Oh Pioneer (Woman!)

This is why I love to cook. Because even the simplest motions tell stories.

Flour + light + mom's old rolling pin

Cooking infuses simple ingredients with meaning, motion, a way to use energy and though to create something new that didn't exist before. It's such an easy way to attain transformation in my life that sometimes, it feels like cheating. If only I could change my person as quickly as I can change flour, salt, yeast, and water into dough.


The more I write about food, the more I read what others write about food.

In particular, I love stories by Molly of Orangette, Tara at sevenspoons, and Pioneer Woman Ree. Hearing these women share their food stories propels me to share mine. They write because they want to and need to, and the food is just a vehicle to convey their thoughts and wishes into the world. I'm wrapped in a warm cocoon of their words, bouncing happily along until hey! There's also a recipe at the end! Shouldn't all cooking be that?



I hate regarding food simply as a means to an end ---calories, salt, fat, fiber---or as a status symbol ("Oh, just a Salade Niçoise and mineral water for me...") Food is energy, but it's also change. It changes when we prepare it and when we eat it. Think how much you have learned about baking since the first time you tried to make chocolate chip cookies from scratch. I've learned (among other things) that baking soda and powder are not interchangeable, and that talking on the phone makes me prone to measure 1/2 a cup of salt into brownie batter....

Many blogs are styled after cookbooks, with a photo, a quick lead, and a no-frills recipe. If I wanted that, I'd crack open my copy of Better Homes and Gardens (which I do weekly.) But I'm after the stories. Yes, we eat to survive and to feed our bodies, but if we can feed our hearts while we're at it....well, why not?

We honor each other when we share food that was created in love.


Prosciutto, red onion, and mozzarella pizza
from the Pioneer Woman, who makes me glad when she shares the joys of life in rural Oklahoma.

Serves 4

Wheat pizza crust

• 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 1 (generous) teaspoon active dry yeast
• 1 cup warm water (120 - 130 degrees Fahrenheit)
  
• 1/2 tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. olive oil

Caramelized onion topping

• 1 whole large onion, halved and thinly sliced
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• Parmesan cheese, grated (optional)
• sea salt, Kosher salt, or Fleur de seul to taste
• 10 oz fresh Mozzarella cheese, sliced thin (about one "chub")
• 8 slices Prosciutto
  

Preheat an oven to 500 degrees and warm two tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet.

In a medium bowl, stir together the yeast and warm water. Let the yeast sit for 10 minutes or so, until the water's surface is coated in air bubbles.

Once the oil is heated, toss in the onion slices and brown sugar. Coat them all well. Let the onions caramelize, stirring occasionally.

In a small bowl, mix together the flours and salt. Mix as much of the flours as you can into the yeast and water, and drizzle in the olive oil. Mix until just combined, when you have a sticky mass. Coat the small bowl with olive oil and let the dough rest in there for a few minutes.

Slice the mozzarella and prosciutto and tend to the onions, which should be halfway done by now. Keep cooking them until they're golden brown and tender.

Pour the pizza dough onto a floured surface and knead for a few minutes, until the dough begins to feel elastic. Then, stretch/roll the dough until it covers your pizza pan. Flip the dough in the air like an Italian chef it you want! Then, let the dough rest and rise in a warm place--perhaps a counter top near the oven. I took this time to clean the flour off my counter top and finish the onions.

Glide a thin layer of olive oil onto the pizza dough and layer it with mozzarella slices. Follow next with the onions, then prosciutto. Sprinkle on a little Parmesan and some salt. Bake for 15 - 17 minutes on a lower rack of the oven, until the mozzarella is brown and bubbly. Enjoy.

If you liked this recipe, you might also enjoy:

The OMFG pizza
Barbecued peach pizza
Shallot, crimini, and chard pizza