Italian Farmhouse Rustic Pizza
This Italian Farmhouse Rustic Pizza is a complete meal on a pizza. Includes prosciutto, ricotta, roasted yellow peppers, basil, pistachios and balsamic vinegar.
My husband LOVES making pizza – he grills it in the summer, bakes it in the winter, and comes up with a new flavor combo each time. In this monthly “guest post,” I’m going to sit back, relax, and maybe take the occasional photo while Jeff makes me a pizza and tells you about it. Here he is:
In continuation of my guest posts about my favorite food – PIZZA – I tried to come up with something I’ve never seen on a menu before.
Most of us have had pizza that includes prosciutto or ricotta or basil, and probably a chicken pizza a time or two, as well.
Don’t worry, those traditionally awesome toppings are still present. But, it is the other toppings like balsamic vinegar, roasted yellow peppers, and crushed pistachios that book it a ticket on the train to Flavor Town.
I made sure to brown the dough on the grill, and I flame-roasted the yellow pepper on a burner on the side of the grill while the dough cooked.
When the dough was mostly cooked, I added the pizza sauce, ricotta, yellow pepper, and prosciutto (also one of my fav elements of many breakfast board ideas).
After letting that cook on the grill for a bit longer I added the final toppings that I didn’t want too warm – pistachios, balsamic drizzle, and hand-ripped basil (you could chiffonade them but the hand-tear gives a more rustic appearance).
You might be asking yourself, why pistachios? Well, I find that the crunchiness, saltiness, and lightly sour nature of pistachios can add a great boost of flavor. They are one of my favorite nuts. The ones here were simple to prepare . . . First, go buy yourself a bag of salted pistachios with the shell on*.
De-shell them and crush them the back of your knife or lightly chop them. It is my personal opinion that pistachios pair well with creamy things like ricotta and sweet things like balsamic – and that makes the combo on this rustic pizza classic in some way.
Italian Farmhouse Rustic Pizza
Ingredients
- 1 yellow bell pepper
- 1 ball pizza dough store-bought or homemade
- Olive oil for grilling dough
- 1 cup pizza sauce
- ¾ cup ricotta cheese
- 4 ounces prosciutto
- ¼ cup fresh basil leaves roughly torn
- 3 tablespoons crushed pistachios
- Good balsamic vinegar or glaze for drizzling
Instructions
- Roast yellow pepper in oven or over an open flame until very dark all over. Place in small bowl; cover with plastic wrap and let stand 5 minutes. Rub skin off pepper, remove seeds and stem, and thinly slice. Set aside.
- Meanwhile, grill pizza crust according to our How to Cook Pizza on the Grill post. Alternatively, pizza crust can be baked in oven according to package directions. A few minutes before crust is fully cooked, top with pizza sauce, ricotta, prosciutto, and roasted yellow pepper. Cook until toppings are warm and crust is cooked through. Remove from grill.
- Sprinkle pizza with basil and pistachios; drizzle with balsamic. Slice and serve immediately.
Can I have a slice? Gorgeous!!
Of course you may. Next time Jeff makes it for me 🙂
Also, Claire- I love your blog and the idea behind it. Consider yourself added to my reading list!
Though I usually use ricotta with pistachios in sweet cakes, this pizza is something I need to try! Great flavors!
Thanks Paula – it was delicious, and I didn’t have to lift a finger 🙂
I love Pizza always anytime.
It’s the time to try this Italian version!
Thanks.
You’re welcome!
Looks incredible! I love the combination of flavors. Pinned to try soon 🙂
Thanks so much, Sherri!
I love your pizza, it looks just wonderful. The pistachio’s are surprising, have never thought of using nuts it’s kind of like a deconstructed pesto. YUM!!
Jeff passes along his thanks, Suzanne 🙂 I hadn’t thought of it as a deconstructed pesto, but that’s exactly what it is, with the pistachios and basil!