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Chef Neal Fraser’s Garden Pesto Pizza
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Chef Neal Fraser’s Garden Pesto Pizza

Yield: 1 pizza

Making pizza is fun for the whole family, and this recipe utilizes dough purchased from a local pizzeria, or even frozen from the supermarket to keep things simple. It’s easy to experiment with a variety of toppings, and I especially love using whatever is sprouting up in our garden. In this recipe, I garnished with broccoli flowers, but arugula or basil flowers would also work well. It’s a great way to not only utilize those fresh ingredients, but to also give a healthy boost to a family-favorite meal.

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Ingredients

  • 1 6-oz. pizza dough purchased from local pizzeria, or frozen from market
  • 2 oz. basil, picked and washed
  • 2 oz. kale, picked and washed
  • 2 garlic cloves
  • 1 oz. parmesan cheese
  • 0.25 oz. pine nuts
  • 2 oz. California Olive Ranch Olive Oil, plus some extra for garnishing
  • 2 oz. low-moisture mozzarella cheese
  • 0.25 oz. broccoli flowers, arugula flowers, basil flowers, or any other flowering herb
  • Semolina flour
  • All-purpose flour
  • Kosher salt

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Method

  1. Preheat oven to 500℉ with pizza stone inside. Boil 2 cups of water with salt (added to taste).
  2. Blanch basil and kale leaves for 10 seconds. Shock in ice water, and ring out greens.
  3. Blend garlic and olive oil in blender or food processor; blend until garlic is smooth. Add basil; blend until smooth. Finish with parmesan cheese, and season with salt to taste.
  4. Flour the dough with a mix of 2 ounces of all-purpose flour to 1 ounce of semolina flour. Press out pizza dough to a 10-inch circle. Dust pizza paddle with semolina flour to keep dough from sticking to paddle. Smooth pesto over the pizza with a spoon. Garnish with cheese.
  5. Bake in oven for approximately 6 minutes. Turn pizza 180 degrees halfway through the cooking process, at about 3 minutes in. Both top crust and bottom of the pizza should be golden brown.
  6. Garnish pizza with flowers and California Olive Ranch Olive Oil. Then cut, serve and enjoy.
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