Asparagus Pizza with Pancetta from Cooking Light

We love pizza around here.  It's a Friday night tradition.  That one comes loaded--pepperoni, olives, mushrooms, onions, three cheeses, the works.  This pizza is simpler and fresher.  It's also from Cooking Light, so it's a bit healthier. This is technically a flatbread, so the dough has less rise, but I've also made it successfully with pizza dough.

THE BRIEF


The Dough:
1/2 warm (not hot) water
1 tsp. dry yeast
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1/2 tsp. salt

Dissolve the yeast in the water in a medium bowl and let stand for 5 minutes or until foamy.  Spoon 1 cup of flour into a measuring cup and level with a knife.  Combine the flour and salt with the yeast and water and stir.  Flour a smooth surface and turn dough onto it.  Knead dough, adding remaining flour a few tablespoons at a time until the dough is smooth and elastic.  This process will take approximately 8 minutes, and the dough will still be a little sticky.

Spray the bowl with cooking spray.  Return the dough to the bowl and turn it to coat it with cooking spray.  Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and allow it to rise in a warm place for 45 minutes, or until doubled in size.

While the dough is rising, preheat your oven to 475 degrees and prepare the toppings.

The Toppings:
1/2 pound asparagus (It's best to use thin spears, but if not, slice thicker spears in half so they cook quickly.)
2 oz. mozzarella (You want a good quality mozzarella here.)
2 oz. Parmigiano-Reggiano (It's the best, but I've subbed regular Parmesan without noticing a lot of different.)
2 oz. pancetta
1-2 cloves garlic, finely chopped (The original recipe calls for one clove, but we're garlic lovers.)
1 tsp. dried thyme
1 tsp. large crystal salt (This may not be strictly necessary, but the salty crunch is a really nice touch.  I found a large Australian sea salt at Trader Joe's.)
Freshly ground black pepper to taste.

Wash the asparagus (and slice if necessary), and pat dry.

Chop the pancetta.  Cook over medium heat until just starting to get crispy.  Remove from the heat and stir in the garlic, thyme, and pepper.  (Note: This is a deviations from the original recipe, which calls for you to cook the garlic and thyme with the pancetta.  This results in garlic that is ultimately burned and bitter, in my opinion.)

Assembling the pizza:
Return to the dough.  Punch it down, re-cover, and let it rest for 5 additional minutes.  Then, roll it out on a floured surface until it is about 10 inches in diameter and place it on a pizza pan or sheet pan.

Top the dough with the pancetta, garlic, and thyme mixture, then the asparagus.  Sprinkle on the salt.  Top the pizza with the mozzarella (either slice it or tear it into chunks).  Bake the pizza for 10 minutes or until the crust is golden and the cheese is melted.

Remove from the oven and slice.  Shave the Parm on top of the slices.  Enjoy.

THE VERDICT: 4 Gavels

This pizza is lovely. The crispy, saltiness of the pancetta plays well against the bright, grassiness of the asparagus and the thyme adds a nice hint of lemon.  And garlic. Well, garlic just makes everything better, right?

Give this one a shot.  Even if you aren't comfortable with making doughs, you can handle this.  My husband is the baker in our family, but I can manage this dough.  The small size of the batch makes it easy.