When I left the cooking world years ago I went into recruitment and one of my regular and absolute favourite clients was (and still is) a well known chef who had a chain of Middle Eastern restaurants and cafes. I use to eat at them before I knew who she was and always loved their zucchini pizza. Their pizza had cheese on the base instead of satay sauce though and was served with lemon.
Here is my interpretation of that pizza with a different base sauce and layout for the zucchini. Cath Claringbold, I hope one day that you stumble across my site and that you are proud of my interpretation.
YOU NEED (for the filling)
1 teaspoon of oil (I use rice bran oil)
1 small brown onion, peeled and finely chopped
1 garlic clove, peeled and minced
1 small fresh red chilli, seeds removed and finely chopped
1/4 cup of crunchy peanut butter
1/2 cup of water
1 tablespoon of fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon of soy sauce (you can use Tamari instead if you wish)
1/2 teaspoon of brown sugar (I often use pure maple syrup or agave instead of sugar)
2 large zucchini with the peel left on, sliced very thinly lengthways
1 lime
a handful of rocket lettuce
YOU DO (for the filling)
Heat the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook until soft and browning.
Add the garlic and chilli and cook for a minute or so. Remove from the heat.
Add the peanut butter and stir until well until combined. Place the saucepan back on the stove on a low heat. Add the water, lemon juice, soy sauce and sugar. Cook, stirring until the sauce thickens. Set aside.
YOU DO (for the base)
Make my “Pizza Dough” recipe and once you have made the dough and rested it and its ready to be rolled out, roll it into an oval shape.
Grab one end and twist it twice in the same direction. It should now look like a small rope. Repeat with the other end.
To get the sides wrinkled as shown, start at the left side of the base near one of the knots you have made and place a finger underneath the side of the base about a cm in. Raise your finger, lifting the dough a few cms from the bench and then push that raised piece slightly forward and to the right at the same time. Push it gently back into the top of the pizza. Repeat this process around the entire edge.
YOU DO (to assemble)
Evenly spread the satay sauce across the pide base and place it on an oven tray and into the oven at 200c until the dough is cooked and lightly coloured. Once it has started to brown remove it from the oven.
Roll each slice of zucchini into a tube shape. Place them on the top of the satay sauce on the pide and put the pide back in the oven at 200c again, until the zucchini is warm and the pizza is starting to get to a crunchy texture.
Serve, topped with fresh rocket leaves and a generous squeeze of fresh lime.
Servings: 2 -3
Time: I haven’t timed this one but you can make up Pizza Dough and freeze it which makes for a quicker dish.
Freezing: Not suitable for freezing
