Fridays are Pizza & Martini Nights at our house.  Eric puts together our homemade pizza while I play bartender, eat the cheese while Eric is trying to put it on the pizza and evenly redistribute all the ingredients when Eric’s back is turned. Early in the summer, I had a First Foray Friday. It was the first time in a really, really long time that Eric wasn’t home on a Friday for pizza night. “First Foray” refers to my first time using Eric’s pizza stone to make a homemade pizza on my own. (We are staunch believers of pizza stones making the best pizzas at home.)  There’s a bit of finesse involved in transferring a pizza from the peel (the pizza paddle) to the hot stone in the oven or on the grill. Since getting the pizza stone a year ago, that part of the process has always been Eric’s job. I had been watching Eric’s technique and felt fairly confident that I could to it, but I was still a bit nervous about ending up with a folded or wrinkled, doughy mess for dinner. I’m happy to say that my transfer technique was flawless and unhappy to say that I had additional opportunities to practice said technique!

That first pizza tasted okay, but it was nothing special. Additional experimentation ensued for the next month or so. We finally came up with a pizza that was blog-worthy after eating a Portabello Pizza at Piecasso Pizzeria & Lounge in Stowe, Vermont while on vacation. I included the dough recipe I used, but the recipe will work just as well with a purchased whole-wheat or regular pizza dough. (Here’s the link for my regular pizza dough recipe.) We are both happy to have Eric back at his pizza transferring job, too!

Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough (adapted from eatingwell.com)

Active Time: 35 minutes  Total Time: 2 hours

• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
•  2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

Prepare the dough: In a bread machine, add all the ingredients for the dough into the bread pan in the order required by the manufacturer and choose the dough setting. When the dough is ready, proceed with the pizza instructions below.

(To make the dough without a bread machine: Stir 1 tablespoon of lukewarm water, the yeast and the sugar in a large bowl. Let it stand until the yeast has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Stir in the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour and salt until the dough begins to come together.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead it until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes or mix the dough in a food processor or stand mixer with a dough hook until it forms a ball. Continue to mix the dough until it is smooth and elastic, about 1 minute more in the food processor or 4 to 5 minutes more on low speed in a stand mixer. Place the dough in a bowl that has been coated with the tablespoon of oil and turn the dough to coat it.

Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel, then set it aside in a warm, draft-free place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour. Punch the dough down and proceed with the pizza.)

Spinach & Mushroom Pizza (an original recipe by Eric & Linda Heuser inspired by Piecasso)  Serves 3-4

Prep time: 20 minutes  Bake time: 8-10 minutes  Cool time: 5 minutes

Pizza Ingredients:

• 1 pound pizza dough, homemade or store bought
• cornmeal & flour, for dusting
• 4 ounces frozen spinach, thawed & drained
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 6 ounces cremini mushrooms
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3-4 ounces goat cheese (chevre)
• 1/4 -1/2 of a red onion, sliced
• fresh basil or dried basil & oregano
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 450° or the grill to medium-high with the pizza stone in the oven or on the grill.

Wash & slice the mushrooms. Sauté them in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil with half of the sliced garlic for 10 minutes, until the mushrooms have cooked down. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set the mushrooms aside.

Sprinkle the peel (pizza paddle) generously with cornmeal to evenly coat it. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the dough with flour and gently push it into a thick, flattened circle using your fingertips. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to the desired size for the stone or pan. Transfer the dough from the rolling surface onto the prepared peel. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the dough and add the remaining 2 cloves of sliced garlic. Spread the goat cheese on the oil & garlic covered dough.

Sprinkle the mozzarella cheese evenly over the goat cheese covered dough.

Top the cheeses with the sautéed mushrooms & garlic, then add the spinach and red onion. Sprinkle the oregano & basil over the top if using dried herbs.

Bake the pizza for 8-10 minutes in the oven or 6-8 minutes on the grill, until the crust starts to brown. (If you are using fresh basil, add it to the pizza halfway through the cook time.) Remove the pizza from the oven or grill and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before slicing & serving it.

So glad to be sharing pizza nights with Eric again!  ~Linda

Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough (adapted from eatingwell.com)

Active Time: 35 minutes  Total Time: 2 hours

• 3/4 cup lukewarm water
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1/2 teaspoon salt
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• 1/2 teaspoon dried basil
• 1 clove garlic, crushed
• 1 cup whole-wheat flour
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
•  2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast

Prepare the dough: In a bread machine, add all the ingredients for the dough into the bread pan in the order required by the manufacturer and choose the dough setting. When the dough is ready, proceed with the pizza.

(To make the dough without a bread machine: Stir 1 tablespoon of lukewarm water, the yeast and the sugar in a large bowl. Let it stand until the yeast has dissolved, about 5 minutes. Stir in the whole-wheat flour, all-purpose flour and salt until the dough begins to come together.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead it until it is smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes or mix the dough in a food processor or stand mixer with a dough hook until it forms a ball. Continue to mix the dough until it is smooth and elastic, about 1 minute more in the food processor or 4 to 5 minutes more on low speed in a stand mixer. Place the dough in a bowl that has been coated with the tablespoon of oil and turn the dough to coat it.

Cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel, then set it aside in a warm, draft-free place until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour. Punch the dough down and proceed with the pizza.)

Spinach & Mushroom Pizza (an original recipe by Eric & Linda Heuser inspired by Piecasso)  Serves 3-4

Prep time: 20 minutes  Bake time: 8-10 minutes  Cool time: 5 minutes

Pizza Ingredients:

• 1 pound pizza dough, homemade or store bought
• cornmeal & flour, for dusting
• 4 ounces frozen spinach, thawed & drained
• 3 tablespoons olive oil, divided
• 6 ounces cremini mushrooms
• 4 cloves garlic, sliced
• 4 ounces shredded mozzarella cheese
• 3-4 ounces goat cheese (chevre)
• 1/4 -1/2 of a red onion, sliced
• fresh basil or dried basil & oregano
• salt and pepper

Instructions:

Preheat the oven to 450° or the grill to medium-high with the pizza stone in the oven or on the grill.

Wash & slice the mushrooms. Sauté them in 1 tablespoon of the olive oil with half of the sliced garlic for 10 minutes, until the mushrooms have cooked down. Add salt and pepper to taste. Set them aside.

Sprinkle the peel (pizza paddle) generously with cornmeal to evenly coat it. Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Dust the dough with flour and gently push it into a thick, flattened circle using your fingertips. Using a rolling pin, roll out the dough to the desired size for the stone or pan. Transfer the dough from the rolling surface onto the prepared peel. Drizzle the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over the dough and add the remaining 2 cloves of sliced garlic. Spread the goat cheese on the oil & garlic covered dough, then sprinkle the mozzarella cheese evenly over it. Top the cheeses with the sautéed mushrooms & garlic, then add the spinach and red onion. Sprinkle the oregano & basil over the top and bake the pizza for 8-10 minutes in the oven or 6-8 minutes on the grill, until the crust starts to brown. Remove the pizza from the oven or grill and allow it to rest for 5 minutes before slicing & serving.