Steak & Gorgonzola: Drool.

This is one of the best pizzas I’ve ever made. Seriously. While some people may find themselves daydreaming about traveling to exotic locations or a hot date, I’ve been thinking about this pizza and when I’ll get to taste it again. The day after making it I was sitting in class, doing my best to stay awake, (note- Business Communications is not very entertaining) and all I could think about was the fact that I had leftover Steak & Gorgonzola pizza sitting in my fridge and how much I wanted to be at home eating it. I even envisioned heating it up in the oven instead of nuking it in order to preserve the perfect crust and bubbling cheese. I actually had to wipe the drool away from my mouth and try to force myself to think of other things because if I didn’t get that pizza soon I was going to go into withdrawal, complete with the shakes. It was just that good.

Now I know all you savvy food enthusiasts out there love blue cheese, but in case you’re trying to convince a wary friend that mold is worth eating, gorgonzola is a good place to start. It’s a milder blue cheese, creamy and delicious, but still full of flavour. And what better a time to try this pizza than now as Joey of 80 Breakfasts has chosen Pizza as this month’s theme for Hay Hay it’s Donna Day, which was originally started by Barbara of Winos and Foodies.

My amazing Steak & Gorgonzola pizza comes from Food & Drink magazine, an awesome free publication put out by the LCBO. I decided to try a different crust than the one offered in Food & Drink and who to turn to but a fellow blogger? I’ve seen Joe, of Culinary in the Country, make countless dishes using his favourite pizza dough and they all look amazing. If he’s gone back to that same recipe again and again there has to be a good reason for it and I assure you, there is. This dough comes together in seconds in the food processor, is easy to work with and freezes well too if you feel like making a double batch, (I did!).

Steak & Gorgonzola Pizza, ( From Food & Drink, Winter 2008)

1 recipe of your favourite pizza dough, about a pound (I recommend Joe’s)

Sauce

1 T butter

2 large garlic cloves, minced

3 T all purpose flour

1 cup cold whole milk

½ cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese, about 3 oz, (I used close to 4, I like cheese)

¼ tsp salt

¼ tsp freshly ground black pepper

Toppings

12-16 oz striploin steak, preferably 1 inch thick

1 tsp peanut oil

1 sweet red pepper

1 large or 2 medium portabello mushrooms

¾ cup freshly grated hard cheese, (blend of your choice)

3 cups cubed soft cheese blend, (I didn’t use this much)

1 cup thinly sliced sweet red or white onion

2 tsp finely chopped fresh or dry rosemary

1. Pat out dough in two 12 inch oiled pizza pans for thin crusts or a half sheet for a medium thick crust. If using a jelly roll pan for a thick crust, reduce topping quantities by a third. Form a rim around edges. (I made one 12 inch and 4 mini pizzas.)

2. To make sauce, melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat, add garlic and sauté 1 minute. Mix in flour; cool 1 minute, stirring frequently. Slowly whisk in milk; cook, stirring often, for 5-8 minutes or until mixture bubbles and thickens. Remove from heat. Stir in Gorgonzola, salt and pepper. If sauce seems very thick, stir in splashes of additional milk until consistency is that of pasta sauce. (Sauce can be covered and refrigerated for up to 2 days)

3. Heat a dry heavy frying pan, preferably cast iron or a grill pan, over med-high heat until very hot. Rub both sides of steak with oil. Place steak in hot pan; sear 1 min per side. Remove to plate while still very rare; immediately refrigerate. (Cover when cold if making up to a day ahead.) Slice cold steak into bite-sized ¼ inch thick slices just before using. Seed and very thinly slice red pepper. Remove stem from mushroom. Scrape out and discard black gills and stem. Thinly slice remaining mushrooms.

4. Arrange oven racks with one on lowest level and one on upper level.

5. Preheat oven to 475F at least 15min before baking.

6. Spread dough with sauce; then sprinkle with grated hard cheese and steak. Scatter top evenly with cheese cubes; top with red pepper, mushroom and onion slices. Let rise, uncovered for 10-20 minutes until dough has almost doubled.

7. Place pizza on lowest rack. Bake 5-10 minutes. Use a spatula to turn up one corner of dough to check for browning. When nicely browned, move pizza to top rack for 5-8 minutes or until top is golden. Scatter rosemary overtop of hot pizza. To preserve crispy bottom, slide onto a cooling rack.

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