Summer Delight

I am not a big pizza fan and I have never really liked cheese, so any recipe that makes me crave pizza and inspires a new love of cheese must make a crazy good pizza. Or maybe it really isn't much of a pizza. Either way, I am in love with this Strawberry and Goat Cheese Pizza... and now goat cheese.
The version of this recipe I first tried uses a combination of goat cheese, arugula, almonds, and strawberries while the original (which I also tried) uses goat cheese, watercress, almonds, and strawberries. I thought both were delicious, so here is my "generic" version.


Strawberry and Goat Cheese Pizza
adapted from Cooking Light and Love and Olive Oil
Serves: 4 (depending on how thin you roll your crust - I like mine really thin)
Crust:
3/4 cup warm water
1 1/2 teaspoons dry yeast (from 1 envelope)
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon salt
1 3/4 cups (about) unbleached all purpose flour
1 teaspoon whole fennel seeds
1 teaspoon dried thyme

Topping:
1/3 cup (3 ounces) crumbled goat cheese
1 1/2 cup sliced strawberries
1 1/2 cup trimmed greens (I like Dole's Spring Mix)
1/2 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
Dash of salt
Dash of freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup (1 ounce) shaved fresh Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese (I used shredded Parmesan)
3 tablespoons toasted nuts (I like sliced almonds)

1. Pour 3/4 cup water into large bowl. Sprinkle yeast over; stir to blend. Let stand 10 minutes to dissolve yeast.
2. Add oil, salt, and herbs, then 1 1/2 cups flour. Stir until well blended (dough will be sticky).
3. Turn dough out onto generously floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, adding just enough flour to prevent dough from sticking, about 5 minutes (dough will be soft). Shape dough into ball; place in large oiled bowl and turn to coat. Cover bowl with kitchen towel. Let dough rise at cool room temperature until almost doubled, about 2 hours.
4. Punch dough down; form into ball. Return to bowl; cover with towel and let rise until doubled, about 3 hours.
5. Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Punch down dough. Form into ball; place on floured work surface. Cover with kitchen towel; let rest 30 minutes.
6. Sprinkle rimless baking sheet with cornmeal. Roll out dough on floured surface into desired shape and thickness. Transfer to baking sheet.
7. Bake crust for 10-12 minutes or until just set.
8. While baking, combine strawberries, greens, olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and black pepper; toss to coat.
9. Remove from oven and sprinkle with crumbled goat cheese.
10. Arrange strawberry mixture evenly over goat crust. Sprinkle pizza with cheese and nuts. Cut into wedges. Serve immediately.

Listening to: "Will I Ever Make it Home?" Ingram Hill
Thought of the Day: "It's not what you look at that matters. It's what you see." -Henry David Thoreau

{Image via Love and Olive Oil}