Garlic Scape Pizza

I was at the local market one morning, and saw the most intriguing green curly-cue-shaped shoots. Having never seen such things before, I was at first at little apprehensive, and admittedly, intimidated. I learned that the shoots are garlic scapes. I left the market with no garlic scapes, but came home thinking about what they would taste like, and so I did some research. It turns out that they are the green shoots that grow out of the garlic bulb, and they are usually discarded so as to develop the garlic bulb itself. In the U.S., it seems they are mostly only available in the spring and early summer. Fortunately for me, they were still available the next time I went to the market. I had read that the shoots had a mild garlic flavor. I first tried them out raw in a pesto, and they indeed had a mildly garlic flavor. I also wanted to see how they would taste cook, and so I sauteed them and then used them as a pizza topping, where they developed an almost sweet flavor. Pictures and recipe for the pesto will follow.

Garlic Scape Pizza
Pizza Dough Recipe From Michael Lomonaco on Epicurious.com

Ingredients

For Pizza Crust:
3 cups unbleached flour, plus more for dusting a work surface
2 teaspoons fine sea salt
1 envelope (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast
3 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons cornmeal

For Pizza Topping:
2 tablespoons olive oil
5-6 garlic scapes
Salt and pepper to taste
1 ½ cups Mozzarella cheese
1 ½ cups diced fresh tomato
1 ½ teaspoons Italian spices

Preparation

Pizza Crust:
Process the flour and 2 teaspoons salt in the bowl of a standing mixer fitted with the dough hook until thoroughly incorporated, 1 minute. Put the yeast in another bowl. Whisk in 1/4 cup warm water, then 2 tablespoons of the oil. Let rest until the liquid begins to foam, about 10 minutes, then pour this mixture into the center of the flour. Mix the flour and yeast solution until incorporated. Add 3/4 cup warm water to the flour and mix again until the dough pulls together in a single, unified mass.

Turn the mass out onto a lightly floured surface and begin to knead the dough by working it with the heel of your hand. Push outward and pull the inside edge over the top. the process over and over to create a smooth ball of dough free of stickiness. This should take 6 to 8 minutes. Brush a clean, stainless-steel bowl with the remaining tablespoon oil and put the ball of dough in the bowl. Cover with a clean cloth and let rise at room temperature until it has doubled in size, 1 ½ to 2 hours.

When the dough has risen, divide it in half, or thirds for thinner pizzas, and shape the pieces into balls. On a lightly floured surface, pat one ball of dough into the traditional pizza shape. The remaining ball(s) of dough can be individually wrapped in plastic and frozen for up to 2 months.

Pizza Topping:
Pre-heat over to 450 degrees. Cut garlic scapes into 1-inch long pieces. Sauté garlic scapes in 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium heat. Place pizza dough on baking sheet or pizza stone sprinkled with cornmeal. Brush dough with remaining table spoon olive oil. Sprinkle with Mozzarella cheese, garlic scapes, diced tomatoes, and Italian spices. Bake for 10-15 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is bubbly.