4.16.2010

Friday Feast: Mushroom Leek Pizza

I happened upon a copy of The Pioneer Woman Cooks at the local library and found a recipe for pizza in it.
To be honest, the cookbook was not to my liking, since we rarely have meat in our house and of course cowboys need their meat and cholesterol. The book has some nice anecdotes in it, though I'm not quite sure what all the fuss is over the Pioneer Woman anyway. But that's another post.

There was a recipe for Potato Leek pizza that I wanted to try. Instead I used mushrooms because I don't have a mandolin to cut the potatoes paper-thin, and didn't want to worry about an overcooked pizza with raw potatoes on top. I used smoked Gouda and cheddar cheeses instead of the goat cheese, because that's one of the few foods that I dislike. I also modified the crust by adding some Parmesan cheese, flax meal and herbs.

Mushroom Leek Pizza (makes 3 pizzas)
Pizza dough
4 cups flour
1 1/2 cup warm water
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese
1/4 cup flax meal (optional)
1 tsp oregano
1 tsp rosemary
1 tsp thyme
1 tsp active dry yeast
1 tsp salt

Mushroom/Leek Topping
4 leeks, chopped and washed well to remove sand
2 lb baby bella mushrooms, sliced

2 tbsp butter
2 tbsp white wine
salt/pepper
1 cup shredded smoked Gouda cheese
1 cup shredded sharp cheddar (or other cheese that you like)

I made the dough in a bread machine, so that's how I'll explain the recipe. If you want to make it by hand, check out the Pioneer Woman's recipe.
Step 1
Put the lukewarm water and olive oil into the bread machine pan, then add the flour, salt, Parmesan, herbs. Make a little well in the top of the mixture to add the yeast, then turn the machine on to the dough setting. On my machine, this will take an hour and a half, so give yourself enough time before your anticipated lunch or dinner time.
Step 2
When the dough is done, let it sit in the machine to stay warm while you saute the mushrooms in the butter.
Add your cleaned, chopped leeks to the pan. I tend to chop them first, then soak them in water so the sand runs to the bottom.
Then I lift them out of the water and rinse them again in a strainer and shake them dry.
Step 3
When the leeks and mushrooms are browned, add the white wine, salt and pepper and cook until much of the wine is evaporated. Preheat the oven to 500 degree and shred the cheeses as you wait for the wine to evaporate. Or drink a ginger beer.
Step 4
Assemble the pizzas! Spray your cooking sheets or pizza pans, then I sprinkle with corn meal.
Cut the dough into 3 sections, or 2 or 4, depending on the size of the pans and how large/small you want the pizzas. I then stretch the pizza by holding it and letting its weight pull itself down.
I rotate it as I go. I'm certainly not good at throwing it in the air, and with all the time that goes into this, I don't want to have to throw it away when it falls on the floor.

Then stretch it onto a pan.
I'll admit that this can be tricky, especially since it's hard to get my edges thinned out. But that's ok, since this is a rustic pizza. And just ignore that hole--it will heal itself in the oven!
Step 5
Divide the leek/mushroom mixture among the pizzas, top with cheese and bake for 8-12 minutes or until browned and the cheese is bubbly.
Enjoy with a salad, a beer, or even cold the next day.


7 comments:

Naomi said...

Looks yummy! I love the Pioneer Woman. She takes purty pictures and you know I love those basset hounds...

JDaniel4's Mom said...

This looks yummy. I buy the ball of dough at the store and have the worst time stretching it.

Owen's Mom said...

Oh, you really are mean! I already planned out the week's menue & now have to amend it. Darn you!

...I agree about the PW fuss. I think your version sounds far better anyway! Yum...

Nicole Feliciano said...

Delish! We love mushrooms 'round here and that is my favorite ginger ale. It's got such a nice kick to it. Hope you had a fab weekend..

Betsy (zen-mama.com) said...

Kathleen,
This looks just delicious! I'll definitely try it. We love to cook pizzas at our house. Your crust look wonderful, too.

Thanks for stopping by my blog!
Betsy

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