Smoked Salmon Pizza with Crème Fraîche

This is yet another old stand-by, unfamiliar to very few of my friends in the US... This pizza is one of my very favorite appetizers and is a nice combination of being both easy to prepare and delicious.

Usually I've made this on a pizza stone (like with any other homemade pizza), but we've been using a small cast-iron pan here as a pizza stone substitute, and darned if we didn't end up with a crust that was better than ever....

Smoked Salmon Pizza with Crème Fraîche
   One batch Basic Pizza Dough (see below)
   Olive oil for brushing
   Sea Salt
   1 medium red onion, quartered and thinly sliced
   ~1/2 cup Crème Fraîche (or substitute full-fat sour cream)
   ~12oz. Smoked Salmon (thinly sliced)
   ~2 tablespoons finely chopped chives (or use minced scallion greens)

Preheat a pizza stone or cast-iron pan in the oven at the highest temperature available to you.

Divide pizza dough into 4 portions (or more smaller portions, depending on the size of your pan if you're not using a pizza stone). For each pizza, roll out the dough into a circle about 1/8 of an inch thick. If using a pizza stone, sprinkle some cornmeal on a pizza peel and place your rolled-out dough on top. Brush with olive oil, sprinkle with sliced red onions and a little sea salt, then slide onto the pizza stone. If using a cast iron pan, remove pan to the stove-top, placed rolled-out dough in the pan, then brush with olive oil, sprinkle with red onions and a little sea salt, and return the pan to the oven. In both cases, cook until the bottom is crisp and brown. (You may need to occasionally reach into the oven to pop bubbles in the crust with a knife or scissors...)

Remove crust from the oven and allow to cool for 1-2 minutes. Spread a layer of crème fraîche over the crust, followed by a layer of smoked salmon. Top with chopped chives and cut into 8 pieces to serve.

Makes 4 medium pizzas.


Basic Pizza Dough
   1 cup warm water
   2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
   3 to 3 1/2 cups all purpose flour
   1/2 teaspoon salt

Pour the water onto a medium-sized bowl and add the yeast, stirring with a fork until dissolved. Add 1 cup of flour and the salt, then mix thoroughly with a wooden spoon. Add another cup of flour and mix again. The dough should start coming away from the sides of the bowl, forming a soft, sticky mass. Take the last cup of flour and sprinkle over a clean, dry work surface and flour your hands well. Knead the dough for 7-10 minutes, working in additional flour as needed until the dough is no longer sticky. Allow the dough to rise in a lightly oiled bowl for 30 to 45 minutes. After the dough has doubled in size, punch it down and knead for one more minute, then the dough is ready to use.

Makes 4 medium pizza crusts.