Annie Who needs a pumpkin spice latte when you can have a pumpkin flower pizza? I sure know which one I’d rather have. For this month’s pizza, I wanted to capture those end-of-the-garden fall feels by using a combo of beautiful pumpkin squash blossoms—an awesome find at the DSM farmer’s market—and fresh basil pesto for that hint of summery freshness. (I can’t believe I still have fresh basil in the garden!) I added fresh mozz, prosciutto, and a confetti flourish of grated parm, minced red onion and red pepper. This pizza was DELICIOUS, people!! Try it!
To prep the blossoms, give them a gentle wash and the pat them dry. Then use your finger to poke at the base of the stamen in the center of the flower, moving it gently to the side to pop it out. (It’s OK if you tear the petal a little when doing this). You’ll get the hang of feeling it “pop” out. It’s quite satisfying, actually.
Squash Blossom-Prosciutto Pizza with Pesto
Ingredients
- Olive oil and cornmeal, for pizza pan
- 1 lb. prepared pizza dough, such as Basic Everything Bread Dough
- 1 recipe Perfect Pesto or 2/3 cup prepared pesto
- 8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese, thinly sliced
- 15 to 20 squash blossoms, stemmed and stamens removed
- 3 oz. prosciutto, torn
- ⅓ cup grated Parmesan cheese
- ¼ cup finely chopped red onion
- ¼ cup finely chopped sweet or spicy red pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 450°F. Brush a pizza pan or large baking sheet with olive oil. Sprinkle with cornmeal. Roll pizza dough into a 12- to 14-inch circle and transfer to prepared pan.
- Spread pesto over dough. Arrange mozzarella slices over pesto. Top with squash blossoms and prosciutto. Sprinkle with red onion and pepper, then with Parmesan.
- Bake on the middle rack 20 to 25 minutes or until crust is crisp and top is lightly browned. Let cool 10 minutes before serving.
