Can You Ever Get Tired of Pizza?
Roasted butternut squash pizza with duck confit and smoked gouda
We make pizza every Friday at our house.
Okay, maybe not every Friday. Sometimes, for reasons beyond our control, we can’t make pizza on Friday. So we make it on Saturday instead. Occasionally, someone will ask me if I get tired of eating pizza. In all cases, the person asking the question has never had the pleasure of eating our pizza. Is it the crispy, thin crust? Is it the freshness of the ingredients? Or is it merely the fact that I consider pizza to be a food group in and of itself? Maybe it’s all the above. I think the real reason we never tire of pizza is that the toppings are always changing. Fresh tomato and basil in the summer yield to roasted squash and Gorgonzola in the fall.
We track our hits and misses (Yes, there have been a few yucks.) in a pizza log. Here is a look at some of our (mostly vegetarian) tried and true, white pizza favorites:
| base | layer 1 | layer 2 | sprinkle | dash | cheese! | at the end |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| EVOO + minced garlic | crimini mushrooms | paper thin potatoes | fresh thyme | coarse sea salt | Taleggio + Gruyere | truffle oil drizzle |
| pesto + minced garlic | roasted tomatoes | coarse sea salt | mozzarella + Parmesan | |||
| EVOO + minced garlic | roasted acorn squash | red pepper flakes | coarse sea salt | Gorgonzola + mozzarella | maple syrup drizzle | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | fresh sliced mushrooms | fresh or dried thyme | coarse sea salt | Gruyere | truffle oil drizzle | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | roasted root vegetables | pine nuts | fresh ground nutmeg | white cheddar | truffle oil drizzle | |
| pesto + minced garlic | roasted red peppers | paper thin potatoes | coarse ground fennel seeds | red pepper flakes | feta + asiago | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | marinated artichoke hearts | sundried tomatoes | hot banana peppers | white cheddar + mozzarella | ||
| EVOO + minced garlic | roasted butternut squash | sautéed Swiss chard | toasted pepitas | coarse sea salt | chèvre + fontina | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | roasted butternut squash | duck confit | maple syrup + aged balsamic | dried sage | smoked gouda + mozzarella | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | paper thin potatoes | minced fresh rosemary | coarse sea salt | Parmesan | truffle oil drizzle | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | paper thin sweet potatoes | caramelized onions | fresh or dried thyme | coarse sea salt | Gorgonzola | scallions |
| fig preserves | sliced pears | caramelized onions | fresh or dried thyme | Gorgonzola | ||
| EVOO + minced garlic | fresh cherry tomatoes, halved | basil | pine nuts | coarse sea salt | fresh mozzarella | |
| EVOO + minced garlic | paper thin potatoes | duck confit | coarse sea salt | smoked gouda + white cheddar | scallions | |
| lemon olive oil + garlic | asparagus, thin stalks | diced smoked ham and/or mushrooms | coarse ground black pepper | coarse sea salt | fontina | |
| lemon olive oil + garlic | summer squash, thin sliced | coarse ground black pepper | coarse sea salt | chèvre + fontina |
Bob Vivant 
Yum. I am officially making pizza tonight.
I cannot believe you have a pizza log, you are so organized. I’m jealous.
Why do you only have white pizza? Do you not enjoy tomato sauce?
Maple syrup on pizza is an interesting concept. I would never of thought of that.
Beth, we love red sauce pizza too, but we get in a rut with it. We either have garlic, spinach and mushroom, roasted red pepper, pepperoni, or basil and fresh mozzarella. Sometimes we add hot banana peppers. I’m open to new ideas for red pizza that don’t involve green peppers!
I have pizza just about every Friday as well, whether with my family, my boyfriend or just myself! Tonight the boyfriend and I are making artichoke pizza! I have been meaning to make butternut squash pizza for some time now but you have re-inspired me! By the way, I love that you keep a pizza log, haha! True dedication! 🙂
Hi! I love the website! We just started making pizza but (you’ll kill me) I have been using pizza crust from a mix. I am going to try your pizza dough recipe on Friday- wish me luck! I am feeling inspired after “cooking” in your kitchen under your tutelage 🙂
Thanks Maile! Don’t fret about the box crust. You’ve got to start somewhere. Years ago we ate doctored up frozen pizzas. Let me know how the crust turns out for you. Once you start making your own, you won’t want to go back to the box.
Hi — the pizza was AWESOME. It was great being free to use all our favorite toppings – and so cheap! Mine was pepperoni, cilantro, red onion, jalapeno, garlic and mushroom. That would have cost a fortune and we are never happy with the crust on delivered pizzas. We are going to make this our Friday night tradition also! My only question is why my crust turned out dry. The dough rose nicely, it was nice and soft. So my questions are: 1) we have one of those aerated pizza pans with holes in it. It makes the crust nice & crispy. Should we not prebake the crust if we use that? Or prebake it for less time? 2) Would brushing some olive oil on it before putting it in the oven work?
Again – loved the recipe and it was a fun family activity! Thanks! 🙂
Maile–I’m thrilled to know that your first attempt was a success. And thank you for sharing your thoughts on the crust. The crust (https://bobvivant.com/2009/09/25/never-fail-pizza-dough/) is indeed a dry and crispy one.
We prebake for two reasons — we like super crispy crust, and it’s hard to slide the pizza onto the stone when it’s loaded with toppings. If you are using a pizza pan and not a stone, you don’t have to worry about that. If you want a softer crust you can:
1. make smaller pizzas (thicker)
2. skip the prebake or reduce the time you prebake.
Try this next time:
1. Increase your oven temp to 500.
2. Skip the prebake.
3. Be light-handed with your toppings. (Don’t stack it too deep.)
4. Bake for 8-10 minutes or until cheese starts to brown up.
We use this method sometimes depending on what toppings we’re working with. It will give you a softer crust overall and a chewier crust at the edges. If you want to make an ingredient heavy pizza or one with very wet ingredients, I still recommend the prebake.
can you tell me step by step onto how to cook this pizza called Roasted butternut squash pizza with duck confit and smoked gouda please?
Hi Nino,
I roast the squash ahead of time–1/2″ cubes tossed with olive oil and salt and roasted at 400F for 25-30 minutes. To build the pizza sprinkle the crust with minced garlic, then shredded duck confit (from one leg), chopped fresh sage leaves, the roasted squash cubes, and finally about 5 ounces of grated smoked gouda. If the cheese is too smokey for your liking, you can do half smoked and half mozzarella. Hope this helps!