Pear, Bacon and Gorgonzola Pizza

^T

he northeast wind is whipping down from Canada and the weatherpeople are crowing about a foot or two of snow, so my response is to fire up the oven and make a nice pizza.

This, of course, also gave me an excuse to make another test of the bread flour version of my pizza dough. For those of you just joining us, a few weeks ago, responding to Elise's recommendation, I substituted bread flour for all-purpose flour in my standard pizza dough recipe and was disappointed with the results -- " too bready" was the verdict.

This time out I used half the usual volume of dough and rolled/stretched it to the same 14" diameter I usually use. The results were much better, to the point where this might be my new favorite pizza dough. Thin, crunchy, crusty. Also, for those of you who care, half the evil carbs as the all-purpose version. (The updated dough recipe is HERE.)

The topping wasn't bad either, because you can't go wrong with pears, gorgonzola and bacon, especially if you sneak in a little maple syrup...!

Pear, Bacon and Gorgonzola Pizza

pizza dough for 1 pizza (recipe here)
1 small onion, sliced thin
2 cloves garlic, minced
2 firm-ripe bosc pears, cored and sliced
juice of 1/2 lemon
2 T maple syrup
4 slices bacon
2 0z fresh mozzarella, shredded
2 oz Parmigiana Reggiano, shredded
3 oz gorgonzola, cut in chunks
3 T pine nuts
olive oil
salt

Roll or stretch the dough into a 14" round pizza shell and allow to rise 30 minutes.

Meanwhile, sauté the bacon until just starting to crisp. Drain, chop and set aside. Drizzle the lemon juice over the pear slices. Mix the two shredded cheeses. Toast the pine nuts in a small heavy skillet over high heat, stirring constantly until mostly browned. Remove from heat and set aside.

When the dough is ready, spread 2 tablespoons of olive oil, the garlic and the onions over the shell. Sprinkle with salt and bake on a preheated stone in a 450º oven for 8 minutes.

Spread on the shredded cheeses and half the gorgonzola. Arrange the pear slices on the pizza and drizzle with the maple syrup. Scatter on the rest of the gorgonzola, then the bacon pieces. Return to the oven, lower the temperature to 400º and bake another 10 minutes, until starting to brown and crisp on the edges.

Brush the crust with olive oil, scatter on the pine nuts and slice. Serve immediately.

Comments

[Toni]

Well, we don't get the snow here in San Diego. But it's been gray and rainy, and.....well, cold, in a San Diegan kind of way. When I lived in New Mexico, my response to winter was to make chili, and then eat it with rice and beans or turn it into enchiladas.

But pizza with bacon, gorgonzola and pear? I'll be right over!

[Paz]

We're having snow, rain, sleet today. I would love to make this pizza today but am not going to venture out. I'll have to save the recipe for another day.

Paz

[Elise]

Ooo, that's gorgeous! Glad the dough finally worked out for you.

[Bradley]

Looks like it would also make a good salad. Pear, Bacon and Gorgonzola salad.

Pear and bacon are an excellent combo!

[Jeanne]

Oh my. Your pizzas always send me into orbit, particularly this one because it reminds me of the rather spectacular pear, bresaola and gorgonzola pizza I love so much at my favourite South African pizza restaurant, Cornuti al Mare... Mouth-watering picrure too!

[Elaine]

This pizza looks so amazing, I want to run to the store and make it tonight! Pears and Gorgonzola are a favorite of mine, thanks much for posting this, I do not think I would have ever come up with this combo for pizza myself.

[D]

I absolutely must try. Sounds insanely good.

[Carrie Oliver]

Well, Katrina and I tried both this recipe and the one with bacon and apple. They were beautiful but far better than that, delicious. We used our own (Wolfgang Puck) dough recipe as we have done well with it, but next time we'll take the plunge and use yours. Thanks for helping us continue our great tradition of Sunday evening, homemade pizzas!

[kevin]

I can safely say that I've never had the combination on a pizza. Dear God it sounds amazing (much better than my yogurt and grape Nuts at the moment).

[Christine]

Omigosh, this looks and sounds so good on so many levels!

[Ginny]

Your pizza sounds wonderful; my mouth is watering! It reminds me of a pizza I often order at a local restaurant. They use sweet potatoe and balsamic instead of pears & maple syrup.
But I'm anxious to try yours now!

[Biz]

I am going to try a version of this tonight!

I am thinking I'd use ricotta cheese as my base, we'll see if it works!

I love having apple/cheddar cheese on toasts - so I think this will be good!

Thanks for the idea. I make pizzas at my house every Friday so this will definitely be different!