New Year’s Eve, 2012
A generous and delicious slice of Pizza with Onion Confit, the Tuesday with Dorie Baking with Julia recipe choice for today.
Tonight I’m celebrating and bringing in the New Year………with Dorie Greenspan, Steve Sullivan and Yotam Ottolenghi.
Let me quickly explain. I’ll be brief because I have to get back to my guests.
The Onion Confit, which can be made two days ahead, consists of 4 onions, red wine, red wine vinegar and seasonings. I added some Crème de Cassis to taste. It was New Year’s Eve, afterall.
Dorie, of course, is the well-recognized cookbook author and fearless leader of my Tuesdays with Dorie, Baking with Julia group. Greenspan wrote the cookbook, Baking with Julia, which was based on the popular PBS Series hosted by Julia Childs.
Steve Sullivan is a talented baker who successfully established his own bakery, Acme Bread Company, in San Francisco. His sourdough and levain breads are legendary.
Sullivan’s dough for this pizza “has enough texture and flavor to hold its own under any topping.” Although you first make a sponge before making the dough, necessitating two risings, this isn’t difficult. When ready, roll and work the dough until it is about 1/4 inch thick before transferring it to a baker’s peel rubbed lightly with cornmeal.
London Chef Yotam Ottolenghi who is becoming one of the most respected chefs in the world, owns five remarkable restaurants in that city and has written two well-received cookbooks, Plenty and Jerusalem.
This coming week’s recipe choice is the very tasty Pizza with Onion Confit. Julia Childs collaborated with Steve Sullivan to create this rather involved, somewhat complicated dish. After tasting the Provencal-inspired Onion Confit, as the base, I’m not sure I will ever return to classic tomato sauce again. Admittedly, it was a two-day process, a sponge and two risings, but perfect, I thought, for my New Year’s Eve supper. Champagne? Maybe not. Beer? For sure.
After preheating the oven to a toasty 475 degrees, I transferred my pizza topped with precooked pancetta lardons, roasted artichoke hearts and Parmigiano Reggiano Cheese, from the peel to my baking stone which had been also preheated in the oven.
Intriqued by Ottolenghi’s culinary talent and impressed by reviews of his recently-published cookbooks, I ordered both of them last month. Unfortunately, they’d been shoved aside on my kitchen counter, victims of the holiday hustle and bustle.
New Year’s Eve has never been a hoop-and-hollar event at our house. And, this year, especially, I needed quiet. To me, it felt right to just cook something delicious and settle in with a good (cook) book.
The finished product. Everything about this pizza —- perfect.
I must return to my friends, Dorie, Steve, Yotam (we’re channeling Julia). I’ll let my pictures speak for the pizza. Thanks to our host-with-the-most, Paul of The Boy Can Bake, for providing the recipe for this delicious pizza-confit combo to all of you. Check out his link. To see how my colleagues did this week, go to our Tuesdays with Dorie link.
HAPPY NEW YEAR 2013, FAITHFUL READERS AND DORIE COLLEAGUES. MAY THE YEAR AHEAD BE HAPPY, HEALTHY and OVERFLOWING WITH THE FELLOWSHIP OF FAMILY, FRIENDS, AND GOOD FOOD.
I like this post Mary, you made me laugh! I liked the confit too, but should´ve gotten more creative with the toppings, like artichokes… or figs. It looks good! And about Ottolenghi, I have such a crush on Plenty, one of the best books I have, and I have a million. I could pretty much cook every single recipe there. Have a great week!
Wow, Mary! Just, wow! This looks & sounds amazing! Artichokes are one of my favorite pizza toppings!
Happy New year to you, too! xoxo
Love this post! What a perfectly round shape your dough has. Your pizza sounds delicious. I have had my eye on the book Plenty (last thing I need), but reading this and the comment above I just may have to order it very soon! Happy new year to you!!
Now THAT’S a dinner party I would love an invitation to. What a fabulous sounding pizza! (I have Jerusalem and I feel I need Plenty now as well!) Happy New Year Mary!
Great post! And your pics really did speak for the pizza. It looks awesome!!
Holy moly. That looks incredible. For no real reason, beyond distractedness, I didn’t make this recipe. Your pics may be the kick in the butt I need to get back on track. I want a slice. NOW.
My brother bought me Jerusalem for Christmas. Haven’t cooked anything from it yet, but I sure do love flipping the pages. It’s BEAUTIFUL.
I would have loved a New Year’s Eve like that. Sometimes, calm & good food are the best pairing.
I have both Jerusalem (pre-ordered that one when it came out) and Plenty and adore them both (but don’t cook from them enough). His original book is being released in a US version next year. And yep, its on pre-order.
Yeah! I can post again. (I went to the WP site and asked for help – they obviously helped…)
Okay, have already pre-ordered. Like a needed another cookbook!!! Like you say, peace out.
I just bought Jerusalem last night and I love it! It brought back all these memories of my summer in Israel many years ago. Your pizza looks wonderful. I think they would all be happy with it.
Clever post to start 2013!
Oh, gosh, if I were imaginative enough to think of adding artichoke hearts I might have made this one!!! It looks amazing. After the lukewarm response I got to Dorie’s pissaladiere, I didn’t dare present another onion topped bread for dinner…but I’m loving your jazzed up version.
The pizza was much more better – I know that’s not proper English – than the pissaladière. I’ve never been much of a fan of that dish (pissaladière) but the onion confit for this is worth trying, Liz.
Such an enjoyable post, Mary! Love your idea of a perfect New Years Eve…similar to ours…I didn’t even make it to 12 o’clock I’m ashamed to say! I did make a special meal! I made your Lobster Pot Pie and it was so delicious…Thank you for sharing!!
Perfect looking pizza…and great photos!!
Happy New Year, Mary! Your pizza looks wonderful and I love that you put artichokes on it. I have wanted to order Ottolenghi’s books and will be looking forward to seeing what you cook from them. Your new year’s sounds pretty perfect to me.
Beautiful pizza, Mary! I agree, your New Years sounded perfect- also thank you for the cookbook reviews. I have heard excellent comments about his books.
Mary, your pizza with the delicious toppings of pancetta, artichokes and parmesan looks so picture perfect and delicious! What a great choice of toppings in addition to the caramelized onions. I liked that this recipe left a lot of room for many, many inspired variations!
And yes, nice to read that you really like the two cookbook that were so masterly put together by Yotam Ottolenghi!
Mary, what a great post. Your pizza looks stunning. Especially love the artichoke heart topping.
Quite a collection of guests. Hope they enyoyed your pretty pizza.
Wow your pizza crust is so perfect! I really loved this pizza too and I think it was a great way to ring in the new year. Here’s to another year of great food with the Doristas! 🙂