Fig and Prosciutto Pizza Perfection

There are plenty of things that are 100% worth making from scratch.  Chocolate chip cookies, fresh pasta, a nice fresh vinaigrette.  I could go on and on.  But one shortcut I am always happy to take is to pick up fresh pizza dough from Whole Foods.  The Trader Joe's stuff is good too, but I've gotten the best results from Whole Foods' pizza dough.  They have regular and multigrain (both good!) and will sell it to you fresh or frozen.  I typically stash a couple in my freezer for nights when: a) I am at a loss for what to make for dinner, b) we're craving pizza and tempted to get pizza delivery, or c) whatever I had planned to make for dinner gets vetoed by one or both of us.  I'd been wanting to experiment with the combination of figs, prosciutto, and arugula on a pizza for a while and had a container of pizza dough in the freezer that was dedicated specifically for this purpose.  The results did not disappoint!

Fig and Prosciutto Pizza with Arugula

1 batch pizza dough of your choosing (I used a batch of Whole Foods regular pizza dough)

3 tablespoons olive oil + more for brushing the pizza dough

Sea salt

3/4 cup fig jam (my favorite fig-balsamic jam recipe follows)

1/2 lb. fresh mozzarella

1/4 lb. thinly sliced prosciutto

5 oz. arugula

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

Fresh cracked black pepper

Plenty of parmesan cheese, shaved

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees.  On a well-floured surface, roll out your pizza dough to the desired thickness.  I like to alternate between rolling it out with a rolling pin and picking up the dough and gently stretching it with my hands (use your knuckles).  Then, arrange your pizza dough on your pizza pan/stone of choice.  I typically sprinkle some cornmeal on my pizza pan before loosely rolling up the dough on my rolling pin.  Then, simply unroll the dough onto the pan.  Easy!

Prick the pizza dough gently with a fork to avoid bubbles in the crust.  Next, brush the pizza dough with some olive oil, creating a light glaze.  Sprinkle the dough with a couple pinches of sea salt.  Drop spoonfuls of the fig jam all over the pizza dough, then use the back of  a spoon to spread it out so that it forms a somewhat even layer.  Slice the fresh mozzarella into thin slices and scatter them over the fig jam.  Then, pop the pizza into the oven for 15-20 minutes or until it looks like this:

Yes, I realize it kind of looks like a face.  No, that's not what I meant.  Note the golden brown crust and perfectly melt-y cheese.

As soon as the pizza comes out of the oven, arrange the slices of prosciutto on top.  Cover the entire pizza with the prosciutto, you're going to want some in every bite!  Toss the arugula with 3 tablespoons olive oil, 2 tablespoon of lemon juice, and plenty of freshly-cracked black pepper.  Arrange the arugula on top of the pizza.  Sprinkle the shaved parmesan over the pizza.  The last step is easy - slice and enjoy!

Perhaps my new favorite way to use Whole Foods pizza dough!

Fig and Balsamic Spread

(Makes a lot)

2 cups dried figs, stems removed and cut into quarters

3/4 cup balsamic vinegar

1 teaspoon sugar

Combine all ingredients plus 1 cup water in a small saucepan and give it a little stir.  Simmer the figs for about 15 minutes, or until the liquid reduces and thickens.  Allow the figs to cool, then pop the figs and liquid into a food processor and pulse until smooth.  Enjoy with cheese, on paninis or pizza, or any other way you can come up with!