Mushroom Medley with Caramelized Onion and Gorgonzola on Boboli (Pizza Night!)

I've been sharing a lot of meat-heavy recipes this week, so I thought I'd change it up a bit and share a meatless pizza.  It's inspired by a pizza I had when we got invited out for pizza by some friends.

I will never turn down a chance to share a meal with others, even if it's at a local pizza place and I already make a great pizza, exactly the way I like it, in my own home, nearly every Friday night (sled hockey/wheelchair basketball seasons and marching band season notwithstanding).

Do I sound like a Pizza Snob?  I hope not.  I really love food, especially when someone else makes it for me.  I do think that I make each pizza for my family with more love and care than the machines at the frozen pizza factory or the under-appreciated minimum wage workers at the local delivery place.  You can see it in the finicky way I separate and space my toppings, if not from the farm fresh and wholesome ingredients.

I'm so glad my friend Rose Ann invited the kids and I to join her family out for pizza at Pie-tanza.  I got a chance to scope out some different pizza topping combinations.  My favorite was caramelized onion and gorgonzola.

I was planning to make that pizza for this post--I had caramelized onion packages in the freezer and there was fresh gorgonzola marked down.  But we'd just come in from out of town, had no dough made, and were at the grocery store on a beer/milk/eggs/pizza crust run.

At the store, a box of marked down Gourmet Medley mushrooms caught my eye.  Why not?  To the best of my knowledge I've never had oyster, cremini, or shiiiiiiitake (say it like a penguin) mushrooms on a pizza.  First time for everything.  Glad I tried it--those mushrooms took an already awesome combination over the top!

 

Mushroom Medley with Caramelized Onion and Gorgonzola on Boboli®

1/4 pound (4 ounces) sliced mushrooms (I had a blend of oyster, cremini, and shiiiiitake)

1/2 cup caramelized onions

1/4 gorgonzola cheese

1 cup shredded fontina cheese

1 Boboli® pizza crust or any pre-baked crust of your choice (or see my Pizza Primer to make your own crust, if you have time--the Boboli® corporation has no clue who I am)

Penzey's Pasta Sprinkle or other Italian seasoning blend

Preheat oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.  Preheat a skillet over medium heat, melt half a teaspoon of bacon grease (if you got it, butter or olive oil if you don't), and sauté the mushrooms until they give up their juice, about 5 minutes.  Set aside.

On a plain old piece of parchment paper, top the Boboli with a layer of caramelized onions.  Scatter mushrooms on top.  Thoughtfully, with love and care, distribute the gorgonzola in dibs and dabs evenly across the pizza.  Scatter fontina over everything.  Sprinkle some Pasta Sprinkle on top.  Bake (parchment included) for 8-10 minutes until cheese is bubbly.  Cool on a rack briefly, slice, and serve.

Do you like the Penguins from Madagascar?

This post is shared with the Farm Girl Blog Fest at Let This Mind Be In You and the Clever Chicks Blog Hop at the Chicken Chick,  Taste and Tell Thursdays, and What's In The Box at In Her Chucks.