Fennel is one of those herbs that I often pass by at the store on a regular basis. I will stop to look at the bulb and the fronds, and often think what in the world could I incorporate fennel into a recipe. So this past week, I picked on up, and decided that I would make my best effort in using it in a recipe. I decided that I would simply use it as a main ingredient on a pizza, and hence how I came up with this really delicious, and simple pizza.
When I think of fennel, I often think of the seeds as they are commonly used in making sausages, but they can also be used in simple dishes like sautéed carrots. As I love that flavor, especially in sausage, and sausage is great on pizza, I knew the subtle anise flavor would pair well with leeks, and make this a great meatless pizza.
Let’s get started.
Ingredients:
- 1 leek, dark green parts removed and discarded, thinly sliced
- 1 fennel bulb, fronds discarded, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- 1 batch of your favorite pizza dough
- Light corn meal, optional
- pizza wheel, optional
- pizza stone, optional
Preheat your oven and pizza stone to 500 degrees.
I used a mandoline to break down the leeks and fennel bulb. If you do not have a mandoline, use a sharp knife and make sure you thinly slice both the bulb and the leeks. You will also need to clean the leaks after slicing them because you will notice there is plenty of dirt inside the rings. Once rinsed and the dirt removed, pat them dry.
Add the leeks and fennel slices into a mix bowl. Toss in the parmesan cheese, cracked black pepper, and oil. Give that a good mix, and set aside.
If you have Âa pizza wheel, get it out and lightly dust it with the corn meal. I always find that it is really easy to slide the prepared pizza onto the heated pizza stone. If you do not have one, do what you would normally do to get a prepared pizza into your oven.
Stretch out your down to about a 14 inch diameter. Place that onto your pizza wheel.
Lay all of the fennel and leek mixture over the top of the dough, covering it all the way to the edge.
Place in the oven and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the leaks and fennel begin to caramelize and the dough is nice and golden.
Remove from the oven, and set onto a rack so air can move underneath. I like this approach when making pizza so that the crust does not steam up from underneath.
Slice, and serve. Everything about this pizza was good. First, it was meatless, which I enjoyed in the late afternoon, and more importantly, I was able to use fennel in a pretty clever way. The leeks had a very mild onion flavor, and when paired with the fennel, well, let’s just say it was extremely delicious. This pizza was unlike most pizzas, and as it had parmesan cheese inside, you could hardly tell there would be any cheese, but the addition added that saltiness that was needed to balance out the leeks and fennel. If you are looking for something new to make, that is light, fresh, and delicious, give this one a shot. I hope you enjoy it!
Dax Phillips
Print Recipe Pin Recipe
Prep Time 15 minutes mins
Cook Time 20 minutes mins
Total Time 35 minutes mins
Course Pizza
Servings 6
Ingredients
- 1 leek dark green parts removed and discarded, thinly sliced
- 1 fennel bulb fronds discarded, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese
- 1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
- 1/4 cup of olive oil
- 1 batch of your favorite pizza dough
- Light corn meal optional
- pizza wheel optional
- pizza stone optional
Instructions
Preheat your oven and pizza stone to 500 degrees.
I used a mandoline to break down the leeks and fennel bulb. If you do not have a mandoline, use a sharp knife and make sure you thinly slice both the bulb and the leeks. You will also need to clean the leaks after slicing them because you will notice there is plenty of dirt inside the rings. Once rinsed and the dirt removed, pat them dry.
Add the leeks and fennel slices into a mix bowl. Toss in the parmesan cheese, cracked black pepper, and oil. Give that a good mix, and set aside.
If you have a pizza wheel, get it out and lightly dust it with the corn meal. I always find that it is really easy to slide the prepared pizza onto the heated pizza stone. If you do not have one, do what you would normally do to get a prepared pizza into your oven.
Stretch out your down to about a 14 inch diameter. Place that onto your pizza wheel.
Lay all of the fennel and leek mixture over the top of the dough, covering it all the way to the edge.
Place in the oven and cook for about 20 minutes, or until the leaks and fennel begin to caramelize and the dough is nice and golden.
Remove from the oven, and set onto a rack so air can move underneath. I like this approach when making pizza so that the crust does not steam up from underneath.
Slice, and serve. Everything about this pizza was good. First, it was meatless, which I enjoyed in the late afternoon, and more importantly, I was able to use fennel in a pretty clever way. The leeks had a very mild onion flavor, and when paired with the fennel, well, let's just say it was extremely delicious. This pizza was unlike most pizzas, and as it had parmesan cheese inside, you could hardly tell there would be any cheese, but the addition added that saltiness that was needed to balance out the leeks and fennel. If you are looking for something new to make, that is light, fresh, and delicious, give this one a shot. I hope you enjoy it!
