After six months of root veggies, markets suddenly flush green with delicate shoots (ramps, chives, asparagus) that can be added pretty much as is to salads, quick sautés and pasta dishes—or, say, a Burrata pizza like this one. Those bites of rawness are hands down my favorite parts of spring.
Unlike the slow-roasted roots of winter, tender alliums and asparagus brighten up anything they share a plate (or crust) with. Plus, they require hardly any prep work. And since their light flavors are easily overpowered, they command home cooks to shut their spice drawers and focus on the simplest pairings. Maybe that explains the green thing + shredded cheese + heavy cream pattern that I repeat on this blog around the same time each year. (See Exhibit A, Exhibit B, and Exhibit C.)
In light of my apparent fixation on cream-based spring recipes, this week I'm serving up a compromise: marinara and Burrata pizza. I still get that fresh, milky taste (Burrata is basically a mozzarella pouch filled with more cheese and cream), and the milder cheese flavor allows me to add marinara and prosciutto without overpowering the tender green stars of the show. It's a true celebration of raw spring flavor!
Asparagus, Ramp, Prosciutto, and Burrata Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 (14- to 16-ounce) ball pizza dough
- ⅔ cup super-easy marinara sauce
- ½ bunch asparagus trimmed and sliced thinly on the bias
- 4 ramps trimmed
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 2 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto chopped
- 4 ounces Burrata cheese (half of an 8-ounce ball), torn into bite-size pieces
- extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh chives
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 500°F (if using a baking sheet) or as high as it will go (if using a baking stone/steel; place the stone/steel in the oven before you start preheating).
- Stretch or roll out your dough to a 12-inch circle, then transfer it to an oiled baking sheet or a floured pizza peel (if using a baking stone/steel).
- Spread the marinara sauce evenly over the dough, leaving a ½-inch border around the edges. Scatter on the sliced asparagus, arrange the ramps on top, and sprinkle with a pinch of salt and a grind or two of black pepper.
- Transfer the pizza to the oven. Bake until the crust is light golden brown—4 to 5 minutes on the baking sheet, about 3 minutes on the baking stone/steel—then carefully scatter the prosciutto and Burrata on top and bake until the cheese is melted and beginning to brown in spots (about 3 minutes longer).
- Remove the pizza from the oven. Drizzle it with a little extra-virgin olive oil, sprinkle with a pinch of salt, a little black pepper, and the chives. Slice and serve.
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