COLUMN: A pizza that makes every November day a feast
Have you ever noticed that just about the second Halloween is over everybody starts talking about Thanksgiving? Which makes sense, because Thanksgiving is what November is all about. People love talking about all the delicious food they’ll be making and eating.
The only problem is that Thanksgiving is just one meal. I mean, I know it’s a meal filled with family time, tradition and holiday cheer, but if you really boil it down, you have to admit it’s only one meal.
And I count 29 other ones in November that nobody seems to care about at all. Why doesn’t anybody talk about what you can eat while you’re waiting for Thanksgiving?
There are so many delicious foods in season this time of year and so many creative twists on traditional favorites that we should all be going crazy in our kitchens over the possibilities.
For example, did you know that if you toss some fall vegetables with a little olive oil and roast them in your oven, they will become the most delicious thing you’ve ever tasted? And if you spread them on a pizza crust with a little mozzarella and ricotta cheese, you will have the perfect non-Thanksgiving dinner to celebrate all the random and great days besides Thanksgiving.
Roasted Fall Vegetable Pizza
For the Roasted Fall Vegetables:
1 pound (about 1 small) butternut squash, peeled, seeded and cut into 1 1/2 inch pieces
1 pound red potatoes, scrubbed and cut into 1 inch chunks
1/2 pound carrots (about 3-4 medium), peeled, halved lengthwise and cut into 1 1/2-inch lengths
1/2 large red onion, peeled and quartered
3 medium cloves garlic, peeled and smashed
1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
salt and pepper
For the Pizza:
1 (1 pound) pizza crust dough (homemade or store bought will work, just be sure to thaw ahead of time if it’s frozen)
Cornmeal and olive oil for the pan
2 cups (about 8 ounces) shredded mozzarella cheese
1 recipe Roasted Fall Vegetables
1 cup ricotta cheese
1 teaspoon dried rosemary or 1 tablespoon fresh
To make the roasted vegetables:
Preheat the oven to 450 F.
In a large mixing bowl, combine the butternut squash, potatoes, carrots, onions and garlic. Drizzle with the olive oil and toss until well coated.
Spread the coated vegetables out onto two baking sheets, each lined with parchment paper. (If you don’t have parchment paper you can use tinfoil or just cook them straight on the pan. Lining the pan just makes for easier cleanup.)
Make sure the vegetables are in a single layer so they are roasted instead of just steamed. Sprinkle them generously with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Bake for 20-25 minutes, or until they are soft all the way through and starting to brown. (You may need more or less time depending on how thick you cut them.)
At this point, these vegetables are going to smell so delicious you’re going to want to eat them before you put them on your pizza.
That’s OK; but if you do want to keep going with this recipe, it’s a good idea to take them out before they are fully cooked (since they will continue to cook on the pizza crust, and you don’t want them to get too soft and mushy).
To make the pizza:
Keep the oven heated at 450 F.
Sprinkle cornmeal onto your baking sheet or brush it with a little olive oil to prevent sticking. Spread your dough out into an oval of whatever thickness you like.
Prebake the crust 10-12 minutes, or until it is almost all the way done.
Remove the crust from the oven and sprinkle half of the mozzarella cheese over it.
Layer the vegetables on top of the cheese. You may have a few left over, depending on how much topping you like on your pizza.
Sprinkle with remaining mozzarella cheese and dot with teaspoon-sized dollops of ricotta cheese.
Sprinkle the rosemary over the pizza and bake for about 10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and the edges of the crust are golden brown.
Note: there are many other delicious fall vegetables you could add or substitute in this recipe, like acorn squash, sweet potatoes, rutabaga or Yukon gold potatoes. Feel free to get creative with it.
– Jennelle Clark is a senior majoring in psychology who runs the online food blog foodislikeart.blogspot.com. She loves making, eating and sharing her food. Send comments to jenn.wilson@aggiemail.usu.edu.