Put A Vegetable Twist On An Old Favorite

Along with baseball, football and basketball, pizza eating is one of Chicago’s major sports.

A Chicago pizza is uniquely designed. It is so thick and so cheese-laden that it requires special etiquette: A diner cuts a wedge from the pizza pie, then friends wield their knives to untangle the cheese strands as the wedge is finally wrestled onto a plate. The process continues until everyone is served. They eat, leaning into their plates to prevent half a pound of cheese from landing in their laps.

I realize that the rest of the country has discovered the delicate designer pizza with carefully arranged vegetables sprinkled over a paper-thin crust, but that doesn’t play well in Chicago. It’s like Michael Jordan and baseball - not a great fit.

Still, we Chicagoans are willing to try something new, as long as it looks familiar. Garden Pizza is just that. It has a base of onions and fresh tomatoes, not generic red sauce, and enticing bits of basil. But best of all, there’s plenty of mozzarella cheese to score points with pizza lovers.

This light pizza is great with a hearty salad such as the anchovy and arugula combination that follows.

Garden Pizza

Crust (recipe follows)

1 small red onion

Olive oil, preferably basil-flavored

1 large, ripe beefsteak tomato

Cornmeal

1/4 cup sliced basil leaves, packed

Salt, freshly ground white pepper

1/2 teaspoon crushed dried oregano

3/4 cup grated mozzarella cheese plus 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese, or

1 cup shredded pizza cheese (see note)

Prepare dough for crust. Set aside in warm place until it doubles in volume, about 1 hour.

Meanwhile, prepare vegetables. Peel and thinly slice onion. Place on baking sheet or broiler pan and brush onion with olive oil. Cut tomato into 1/3-inch-thick slices. Place on baking sheet and brush with olive oil. Place sheet under broiler, 4 inches from heat, and broil until tender and browned, 5 to 7 minutes. Cut onion and tomato slices into quarters or dice into bite-size pieces.

When dough has risen, punch down. Divide in half. Roll each half into 8-inch circle about 1/4 inch thick. Place rounds on baking sheet lightly sprinkled with cornmeal. Brush each round with 1 teaspoon olive oil. Sprinkle each pizza with half the basil, tomatoes and onion. Season well with salt and pepper. Sprinkle half the oregano over each and cover with half the cheese. Season again with salt and pepper.

Bake pizzas at 425 degrees until crusts are brown and toppings golden and tender, 15 to 20 minutes. Serve immediately.

Yield: Each pizza makes 1 generous serving.

Note: Several manufacturers sell pizza cheese, a blend of mozzarella, Parmesan, Romano and Swiss cheeses.

Crust

2 teaspoons active dry yeast (slightly less than 1 package)

Dash sugar

2/3 cup warm water

1-1/2 cups plus 1 tablespoon flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon crushed dried oregano

2 teaspoons olive oil

Combine yeast and sugar in cup. Pour in water. Set aside until yeast foams, about 5 minutes.

Stir together 1-1/2 cups flour, salt and oregano in bowl. Pour in yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir to make a firm dough.

Flour board with remaining 1 tablespoon flour. Turn out dough and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. Place in clean bowl and cover with towel, then follow recipe directions above.

Anchovy and Arugula Salad This salad can also be served as a light lunch with French bread or crackers.

2 tablespoons slivered almonds

1-1/2 cups trimmed arugula leaves

1-1/2 cups torn Bibb lettuce

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons balsamic vinegar

1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard

1/8 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

4 to 6 chopped anchovy strips, or to taste

Place almonds on baking sheet. Toast at 400 degrees until lightly browned, about 5 minutes. Remove from baking sheet so nuts don’t continue to brown.

Combine arugula and lettuce in salad bowl. Combine olive oil, vinegar, mustard, salt and pepper in cup and stir well. Pour over greens and toss well.

Arrange greens on each of 2 salad plates. Top each with half the anchovies and sprinkle each with half the almonds.

Yield: 2 servings.