Pizza Bianca with Arugula, Bacon & Mushrooms

Hubby & I really wanted pizza Thursday night but didn't want the calories of a delivered pizza. So this delicious recipe from the December 07 issue of Cooking Light was just what the doctor ordered!

In the interest of full disclosure, I actually did not make the crust myself like the recipe calls for. I picked up a bag of garlic & herb pizza dough from Trader Joe's. I also do not have a circular pizza pan, so I made it using a rectangular cookie sheet. It worked just fine. This is a good recipe though I upped the amount or ricotta from 1/2 cup to a little over a cup, and 3 pieces of bacon instead of 2. And definitely a little more than 1/3 a cup of the mozzarella cheese that the recipe called for. I also think next time I would increase the amount of onion.

Overall though this was wonderful.

Pizza Bianca with Arugula, Bacon & Mushrooms

Crust:
1 package active dry yeast (about 2 1/4 teaspoons)
1 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup warm water (100° to 110°)
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour (about 6 3/4 ounces), divided
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
Cooking spray
2 teaspoons yellow cornmeal

Topping:
2 slices center-cut bacon
1/2 cup thinly sliced white onion
1 (8-ounce) package whole button mushrooms, quartered
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, divided
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1/2 cup part-skim ricotta
2 cups baby arugula
1/3 cup (1 1/2 ounces) shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons grated fresh Parmesan cheese

To prepare dough, dissolve yeast and sugar in 1/2 cup warm water in a large bowl; let stand 5 minutes. Lightly spoon flour into dry measuring cups, and level with a knife. Stir 1 1/4 cups flour and 1/4 teaspoon salt into yeast mixture to form a soft dough. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead until smooth and elastic (about 5 minutes); add enough of remaining flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, to prevent dough from sticking to hands.

Place dough in a large bowl coated with cooking spray, turning dough to coat. Cover; let rise in a warm place (85°), free from drafts, 1 hour or until doubled in size. (Press two fingers into dough. If indentation remains, dough has risen enough.)

Punch dough down; cover and let rest 5 minutes. Roll dough into a 14-inch circle on a lightly floured surface. Place dough on a pizza pan or baking sheet coated with cooking spray and sprinkled with cornmeal. Crimp edges of dough with fingers to form a rim.

Preheat oven to 450°.

To prepare topping, cook bacon in a large nonstick skillet over medium heat until crisp. Remove bacon from skillet, reserving 2 teaspoons of bacon drippings in pan. Crumble bacon; set aside.

Add onion and mushrooms to pan; cook 10 minutes or until tender and moisture evaporates, stirring occasionally. Remove from heat; sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper.

Drizzle oil over dough; sprinkle with remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon pepper. Place pan on lowest oven rack; bake at 450° for 10 minutes or until golden-brown. Remove from oven; spread ricotta evenly over crust, leaving a 1/2-inch rim. Arrange onion mixture and arugula evenly over ricotta. Sprinkle with bacon, mozzarella, and Parmesan.

Bake an additional 10 minutes or until crust is lightly browned. Let stand 5 minutes before serving. Cut into wedges.