Roasted Red Peppers & Artichokes
Roasted artichokes with curry aioli, roasted red peppers, cherry tomatoes, manchego cheese, fresh oregano
In the past we've taken the time to labor over the preparation of whole fresh artichokes, but this pizza is all about the cheater's way out. Fresh is usually the superior option, but sometimes you just have to be okay with using canned vegetables. And I'm okay with it. Artichokes are a pain.
Recipe
Ingredients:
1 ball of pizza dough
flour for dusting
semolina flour for pizza stone
olive oil
salt & pepper
1 hunk of manchego cheese, grated
handful of assorted cherry tomatoes, halved
1 sprig fresh oregano, leaves separated from stem
1-2 red bell peppers
1-2 cans of artichoke hearts, drained & quartered or cut into equal wedges
For the aioli:
3 tablespoons mayonnaise
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon curry powder
pinch of sea salt
1.5 teaspoons lemon juice
Directions:
*Preheat your oven to 500° F. Place your whole bell pepper(s) directly on a sheet pan and roast for 30-40 minutes, until the skin is charred & wrinkly. Take the pan out and immediately cover the whole thing with aluminum foil. This will help make the skins easier to remove. Set aside for about a half hour, or until the peppers are cool enough to handle. Decrease the oven temperature to 400° F.
To remove the skins, you can hold the peppers with a paper towel and rub until they start to peel off fairly easily. Now you can trim and deseed the peppers, cutting them into strips and setting them aside.
While your peppers are cooling off, roast your artichoke hearts. Lay them out in an even layer on a baking sheet and pop them in the oven for about 14 minutes, shaking them up halfway through. When they're starting to get slightly browned at the edges, take them out and set aside, increasing the oven temperature to 550° F, or as hot as it will go.
Meanwhile, you can prepare your curry aioli. Combine all the aioli ingredients in a small bowl and whisk until fully combined and smooth. Keep this in the fridge until you're ready to use it.
Next, prepare your dough using the instructions on the right. After you've baked it for a minute, take it out and brush it lightly with olive oil, then spread out an even layer of the aioli on top. Sprinkle most of the manchego over the dough, then top with the peppers, artichokes & tomatoes, adding a little extra cheese at the end.
Bake the pizza until the cheese is melty and the crust is a nice golden brown. Take it out, sprinkle with some fresh oregano leaves and enjoy!
*Note: to make this pizza even easier on the night of, you can make your roasted red peppers in advance and store them in the fridge until you're ready to put them on the pizza.