Basic Pizza Dough - yields 2 crusts
1 cup warm water
1 pkg. dry yeast or ¼ ounce compressed yeast
2 ½ - 3 c. unbleached all-purpose flour
2 Tbsp olive oil
Combine water, yeast, and 1 ½ c. flour in large bowl. Mix well. Add the oil, salt, and remaining flour. With your hands or a large wooden spoon, work the ingredients together until dough holds its shape. (You may need a bit less flour so add the last half gradually.)
Place dough on a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes, adding a bit of flour if dough becomes sticky. Place dough in a lightly oiled 2-qt. bowl. Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel, and let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hr.
When dough has risen, divide into 2 parts. (One may be frozen for later use.) Generously coat a baking sheet with olive oil and sprinkle lightly with corn meal. Place half of the dough on prepared sheet and press into a circle of about 10". Set aside and allow to rise while preparing the filling.
(Note: Wolf Staud, who shared this recipe with me, often uses a prepared Trader Joe's crust with good results)
Filling:
thick sliced bacon, diced (ham will do as a substitute, but it's not as good)
2 large onions, diced
1 cup of sour cream, and some Crème Fraiche (or heavy cream)
Sautee bacon slowly in a large pan until fat is rendered but bacon is not too crisp. Remove bacon with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towels. Drain and discard all but 2 Tbsp fat.
Add onions and sautee until bronzed, adding a little cumin, couple of bay leaves and some junipers berries, if desired. Season with salt, pepper and nutmeg.
Mix in bacon.
Add sour cream, crème fraiche or heavy cream and cook until mixture thickens to a rich paste.
Remove bay leaves and spread on prepared crust.
Preheat oven to 450 (or follow pkg. directions if using a pre-made crust)
Bake like regular pizza, about 15-20 min, depending on heat and thickness of crust
VOILA - Zwiebelkuchen!! Deliiiish!!!
