Test Kitchen: Goat Cheese and Good Company

By Bianca Tamburello, Dietetics Student, Sargent College

This Wednesday we kicked off the first Karen Jacobs’ Sargent Choice Test Kitchen of the semester! Karen, the “regulars” and I were thrilled to have about 35 people in Karen’s 100 square foot kitchen.  Although it was a bit cramped, we had a fantastic time making SC Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza and playing Apples to Apples on the sidelines.

Everyone at the KJ SC Test Kitchen is always ready to cook and get their hands dirty, but to no surprise, the only task dreaded by attendees is CUTTING THE ONIONS. Four daredevils boldly volunteered to chop 18 cups of onions for 9 pizzas.  As they chopped away, we discussed silly techniques to prevent their eyes from burning and watering.

While chopping onions, BU students recommend

1. wearing sunglasses
2. holding a piece of bread in your mouth (my favorite)
3. wearing goggles
4. breathing out of your mouth (instead of your nose) and
5. chewing gum

The Recipe

First we warmed the oven to 450 degrees F and caramelized the chopped onions until golden brown. Next, we rolled out the whole-wheat pizza dough into about a 12-inch circle and let it bake for about 5 minutes to crisp the crust.

Instead of using plain jarred tomato sauce, we mixed the sauce with drained chopped sun-dried tomatoes and were also inspired to add fresh basil to the sauce mixture. The sauce mixture was spread evenly over the crisped dough and topped with caramelized onions and crumbled goat cheese.

Instead of the recommended 10-minute bake time, we found that the pizza cooked perfectly in exactly 13 minutes. Before we dug in we sprinkled  the pizza with fresh basil and cut it into 6 slices.

Most importantly, how did it taste?

The slightly sweet caramelized onions paired beautifully with the rich goat cheese. The addition of the sun-dried tomatoes jazzed up the tomato sauce and added a slightly salty contrast to the onions and goat cheese.

Join us next week 9/12 for Sargent Choice Mocha Cupcakes with Mocha Cream Cheese Frosting

Sargent Choice Caramelized Onion and Goat Cheese Pizza

Yield 6 servings

Ingredients

2 teaspoons olive oil
2 cups thinly sliced onion, separated into rings (about 1 large onion)
1 prepared whole wheat pizza dough
White whole wheat flour for dusting work surface
½ cup pizza sauce
¼ cup chopped drained oil-packed sun-dried tomato halves
2/3 cup (3 oz) crumbled goat cheese
¼ cup chopped fresh basil

Directions

1. Pre-heat oven to 450ºF.
2. Heat olive oil in a large nonstick stilled over medium-high heat.  Add onion; cover and cook for 3 minutes. Uncover and cook for ~11 minutes or until golden brown, stirring frequently.
3. Stretch the dough into a 12 inch circle on a lightly floured surface.
4. Place the pizza crust on a baking sheet or pre-heated pizza stone
5. Combine the sauce and tomatoes.  Spread the sauce mixture over pizza crust.  Top with onion and cheese.
6. Bake at 450º for 10 minutes or until crust in golden brown.
7. Sprinkle with basil. Cut into 6 wedges.