Jen's 7-Cheese, Prosciutto, & Heirloom Tomato White Pizza

Seven cheese pizza...does that sound excessive???? I think so, too. Let me explain. At any given time I have at least ten types of cheese at my house. (I am not exaggerating.) Why??? Well, because we LOVE cheese. Also, I use it. Since I cook such a variety of food, I buy high quality cheese and try to use it sparingly. Then, I always have a bunch of cheese odds and end leftover from my all of my recipe experimentation. In an effort to not waste my precious cheese bits, I end up making things like pizza with seven different types of cheeses. See...it's perfectly rational!!!

As you can imagine, this pizza was pretty darn fantastic. How could it not be with all that cheese on it???? To quote my husband at dinner last night, "Honey, this is some really great pizza." I love trying out new pizza ideas; especially since pizza, by nature, is always dependably awesome. Pizza is just one of those magical foods that everyone seems to love, no matter what. Sure enough, this pizza was another keeper!

Jen's 7-Cheese, Prosciutto, & Heirloom Tomato White Pizza

Ingredients:
cooking spray
1/4 cup of cornmeal
1 batch of Quick Homemade Whole Wheat Pizza Crust (see below for recipe)
1/2 cup of olive oil, divided
5 cloves of garlic, minced finely
2 heirloom tomatoes, chopped
1/4 cup of balsamic vinegar
salt to taste
4 ounces of prosciutto de Parma
1/3 cup of fresh basil, chiffonade
1/4 cup of goat cheese
1/2 cup of part-skim ricotta
1/3 cup of fresh mozzarella, torn into small pieces
1/3 cup of asiago, shredded
1/3 cup of sharp provolone, shredded
1/3 cup of fontina, shredded
1/4 cup of Parmiggiano-Reggiano, finely shredded

Directions:
Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Spray large sheet pan with cooking spray and then dust with cornmeal. Shake off any excess. Set aside.

Place chopped tomatoes, balsamic vinegar, 1/4 cup of olive oil, and salt to taste in a small bowl and mix to combine. Set aside.

Make pizza dough according to directions (see below). Roll out dough into a rectangle, about 1/8 inch in thickness. Stretch thin dough on to the prepared pan. Brush dough with 1/4 cup of olive oil. In a small bowl mix the goat cheese and ricotta cheese together by mashing with a fork. Using an off-set spatula spread the goat cheese/ricotta mixture over the pizza dough in a thin layer. Sprinkle minced garlic evenly over the cheese layer. Sprinkle remaining 5 cheeses over dough evenly. Tear prosciutto into bite sized pieces and place on top of the cheese layer.

Bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes, or until dough is cooked and crust is crispy. Remove from the oven. Place tomato mixture through a fine-mesh strainer to eliminate the excess liquid. (If you skip this step, the pizza will be too watery.) Sprinkle marinated tomato pieces evenly over cooked pizza. Top entire pizza with a sprinkling of basil. Serve and enjoy!

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Quick Homemade Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

Ingredients:
1 package of active dry yeast
1 tsp sugar
1 cup warm water
2 1/2 cups of whole wheat flour
2 Tablespoons of olive oil
1 teaspoon salt

Directions:
In a medium bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy (about 10 minutes). Stir in flour, salt, & olive oil. Beat until smooth. Let rest 5-10 minutes. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat or roll into a round or rectangle shape, to desired thickness. Cook on the grill --OR-- according to your recipe instructions.





The Result:
Awesome! This was such a great way to use up some of my cheese bounty. If you are like me and crazy enough to keep all these cheeses in stock, this was a fantastic pizza to have for dinner!