Wild Mushroom Pizza with Arugula & Parmigiano-Reggiano

Yield: one 12" pizza (2–4 servings)

Ingredients

Crust:

• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 7 to 9 Tbsp (99g to 128g) lukewarm (110–115°F) water*
• 1 Tbsp (13g) olive oil
• 1 ½ cups (180g) all-purpose flour
• hefty ½ tsp salt

Toppings:

• 1 jar (1.76 oz or 50g) Plantin Dried Mixed Forest Mushrooms
• 1 ½ cups (341g) boiling hot water
• 4 cloves of garlic, grated**
• 4 ounces (113g) fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced and torn into ½" pieces
• 2 Tbsp extra-virgin olive oil, divided
• 3 cups arugula, loosely packed
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• kosher salt & freshly ground black pepper, to taste
• however much Parmigiano-Reggiano your heart desires, shaved

*The amount of water you’ll need will depend on how humid it is where you live and the time of year. You may need the lesser amount in the summer or in a humid locale, and you may need the greater amount in the winter or in a dry climate.

**We love the organic, gourmet garlic from New Dawn Fields!

Directions

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with dough hook, combine all crust ingredients. Mix on second speed for 4–5 minutes until you’ve made a soft, smooth dough. Make sure to not over-knead the dough. It should hold together, but it may still look a little rough on the surface.
2. Form dough into a ball and place into a well-oiled bowl. Roll dough around in bowl to coat all sides with oil. Cover bowl tightly with cling film. Place bowl in a warm, dry spot and leave undisturbed until dough becomes very puffy, roughly 1 hour.
   NOTE: The dough may need more than 60 minutes to rise enough, and that’s a-okay. Give your dough the time it needs.
3. Spray baking sheet with vegetable oil spray or baking spray. Then drizzle some olive oil on top. (This is to prevent sticking and for flavour/crunch, respectively.)
4. Put dough on prepared baking sheet and shape into a rough circle. Start by gently stretching the dough into shape and continue stretching until you have an 9–10" circle. (Don’t pat the dough flat; just stretch it!) At this point the dough will probably start shrinking back. Cover with lightly greased cling film and let rest for 15 minutes.
5. After the dough has rested, continue stretching until you have a 12" circle. It’s okay if the dough starts shrinking back and you have to allow it to rest again during this process.
6. Cover again with lightly greased cling film and let dough rise for 90 minutes until it’s visibly puffy.
7. While the dough is proofing, let’s work on the toppings! Place dried mushrooms in a heatproof bowl. Pour boiling hot water over mushrooms, stirring a smidge to ensure all mushrooms are wet. Place another smaller bowl on top of mushrooms to submerge all of ‘em, which will help rehydrate them better. Let soak for 25–30 minutes.
8. Drain mushrooms. If any of the mushrooms are particularly large, chop into medium-sized pieces. Sauté mushrooms, then remove from heat and set aside.
9. Take this time to also grate your garlic, slice and tear your mozzarella, and measure out 1 Tbsp of extra-virgin olive oil. (You’ll be extra happy that you have your mise en place finished when it’s time to bake the pizza!)
10. Towards the end of the dough’s rising time, move one oven rack to the bottom and one to the top. Then heat oven to 450°F.
11. Once dough and oven are ready, bake naked crust on the lower rack for 8–9 minutes. The edges should just be starting to brown, but the top should still be pale.
12. Wearing an oven mitt, remove crust from oven. Sprinkle on grated garlic, then add half of the sautéed mushrooms. Top with fresh mozzarella, then drizzle with 1 Tbsp olive oil.
13. Return pizza to oven, placing on top oven rack. Bake for 10–12 additional minutes until crust is browned and cheese is melted.
14. Remove from oven, then transfer pizza to wire rack and allow to cool just a little.
15. While pizza is cooling a smidge, toss arugula with remaining 1 Tbsp of olive oil, lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Top pizza with dressed arugula, remaining half of the mushrooms, and shaved Parmigiano-Reggiano. (The EatingWell recipe calls for 3 Tbsp cheese, but we believe that you measure shaved cheese with your heart.)
16. Cut with pizza scissors or pizza cutter and serve immediately.

Did you try this recipe? Tag @fikabrodbox or #fikabrödbox!

Crust source: King Arthur Baking
Toppings slightly adapted from: EatingWell