Ingredients:
2 medium or 4 small artichokes
1/2 lemon
1 pancetta
39/2500 Quart(s) extra virgin olive oil
1 finely chopped onion, yellow
1 Ounce(s) or to taste, salt and black pepper
1 large, sliced thinly leek
3/4 pizza dough
1 for dusting, semolina or corn meal
2 coarsely grated, mozzarella cheese, mozzarella
3 freshly grated cheese, parmesan |
Directions: Directions
Place a pizza stone, baking tiles or an inverted baking sheet on the
lowest rack of a cold oven; preheat for 30 minutes to 500 degrees F
or the highest setting.
For each of the artichokes, peel away and discard the tough outer
leaves, snapping them off at the base, until you reach the pale
yellow leaves with the darker green tops. Slice off the darkest green
top and rub the artichoke with the cut side of the lemon half.
With a paring knife, trim the artichoke where you snapped off the
leaves, removing any green portions. Rub with lemon. Trim the bottom
1/4 inch off the stem and pare away the tough outer skin. With a
melon baller or paring knife, remove the fuzzy choke from the center
of the artichoke. Cut the heart into quarters, then cut each quarter
into 4 pieces. Squeeze the lemon into a bowl of water and place the
artichoke pieces into the acidulated water to keep them from turning
brown.
Heat a skillet over the medium heat, add pacetta and cook, stirring
until golden about 4 minutes. Drain the pancetta on paper towels.
Pour off fat from the skillet. Add 1 1/2 tsp. of the olive oil and
onions to the skillet. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the onions
are soft but not brown, about 3 minutes. Add the drained artichoke
pieces and stir to mix well. Add pepper and 2/3 cup water. Cover and
cook over low heat until the artichoke pieces are tender and most of
the liquid has cooked away, about 15 minutes. Add leeks and stir to
mix well. Taste and adjust seasonings, adding salt if desired. Let
cool completely.
Here we go with the dough again...Place dough on a lightly floured
surface and pat into a disk. Use a rolling pin or your hands to roll
or stretch the dough into a circle that is 1/4 inch thick and 10 to
12 inches in diameter. Transfer to a semolina or cornmeal dusted
pizza peel or inverted baking sheet. Brush the dough with a little of
the remaining olive oil. Distribute the artichoke mixture over the
dough. Sprinkle the cheeses over the artichoke mixture. Drizzle with
the remaining olive oil.
Carefully slide the pizza onto the heated pizza stone and bake for 6
to 8 minutes, or until the bottom is crisp and browned and the top is
bubbling.
Comments: I would use less leek and onion if I were to do it again (maybe 1/2 to 2/3). Also, we rubbed a mushed garlic clove on the dough and sprinkled fresh, chopped basil and oregano under the cheese. |
