Potato-Crusted Margherita Pizza

I got the idea for this recipe from the cookbook 300 Best Potato Recipes: A Complete Cook's Guide by Kathleen Sloan-McIntosh. The cookbook was sent to me to review. If you like potatoes then this is your cookbook. I could not believe all the different varieties of recipes in this book. I tried the pizza potato crust because it was truly something I would not have thought of on my own. The description of the recipe is the reason why I tried it.

This recipe is from the cookbook 300 Best Potato Recipes: A Complete Cook's Guide by Kathleen Sloan-McIntosh. The cookbook was sent to me to review. 

If you like potatoes then this is your cookbook. I could not believe all the different varieties of recipes in this book. I tried the pizza potato crust because it was truly something I would not have thought of on my own. The description of the recipe is the reason why I tried it.

"As un-classically Italian as this preparation may sound (full recipe Potato-Crusted Margherita Pizza) it is actually a traditional recipe style from Apulia, in southern Italy. I first had this at a little sidewalk bakery cafe in the city of Lecce."


Potato-Crusted Margherita Pizza

Ingredients

1 large floury potato, peeled and quartered
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1 tsp dried basil
15 cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
freshly ground black pepper
4 oz Pecorino Romano Cheese, grated (I just used Parm-Romano cheese by Kraft)
8 fresh basil leaves, sliced
4 oz mozzarella cheese cut into 1/4 inch cubes (I just used shredded moz. cheese)

Directions

1. Follow Step 1, *Classic Mash Deluxe (pg. 50), adding only 1/4 tsp salt to cooking water.
2. Preheat oven to 450. When done with Step 1, transfer cooked potato to a bowl. Using a potato masher, mash potato with 1 Tbsp of oil. Knead in remaining 1/4 salt and flour, adding flour a little at a time until mixture forms a soft dough (if dough is sticky after using the recipe amount of flour, add a little more or even a little water to help the dough come together). Shape into a disk on a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a 12-inch round.
3. Transfer dough to pizza pan or pizza stone that is lightly greased. Drizzle with 1 Tbsp of oil and scatter evenly with dried basil. Top with tomatoes, cut side down. Season to taste with salt and ground pepper. Bake in preheated oven for 15 minutes or until edges are golden.
4. Scatter Romano over tomatoes, then fresh basil, then mozzarella. Drizzle with remaining oil, return to oven and bake for 10 minutes or until cheese has melted and top is beginning to color. Serve immediately. 
*Classic Mash Deluxe for this recipes just means that you place the potato in a saucepan and add cold water to barely cover it, add salt. Cover loosely and bring to a boil over high heat. Reduce heat and cook for 20 minutes or until the potato is tender all the way through when prodded with the tip of a paring knife. Drain, leaving potato in saucepan. Return to very low heat and shake the pot back and forth to remove any trace of moisture. This will make the potato dry, light and fluffy.

300 Best Potato Recipes by Kathleen Sloan-McIntosh was one tasty book! The author is a food journalist and the owner/operator of the Black Dog Village Pub & Bistro in Bayfield, Ontario.

Here are some tasty things I learned about potatoes:

• Potatoes are not fattening
• There are about 4000 edible varieties
• Yukon Gold variety was created by a Canadian
• The UK celebrates a National Chip Week each year in February
• The texture of potatoes varies considerably from waxy to floury and in between
• Potato is almost the perfect food. An average serving of a baked potato is about 150 grams and provides 0 fat, cholesterol or salt and is only around 100 calories
• Over 55% of potatoes grown in Canada are processed, mostly into french friend
• Sufficient fresh potatoes to serve a family of four for a week of dinners can often be had for less that $5.00

The Chapters in this book include:

• The Spud from All Angles
• A World of Potatoes
• Top Twenty Classics
• A Bowl of Souop
• Salads
• Appetizers
• Snacks, Small Plates & Light Meals
• Sensational Spuds on the Side
• Main Courses with Meat, Poultry, Fish & Seafood
• Vegetarian Mains to Satisfy
• Breads, Biscutis, Scones, Griddle Cakes & More
• Desserts & Confections

Stay tune for more recipes from this tasty book! It was sent to me to review and my own tasty words & opinions are always used in such reviews.

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