Pizza makeover

As quick dishes go, the pizza’s ease of preparation has pretty much ensured its constant inclusion in our weekly food choices, whether it’s for the after-sport fuel-up, the after-drinking soak-up or end of the week fuss-free meal to relax with.

It is fascinating to watch how many we-alltaste-the-same, ready-to-bake pizzas are sold, given they are so easy to make with all the individual components now conveniently (at a price) pre-prepared from pre-cooked bases, to ready-made pestos and sauces, grated cheeses and sliced mushrooms (really, we can’t slice mushrooms!).

To be fair, these pre-prepared foods are super for a family make-your-own pizza night or a bach meal but, if we are willing to start from scratch, it can be richly satisfying to give this easy (or should that be lazy?) well-worn family favourite a makeover from hum-drum tummy filler to tart “par-excellence”.

Throw out the pre-cooked, all-too-often dry pizza base, whizz up and roll out a lighttextured cream cheese pastry with standard flour or my gluten-free flour mix. Replace the habitually over-seasoned oregano and tomato paste with a hummus, seasoned or plain; its flavour is more subtle, it will provide protein and is a delightfully moist base to support the remaining toppings. Farewell the ham — all too often it’s a bland imposter — and break up a small amount of richly flavoured hot smoked salmon. As for cheese, avoid the run-of-the-mill pizza blends and use a fresh ricotta or finely grate a little hard cheese, like a pecorino, brebis or an aged gouda; its stronger flavour means less is required. Casually flip over the sides of the cream cheese pastry and bake the tart until the pastry is golden and the filling piping hot. Makeover completed with style.

Pizza tart

This wonderful cream cheese pastry recipe works with flour and the gluten-free flour blend listed below.

Serves 4

2 cups flour or gluten-free flour blend (see

below right)

175g standard cream cheese, diced 125g butter, chilled and diced

Few Tbsp cold water

Filling

200g tub hummus

1 red pepper, grilled or plain, sliced finely 200g hot smoked salmon, flaked 100-150g marinated olives

50g parmesan, pecorino or brebis cheese,

finely grated

1 2 3

Heat the oven to 190C.

Put the flour, cream cheese and butter in a food processor and process until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Pulse in sufficient cold water until large moist clumps of dough form. Turn out and bring together. (If using wheat flour, knead lightly.) Place the dough on a piece of flour-dusted 4 baking paper and roll out to a large circle, about 3mm thickness. If using the gluten-free flour blend, note that the pastry can break easily. If this happens just push firmly back together.

Spread the hummus over the pastry, leaving a 5cm edge of pastry free. Scatter the red pepper, flaked smoked salmon, olives and cheese on top of the hummus. Bring the outside pastry edges over to partially cover the filling. Slide the baking paper, and tart, on to a baking tray. Bake for 20 minutes or until golden. Serve garnished with fresh herbs. Gluten-free flour blend

Sift together 1½ cups brown rice flour, ½ cup white rice flour, ½ cup potato flour or cornflour, ¼ cup tapioca or arrowroot flour, ¼ cup white rice flour and 1 ¼ tsp xanthan gum.