Kale & Kalamata Pizza Recipe
Kale is one of those good-for-you greens that has become a rock star in the food world. A few weeks ago I featured this Kale & Kalamata Pizza in my Standard-Examiner column.
Where will kale end up in the history of fashionable foods? It seems that food is just like fashion — there are short-term fads, there are trends, and then there are classics that never go out of style.
Back in 1999, I wrote a 12-part series on food trends of the 20st century. So I can name a few food fads that went the way of Earth Shoes, mood rings, and parachute pants.
Kiwifruit had a big moment in the 1980s, and portabello mushrooms took the spotlight in the 1990s. They’ve now become mainstreamed into the produce departments — classics, if you will. I predict that kale will do the same thing. Kale won’t be so cool, it will be just another option in everyday eating.
With that in mind, here’s a Kale & Kalamata Pizza. Hey, if you can make kale smoothies and kale chips, why not pizza?
If you have California or green olives, you are welcome to use them. But, the name “Kale & Kalamata,” has a nice ring. And Kalamatas fit right in with the Mediterranean flavors of pesto and olive oil.
Don’t worry that you’re using too much kale on the pizza; it will shrink as it cooks.
You can use your favorite pizza dough or a pre-made crust. I’ve included my whole-wheat pizza crust recipe (because if you might as well use a whole-grain dough if you’re going to be topping it with something healthy like kale). I use white wheat (I grind it myself), so it has a mild flavor and seems less dense than a regular whole-wheat crust. I mix it in my bread machine and take it out when the dough has risen.
KALE & KALAMATA PIZZA
1 store-bought pizza crust (or use Whole Wheat Pizza Crust recipe below)
1/4 cup pesto
2/3 cup chopped or shredded cooked chicken, optional
4 cups washed and chopped kale
1 to 2 tablespoon olive oil
1/2 cup pitted Kalamata olives
1/2 to 3/4 cup mozzarella cheese
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Stretch and press the pizza dough into a circle of about 12-13 inches on an oiled 14-inch pizza stone or pan.
Evenly spread the dough with the pesto. Top with the chicken, if using.
Place the kale in a large bowl, and drizzle the olive oil over the top. With a large spoon or your hands, lightly toss the kale so it is evenly coated with the oil. Then spread the kale across the pizza.
Cut the olives in half. Arrange the olives evenly on the pizza. Sprinkle with the cheese.
Bake on a lower rack of the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until the top and bottom crusts are browned.
Options: For vegetarian pizza, omit chicken and use pine nuts instead.
— Valerie Phillips
WHOLE-WHEAT PIZZA CRUST
3/4 cup warm water
2 teaspoons yeast
2 cups whole wheat flour (white wheat preferred)
1 teaspoon sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon wheat gluten
1 teaspoon salt
Mix the water and yeast together; wait for the yeast to start foaming. Then add the remaining ingredients. Mix and knead well. Allow the dough to rise for about a half an hour, then stretch and pat it onto an oiled pizza pan or stone.
Or, you can place all ingredients in a bread machine. After the dough has been mixed and has risen, take it out of the machine and stretch and pat it onto an oiled pizza pan or stone.
— Valerie Phillips