Shaved Asparagus Pizza
- ½ pound (225 grams) asparagus
- 2 teaspoons olive oil
- ½ teaspoon coarse salt
- Several grinds of black pepper
- One Âľ-pound pizza dough, ready to go
- ÂĽ cup (Âľ ounce or 20 grams) grated Parmesan
- ½ pound (225 grams) mozzarella, shredded or cut into small cubes
- 1 scallion, thinly sliced
Instructions:
Throwing things onto a pizza dough with cheese doesn’t always make something transcendent, but this one exceeded expectations.
- Preheat your oven to its highest temperature—about 500 degrees in most cases. If you use a pizza stone, place it in the oven.
- No need to snap off the ends; they can be your “handles” as you peel the asparagus. Holding a single asparagus spear by its tough end, lay it flat on a cutting board. Use a vegetable peeler; a Y-shaped peeler works best here, but I’ve successfully made this with a standard old and dull peeler, so don’t fret if you don’t have a newer one; a mandoline would also work, in theory, but I found it more difficult to use for this. With your peeler of choice, create long shavings of asparagus by drawing the peeler from the base to the top of the asparagus stalk. Repeat with remaining stalks, and don’t fret if some pieces are unevenly thick (such as the end of the stalk, which might be too thin to peel); the mixed textures give the pizza character. Discard the tough ends. Toss the peelings with olive oil, salt, and pepper in a bowl, and be sure to try one—I bet you can hardly believe how good raw asparagus can taste.
- Roll or stretch out your pizza dough to a 12-inch round. Transfer either to a floured or cornmeal-dusted pizza peel (if using a pizza stone in the oven) or to a floured or cornmeal-dusted baking sheet. Sprinkle the pizza dough with Parmesan, then mozzarella. Pile the asparagus on top. Bake the pizza for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the edges are browned, the cheese is bubbly, and the asparagus might be lightly charred. Remove from the oven, immediately sprinkle with scallions, then slice and eat.