Double Pumpkin Goats Cheese Pizza

As I stated in my last post, I’m not quite done with pumpkin yet. Today I’ve got this colourful double pumpkin goats cheese pizza for you; what makes it double pumpkin you ask? Well, not only did I top the pizza with chunks of roasted pumpkin, but much like the chocolate ginger pumpkin bread wreath that I posted last week, I made the pizza dough using pumpkin puree. This not only gives it a lovely orange colour, but is also a great way to pack in a bit of extra veg.

The dough is pretty simple to make and requires only one rise, this can be done either for a couple of hours at room temperature, or overnight (or up to 24 hours) in the fridge. When I roll the dough out, I use a mixture of flour and ground semolina to dust the worksurface; the semolina helps give the crust a lovely crunch so I really recommend using it. The tomato sauce is also simple, I used pasatta so that it was already smooth, just add some garlic, olive oil, red pepper flakes (optional) and salt and pepper and simmer it until thickened. The pumpkin for the topping is roasted with red onion, olive oil, cumin and fresh rosemary for extra flavour. It, along with the tomato sauce, can be prepared in advance if you like. I used fresh mozzarella (the kind that comes in water) and soft goats cheese (the kind that comes in a log) to top everything off, along with a scattering of fresh basil leaves.

This double pumpkin goats cheese pizza is one of my absolute favourites that I have ever made, and I particularly love the bright colour of the dough. The sweet pumpkin is delicious with the tangy goats cheese and fresh herbs, and this pizza has the bonus of being totally vegetarian and packing in quite a lot of veg – which absolutely cancels out all the cheese you are eating. The recipe makes two medium sized pizzas – enough for two hungry people, or four not-so-hungry ones, maybe with a couple of sides.

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Double Pumpkin Goats Cheese Pizza

Makes 2 pizzas, serves 2-4

Author Domestic Gothess

Ingredients

Pizza Dough:

• 250 g strong white bread flour 2 cups + 2 tbsp
• 5 g fast action dried yeast 1 1/2 tsp
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
• 180 g pumpkin puree 6.3 oz
• 1 tbsp water
• semolina for rolling

Roasted Pumpkin:

• 550 g peeled and de-seeded pumpkin 19oz, prepared weight, chopped into 1cm dice
• 1 red onion peeled and thinly sliced
• 1 tbsp finely chopped fresh rosemary
• 1 tsp ground cumin
• glug olive oil
• salt and pepper

Tomato Sauce:

• 250 g tomato passata 9oz
• 2 cloves garlic peeled and crushed
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• pinch red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper

Toppings:

• 125 g soft goats cheese 4.5oz
• 125 g mozzarella 4.5oz
• dried oregano
• finely chopped rosemary
• red pepper flakes
• salt and pepper
• Fresh basil to serve

Instructions

• Place the flour in a large bowl and add the yeast to one side and the salt and sugar to the other. Mix in the olive oil, pumpkin puree and water, it should form a slightly sticky dough. Turn out onto an un-floured work surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth, elastic and no longer sticky; if the dough seems too wet you can add a little bit more flour. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and set aside to rise until doubled in size, 1-2 hours. You can also place the dough in the fridge to rise overnight if you prefer.
• While the dough is rising prepare the toppings. Preheat the oven to 200C/400F/gas mark 6. Spread the prepared pumpkin out in a roasting tray, scatter over the onion, rosemary and cumin, drizzle with olive oil and salt and pepper, toss everything together to coat then roast for about 20-30 minutes until tender; set aside.
• To make the tomato sauce, place the passata, olive oil, garlic and red pepper flakes in a small saucepan. Bring up to the boil then simmer gently for 15-20 minutes until reduced and thickened; season to taste with salt and pepper.
• Turn the oven up to max (245C/475F/gas mark 9). Sprinkle a worksurface with a mixture of flour and semolina. divide the risen dough in half and shape each half into a ball. Roll each ball out thinly to about 25cm diameter and place each one on a baking sheet.
• Spread a couple of spoonfuls of the tomato sauce over each base, scatter over the pumpkin and onion then top with crumbled goats cheese and mozzarella slices. Sprinkle with oregano, rosemary, red pepper flakes and salt and pepper.
• Bake the pizzas for 20-25 minutes, rotating the trays halfway through, until crisp and browned. Scatter with fresh basil leaves to serve.

I am sharing this with Foodie FriDIY, Foodie Friends Friday, Fiesta Friday, Saucy Saturdays hosted by The Flavour Bender, Take Two Tapas, La Petit Chef and Mid-Life Croissant,