Leek Pizza with Creamy Onion Sauce

I realized it has been quite a while since we shared a pizza recipe with you…  So to break the hiatus I’m posting a very unique pizza.  It doesn’t have your typical red sauce or its more gourmet cousin, white sauce.  It’s not a sauceless/olive oil pizza either.  Instead, it’s topped with a creamy golden sauce unlike anything you’ve ever tried on a pizza.

The sauce is made by caramelizing onions, to bring out their natural sugars, then simmering them in cream.  This sauce paired with a blend of mozzarella and gruyere, leeks, green onions, and rosemary makes for a scrumptious gourmet pizza.  The toppings may sound unusual, but you’ll love the flavor!  This pizza is not my brain child but comes from one of my favorite cookbooks, My Pizza by Jim Lahey.  If you’re a pizza lover it’s a must own!

Prep Time: 1 hour

Cook Time: 5-7 minutes for Brick Oven Style, 15-20 minutes for traditional baking

Serves: 2

Ingredients

No-Knead Pizza Dough
1 Leek, white part only
3 oz. Fresh Mozzarella
2/3 c. grated Gruyere Cheese
3 Green Onions
pinch chopped fresh Rosemary
Freshly-ground Black Pepper
Creamy Onion Sauce
3/4 Onion
1/8 tsp. Red Wine Vinegar
1 tsp. Olive Oil
leaves from 1 Thyme Sprig
pinch Salt
1/2 c. Cream
1/2 tsp. Lemon Zest
1/4 tsp. Salt

1.  First you need to caramelize the onions for the sauce.  Cut the onion in half then into strips ~1 in. thick.  Separate the slices and place them in a bowl.  Toss with the red wine vinegar, olive oil, and thyme leaves.

2.  Put the onions in a small pot, cover, and turn heat on to medium-low.  Cook for 20 minutes stirring occasionally.  Make sure to keep an eye on them so they don’t burn!

3.  Uncover, toss in a pinch of salt, and continue to cook, stirring occasionally, for 30 minutes.  They should turn a beautiful golden color.

4.  Add the cream to the pot and increase heat to medium.  Cook, stirring occasionally, until the volume is reduced by half (5-10 minutes).  Stir in the lemon zest and salt.  Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor and blend until smooth (I use my immersion blender).

5.  While the sauce is cooking, thinly slice the white part of the leek.  If you’ve never worked with leeks before, they’re a slightly sweet member of the onion family that looks like a giant green onion.  If you like them on this pizza and want to eat more, try them charred – they’re wonderful!

6.  Bring a small pot of salted water to a boil and blanch leeks 2-3 minutes.  Drain and set aside.

7.  Top crust with onion sauce.   Pull mozzarella into clumps and spread over pizza.  Next, sprinkle on the gruyere.  Add the leeks and green onions.  Finally, scatter the rosemary over the pizza and top with freshly-ground black pepper.

Bake 5-7 minutes using our Brick Oven Method or 15-20 minutes at 425°.  (Don’t forget to preheat your pizza stone if you’re using one!)  The cheese should be golden and bubbly and the crust should be starting to char.  Just look at this masterpiece…

Let the pizza set and cool for about 5 minutes then slice and serve.  One bite and you’ll know it was worth the effort!  And I bet you’ll have to go back for another piece…

Want to try more of our pizzas?  We’ve got a recipe to suit every mood: Check out our Pesto Pizza, Barbeque Chicken Pizza, Four Cheese White Pizza, Pizza Margherita, Sausage and Fennel Pizza, or Sausage and Ricotta Pizza.