Weeknight Dinner: Mushroom Pizza

photo: Eric Diesel

Prejudice takes all forms, from serious social issues to individual quirks. I would never be glib about grave situations -- if you doubt me, read my columns about the Orlando killings and about the importance of gay bars. Still, I have overcome a prejudice that, appropriate to its nature, shadowed me for decades, perpetuated itself via stealth in the dirt of my mind. It took me fifty years, but I have gotten over my dislike of mushrooms.

Some of the credit for this goes to a mycologist with whom I spoke when I wrote about mold and mildew one creepy Halloween. This educator gave generously of his knowledge as a scientist through his respect for the largely misunderstood scientific kingdom of his specialty: fungi. This true teacher was not only patient with and articulate in addressing my questions, he sent me some of the teaching materials he uses in his mycology classes. Thanks to him, I not only published what has turned out to be a popular and useful column -- with credit where credit is due -- I have continued to study mycology avocationally. I have always loved to read about botany, where fungi are often miscategorized in the popular mind. I have long since added mycology to my reading, as well as joining a fungus club where we go on forages for everything from slimy free-form lichens to powdery black puffballs. We are careful not to forage for edibles, which is dangerous, but I do intend to parent a mushroom log.

But the credit really goes to fungi themselves. Fungi are one of the five kingdoms into which science divides known biological life -- the remaining four are animalia, plantae, protozoa, and chromista. The kingdom of fungi is well populated, with over 75,000 known species but perhaps as many as one million species not yet scientifically classified. Almost any fungus we can see is actually the fruiting body of that fungus species. Though fungi provide implications across disciplines from biology to geology, notably medicine and agriculture, they are also important to good ol' home ec. Mold and mildew are common co-inhabitants of our homes from bathroom to basement, from garden to garage. In the kitchen, we cook with truffles and mushrooms, bake and brew with yeast, and throw out that bread when it displays the spoilage that is evidence of fungal habitation performing another of its natural acts: decomposition.

So described, fungi can seem pretty gross, and it isn't difficult to find really creepy ones. For example, flask fungi can appear downright alien, while some parasitic fungi consume their hosts - primarily insects - while their hosts are still alive. This was why I was so prejudiced against fungi. But as a devotee of farmer's markets and other fresh food outlets beneficial both to consumers and producers, I could not wander one in California without encountering at least one mushroom stand. Mushroom growers are talkative and, if I may, a bit offbeat. And their charges are enticing in their own odd way, beckoning with twists of physiognomy from frills and curlicues to bulbs and cups. And I am drawn to the dark side and I have a soft spot for sheltering the misunderstood. As is their nature, mushrooms seduced me, and I decided to train myself to like mushrooms in my food.

That turned out not to be that difficult, for when prepared and served with the same attention to their qualities that any good cook pays to any ingredient, mushrooms reveal a rich experience upon the palate. Sautéed in butter and finished with salt and herbs, mushrooms express the elegance that accounts for their preeminence in French and California cooking. But that seductiveness tastes of the earth, and appreciating that is the true trick in appreciating mushrooms.

Here is a recipe that showcases all of the qualities mushrooms bring to the table. A variety of food-safe mushrooms crowd onto a pizza crust, just as mushrooms have done since the first pizza supreme exited the first brick oven. This is a California pizza in the true sense of California cooking: light but satisfying, and made with the very best ingredients. We have it as weeknight dinner, but it is wonderful when shared with friends. Serve this white pizza with a chilled California Chardonnay and a wine country salad of fresh lettuces with dates and almonds. Be generous with the pour and the portions, for this mushroom pizza shares perhaps the greatest of the lessons from the humble, but profound, kingdom of the fungi: oneness. For while we see, and sometimes eat, the fruiting bodies, it can be understood that each species of fungi is a single organism. Each body is individual, but each individual is part of a greater whole.

Mushroom Pizza

Only obtain food-safe mushrooms from a reputable supplier such as a bonded farmer's market or a supermarket. Look for mushrooms that smell fresh and earthy, with no off odor; slightly springy bodies that display no softness, gooeyness, or feathery or powdery infestation; and consistent coloration in white, beige, or brown with no evident discoloration, especially yellow, black or blue. Truffle salt -- not one of the synthesized versions -- is costly; it is okay to omit it. This recipe is written for oven baking, but this pizza can be grilled.

For the crust
1 envelope active dry yeast
1 pinch white sugar
3-1/2 cups all purpose flour
1/4 cup warm water (between 105-119 degrees F)
3/4 cup cool water
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 teaspoons salt

For the topping

2 - 2-1/2 pounds assorted fresh mushrooms, such as Shitake, Wood Ear, Cremini, Chanterelle, Oyster, Porcini, white button, brown button, and Enoki

1 shallot, minced

1/2 pound sliced Fontina

Extra-virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

3 - 4 sprigs fresh thyme

Truffle salt (click here)

Freshly ground black pepper

Make the dough

1. Pour the warm water into a large bowl. Add the pinch of sugar to the water.  Open the package of yeast and sprinkle the yeast over the warm water. Let stand uncovered until foamy, approximately 5 minutes.
2. Add 1/4 cup flour to the yeast mixture; stir to combine. Cover loosely with a clean tea towel and let stand until bubbly, approximately 25 minutes. Meanwhile, lightly flour a rolling and kneading surface.
3. After 25 minutes, uncover the bowl containing the sponge. Add the cool water, olive oil, salt and remaining 3-1/4 cups flour to the bowl. Lightly flour your hands turn and knead the dough until the ingredients come together.
4. Use your floured hands to turn the dough onto the floured surface. Knead the dough until soft and smooth, approximately 10 minutes.
5. Lightly coat the interior of the bowl with olive oil. Transfer the kneaded dough back to the bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and place in a warm spot. Let dough rise until doubled in bulk, approximately one hour.
6. While the dough is rising, spray a round pizza pan with non-stick vegetable spray. Drizzle a two-count of extra virgin olive oil on the prepped surface of the pan.
7. After one hour, turn the dough back onto the floured work surface. It should be very soft and workable. Punch the dough so that it slightly deflates, then work the dough one or two times by folding the edges into the center and then doing that again.
8. Transfer the punched and kneaded pizza dough to the prepped pan. Use floured hands to press the dough from the center outward to form a nice round crust of uniform thickness and that reaches the edges of the pan.

Prepare the mushrooms

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2. While the dough is rising, pick through the mushrooms. Discard any that have gone off as described in the note above.
3. Use a clean child's toothbrush or a mushroom brush to brush away any dirt or debris from the mushrooms. If using Enoki, they will not require this step or the cooking step 8 below.
4. Working one at a time, safely use a paring knife to remove and discard the calloused bottom from each mushroom. Cut large mushrooms in half. Place the prepped mushrooms into a colander as you go.
5. Quickly run the mushrooms under a stream of cool water, just long enough to wash away any remaining debris. Place the colander in the sink to drain.
6. Drizzle a sauté pan with a four count of extra-virgin olive oil. Heat on medium-high until the oil is shimmering, approximately 1 - 2 minutes.
7. Carefully add the minced shallot to the pan and stir until soft and fragrant, approximately 30 seconds.
8. Carefully add the prepped mushrooms to the pan. Use a silicon spatula to turn the mushrooms in the pan so that they are coated with oil.
9. Cook the mushrooms, gently turning to prevent sticking, until charred and fragrant, approximately 4 minutes. They will not express much liquid; that is okay.
10. Once the mushrooms are cooked, turn off the heat and safely move the hot pan from the heated burner. Stir the butter into the sautéed mushrooms.

Assemble and bake the pizza

1. Cover the prepped crust with Fontina so that the edges of the cheese overlap. Use your fingertips to gently press the cheese onto the crust, but be careful not to puncture the crust.
2. Gently transfer the sautéed mushrooms onto the Fontina. Spread the mushrooms around so that they cover the surface.
3. Strip the thyme over the mushrooms so that the leaves are distributed evenly across the surface of the pizza.
4. Sprinkle the surface of the pizza with truffle salt and several grindings of fresh black pepper.
5. Sprinkle Enoki mushrooms if using across the surface of the pizza.
6. Carefully transfer the pizza pan to the preheated oven.
7. Cook the pizza until the mushrooms are fragrant and the crust is nicely charred, typically 12 - 15 minutes.
8. Carefully remove the pizza from the oven. Allow the pizza to cool slightly before slicing and serving.