Root Vegetable Pizza with Sweet Potato and Parsnip Puree and Cheddar Cheese
The sweet potato and parsnip sauce on this root vegetable pizza will remind you of your favorite blended fall soup, and the puree can be made with any mixture of root vegetables. Mix and match based on what you find at your local farmers' market!
Makes: 1 (12- to 14-inch) pizza
Cost: $10
Equipment
- Cutting board and knife
- Large pot
- Food processor, immersion blender, or potato masher
- Rolling pin (optional)
- Large rimmed baking sheet or baking stone/steel
- Pizza peel (optional)
Ingredients
- 1 large parsnip, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1-inch pieces
- 2 tablespoons whole milk
- 1½ teaspoons (½ tablespoon) Dijon mustard
- 1 teaspoon honey
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 2 teaspoons finely chopped fresh sage or parsley
- 1 (14- to 16-ounce) ball pizza dough
- 4 ounces farmhouse Cheddar cheese (or regular sharp Cheddar), grated (1 heaping cup)
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 bottom third of the oven before you start preheating). Let the oven preheat for at least 30 minutes. Then, if you’re using a baking stone or steel, switch the oven to Broil on high.
To make the sauce
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil over high heat. Add the parsnip and sweet potato to the pot, bring the water back to a boil, and boil, uncovered, for 20 minutes or until the vegetables are very tender when pierced with a fork.
- Remove the pot from the heat, drain the vegetables and transfer them to a food processor. Process until smooth, then add in the milk, mustard, honey, salt, and a few grinds of pepper. Process until the mixture is uniform in color, and add more milk if it seems too thick to spread on the pizza dough. Stir in the sage and season to taste with more salt and pepper if needed. (Alternatively, you could just return the cooked vegetables to the pot, mash them together with a potato masher, then stir in the other ingredients.)
To make the pizza
- Stretch or roll out your dough to a 12- to 14-inch circle, then transfer it to a baking sheet / pizza pan or a lightly floured pizza peel (if using a baking stone/steel).
- Spread the sauce on the dough, leaving a ½-inch border all around. Scatter the cheese evenly over top.
- Transfer the pizza to the oven and bake until the crust is golden around the edges and evenly browned on the bottom—8 to 10 minutes on the baking sheet, 6 to 8 minutes on the baking stone/steel.
- Remove the pizza from the oven. Let rest for a few minutes, then slice and serve.