Homegrown on a Pie

A pizza pie, that is.

I love eating from the garden.  Sometimes, though, what is ready to eat lends itself to some challenges with making a meal.  Recently, for example, a friend's foray into the garden brought in a couple of peppers (jalepeno, poblano, and alma paprika), a handful of late peas, and a giant fennel bulb.  I could figure out what to make with the peas and peppers, but I must admit:  the fennel stumped me a little bit.

Stumped me, that is, until I remembered a delicious pizza I had this past spring in Wabasha, Minnesota.  It combined a delicious crust with an odd mix of toppings: fennel seeds, dried figs sliced thinly, and prosciutto ham.

They called it "Fennel, The Pig and The Fig".

It was amazing.  So, with my fennel bulb, I set out to make my own homemade version.  First, I started with my go-to dough recipe (you can find it here) and patted it into a 12 inch cast iron skillet.  I made my own garlic butter sauce by smashing softened butter with a tiny bit of salt, ground pepper, and garlic powder, and spread this generously over the dough. Then, I julienned the fennel into little thin matchsticks.  I figured this would let them cook easily as the pizza baked, and would make them bite-sized tidbits instead of big chunks.  A handful of dried figs from the pantry came next, also sliced thin, and then the last of the double smoked bacon (easily crisped up in the oven--the only way to make bacon!) stood in for the fancy thin Italian ham.  A good cup or so of hand-shredded mozzarella covered everything to perfection.  A light dusting of freshly ground nutmeg and into the oven it went, to bubble and brown at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes.

The end result was so good, I couldn't wait long enough to snap a picture of it.  Slightly licorish in flavor, with the heady richness of bacon combining with the sweet chewy flavor of the dried figs...oh, sheer heaven.

Let this be a reminder that playing with your food (and food combinations) can be remarkably wonderful.  Have fun inventing your own pizza versions with whatever comes out of your garden!