AUTUMN PIZZA PERFECTION WITH DELICATA, BACON, CRANBERRY, GOAT CHEESE AND CRISPY SAGE

To make the pizza dough, place olive oil, honey, and water into the bowl of a stand mixer.  Stir to dissolve honey into the water (so it doesn’t stick to the bottom of the bowl).  Sprinkle the yeast on top of the liquid mixture, stir, and let sit for 5-10 minutes until yeast becomes foamy.  Add salt and 1 ½ cups of the flour.  Mix using the dough hook attachment.  Gradually add as much of the remaining flour as needed until a ball forms and pulls away from the bowl.  Empty dough onto a floured countertop and knead for 8 minutes until dough is smooth and elastic adding flour as needed if sticky.

Place dough in a greased bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel.  Let rise in a warm spot for 1 hour until doubled in bulk.  Knead dough briefly and form into a ball.  Let rest for 15 minutes under a clean kitchen towel.  If you are not using the dough in the same day, refrigerate in a plastic bag sprayed with cooking spray overnight or up to 3 days.  When you are ready to make the pizza, bring the dough to room temperature and knead briefly.  Let the dough rise on a countertop lightly dusted with flour under a clean kitchen towel for 20-30 minutes, while you prepare the toppings.

Place pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 425 degrees for at least 20-30 minutes, while you prepare the toppings.  You can also make this pizza on a sheet pan if you don’t have a stone (no need to preheat sheet pan).

Cut the root and stem ends off the delicata squash and discard.  Cut the whole squash in half lengthwise.  Scoop the seeds out with a spoon and discard.  Cut each half, crosswise into ⅛” thick ‘halfmoon-shaped’ pieces.  Set aside.

Cook the bacon in a large deep skillet over medium high heat until lightly crispy.  Remove from the pan and chop into ½” pieces.  Set aside.

Add the onion, garlic, and chopped sage to the bacon drippings in the pan and cook, stirring frequently, until soft and fragrant, about 2-3 minutes.  Add the sliced squash to the pan along with the salt, pepper, cinnamon, nutmeg, and wine.  Continue to cook, tossing frequently, until the squash is softened and begins to get limp, about 4-5 minutes.

Add the chopped bacon, cranberries, walnuts, and dates to the pan.  Toss to fully coat and remove the pan from the heat.  Set aside to cool slightly while you prepare the dough.

Form your pizza dough into a 10” round (if not using, keep the other ball in the fridge for up to 3 days).  Sprinkle the cornmeal on a pizza peel (or baking sheet) and place your formed dough on top of it.

Top the dough with the shredded cheddar, leaving about ½” of the dough exposed around the edges to form a crust.  Top the cheese with the squash mixture, taking care to evenly distribute the berries, bacon, etc… Crumble the goat cheese evenly all over the top of the pizza.  Drizzle the exposed crust with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and the rest of the olive oil evenly over the filling.

Slide the pizza onto the hot stone in the oven (or place sheet pan in oven) and bake for 14 minutes until the golden brown and bubbly.

While the pizza cooks, make the fried sage.  Melt the butter in a small skillet over medium high heat and add the whole sage leaves.  The butter will bubble and the sage will get crispy.  As soon as the butter turns golden brown, remove it from the heat.  Arrange the crispy sage leaves over the top of the pizza and drizzle the brown butter all over.

Drizzle the honey all over the top and cut into slices.  DEVOUR!!

Cool autumn evenings and the colors and flavors of fall were the inspiration for this pizza.  The rich earthy flavor of the delicata squash sings with tart cranberries, salty bacon, crunchy walnuts, and sweet dates. Perfectly finished with tangy goat cheesy, crispy brown butter sage leaves, and honey drizzle.  Every bite is a flavor explosion perfectly paired with the rich flavor and creamy texture of Coppola Diamond Collection Chardonnay.