5
Aug
|
Mediterranean Date & Olive Pizza on a Chickpea Crust |
Remember that restaurant visit that left me wanting to re-create a dish so badly I nearly stopped on the way home for ingredients? If not, I’ll recap. It went something like this:
Stalking the menu online days in advance to decide what I wanted (chicken-artichoke grape skewers and Greek pizza were just two of many.)
Arriving at the restaurant and pretending to read the menu while convincing Ben that he wanted everything I had already secretly picked out.
Not-so-patiently awaiting those chicken-artichoke-grape skewers, only to be disappointed at first site, and even more by first bite. Cold and unseasoned, they just weren’t done…. right.
(That’s enough rhyming for today.)
Fortunately, things only got better. And I walked away from dinner with not one, but two dishes I knew I’d be making at home, sooner rather than later. You (hopefully) already read about my take on the Chicken Artichoke Grape Skewers with Tarragon-Yogurt Sauce, and up above I hinted at the second. Greek Pizza.
This wasn’t just any Greek pizza. I’m not sure if there’s a “typical” Greek pizza but I’ve seen various pizza joints throw Greek-inspired ingredients on a crust and they usually include tomatoes, spinach, feta. Maybe some artichokes and olives. But dates, and almonds, and fresh, summer-y herb green sauce? Never.
‘Till now. I don’t know what they’ve been waiting for.
The combination was, simply put, fantastic. Each bite was approached with hesitation because I never wanted the pizza to be gone. And with each bite, something different stood out, whether it was the sweet dried fruit or crisp almonds, brine-y olives and sharp green herbs, or the tangy feta that hugged these (perhaps) seemingly incompatible ingredients together.
The only thing I could imagine making these even better was a chickpea flour pizza crust. Not the popular socca making their way around the foodie blog world, but an actual, legit, baked-in-the-oven chickpea flour pizza dough as I had seen on A Cambridge Story. Of course, I was intrigued by the idea of a pizza crust made from a healthier flour, higher in fiber and protein than traditional white or wheat. But even more, I was dying to know how it tasted. I imagined the crust to be hearty and nutty, and not unlike a slab of baked hummus, if one could imagine that. Naturally, it would need the right toppings to really shine, so I filed it away in the back of my mind until the right combination came around. When I first tasted the explosion of Mediterranean flavors in that sexy “Greek” pizza, I was 99% sure I had found it.
And when I took my first bite, chickpea crust and all, 99 easily became 100.
Chickpea Flour Pizza Crust
Adapted From A Cambridge Story
2 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast (1 packet)
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 cups chickpea flour
4 teaspoons vital wheat gluten*
1 teaspoon salt
Stir the yeast into the warm water and let stand for 10 minutes, or until foamy.
Combine the chickpea flour, vital wheat gluten, and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer; stir to combine. Add the yeast mixture and mix with the dough hook, until thoroughly combined. Spray a bowl with cooking spray and turn the dough into the bowl. Cover with a clean dish towel and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes.
Preheat oven to 450ºF, or turn on grill to high heat. Tear off a large rectangle of parchment paper and place it onto a work surface. Turn the dough onto the paper, flatten slightly, and cover with a second sheet of parchment. Using a rolling pin, gently roll the dough to even thickness, the size of a large pizza stone or baking sheet. Remove the top sheet of paper, and carefully slide the bottom piece, with the crust, onto pizza stone or baking sheet. Top with desired toppings, and place in the oven or on the grill for about 20 minutes, until crisp.
*The original recipe did not call for vital wheat gluten; I added it to attempt a chewier, doughy-er texture. Emily’s version looks perfectly delicious as well, and I’m not sure how much of a difference it makes. Next time I make this pizza dough I will omit it to find out. In the meantime, feel free to follow Emily’s lead if you don’t have vital wheat gluten or wish to make a gluten-free crust.
Nutrition Facts (entire pizza dough)
Calories 720.0
Total Fat 12.0 g
Saturated Fat 0.0 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Monounsaturated Fat 0.0 g
Cholesterol 0.0 mg
Sodium 2,355.5 mg
Potassium 0.5 mg
Total Carbohydrate 114.0 g
Dietary Fiber 31.0 g
Sugars 18.0 g
Protein 47.0 g
Mediterranean Date & Olive Pizza on a Chickpea Crust
1 recipe chickpea flour pizza dough
1/2 cup (30gm) basil leaves
1/2 cup (30gm) parsley
1 large clove of garlic
1 large tomato, diced (1 cup)
juice from 1/2 lemon
1/2 oz grated pecorino romano cheese
freshly ground pepper, to taste
1/4 cup (1 oz) sliced almonds
80 gm pitted dates, quartered
45gm pitted kalamata olives
3 oz feta cheese, crumbled
Combine basil, parsley, garlic, tomato, lemon juice, and pecorino romano cheese in a food processor or blender. Process until fully combined. Season to taste with pepper.
Spoon the sauce onto the crust (you may not need all of it) and spread evenly. Top with the almonds, dates, olives and feta. Bake in a preheated 450ºF oven for about 20 minutes, until the crust is crisp and topping is lightly browned. Slice and serve.
Nutrition Facts
Servings Per Recipe: 8
Amount Per Serving
Calories 201.0
Total Fat 7.9 g
Saturated Fat 2.3 g
Polyunsaturated Fat 0.5 g
Monounsaturated Fat 1.6 g
Cholesterol 11.0 mg
Sodium 488.2 mg
Potassium 186.8 mg
Total Carbohydrate 25.5 g
Dietary Fiber 5.6 g
Sugars 9.8 g
Protein 9.3 g
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Lora — August 5, 2011 @ 12:05 pm
This is just gorgeous. Love the chickpea crust.
branny — August 5, 2011 @ 12:54 pm
Hooray for this recipe! I have a ton of besan I need to use!
Cara — August 5, 2011 @ 12:59 pm
I was thinking you'd love it!
MarzBar — August 5, 2011 @ 1:21 pm
This looks and sounds absolutely amazing. Well done, my friend!
Cara — August 5, 2011 @ 1:23 pm
Thanks, dear! It's probably one of my favorite things I've made this summer – highly recommended!
Junia @ Mis Pensamientos — August 5, 2011 @ 1:36 pm
i love the idea of a chickpea pizza crust!!! thanks for the recipe cara!
Cook.Vegan.Lover. — August 5, 2011 @ 2:40 pm
Yum Yum Yum!
Kaytorade — August 5, 2011 @ 4:14 pm
I really like the idea of chickpea crust.
Joanne — August 5, 2011 @ 5:17 pm
The toppings on this pizza are INCREDIBLE! At least this restaurant delivered one good menu option.
Janet M — August 6, 2011 @ 12:57 am
I love it! Vegan and with unrefined flours! Can't wait to try this out when I want a pizza fix. 🙂
Astro — August 6, 2011 @ 1:05 pm
I CAN NOT wait to try this. It looks and sounds delicious.
Cara — August 6, 2011 @ 1:16 pm
Thank you! hope you enjoy it!
Lizzy — August 6, 2011 @ 1:57 pm
Gorgeous pizza!!! I want to try that crust : )
Terra — August 6, 2011 @ 2:39 pm
I am seriously saving this one, I am such a pizza addict:-) I like the idea of the chickpea crust, and it still looks so fluffy, and delicious:-) Take care, Terra
Seemichellecook — August 8, 2011 @ 1:53 am
I'm obsessed with chickpea flour right now but I've never tried it with yeast. LOVE that you put nuts and dates on your pizza!
Emily — August 8, 2011 @ 1:25 pm
So glad you tried this!! I was pleasantly surprised by the taste – the texture's a little tricky but looks like it worked out great!
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Cathy — March 20, 2012 @ 2:39 pm
Can’t wait to try this and other recipes! Is there a “printer friendly” way to print your recipes without having to print the entire webpage? 🙂 Thank you!
Cara — March 20, 2012 @ 2:41 pm
Hi Cathy! Welcome 🙂 I recently switched my site over from Blogger to WordPress and I’m in the process of converting all of my old posts to the new recipe format, which does in fact allow for printable recipes. In the meantime, I would suggest copying and pasting the recipe text into a word document and printing that, if you want to avoid printing the entire page. Sorry for the inconvenience!
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Nicole K — August 23, 2018 @ 4:31 pm
Cara – are you sure you wrote the amount of water correctly? I followed this recipe and got a thin batter (like the socca you said this recipe wasn’t) instead of anything I could roll out. I kept adding and adding flour, and ran out before I could get it to a rolling consistency. I know the dough will be sticky (I have made crackers and pasta with legume flours before) but this was unworkable. ?