- 2 tsp butter
- 1 medium onion, sliced thinly
- 1/2 tsp molasses or brown sugar (optional)
- pinch of baking powder (optional, 1/2 tsp per pound of onions, so a pinch only)
- 1 pear, peeled, and sliced
- 2 TBSP pecans, chopped
- 1/2 cup mozzarella cheese
- Bread dough
In a saucepan on low heat, melt the butter. Add the thinly sliced onion, carefully separating all the rings. Stir and add a bit of salt and continue to cook on low heat for a long time, checking occasionally and stirring. Be patient and go read a book. You can cook it on higher heat, but the goal is not one single bit onion getting charred, so I slow cook it for an hour or even longer. After the onions are softened, you can add a pinch of baking powder to speed the Maillard reaction. I like to add a bit of molasses to make the flavor just that bit more complex. You could also bake it in the oven at 350° but it stains the sides of the pan above the onions and is hard to clean.
While the onions are cooking you could make the bread dough using this recipe a friend gave me. This makes enough dough for eight pizzas or four artisanal boules. I make it and just keep it in a plastic container in the fridge to use when I need some dough. I use it for boules, for pizzas, for fry bread, and for wrapping around cocktail sauces or cheese for snacks. Anyway, the two hours the onions take is plenty of time for the first rise of the dough.
Turn the oven on at 400°
Roll the dough out as thin as you can and then roll the edge to the center, just one roll so you have a bit of an edge to keep anything from going on the baking sheet.
Spread the caramelized onions on the dough and spread to the edges.
Place the pear slices evenly over the “pizza.”
Sprinkle the mozzarella and pecans over the top.
Bake for 20 minutes. Makes two services of two slices each.
Let cool for about 10 minutes and cut into four pieces. Letting it cool makes it easier to eat and the flavors are more intense when they aren’t too hot. Also, when it’s hot out of the oven, everything will slide right off the bread.
This is delicious, caramelized onions and pears are pure magic. I’ve made this with blue cheese too and it is delicious as well.
Single Servings 