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Oh, and um cheese galore!
Four kinds actually – Jeez, it’s looking like it is going to be a cheesy December!
Not complaining though.
You guys, I think pizza may just be one of my least favorite foods to make. Well not to make, to photograph. I dread photographing pizza. For every single pizza recipe on this site, I hate the photos. I just cannot seem to get pizza right. I mean, I can make it taste pretty, but look pretty? Yeah, not skilled in that area.
It of course looks beyond delicious as I pull it out of the oven, but I cannot, for the life of me capture that ooey, gooeyness I am looking for in my pizza shots. It’s so frustrating because the pizza is so good and I feel like the pictures do not do them any justice. <–Tieghan problems.
In other news, my cabinets were installed today and I have yet to actually go and see them because one, I am a chicken and terrified I will hate them and two, because I am wondering if I just want to wait a few days and see the kitchen complete. This way I can have the big “tadda” moment and just see it all together. I doubt this will happen since the counters will not be in until Monday and I pretty much guarantee I will need to go into the barn before then.
I also feel I should tell you that even though I am planning on actually moving in by the nineteenth. I still have zero furniture, no mattress and at the moment no bathroom sink as well. It’s possible this could all be fixed by the end of the day….or it’s possible it won’t. It’s kind of a long and complicated story, but let’s all just cross our fingers it works out. I actually have a good feeling all will be good. Or at least this is what I am making myself believe in order to not stress. Does the saying “fake it till you make it” apply here?
Probably not, but you get the gist of what I am saying, right? Thinking good thoughts to get good results.
Positivity has never been my strongest feature though. 2015 is all about positive thoughts for me! Umm, anybody thinking about New years resolutions yet? I wasn’t until about five seconds ago, but positivity seems like a good one to me!
So this sun-dried tomato and olive pesto pizza is another one of those “grab everything in the fridge and call it dinner” pizzas. This particular pizza turned out to be exceptionally good, so I made it again the next day (we’ve been eating a lot of pizza!). Good news is, I still have way too many people to feed…oh but wait, none of these people seem to want leftovers?
What?
I think they need a reality check if you ask me. Just sayin.
Anyway, if you have not noticed, I love sun-dried tomatoes. They are one of those ingredients that I think just bumps up the flavor of so many dishes. Honestly, I eat them by the handful. Kind like you would chips. I am weird.
This pizza literally just happened last Thursday night. I had some DeLallo Sun-Dried Tomato pesto sitting in my fridge and if you have never had this, I highly recommend it. It’s beyond awesome. For this recipe I made my own version because I was out of the DeLallo pesto when I re-made this and also wanted to adjust the flavors, BUT if you’re just not in the mood to make pesto, buy the DeLallo brand. You’ll love that too.
From there, I just added a bunch of mozzarella and cheddar cheese, a roasted red pepper and some salami I had sitting in my fridge. Normally, I do not use salami, but I had to use some for an outside project and I kind of got hooked on it. It’s a really nice switch up from pepperoni. It also goes well with all the cheese, but then again, what doesn’t go well with cheese?
Silly question, everything goes with cheese.
And it’s as simple as that. Just another reminder that not a ton of ingredients are needed to make a good meal. Oh wait, I need to say this to myself more often. I’m always wanting to add more and more. Simple is best.
Oh, and if you want to, you can drizzle this with a little balsamic glaze. It doesn’t need it, but it is a good addition if you have the time to make it or have some lying around.
Sun-Dried Tomato and Olive Pesto Pizza with Salami + Roasted Red Peppers.
Servings: 4 Servings
Calories Per Serving: 1324 kcal
Nutritional information is only an estimate. The accuracy of the nutritional information for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 1 1/2 cups flour
- 1/2 cup warm water
- 1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
Toppings
- 1 ounce jar oil packed sun-dried tomatoes oil reserved, 8
- 3/4 cup fresh basil
- 1 clove garlic grated
- 1/2 cup parmesan cheese grated
- 1/2 cup kalamata olives sliced
- pepper to taste
- 8 ounces mozzarella cheese shredded
- 4 ounces sharp cheddar cheese shredded
- 4-8 ounces blue cheese crumbled
- 1 ounce jar roasted red peppers sliced*, 6
- 4 ounces thinly sliced salami
- 2 tablespoons pine nuts toasted
- fresh sage for topping
- crushed red pepper for topping
- balsamic reduction for drizzling (optional)*
Instructions
Pizza Dough
- In a large bowl, combine water, yeast and honey. Mix with a spoon, then let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes. Add in the flour and olive oil stirring with a spoon until the dough comes together but is still sticky. Using your hands, on a floured surface, form the dough into a ball and work the additional 1/2 cup flour into the dough if needed. All of the mixing and kneading can also be done in a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment. Next, rub the same bowl with olive oil, then place the dough inside, turning to coat. Cover with a towel and place in a warm place to rise for about 1 1/2 hours.
To Assemble
- About 10 minutes before the dough is done rising, start assembling the pizza. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.*
- In the bowl of a food processor or blender, add the sun-dried tomatoes + 2 tablespoons of the oil left in the jar, basil, garlic and parmesan. Puree until chunky smooth. Either stir in the sliced olives or puree them into the pesto. Season with pepper.
- Once the pizza dough is ready, lightly flour a counter. Use your hands or a rolling pin to roll the dough out until you have a flattened disk. Place the pizza on a greased baking sheet and then use your hands to gently tug, pull and push the pizza dough into your desired shape. Spread the pesto over the dough, using as much or as little as you'd like. Add the mozzarella cheese and cheddar cheese. Evenly spread the roasted red peppers and salami over the cheese. Sprinkle with crumbled blue cheese. Add a handful of sage leaves.
- Bake the pizza for 25-30 minutes or until the cheese is all melty and gooey. Remove from the oven and top with crushed red pepper and pine nuts. EAT while melty and delicious!
Notes
*To roast your own red peppers you can either broil the pepper in the oven or place it directly on a gas top burner and char all sides of the pepper. Once all sides are charred remove the pepper from the broiler or stove top and place in a bowl and cover. Allow to sit for 5 minutes and remove and peel the charred parts away. Slice and use. **Balsamic glaze can be purchased in the Italian aisle of most grocery stores, or you can also make it yourself by simply reducing 1 cup of balsamic vinegar with a spoonful of brown sugar until thick and syrupy. ***Feel free to cook this pizza whichever way you please. Sometimes I use a baking stone and cook the pizza at 500 degrees F. for about 15 minutes. Or sometimes I use a cast iron skillet like I did [here | https://www.halfbakedharvest.com/green-olive-pesto-pizza-with-roasted-red-peppers-and-feta-stuffed-crust/].
Done talking now. It’s time to get serious. I mean, there is pizza involved.
Besides for the fact that your photography is flawless (as always), I made this for dinner tonight and it was PHENOMENAL!
Just a side note…you say to add salt to the pizza but in the recipe, you don’t tell us when. I checked your other pizza recipes and they don’t either so i just added it when I added the flour and it was totally fine!
Can’t wait to try other things =)
Awe!! Thank you so much!! So excited you enjoyed the pizza!! 🙂
Also, thanks for letting me know about the salt. I will fix that!
the combination of toppings… drool overdrive
Thank you!!
Girl, your pizza photographing attempts leave any and all of my attempts to shame- these are fabulous and look absolutely delicious!
http://www.alittlerosemaryandtime.com
Thank you so much, you are so sweet! 🙂
I recommend Feta cheese over mozzarella cheese. The mozzarella cheese is popular in America. Feta taste better on pizza than mozzarella cheese on pizza. Seriously. 🙂
The anchovies are very popular in Portugal/Azores. I loved it. Its great for spaghetti with sun dried tomato and kalamata in Portugal. See ? Its not for Italy!
Oh yes, many American always thought those vegetable like kalamata, olive oils and etc are from Italy. That’s false. Many foods here in America do not taste like in Italy. I know because I am an European. America is not very honest. Anyway, those are from Portugal too. America just know about Italy, France, England, and Spain. They are an ignorant about Portugal.
I am going to try it because I loved kalamata (I always ate it from Portugal/Azores Island)
And sun dried tomato sound Delicious on the pizza. So I am going to try it too. By the way, I am going to deleted nuts. I dont like nuts on the pizza. I loved nuts to chew, thought, but not on pizza. Nah. Thanks fot the recipe. 🙂
I know nothing beats homemade but, out of convenience, how many ounces of store bought dough would this recipe call for?
Hey Sarah,
I do not know how many ounces, but just one ball of pizza dough will do. Enjoy!
Holy toppings!! This pizza looks unreal!
This looks so yummy!! Although you said you don’t think your pictures capture how good your pizza looks, I think it looks GREAT! so it has to mean that this tastes that much better! I can’t wait to try this, I have never made a pizza from scratch and to start with this one, I think is a good idea. Go big or go home right?
RIGHT! 🙂
Thanks so much and let me know if you have any questions. Enjoy!
I absolutely LOVE making pizza from scratch also. Nothing comes close to homemade pizza, especially pizza dough. So so good and I love that you used sun dried tomatoes and pesto. Two of my favorite flavors evah…minus the meat…I can’t do meat. But the rest I’m totally on board with haha
Nothing beats a good homemade pizza! 🙂
Thank you!
This combo is awesome! Your photos look amazing to me. Definitely not something you can get at your local pizza chain. ; )
Thanks Crystal!
This looks so fantastic! I love those times when you put something together from what’s in the fridge and it turns into something amazing : )
Thanks Chelsea!
I don’t know what you’re talking about girl, you do pizza FABULOUSLY! And this is stunning! Buttt I totally know what you mean, it’s a monster to photograph!!
Thanks Nicole!
I think the photos are fabulous and I’m sure it tastes amazing! I’m so excited for you with the barn…I can’t wait to see pictures 🙂
Thanks Jennifer!!
🙂