RECIPE: White & Green Pizza from Sal’s Market Deli at Loews Portofino Bay Hotel

My husband and I have this ongoing debate – “if you could eat one thing for the rest of your life, would you pick pizza or hamburgers?”

I hands-down, 100 percent always choose pizza. It is one of the most versatile meals you can make at home. Choose your dough (really, anything works as a pizza platform), sauce, and toppings, and you have a meal made just for you. Also (bonus!) it can be eaten at any time of day, which means there has been a lot of pizza consumption in our current stay-at-home life.

One of my favorite types of pizza is white pizza and this recipe from Sal’s Market Deli at Loews Portofino Bay Hotel for White & Green pizza is perfect. Instead of tomato sauce, cheese becomes the star along with some great salty and flavorful additions that make it a truly unique pizza pie to make at home.

Sal’s Market Deli White & Green Pizza

INGREDIENTS:

Pizza Dough:

Your favorite store-bought or homemade dough will work.

White Ricotta Cheese Sauce:

1 cup whole milk ricotta cheese
3 tbsp. unsalted butter
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
¼ cup shredded parmesan and romano cheese

Toppings:

Caramelized white onions (These can be purchased pre-made from specialty food stores, or made by slowly sautéing sliced white onions with 1 tbsp of olive oil over low heat until they turn light caramel brown)
Crispy bacon, chopped
Sliced green olives
Baby arugula

Black Pepper Vinaigrette:

2 tbsp. agave
2 tbsp. white wine vinegar
1/4 c. olive oil
Kosher salt and pepper to taste

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 400°F.
2. Make the ricotta cheese sauce by melting the butter with 2 tbsp.of extra virgin olive oil over low heat in a pan on the stovetop. Stir or whisk in the ricotta cheese and parmesan/romano cheese until fully incorporated and warmed through, remove from heat and put aside.
3. Form your chosen pizza dough into pizza shape.
4. Cover dough with desired amount of sauce, caramelized onions, sliced green olives, and bacon.
5. Bake at 400°F until golden brown, approximately 15-20 minutes.
6. While pizza is baking, make the black pepper vinaigrette by whisking together the agave, white wine vinegar, olive oil, and salt and pepper. (No whisk? Grab a glass jar or water bottle with a top and shake the ingredients together.)
7. When baked through, remove the pizza from the oven and top with some baby arugula tossed in the black pepper vinaigrette before serving.

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