olive oil. Sauté the green and yellow zucchini until al dente, about 3 minutes, adding a bit more oil as necessary. Season lightly with salt and pepper, drain, and set aside.
In a small skillet, heat 1 tbsp. oil. Sauté the red or yellow pepper until al dente, about 2 minutes. Season lightly with salt and pepper, drain, and set aside.
Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 500 ° F.
To assemble the pizza, on a lightly floured surface, stretch or roll out the dough into 8-in. rounds and brush the inner circle with Chili and Garlic Oil. Sprinkle each pizza first with ½ cup of the mozzarella, then with ½ cup of the Fontina. Divide the vegetables among the pizzas and layer with the sliced tomatoes, mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini, and peppers. Evenly divide the barbecued beef over each pizza. Sprinkle 1 tsp. Parmesan over the top of each pizza.
Slide each pizza gently onto the stone and bake until the crust is nicely browned, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer the pizza onto a firm surface and cut into slices with a pizza cutter or a very sharp knife. Serve immediately.
All-Purpose Pizza Dough (With Some Pizza-Topping Suggestions)
Recipe courtesy of Wolfgang Puck, Wolfgang Puck Makes it Easy, Rutledge Hill Press, 2004
Yield: Makes 4 small pizzas or 2 12- to 14-in. pizzas
1 packet active dry yeast
1.5 cups warm water (105 to 115 ° F.)
1 tbsp. honey
2 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil, plus additional for brushing the pizza crusts
3 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp. salt
In the bowl of a stand mixer, or a large bread bowl, dissolve the yeast in the water. Add the honey and stir together. Let sit 2 or 3 minutes or until the water is cloudy. Stir in the olive oil.
Using a stand mixer: Combine the flour and salt and add it to the yeast mixture all at once. Mix it together using the paddle attachment, then change to the dough hook. Knead at low speed for 2 minutes, then turn up to medium speed and knead until the dough comes cleanly away from the sides of the bowl and clusters around the dough hook, about 5 minutes. Hold on to the machine if it bounces around. Turn out onto a clean work surface and knead by hand for 2 or 3 minutes longer. The dough should be smooth and elastic. When you press it with your finger, it should slowly spring back, and it should not feel tacky.
Kneading the dough by hand: Mix together the yeast, honey, water and olive oil as directed in a medium-size or large bowl. Combine the flour and salt. Fold in the flour a cup at a time using a large wooden spoon. As soon as you can scrape the dough out in one piece, scrape it onto a lightly floured work surface and knead it for 10 minutes, adding flour as necessary until the dough is smooth and elastic.
Using a food processor: Mix together the yeast, honey, water and olive oil in a small bowl or measuring cup. Place the flour and salt in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse once or twice. Then, with the machine running, pour in the yeast mixture. Process until the dough forms a ball on the blades. Remove the dough from the processor and knead it on a lightly floured surface for a couple of minutes, adding flour as necessary, until it is smooth and elastic.
1. Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly oiled bowl, rounded side down first, then rounded side up. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap, and leave it in a warm spot to rise for 30 minutes (you can leave it for up to an hour). When it is ready, the dough will stretch as it is gently pulled.
2. Divide the dough into 2 to 4 equal balls, depending on how large you want your pizzas to be. Shape each ball by gently pulling down the sides of the dough and tucking each pull under the bottom of the ball, working round and round the ball 4 or 5 times. Then, on a smooth, unfloured surface, roll the ball around under your palm until the ball feels smooth and firm, about 1 minute. Put the balls on a tray or platter, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and leave them to rest for at least 30 minutes. At this point, the dough balls can be covered with plastic wrap and refrigerated for 1 to 2 days. You will need to punch them down again when you are ready to roll out the pizzas.
3. Preheat the oven to 500 ° F. Place a pizza stone in the oven to heat. In the meantime, press out the dough. Place a ball of dough on a lightly floured surface. While turning the dough, press down on its center with the heel of your hand, gradually spreading it out to a circle 7 to 8 inches in diameter for small pizzas, or 12 to 14 for larger pizzas. Alternatively, use a rolling pin to get an even circle. With your fingers, form a slightly thicker raised rim around edge of the circle. Brush everything but the rim with a little olive oil, then top the pizza as you like. You can transfer the pizza to a lightly oiled pizza pan if you like, or bake it directly on the stone.
4. Depending on your taste, spread the dough with marinara sauce or pesto sauce (about 2 tablespoons for small pizzas, 1/4 to 1/3 cup for larger ones). If you don't have sauce, a can of tomatoes, drained, chopped, and seasoned with salt and chopped sautéed garlic, will do. Top with the shredded or grated cheeses of your choice (I like a mixture of mozzarella and fontina). Add thinly sliced vegetables such as Roma tomatoes, pitted olives, red peppers, or red onions; sautéed sliced vegetables such as mushrooms, eggplant, zucchini, or artichoke hearts; thinly sliced cured meats such as pepperoni or prosciutto; or small pieces of lightly cooked chicken or shrimp. Add a lightly sprinkling of grated Parmesan or crumbled goat cheese or blue cheese and some minced or julienned fresh herbs such as basil or oregano or dried herbs such as thyme, oregano, or herbes de Provence.
5. Dust a pizza paddle (also called a baker's peel) with semolina and slip it under the pizza. Slide the pizza onto the baking stone or into the pizza pan (or place the pizza pan on the stone, the heat from the stone will help it achieve a crisp crust). Bake until the cheese topping is bubbling and the rim of the crust is deep golden brown, about 10 minutes.
6. Use the pizza paddle to slide the pizza out of the oven and onto a cutting board. Use a pizza cutter or a sharp knife to cut the pizza into slices and serve immediately.
Chili and Garlic Oil
Recipe courtesy of Wolfgang Puck, Pizza, Pasta & More!, Random House, 2000
Yield: Makes 2 cups
1 whole head garlic (about 2-1/2 oz.), cloves separated and peeled
2 cups extra virgin olive oil
1 tbsp. red pepper flakes
In a small saucepan, combine the garlic cloves and olive oil and bring them to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer until the garlic turns golden brown, 10 to 15 minutes. (Do not let the garlic get too dark because the oil will have a bitter taste).
Let cool and then add the red pepper flakes. Infuse for at least 2 hours to allow the flavors to blend. Refrigerate in a covered container.