Crave Wednesday: Double Mushroom Pizza

Have you ever stopped to analyze the food we eat?  Like who first thought certain products would be consumable?  Most fruits are fairly easy.  They grow where we can see them and are easy to pick.  But who thought of digging below ground for tubers?  And why do we eat certain parts of animals but not others?

Take the mushroom for instance.  As most of us learned in elementary science class, the mushroom is in the Fungi Kingdom - not a plant or animal.  Like mold.  And in general, we don't eat mold.  In fact, most of the time if we see mold on food we purposely don't eat it.  So what sets mushrooms apart?  Who decided these were the fungi we'd eat?

I have no answer to these questions.  All I know is that I'm glad the great food-decider decided on mushrooms. Their meaty texture and earthy flavor work in so many dishes.  They complement meats, chicken, pasta, and of course, pizza.

This pizza combines two different kinds of mushrooms, and lots of cheese.  As I've mentioned before Thatboy is a fan of meats on his pizza, but mushrooms serve as a great substitute.  I also like the fact that instead of a heavy sauce, this pizza just uses tomatoes, which don't take away from the true star of the meal.

 Double Mushroom Pizza (From Cooking Light)

1 1/2 tsp olive oil

8 oz sliced crimini mushrooms

6 oz portobello mushrooms, chopped

1/4 tsp black pepper

3 garlic cloves, minced

1 Tbsp cornmeal

whole wheat pizza dough

1 plum tomato, thinly sliced

1 1/4 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

1 1/2 tsp chopped fresh thyme

 

1. Preheat oven to 500.  Heat oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add mushrooms and pepper to pan; cook 8 minutes or until liquid evaporates, stirring occasionally.
2. Stir in garlic, saute 30 seconds.  Remove from heat.
3. Sprinkle cornmeal on a large baking sheet.  Roll dough into a 12 inch circle on prepared pan.  Arrange tomato slices over the dough, leaving a 1/2 inch border.
4. Spread mushroom mixture over tomatoes.
5. Sprinkle with cheese.  Bake for 14 minutes or until cheese melts .
6. Remove pizza from oven and sprinkle with thyme.  Cut into 4 wedges.