I have come to the conclusion that there are an infinite number of pleasing pizza toppings and combinations. I’m not saying that everything you throw on a pizza is going to taste good, but I will say that your Thanksgiving leftovers will. Taste good on a pizza. And how.
Seriously, I’ve tried it. Now, I know you like diving into the fridge in the dead of night when you think no one is watching, quietly rolling back the foil on that picked over bird and pulling just a few more cold, roasted chucks from the turkey carcass.
I’m guilty, I do it too. And I may use leftover cranberry sauce for dipping.
But what if, just WHAT IF, you saved some of that turkey and put it on a pizza? For the pizza pictured above, I used pan fried mini potatoes, turkey sausage (but you can use your leftover bird), a slightly firm and nutty goat’s milk cheese, lemon olive oil, cranberries and fresh herbs.
I also used a whole wheat crust, because let’s face it, you just gorged yourself on a smorgasbord of tasty treats drenched in various amounts of butter. Some dietary fiber might be a good idea at this juncture. Just saying.
OK, so let’s see how it all goes down. First the whole wheat pizza recipe:
What You Need
1 envelope dried yeast
1 cup warm water
3 cup all purpose flour or bread flour
1 cup whole wheat flour
¾ teaspoon salt
½ cup warm water
2 tablespoons olive oil
What You Do:
In a large bowl dissolve the yeast in 1 cup of warm water…stir in ½ cup of the flour. Cover and let stand for about 30 minutes
Then add the other ½ cup of warm water salt and olive oil. Slowly begin to add the remaining flour. When all of the flour is incorporated knead the dough until it is smooth. It may take about 10 minutes….
Then dust the dough lightly all over with flour and place in a bowl – covered with a cloth to rise for about 1 hour.
When it has doubled in size, punch down the dough and divide into 4 parts. Form each fourth into a smooth ball and let rise covered on a floured board for 30 minutes. In the meantime heat the oven to 500 degrees for 30 minutes
Now for the assembly and toppings.
What You Need:
Makes 4 personal sized pizzas
1/4 lb goats milk cheese. I used “Midnight Moon” from Cypress Grove
Lemon olive oil (you can use this recipe)
4 turkey sausage links OR strips of leftover Thanksgiving turkey, cut into small chunks
1/2 cup chicken or turkey stock
1 small bag of mini roasting potatoes cut into very thin slices
Fresh thyme and rosemary
1/2 cup of fresh cranberries
salt and pepper
olive oil
What You Do:
Place a pizza stone in your oven and heat it up to 500 degrees. You will want to make sure that pizza stone has been heating for at least a half an hour before you cook your pizza.
If using turkey sausage: Heat 2 tablespoons of olive oil in a small frying pan. Add your turkey sausage, removed from the casings. As it cooks, break it up into small chunks with a wooden spoon. Add the 1/2 cup of chicken or turkey stock and let the sausage simmer until cooked, about 10 minutes. Set aside.
In another small pan, heat 2 tablespoons of the lemon oil (from this recipe). Add your sliced potatoes and some fresh herbs, salt and pepper. Fry ’em up until they are tender and also a little crispy and brown on the edges. Set aside.
Sprinkle some semolina flour on a pizza peel and stretch out your dough.
Drizzle some of the lemon oil on top of the stretched out dough and smooth it over the top.
Distribute the roasted potatoes over the surface of the dough.
Add small slices of the goats milk cheese on top of the potatoes.
Sprinkle the turkey sausage or the leftover turkey on top of the potatoes and cheese.
Drizzle a bit more lemon oil over the top and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a few grinds of fresh black pepper. Now would be an excellent time to add some more thyme and rosemary.
Place the 1/2 cup of cranberries in a microwave safe bowl. Add water to the bowl – enough to cover the berries. Place the cup of water and berries in the microwave and heat on high for about 45 seconds, just enough to pop the cranberries (you will actually hear them pop). Remove the cup from the microwave and drain the water out of the cup.
Place the popped cranberries along the top of the pizza. They will add a nice tang to the the smooth, lemony and salty pizza.
Slide your pizza onto the stone and into the oven. Cook for about 10 minutes.
Remove from the oven (using the pizza peel). You can add more fresh herbs or oil if you like.
Now, I know I’m slightly obsessed with pizza. I swear it’s healthy… Regardless of the mental effects of this pizza preoccupation, I have started to compile quite a library of pizza recipes. The first of which are in our first cookbook, Top Your Pizza. You can see a preview of the book below. This book is available for purchase (click here), and in tune with the holiday season, most of the proceeds from the book sales go to the non-profit Just Food (which you can check out here). It’s a win-win situation. Pizza for you, profits for a non-profit. Happiness all around.
– Free
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Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
We wish you a healthy, festive, belt-loosening, gin-infused (ok, that might just be me) holiday.
Eat some turkey, watch some football, get into an immature name-calling argument with your siblings, and make sure to wear those safety goggles! We’ll see you on Monday. With something …. um… cleansing.
Happy belated Thanksgiving to you too!
Selma Lockaby
All American Auto Transport