Homemade Hot Giardiniera Pizza

A couple of days ago I made a whole bunch of hot giardiniera for some Italian beef and sausage sandwiches that was so good that I made a Giardiniera Pizza the very next day. If you like spicy food, this is the meal for you. I couldn’t resist topping a delicious pizza with all these marinated fresh vegetables that took days to make.

Yes I know a few days are along time to wait, but believe me it’s worth it. You need to let the flavor of the garlic, peppers and vegetables mix together. You could just open a jar of giardiniera and top the pizza dough instead of waiting but it wouldn’t be the same as making you own. Besides you can always make a large batch and give some away to your friends and neighbors to enjoy.

For those of you not familiar with giardiniera, it all started in a small deli in Chicago around 1920 where Nick Pasquini began serving the condiment to accompany his sandwiches. Giardiniera literally mean “from the garden” and if you have a large enough garden for all the ingredients your doing pretty good. This is definitely a vegetarians dream.

The recipe below is what I use, but a number of vegetables can also be added including zucchini, asparagus capers, etc.. I think I got most of them covered in my recipe. Like I said the easiest part is making the giardiniera and the hardest part is waiting for it to marinate in the fridge. And don’t forget after the pizza it’s time for the beef and sausage sandwiches. Enjoy! Mangia Italiano!

Hot Giardiniera
INGREDIENTS

1 red sweet pepper, diced into tiny pieces

1/2 green sweet pepper, diced into tiny pieces

2 bunches of long green onions, finely chopped

3 cauliflower florets, cut into very tiny pieces

3 large cloves of garlic, finely chopped

15 jalapeno peppers, cut into little pieces

20 Manzanella olives, sliced in half

2 plum tomatoes. Diced into small pieces

2 stalks of celery, chopped

1 and 1/2 cups of extra virgin olive oil

1 and 1/2 cups of cider vinegar

1 Tbls of salt

1 Tbls of freshly ground black pepper

2 17oz air-seal square glass jars

PREPARATION

Simply mix all the vegetable together in a large bowl.

Season with salt and pepper.

Place the vegetable mixture in the two jars.

Add equal portions of oil and vinegar to both completely covering the vegetable.

Tightly seal the jar and refrigerate for at least two days before using.

The giardiniera should last refrigerated around 2 weeks.

Basic Pizza Dough
INGREDIENTS

4 cup of all purpose flour

1 1/2 cups of warm water

1 package of active dry yeast

1 tsp. salt

2 Tbls of extra virgin olive oil

1 Tbls of sugar

PREPARATION

In a large bowl pour in warm water and sugar.

Stir to dissolve sugar.

Add yeast and gently stir until yeast is dissolved.

Let mixture sit for around 15 minutes to activate yeast.

Add oil and salt and gently stir.

Add one cup of flour and mix.

Add a second cup of flour and mix until sticky.

Add third cup of flour and mix until dough becomes thick.

Place the dough on a floured board and gradually knead in the remaining flour.

Dust with extra flour and continue kneading until dough becomes firm. About 10 minutes.

Kneading is complete when you have a smooth silky ball of dough. It's better to over knead than to under knead.

Grease a large bowl with a little oil.

Place dough in the bowl turning once to coat the dough.

Cover with a dish towel an place in a warm place for about 2 hours allowing the dough to double in size.

Take the dough out of the bowl and cut in half and roll the into two balls.

Roll out the dough in a square or round shape. Top the pizza dough with the giardiniera. Let it sit for around 2 hours to let the dough rise a little more. Pre-heat the oven to 425 degrees. Bake for 30 minutes until the crust is nice and browned.

Phil has been cooking and creating Italian dishes ever since the age of ten. His passion and love for Italian food is never ending. Visit him at http://www.great-chicago-italian-recipes.com

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