Ranch and Pancetta Pizza
If you are a regular on my blog, you will know that I love to cook! One of my favorite dishes to make is pizza. Once we are settled in Palisade, on the list of things to create is a proper outdoor living space that will have a woodfired pizza oven. Until then, I continue to research and find new pizza recipes. The Ranch and Pancetta Pizza comes from the 2023 Better Homes and Gardens magazine titled Pizza & Pasta. It says display until 8/11/23 so if you like the recipe that follows you should still be able to pick up the magazine! It has a plethora of recipes of which I am working my way through! But for now, if you are looking for a new pizza recipe, I highly recommend this one!
Ingredients:
Homemade pizza dough (see one of my earlier posts under cooking on bread dough which can also be used for pizza dough) or pick up premade dough at your local grocery store. Given our small apartment, I went with the store bought dough.
½ cup whole-milk ricotta cheese
¼ cup Crème fraiche
1 Tablespoon dry ranch seasoning mix
4 oz Diced pancetta
1 ½ cups thinly sliced cremini mushrooms
1 large garlic clove minced
1/3 cup chopped roasted red peppers
½ cup shredded Asiago cheese
2 cups chopped kale
2 teaspoons olive oil
Instructions:
Place pizza stone in oven and preheat to 500 degrees. If you don’t have a pizza stone (I highly recommend you get one) then just preheat the oven. Roll the dough out to the size of your stone and set aside. In a small bowl mix together the ricotta cheese, crème fraiche, and dry ranch seasoning mix until it is evenly combined, set bowl aside.
In a 10-inch skillet cook the pancetta over medium-high heat until it starts to brown, about six minutes. Add the cremini mushrooms and cook until they start to brown, about two minutes; Next, add the minced garlic and cook until fragrant, about 30 seconds.
Once the oven reaches the desired temperature (500 degrees), pull out the pizza stone and place the dough on the stone; then place the stone back in the oven for approximately eight minutes. This step will ensure your pizza has a crispy crust. When the timer goes off you are ready to add your toppings. If, you aren’t a fan of crispy crust, skip this step.
To assemble the pizza, spread the ricotta mixture over the dough. Next top it with the roasted red peppers, Asiago cheese, and pancetta mixture. Slide the pizza back in the oven and bake for six minutes. While the pizza continues to bake, in a medium size bowl combine the chopped kale with the olive oil. With clean hands, gently massage the kale until glossy and tender, about one to two minutes. This step will help take the bitterness out of the Kale. Take the pizza out and top it with the Kale and put it back in the oven until the crust is browned, four to six minutes (less if you did my step to make the crust crispy). Once the buzzer goes off, you have yourself a delightful savory pizza.
Bon Appetit!
