Pizza Toppings

[lyndalou]

I am wanting to start making pizza at home and wonder what your favorite toppings are besides the usual tomato sauce sausage and mozzarella cheese. Also how hot should the oven be and how long does it usually take to cook pizza?

Thanks for your help.

[flukx]

My oh my, nothing is safe from being a potential topping on a pizza of mine. To give an example, one of my latest favorites is thin slices of sweet potato.

Regarding how hot it should be, I generally put my oven as hot as it goes (500 degrees or so). I like to get a good balance of some blackened spots on the bottom of the crust and nicely browned cheese / cooked toppings.

[BreezyCooking]

I like virtually any pizza topping so long as it's not sweet (like the strangely popular pineapple & so-called "dessert" pizzas).

My favorites are:

Anchovies
Onions
Chopped clams & garlic (on a white pizza - aka no tomato sauce, just ricotta & mozzarella cheese)
White Cheese (no tomato sauce - just ricotta, mozzarella, feta, & parmesan cheese. Fresh thinly sliced tomato is okay.)
Sliced or crumbled turkey sausage
Turkey pepperoni
Spinach
Fresh sliced tomatoes & fresh whole basil leaves
Mushrooms - plain white button or a mix of different kinds (this is particularly good on a "white" pizza)
Ranch Style - this is a variation on white where the base is a good tangy Ranch dressing. Veggie toppings are particularly nice on this one.

[GB]

The sky is the limit for toppings.

I will agree with flukx about the temp. I crank mine as hot as possible. I also use a pizza stone and get that nice and hot before the pizza goes on. It takes about 8 minutes or so for me to cook a pizza to perfection.

[GotGarlic]

Check out these threads:

• http://www.discusscooking.com/forums...ngs-22308.html
• http://www.discusscooking.com/forums...ngs-16745.html
• http://www.discusscooking.com/forums...ngs-42952.html

And check this out for an ABsolutely FABulous pizza crust recipe with cooking directions: No Knead Pizza Dough: Pear and Gorgonzola Flatbread with Baby Arugula and Shaved Parmesan

HTH.

[kitchenelf]

What do you like on your pizza?

Also - if you click on this link and check out the titles you will find lots more!

I like a white pizza, but, not what a lot of people call a white pizza. My version is the crust is drizzled with olive oil, then there is a sprinkling of shallots, walnuts, fresh basil, goat cheese, sun dried tomatoes, roasted red peppers....this stuff is scattered, not heavy and thick.

I also like a lobster and brie pizza - again the crust is drizzled with olive oil, no red sauce.

[pdswife]

I love a good veggie pizza...also do one with white sauce steak, grilled onions, mushrooms and swiss cheese that is very good.

We cook ours at 425 for 12 minutes to 15 minutes.

[Uncle Bob]

I have eaten, enjoyed and made breakfast pizzas...Scrambled eggs, bacon, sausage of various types, ham, hash browns, cheeses, peppers, fresh tomato, salsa, hot sauce, grits, would be some options...

[B'sgirl]

Tomatoes are my favorite! I also like to add green onions, garlic, and I've never tried this--but I just had a thought that it might be fun to try fresh garden peas on my pizza.

[smag]

Sliced potato, rosemary and chicken with cheese. Thats my favorite (white) pizza

[lyndalou]

smag,
Do you cook the potatoes first? I would think you'd have to.

[lyndalou]

Thanks to all of you for some great ideas and links.

[abjcooking]

Lately I've been eating pizza with dollops of mascarpone cheese added to some of the other cheeses I decide to use and top it with selections of American style ham, Prosciutto, thin slices of salami, pepperoni (basically meat antipasti's) and top it off with rocket.

[smag]

I'm not sure. We had it once in a pizzeria near our old place. It was fabulous. The one time I tried to recreate it home, was not able to achieve the same results. The potatoes where too crisp almost hard..pan fried them in oil and then layered them. Maybe raw red potatoes might work better. Still on the look out for a good potato pizza recipe.

[*amy*]

When I order a pizza, my fave toppings are mushrooms, onions, & black olives (w the usual tomatoes & mozzarella). For homemade, I've been experimenting with salad topped pizza, i.e. caesar or spinach salad (drizzle the salad dressing over the crust & sprinkle w fresh grated parmesan & bake - then top w your salad), BLT & avacado, shrimp scampi, mascarpone/smoked salmon/green onions, Asian (peanut sauce & chicken), or an eggplant parm pizza. Pretty much anything that you can place on a sammie or in a salad will work. Have fun with it.

[B'sgirl]

Oooh, avacado sounds really good on pizza! I'm going to try that next time.

I've also had a good Mexican pizza at some restaurant in Twin Falls, Idaho. They had cilantro , jalepenos, crushed tortilla chips, salsa...I can't remember what else, black beans maybe.

[expatgirl]

That's it! Hubby just went out of town and it's too cold and snowy to walk around in the snow. I'm making a pizza for myself tonight and topping it with mozzarella, mushrooms, tomatos, onions, olives, and jalapenos. I love bacon, too, but I might forgo that. Since we like crispy crusts I put mine on the bottom rack of the oven at 450F preferably on a pizza stone or pizza pan with holes. 5-7 minutes about does it.

[Jeff G.]

I like ham, pepperoni and green olives...

[Steamboater]

This is from a local pizza place.
1. Baby spinach, marinated artichoke hearts, sun-dried tomatos, feta cheese, fresh garlic, fresh basil, oregano and mozzarella cheeze.
2. Another is: Frijoles negros y Salsa (Black beans and salsa), grilled chicken or green chilies, black olives, red onions, tomatoes, jalapenos, cilantro and chedder cheese

[Yonsen]

Caramelized onions, bleu cheese, and pancetta. :)