Week 38: Acid – Snow Crab, Grapefruit, & Blood Orange Beurre Blanc Pizza

This week’s pizza featuring the theme of acid has not only grapefruit and blood orange, but also a splash of champagne vinegar to brighten up the mood.

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The blood orange and champagne vinegar were used in the beurre blanc that was prepared as the sauce for the pizza.

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After cooking down the liquid, the shallots were strained from the final sauce before adding butter for richness.

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A quick lesson in cutting suprèmes from grapefruit was necessary to protect the delicate textures.

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To further protect the delicate nature of the toppings, the base of this pizza, blood orange beurre blanc, cottage cheese and fromage blanc, was baked in advance so as to allow the crust to cool to a welcoming temperature.

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Meanwhile, the snowcrab was quickly boiled and shelled for clean segments of meat.

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The construction mainly took place after the pizza had cooked in the oven. Grapefruit, avocado and snow crab made up the core flavors while poppy seed were added as a final touch.

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My instinct was to reach for a wine with high acid and a severe dryness to match that of the pizza’s profile. White burgundy worked well enough to match the profile.

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In the end, Vouvray with a whisper of residual sugar was a natural pairing to help maintain a high level of acid while also counteracting any of the harsh quality with the sweetness inherent in the style.

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Week 28: Local Ingredients – Charred Market Orange, Fennel & Local Duck Prosciutto

This week’s kitchen adventure begins with a chance crossing with a duck prosciutto, sourced from the local Angel’s Salumi. From there the flavors built upon this one driving ingredient.

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Farmer’s market oranges and fennel were added alongside the duck for a boost of flavor.

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Thin slices made them palatable as pizza toppings.

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And a quick char knocked out any ferociousness offered in the raw forms.

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Altogether, this pizza looked pretty handsome. Especially after some oven time.

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J. Brix sourced some Counoise fruit from San Diego, bottling this light and vivacious style that did well with a solid chill. It was juicy and refreshing, especially alongside the rather juicy but savory notes of the pizza.

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This is clearly a summertime wine, so long as it sees a quick chill.