Potato Pizza with Pumpkin Pesto

This pizza is for potato lovers’ – that includes everyone, I think! I haven’t yet come across anyone who doesn’t like potatoes. The wafer thin slices of potato is such a sensation to eat with the pumpkin pesto. Even people who don’t like pumpkin much will absolutely love this pizza. It’s a refreshing change from the usual tomato sauce.

Just as I skipped the tomato sauce, you can also experiment with a variety of shapes. It’s fun to try different pizza shapes and I chose to go with a rectangle shape. Pizzas are so versatile and you can try so many different variations on them.

I made the pizza dough from scratch as I always do. Please refer to my earlier post Paneer Tikka Pizza for the recipe. However, if you’re pressed for time, you can always use a refrigerated dough or a readymade base.  I also made the pumpkin puree by steaming the pumpkin and then pureeing it. Whipping up the pesto just takes a few minutes and it tastes so good. I also used a mandoline to slice the potatoes wafer thin.

I layered the cheese under the potatoes and the result was a lovely, creamy mouthful of pumpkin pesto, cheese and potatoes in every bite. I hope you try this out – it’s perfect for family get togethers. This recipe is suitable for one 12 inch pizza.

PREP:  30 minutes  COOK TIME:  30-40 minutes 

Ingredients

1 pre-baked pizza crust

500 gms potatoes, peeled and sliced thinly

200 gms mozzarella cheese, grated

2 tsp dried thyme

1 tsp salt

For the pumpkin pesto

1 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup cashewnuts

2 tbsp lemon juice

2 tbsp olive oil

Salt to taste

Instructions

Place a pizza brick, unglazed terracota tile or baking sheet in the oven. Preheat the oven to 220C.

Place all the ingredients for the pesto in a blender or food processor and process until thick, about 30 seconds.

Place the pizza base on the heated brick or pan. Brush the base with a little oil and then spread the pumpkin pesto on it. Sprinkle the grated cheese on top and season with a little pepper. Place the potato slices on top and garnish with the thyme. Drizzle some olive oil on top and bake for 30 minutes until the pizza is cooked (if the dough has not been pre-baked). If it’s pre-baked, then 15-20 minutes should suffice.