July 18, 2013
Are you sick of peach posts yet? Truth be told, I’m sort of over them, but my garden to table mantra is use ‘em if you’ve got ‘em, and they just keep rolling in.
Hang in there with me, because this flatbread is scrumptious, which in the Val adjective ladder is a step up from my usual favorite, delicious.
Last week, I found myself with plenty of pizza dough, the ubiquitous basket of peaches and a bunch of fresh arugula from the garden. Somehow, I don’t feel like I’m carbo-loading when there are so many greens on the plate…match that with a BBQ fired up and ready to grill— and voila, this “salad” was born.
Preface: When you write a food blog your family knows they can’t touch anything until they ask the ever-important question: “Do you need to take a picture before I eat this?”
So, this beauty of a pizza is sitting on the counter post photo-op and my husband (who is against fruit anywhere near his pizza) calls to me, “Can I eat this? Do you need to photograph it?” After I assured him it was “safe”, he helped himself and loved it. That’s about the best endorsement I can give.
I’m not sure exactly the difference between flatbread and pizza. Do you? I think they are used interchangeably. To me, flatbread is more of a thin crust with a Middle Eastern flair. Since I use za’atar in this recipe I reasoned it was definitely flatbread…made with pizza dough.
Za’atar is a blend of Middle Eastern spices that adds flavor to so many dishes and is fantastic on this flatbread as a counterpoint to the sweetness of the peaches and creaminess of the ricotta. It’s a blend of dried thyme, toasted sesame seeds, sumac and sea salt. You can find it pre-made in most spice sections, but it really is worth it to make your own blend— I like this basic recipe over at 101 Cookbooks.
This makes a wonderful light summer lunch or a tasty appetizer.
Serve it with a chilled Rosé wine. Cheers!
Serves 4
2 handfuls of arugula, coarsely chopped
2 small semi firm peaches
1 cup Bellwether Farms ricotta or whole milk ricotta of choice
1 teaspoon za’atar spice blend
Olive oil
Sea salt
Red pepper flakes
1 teaspoon fresh mint leaves
Heat your pizza stone on the BBQ on high for about 15 minutes. While the pizza stone is warming up, roll out your dough. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with about one teaspoon za’atar and sea salt.
Put your crust on the pizza stone. Let pizza cook for about five minutes with the lid closed moving it 90 degrees at the 2.5 minute mark. Since you are already at the grill, take two small peaches, cut them in half and take out the pit, sprinkle with olive oil and sea salt. Place the peach halves directly on the grill, cut side down. Let cook for 1 minute, then rotate 45 degrees (still cut side down) and cook 1 more minute. Take off the grill and slice.
Once your crust is done, it will puff up and be beautiful, take it off the grill to finish. Slather one cup of ricotta on top with a spoon~ it won’t look pretty, but boy will it be delicious. Put the arugula in the center and with the sliced, grilled peaches around the arugula. Chop the mint leaves, sprinkling on top of the entire pizza.
Drizzle it all with olive oil and a sprinkle of red pepper flakes.
