German Biergarten Pizza
Homemade beer and horseradish mustard, sauerkraut, homemade pickle relish (with grilled bell peppers, mustard seeds, coriander seeds, onion, fresh dill), shaved swiss cheese, ½ beer-infused bratwurst & ½ seitan, soft pretzels, grated cheddar
So this recipe takes a bit of prep work. Both the mustard and the relish are going to need to be made and chilled ahead of time, so keep that in mind when you’re getting ready to make this pizza—you could easily make both of those the night before to save time. Also, if you're really in the mood for a taste of Germany but aren't feeling quite ambitious enough to make your own mustard, go ahead and substitute for some pre-made mustard (or, as Ina Garten says, "store bought is fine").
Another thing I should note is that we made this half meaty, half vegetarian. Adam's a vegetarian, so we always try to make pizzas that could at least survive without the meat component, which is why we used seitan in this one. But if you're not in mixed company and you feel like brat-less brats are sacrilege (or vice versa and you don't want any chance of meat touching your slice), feel free to ditch the half-and-half and go all the way in one direction or the other.
Recipe
Ingredients: 1 ball of dough olive oil flour for dusting
semolina flour for the pizza stone salt & pepper
1-2 soft pretzels, ripped into bite-size chunks (ours came from Philly Pretzel Factory) 2 fully cooked bratwurst, casings removed and insides crumbled (we used the Dogfish Head Heirloom Italian beer-infused brats) about ½ cup seitan about ½ cup sauerkraut (we used the Old World Caraway flavor from Food & Ferments) 1 hunk swiss cheese, shaved 1 hunk sharp cheddar, grated
For the mustard: 1 cup lager beer 2/3 cup red wine vinegar 1/3 cup whole mustard seeds 2 tablespoons dry mustard (we used Colman’s) ¼ cup prepared white horseradish 1 tablespoon honey (we used Tassot Apiaries’ wildflower honey) ¼ teaspoon caraway seeds, finely ground with mortar & pestle 2 teaspoons cornstarch mixed with 1 tablespoon water
For the relish: 1 ½ cups apple cider vinegar
1 teaspoon coriander seeds
1 teaspoon whole mustard seeds
1 jar of whole dill pickles (about 8 pickles), drained & finely diced 1 small red bell pepper 1 small yellow bell pepper 1 small white onion, finely diced 2 tablespoons chopped fresh dill
Directions:
For the mustard, start by whisking ½ cup of the beer with the red wine vinegar, 1/3 cup of mustard seeds, and the dry mustard in a small bowl. Let this stand at room temperature for about 3 hours (if you’re in a rush, an hour will suffice, but it’s not ideal).
While you’re waiting for the mustard to be ready, you can start on the relish. Heat your red and yellow peppers on a grill or portable griddler (over medium heat) until they begin to get charred. Then peel them, seed them, and finely dice them.
In a small-to-medium saucepan, heat the apple cider vinegar, remaining mustard seeds, and coriander seeds, and bring to a boil. Cook until the mixture is reduced by half and slightly syrupy. Then remove from the heat and add the syrup to a bowl filled with the pickles, peppers, onion and dill.
Toss to combine, and season with salt & pepper. Now cover the bowl and let it chill in the fridge for at least an hour (this is one part you can do the night before).
The seitan and sausage can be cooked the same way. Depending on if you have vegetarians among you, you can opt to use one or the other, cook them in separate pans for a half-and-half pizza, or just cook them both together and let all the flavors mingle. Once you’ve crumbled them, just heat them in a pan over medium heat until they are warmed all the way through. And that’s it.
When you’re ready to finish the mustard, add your pre-made mixture to a blender along with the rest of the beer, horseradish, honey, ground caraway seeds, and about a teaspoon each of salt & pepper. Blend it until a coarse puree forms and transfer to a small metal bowl.
This is where things start to get a little weird. But don’t fret, it’s actually pretty easy even though there are a lot of steps. Get a small saucepan (one that your metal bowl can sit on top of without falling in), and bring some water to a simmer in it. (You could also use a double boiler if you have one). Then put the bowl on top of the pot and whisk your mixture frequently until it begins to thicken. This will take about 15 minutes.
Now you’re going to put your mustard mixture into its own saucepan (or dump the water out and use the same one) and add the cornstarch & water mixture. Whisk this over medium-high heat until the mixture thickens and boils, about 2 minutes.
When you’re finished, put the whole thing in an airtight container and let it chill in the fridge until it’s cold. This is the other part you might want to do the night before.
Now, when you’re finally ready to get down to pizza business, preheat your oven to 550° F, and prepare your dough using the directions on the right. When the oven is hot and you’ve baked your dough for a minute, take it out and brush it lightly with olive oil.
Spread an even layer of the mustard first, followed by the Swiss cheese shavings. Next pinch out a thin coating of the sauerkraut, followed by the relish. You will probably have a lot of relish left over—just put on however much feels right.
Add the meat (fake and/or real) and the pretzel chunks, and finally grate the cheddar cheese over the whole thing. Pop it back in the oven and bake until the cheese has melted and the crust is golden brown. Then take it out, pour yourself a beer and enjoy all your hard work in pizza form.
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