At this time of year I like to put apples in just about everything. So I decided to try baking an apple pizza.
My family was skeptical about the idea and made me order a traditional tomato pie as a backup just in case the apple version was a dud. I was proud to note that my pizza disappeared long before the pizzeria product.
Another time I think I’ll try throwing a little fresh rosemary or sage into the apple mixture. It was pretty flavorful this way, however. For those of you who can’t eat cheddar cheese, I recommend substituting a little goat feta.
Ingredients:
1 pound commercial pizza dough (make your own if you want to; I was feeling lazy!)
1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
butter as needed for sautéing
2 apples, cored (but not peeled) and sliced
1/2 teaspoon salt
cooking spray for pan
a tiny bit of extra-virgin olive oil for greasing the pan
1-1/2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
4 pieces cooked bacon, cut or ripped into tiny pieces (optional)
Instructions:
Bring the pizza dough to room temperature and preheat the oven as indicated in your dough instructions.
Sauté the onion slices in a little butter, starting with high heat and then reducing it to low. Stir occasionally and cook for 25 to 30 minutes, until the onions have caramelized.
Toss in the apple slices (and a little more butter if it is absolutely necessary) and cook, stirring, for 5 to 7 minutes. The apples should soften only slightly but should be lightly coated with onion/butter juice.
Remove the apple mixture from the heat and toss in the salt.
Roll and/or stretch the pizza dough out gently (this may take a few tries) so that it forms a 14-inch circle (or a rectangle to go onto a cookie sheet if you don’t have a pizza pan).
Spray your pan lightly with cooking spray and oil it even more lightly. Place the dough on the pan. Sprinkle the cheese on top of the dough; then spread on the apple-onion mixture. Toss on the bacon pieces if you’re using them. (We were serving half meat eaters and half vegetarians so we put bacon on half of the pizza. Everyone was happy.)
Bake the pizza until the cheese is nicely melted and the bottom of the crust turns golden brown. With my crust (from Trader Joe’s) and my oven (old) this took 10 to 12 minutes, but do check frequently. You won’t want your work of art to burn. Makes one medium pizza.
Truffle loves pizza--and fall--so she was happy with her tiny taste of apple pizza.
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