Review: Cilantro Pesto Pizza w/Mushroom & Red Onion, June '01

[RunnerKim]

The Cilantro Pesto Pizza with Mushroom & Red Onions recipe looked so good I had to scrap my planned pizza for Friday night. However, I was disappointed in it. Still good, just not as good as I hoped it would be. My DH and I agreed that it was just more subtle than we expected.

We grilled the pizza and I used my "normal" crust which has 1/2c of whole wheat flour in it.

Anyone else tried this? I'm not sure how I'd go about fixing it but I'm sure we'll tinker with it.

Kim

[miswin]

I liked the pizza. You definitey have to be a fan of cilantro though because I thought that flavor came through very strong. I was lazy and did not make my own dough. I used a boboli instead.

[lbudis]

I have all the ingredients to make this on Thursday - I have even already made the pesto and put it in the freezer. I am also going to be using a Boboli crust! I will post my review on Friday.

[KimK]

I made this - it was yummy (I am a cilantro fan). Definitely a keeper.

[chefbec]

I am a huge cilantro fan and wish I hadn't just wasted it all on this pizza. I will not be making this again.

[Salsera]

I made it on Friday and loved it! I too used a Boboli crust. I substituted part-skim mozzarella for the fontina and added chopped sun-dried tomatoes (the dry kind, which I reconstituted in water for a bit). Yummy!

[lbudis]

I made this Thursday and thought it was excellent! Using a Boboli cuts out a lot of time to make this a good week night dish. DH was skeptical at the mention of cilantro pesto at first but loved it at first bite!

[andrea]

all of you boboli lovers...
may i make a suggestion? have you tried jiffy pizza crust in the little blue/ white box? all you do is add water! i think it's better tasting than boboli, healthier, and cheaper... only 40 cents!!!

[lbudis]

Thanks for the tip! I'll definitely try that the next time!

[emilycat]

Ohmygosh, this is awesome. I loved this pizza -- definitely a make-over (well, once I try all of the other pizza recipes I can find.... ).
I absolutely loved the pesto; it had so much flavor, and the combination with the mushrooms and fontina was excellent. I thought it gave a lot of depth to the overall flavor.
Just to note, I did a few things differently: I made RunnerKim's whole wheat pizza dough, I used creminis instead of portobellos, some Vidalias in addition to the red onion, and rather than making one large pizza that served 5 (which I thought was absurd to begin with), I made two individual pizzas, which was a much more reasonable serving size.
Anyway, yum.

[RunnerKim]

You know, I think I'm really going to have to make this again - is it possible my cilantro was weak? I just don't recall it having much flavor. I really expected it to be more robust.

EmilyCat -- when you mentioned them, I actually made all the same changes you did. didn't see the point of buying portobellos to just chop them up. I always do 2 smaller pizzas - its easier to handle. I didn't add the Vidalias though.

Kim

Kim

[BlueMoose]

I have made this twice now. My DH and I both really like it. The cilantro flavor is not very strong, but it is good. I used a 10" premade thin crust that I found in with the pizza crust mixes. I also used crimini mushrooms. I agree with Emily, that the serving size is ridiculous, though. It makes a good light meal for my DH and I along with some fruit or salad (he eats a lot!). Anyway, this is definitely a keeper!

Chrisi

[Terrytx]

We agree that this is a good pizza. We had it this weekend and the DH and I ate the whole thing.

[kristalsnow7]

We had this last night and thought it was tasty. Although I think the word "pesto" is a bit of a stretch: I had to double the olive oil to get it to resemble pesto. It was much better, and worth the calorie splurge, IMO. I used TJ's pizza dough and rolled it very thin. The mushroom flavor was great and paired nicely with the creamy fontina. Not bad for a low-fat pizza; I'd make it again.

[jtoepfert100]

Forgive me, I'm bumping this up because it sounds wonderful but I can't find the recipe. Can anyone please post it? Thanks!

[kristalsnow7]

Here is the recipe. Enjoy.



Cilantro Pesto Pizza Topped with Portobellos and Red Onion



Extra-virgin olive oil, Parmigiano-Reggiano, and fresh cilantro make the pesto that tops this simple-to-make pizza. To save time, use refrigerated pizza crust.

Crust:
1 package dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, divided
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Cooking spray
2 teaspoons yellow cornmeal

Pesto:
2 cups fresh cilantro leaves
1 tablespoon coarsely chopped walnuts
1 tablespoon grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
1 1/2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 1/2 teaspoons water
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Pizza:
4 1/2 cups coarsely chopped portobello mushrooms (about 10 ounces)
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3/4 cup thinly sliced red onion
3/4 cup (3 ounces) shredded fontina cheese

To prepare crust, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water in a large bowl, and let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Add 1 1/4 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt to yeast mixture; stir until a soft dough forms. Turn dough out onto a floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 10 minutes); add enough of the remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands (dough will feel tacky).
Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning to coat top. Cover and let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. (Press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, the dough has risen enough.)

Punch the dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll dough into a 12-inch circle on a floured surface. Place dough on a 12-inch pizza pan or baking sheet sprinkled with cornmeal. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim. Cover and let rise 10 minutes or until puffy.

Preheat oven to 450°.

To prepare pesto, place cilantro and next 5 ingredients (cilantro through 1/2 teaspoon salt) in a food processor, and process until smooth, scraping sides of bowl occasionally.

To prepare the pizza, heat a large nonstick skillet coated with cooking spray over medium-high heat. Add the mushrooms; cook 5 minutes or until moisture evaporates, stirring constantly. Add the vinegar, and cook until liquid evaporates. Sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper. Spoon the mushroom mixture onto pizza crust. Drop pesto by teaspoonfuls onto pizza crust. Top with onion, and sprinkle with fontina. Bake at 450° for 15 minutes or until the crust is lightly browned. Let stand for 5 minutes.

Yield: 6 servings (serving size: 1 wedge)

NUTRITION PER SERVING
CALORIES 233 (30% from fat); FAT 7.7g (sat 3.3g, mono 2.5g, poly 1.3g); PROTEIN 10.1g; CARB 31.8g; FIBER 3.3g; CHOL 17mg; IRON 3.8mg; SODIUM 354mg; CALC 133mg;

Maureen Callahan
Cooking Light, JUNE 2001

[jtoepfert100]

Thanks! I could live on mushrooms so I am always hunting for new recipes. If I can talk my DH into it, I'll make it this weekend.