Last of the summer wine

Relish the bounty of late summer with an outdoors long lunch featuring the best of the season, says NZ House & Garden Food Editor Sally Butters.

PICKLED FIG, PROSCIUTTO & GOAT’S CHEESE PIZZAS We used homemade preserved figs (see recipe below), but there are a few small commercial producers around – try Ludbrook House (finefoods.co.nz), tematafigs.co.nz or sabato.co.nz. This recipe makes enough dough for two 30cm bases, but the unused portion is handy to have in the freezer for later use.

Base

1½ tsp active dry yeast

300ml lukewarm water

Pinch of sugar

1 tsp salt

500g strong or high-grade flour, plus extra for kneading

Olive oil

2 tbsp olive oil

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 sprigs rosemary, leaves finely chopped, plus extra sprigs for garnish

150g soft goat’s cheese

12 preserved figs, halved Freshly ground black pepper and flaky sea salt

6 slices prosciutto

Place yeast and 100ml of the water in a warm bowl. Stir in sugar and leave to stand in a warm place for yeast to dissolve.

Place flour in a large bowl and make a well in the centre. Add salt and yeast mixture, stirring with a spoon to bring it together.

Sprinkle some extra flour on a clean, dry bench and knead dough until it becomes smooth and elastic. Form into a ball and place in a clean, oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and leave in a warm place to double in size (about 40 minutes).

Knead dough again for a minute or two and divide in half.

Heat oven to 250C. Shape one portion of the dough into a thin round about 30cm in diameter and place on a lined baking tray.

Combine oil, garlic and rosemary, and brush generously over base. Arrange figs and pieces of goat’s cheese over base. Bake 15-20 minutes or until crust is cooked and golden on the edges.

Remove from oven and season with pepper and salt to taste. Top with slices of prosciutto and drizzle with a little fig syrup. Garnish with rosemary sprigs and serve immediately. Makes 1 x 30cm pizza (plus 1 extra portion of dough)