All Photos © Christine Elise McCarthy 2015
To see images of my past posts & get links to the recipes – look on my Pinterest board – HERE.
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I must admit – some dishes are harder to make look pretty than others & my troubles are compounded by a full-time job that means I can only photograph things early, before work, or late – after work. I am certainly not going to make a pizza at 8am & – honestly – the light at 8pm sucks. So – many of my photos lately have been a tad underwhelming & I find that very depressing. But – I do not have the luxury of a blog that earns me any money so – this is just a reality I am having to deal with – the fact that I am in a challenging food photography world for a while.
It is especially disappointing when the dish is as outrageously delicious at this pizza was. I like to go light on cheeses so this pizza looks sorta dark & not as pretty as others I have made but – if you like mushrooms – you are in for a treat. As one of my three mushrooms – I used this jarred sauce here:
I have to say – I am not a fan of jarred sauces (Rao’s Arrabbiata as a notable exception) but this stuff here is a revelation! It is heavily saturated with the flavor of porcini mushrooms. I recommend it highly.
My second mushroom element was a last minute drizzle of truffle oil – after the pizza came out of the oven.
My third mushroom element was just a handful of sliced mushrooms sauted in olive oil with some thinly sliced zucchini.
I used a new recipe for the pizza dough. It came from How Sweet It is – and is intended expressly for a very thin crust. It is an easy no–rise dough & I found it wonderful. The recipe is HERE.
I used two kinds of cheese simply because I had them. If you don’t like blue cheese – skip it.
Fried sage rounded out the flavors & gave this pizza an autumnal flavor. Sage is a perfect companion for mushrooms so – if you haven’t tried it – you must.
3-Mushroom, Zucchini & Fried Sage Pizza with Blue Cheese and Fresh Mozzarella
(quantities of each are up to you – to suit your taste)
INGREDIENTS
Pizza dough of your choice (I used THIS)
Mushroom pasta sauce
Truffle oil
Sliced mushrooms
Sliced zucchini
Fresh sage
Olive oil
Crumbled blue cheese
Fresh mozzarella – sliced
S&P
Crushed red pepper (optional)
DIRECTIONS
Heat the oven to 500 degrees.
Prepare the dough & roll out some to a pizza of shape & size that you determine.
With a tablespoon or two of olive oil in a pan – fry the sage a few minutes – being careful not to burn it. Drain on a paper towel.
Add the mushrooms & zucchini to the pan with a few pinches of S&P. Saute on high until soft.
Put your dough on a cooking sheet (covered with parchment paper – highly recommended – or greased). Top with sauce, vegetables, sage and cheeses.
Cook for about 10-15 minutes – depending on your oven & how done you like your crust & cheese. When it looks read – take it out & drizzle with truffle oil. Add some crushed red pepper – if you like – and eat the whole fucking thing alone. I did!
Delightful-Delicious-Delovely 