farmer’s market pizza with herbed crust

A stunning spring edition of Farmer’s Market Pizza with an Herbed Crust. A stroll around the farmer’s market scored me gorgeous edible flowers, micro rambo radish, purple kale, and fresh eggs. The dough is infused with scratch-made dried Italian herbs from my hometown in New York. A simple swath of the BEST extra virgin olive oil and smashed garlic with ripped mozzarella and there you have it.

I am not sure if it’s the photographer or the foodie in me, but I am absolutely inspired by the farmer’s market. In Savannah, the market sets up in Forsyth Park every Saturday. It’s so special to see all my favorite local joints join together and sell their wares. Local chefs are there perusing the goods for their next special and then there’s me, taking photos of it all.

This week, I merged all my findings with the idea that whatever I found was going on a flatbread/pizza crust. As a girl who loves girly things, I was elated to find edible flowers and was bound and determined to make that work on pizza. While I am a total meat eater, I figured the delicate flavors of tender veg and pop of garlic were perfect for a spring pizza, so I nixed the meat. You are going to LOVE the results.

Egg Yolk Trick

Crack the egg in your hand. Let the whites slip through your fingers, into a bowl. Save for a different recipe. Slide each yolk onto the pizza when it’s time according to the recipe below.

Growing up, mom and I had homemade pizza every Saturday. I loved the smell of the ripe tomato sauce with sautéed onions. Mom always grated the onions on a cheese grater until they were sludge for me, so I could get the flavor but not the chunks in the sauce.

We love garlic pizza too. My family makes it with a TON of fresh smashed garlic, grated Italian cheese, olive oil and mozzarella. To me, this is a taste of home.

Our pizzas never looked like this though. These pizzas are pretty. These pizzas are downright sexy. But trust me, they were NOT too beautiful to eat.

I love the idea of hand shaping the ‘za to get the exact thickness and shape you want. Growing up we stretched the dough the full length of the stone, which was excellent. These are fun, misshapen and rustic, I love that.

HAVE FUN!

ingredients

herbed dough

1 cup lukewarm water
1/2 tablespoon sugar
1/2 tablespoon active dry yeast
1/2 tablespoon salt
1 tablespoon olive oil, more for drizzling
3 cups King Arthur bread flour (it’s the best)
3 tablespoons dried Italian seasoning (basil, thyme, oregano, rosemary)
6-7 garlic cloves, smashed
fresh mozzarella
pecorino romano cheese, grated

toppings

tender kale, woody stems trimmed
micro greens (like rambo radish)
edible flowers
6-8 egg yolks (scroll up for my trick)
any veg would work!

directions

Dissolve the sugar, yeast, 1 tablespoon olive oil and salt in the lukewarm water. Pour into stand fitted with dough hook.
Add the flour and italian herbs to bowl. Knead the dough until it’s smooth and elastic, about 7 to 10 minutes.
Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl, covered with a damp dish towel and let it rise for 1 to 2 hours.
Gently deflate the dough, and divide it into two pieces. Hand stretch the dough into 8-12 inch circles.
Preheat oven to 500 degrees F. Place the rounds on pizza pans. Brush each round with olive oil; spread crushed garlic, grated cheese, ripped mozzarella and kale onto the dough.
Bake the pizzas for 15 minutes, until they’re golden brown and the cheese begins to bubble. Place 3-4 egg yolks on each pizza (see trick above). Bake for 3-5 more minutes. Remove the pizzas from the oven.
Immediately transfer pizzas to a cooling rack, so their bottoms don’t get soggy. After about 5 minutes add micro greens and edible flowers.
Slice and serve!