Strawberry Balsamic Pizza

I hope everyone had a wonderful, relaxing Memorial Day weekend.  We thoroughly enjoyed the hot weather in Madison…record temps!  I love it.  However, by the time summer starts, I’m already sad that it’s almost over since our summers are so fleeting.  I need an attitude adjustment, I know.  I make a conscious effort to cram in as much summer fun as I can to take advantage of our winter reprieve.

One of my favorite indulgences are fresh picked strawberries!  I can’t get enough of them.  I have the u-pick strawberry dates at my favorite farm on my calendar months in advance so I don’t miss out.  Its even a great kid-friendly activity.  What’s not to love?!

While I still have a few days to wait, I spotted the first pints of organic strawberries at my local farmer’s market and knew exactly what I was going to make with them – Strawberry Balsamic Pizza!  My husband was skeptical, but he even agreed that the pizza was delicious!  Since we’re friends, I’ll be honest….my kids didn’t like it.  BUT, I didn’t let that deter me because they haven’t been eating much of what I make recently, except for noodles.  Sigh.

Back to this amazing pizza.  The flavors are perfect together…sweet strawberries, crispy bacon, gooey mozzarella cheese and you can put cilantro on just about anything and I’ll eat it.  You must make this pizza!  I can assure you, it will be in regular rotation at our house while strawberries are in season (with a cheese pizza on the side….don’t want my little ones to starve

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Strawberry Balsamic Pizza

 

Use fresh picked strawberries for the best flavor. Frozen homemade pizza dough makes this a quick (and delicious) weeknight dinner!

Ingredients

• 1 ball of your favorite pizza dough
• ½ c. strawberry jam
• ¼ c. balsamic vinegar
• 1 t. Sriracha Chili Sauce
• 3-4 slices cooked bacon, broken into pieces
• ½ c. thinly sliced sweet onion
• 12 oz shredded mozzarella cheese
• ¼ c. fresh cilantro, finely chopped
• ¼ c. fresh strawberries, diced small

Instructions

1. Place a pizza stone in your oven and preheat to 450 degrees.
2. Place balsamic vinegar in a small saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer 4-5 minutes until reduced by half. Add strawberry preserves and Sriracha and mix well. Set aside to cool.
3. Roll out your pizza dough. Place a piece of parchment paper on your pizza peel (if you don’t have one, use a cookie sheet) and place your dough on top.
4. Pour desired amount of sauce on the pizza, leaving a 1 inch border around the edge. (I had leftover sauce which I refrigerated for later use.)
5. Place about ¾ of the cheese on top of the dough and spread to cover the sauce. Sprinkle with bacon and onion and finish with additional cheese.
6. Slide your pizza and parchment paper onto prepared pizza stone. Bake for approximately 8-10 minutes and watch carefully. Pizza is done with the edges are golden brown and the cheese is melted.
7. Remove from oven and let cool for a few minutes. Sprinkle with cilantro and fresh strawberries. Enjoy!!

Notes

Recipe adapted from The Cafe Sucre Farine (thecafesucrefarine.blogspot.com) The original recipe called for cooked chicken which I omitted since I did not have. I will try it again with the chicken. I have big plans for my leftover sauce, I’ll experiment and if it turns out, I’ll share.

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What are your favorite flavors of summer?  I’d love to see your go-to summer recipes.

PS – I made this strawberry lemonade this weekend.  Summer in a glass, especially with a little vodka.

Happy summer!