I was craving pizza last week and asked Jason if he was up for going to Pizzeria Delfina Friday evening. But it turned out to be a wet and dreary day, so I decided to bust out my Baking Steel and make dinner for the two of us instead.
And because I didn’t feel like braving the rain, I threw together a pie with ingredients I had on hand: kale, roasted carrots, Feta and (gasp!) brie cheese spread. I’m almost embarrassed to mention that last topping, but the darn thing was sitting in my fridge for over a year and I was determined to use it. The pizza was surprisingly delicious …
So much so that I decided to create an encore pie using real brie plus two of my favorite veggies. And so Jason and I dined on this brie, caramelized onion and mushroom pizza on Saturday. Despite its simplicity, this vegetarian dish is packed with flavor – I promise you won’t miss the meat, tomato sauce or lashings of cheese.
Next time you’re in the mood for healthy homemade food, give this recipe a go – and then tell me what you think!
Recipe adapted from Williams-Sonoma.
- 1¾ cups all-purpose flour
- 2 tablespoons yellow cornmeal
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- ⅛ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ¾ cup water
- 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
- 2 onions, halved and thinly sliced
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh rosemary
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- ¼ cup dry white wine
- 8 ounces cremini mushrooms, sliced
- 1 shallot, minced
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
- 4 ounces double cream brie cheese, cut into small pieces
- In a large bowl, combine the flour, cornmeal, salt and yeast.
- Add water to the flour mixture, stirring everything until it comes together to form a shaggy ball. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to rise at room temperature for 18-20 hours.
- Flour a work surface and scrape out the dough. Gently and quickly shape it into a ball by taking the ends of the dough and folding them into the middle; place seam side down on your work surface. If you don't plan to use the dough right away, wrap it in plastic and refrigerate for up to 3 days. When ready to use, remove the dough from the refrigerator and let sit at room temperature, covered with a damp cloth, for 2-3 hours before shaping.
- Heat 1½ tablespoons olive oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Add onions and rosemary, season with salt and pepper, and sauté until caramelized, about 20 minutes. Add the wine and simmer until evaporated, about 1 minute. Transfer the onions to a bowl and set aside.
- Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a fry pan over medium heat. Add mushrooms and shallot, season with salt and pepper, and sauté until the mushrooms are tender and juices evaporate, about 5 minutes. Remove from pan and stir in parsley.
- Adjust oven rack to the second-highest position and place Baking Steel on rack. Preheat oven to 500 degrees for approximately 45 minutes. (See notes)
- Stretch out dough to the desired shape and thickness and place on a floured pizza peel (or inverted baking sheet). If the dough is resisting, let it sit for about 5 minutes.
- Drizzle with remaining ½ tablespoon olive oil. Spread caramelized onions over the dough in an even layer all the way to the edges.
- Top with mushrooms and brie. Season with salt and pepper.
- Slide the pizza onto the Baking Steel and bake for 8-9 minutes or until crust is golden. Broil for 1-2 minutes to brown top, if desired.
Hi Allison, this looks so rich and delicious with the brie and mushrooms. I love a good gourmet pizza and this is definitely one to try!
Ironically, it’s quite healthy as there’s very little cheese – of course you could always add more! If you make it, let me know what you think!