Butternut Squash Pizza with Caramelized Onions and Greens
Beside pumpkin, butternut squash seems to be one of the most popular squashes for the fall. Just like squashes in general, there’s many uses for butternut squash. You can make soup, sauce, a pie or cut the squash into cubes and make something like a potato hash. The more I think about it, I think butternut squash has the most ways of being used out of any squash.
Butternut squash is mild in flavor with a sweet and nutty taste. Just like most “vegetables” with seeds it’s technically considered a fruit. Butternut squash normally has a long neck with a fatter bottom filled with seeds. The long part is easy to peel and chop up in cubes. When it gets down to the rounded bottom, a little more work is necessary but it’s still one of the more easier squashes to work with. Definitely easier than pumpkin.
I don’t ever remember eating butternut squash as a child. The first time I do remember eating butternut squash was an adult. Instead of sweet potato pie, sometimes I would use butternut squash to make butternut squash pie. Butternut squash makes for a nice, light filling. However my favorite way to use butternut squash is in savory dishes. I love the pairing of creamy, sweet butternut squash with something tangy and salty like feta cheese. I’ve had butternut squash ravioli before and have made butternut squash soup and gnocchi (which was so good!). But I’ve always wanted to make a pizza with butternut squash using flavors I know would match up nicely with the squash.
Making the Pizza
The thought of just making a pizza and putting roasted butternut squash cubes on top was an idea. But then I was in a store looking at tomato pasta sauces and saw pumpkin pasta sauce. I knew I had to make a pizza using butternut squash as a sauce instead of just a topping.
For the greens on the pizza I used an arugula and spinach mix. The slightly bitter taste of the arugula complements the creaminess of the sauce. And the mild taste of the spinach works well not to overpower but to blend in with the flavor profile of the squash. The caramelized onions add a sweetness. And then the feta cheese brings the pizza up a notch with its sharp, salty, tangy taste. This pizza has a mixture of flavors. And it’s so delicious!
To start off with the pizza, I made my sourdough pizza dough recipe right here. The recipe makes two balls of pizza dough to make two 10 to 12 inch size pizzas.
I used one half of the dough for this recipe to make one thin crust butternut squash pizza. The squash sauce is so easy to make. Instead of roasting the butternut squash on a pan, the squash was peeled, chopped and boiled. It was then added to the blender along with some seasonings and olive oil. The squash mixture was blended to make a sauce. And that’s it. What ever sauce is not used for the pizza can be turned into a soup! Just add a little bit of filtered water, broth or some non dairy milk to thin the sauce out and you have a soup!
You will find this pizza is perfect for the fall. It has all the warming flavors of the season. The sauce even has a little rosemary and sage in it to give that fall like feel. With pizza being one of my favorite meals this flavor combination is a nice change from my regular toppings. Try it! Maybe you’ll find this pizza a nice change as well.:)
Butternut Squash Pizza with Caramelized Onions & Greens
AuthorDesireeCategoryMain Meals, Sauces, SourdoughDifficultyIntermediateIf you like butternut squash you will love this pizza! The butternut squash sauce on this pizza has amazing flavor and combines so nicely with the salty, tangy taste of the feta cheese. The greens and caramelized onions also brings it together perfectly.
To make the butternut squash sauce boil 2 cups of butternut squash till it's soft. Strain the water reserving a couple of tablespoons of the water.
To make the caramelized onions. Place sliced red onions in a fry pan and sauté till onions are soft and start to turn a golden brown. This will take about 15 minutes on low heat. Add a tablespoon or two of water to prevent the onions from burning or drying out. Then sprinkle a little pepper and sea salt on the onions once they're finished.
In a small fry pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and place two sliced garlic cloves and sautéed till brown and soft. Add the sage and rosemary spices to the garlic, sauté for a minute to release the flavor of the spices. Remove off the stove.
To a high speed blender add the cooked butternut squash, 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, the sautéed garlic and herbs and then the sea salt and pepper. Blend all together using some of the reserved water to thin out the sauce slightly if it's too thick. The butternut squash sauce should be the same consistency as a thick tomato sauce.
Place a piece of parchment paper on a pizza peel or baking sheet. Sprinkle a little flour on the parchment paper and work your pizza dough into a 10 to 12 inch round. On the dough place the butternut squash sauce, then caramelized onions, assorted greens and feta cheese.
I followed the same method as in my sourdough pizza dough recipe to bake my pizza. Which is to preheat my pizza stone for at least 45 mins to an hour at 500 degrees before baking the pizza. Place the topped pizza on the pizza stone, use a spray bottle to spray a little water for moisture around the outer pizza crust. Bake till cheese starts to slightly brown and crust is nice and brown.
Sprinkle a little red pepper flakes on top before eating.
Ingredients
Directions
To make the butternut squash sauce boil 2 cups of butternut squash till it's soft. Strain the water reserving a couple of tablespoons of the water.
To make the caramelized onions. Place sliced red onions in a fry pan and sauté till onions are soft and start to turn a golden brown. This will take about 15 minutes on low heat. Add a tablespoon or two of water to prevent the onions from burning or drying out. Then sprinkle a little pepper and sea salt on the onions once they're finished.
In a small fry pan, add a drizzle of olive oil and place two sliced garlic cloves and sautéed till brown and soft. Add the sage and rosemary spices to the garlic, sauté for a minute to release the flavor of the spices. Remove off the stove.
To a high speed blender add the cooked butternut squash, 2 Tablespoons of olive oil, the sautéed garlic and herbs and then the sea salt and pepper. Blend all together using some of the reserved water to thin out the sauce slightly if it's too thick. The butternut squash sauce should be the same consistency as a thick tomato sauce.
Place a piece of parchment paper on a pizza peel or baking sheet. Sprinkle a little flour on the parchment paper and work your pizza dough into a 10 to 12 inch round. On the dough place the butternut squash sauce, then caramelized onions, assorted greens and feta cheese.
I followed the same method as in my sourdough pizza dough recipe to bake my pizza. Which is to preheat my pizza stone for at least 45 mins to an hour at 500 degrees before baking the pizza. Place the topped pizza on the pizza stone, use a spray bottle to spray a little water for moisture around the outer pizza crust. Bake till cheese starts to slightly brown and crust is nice and brown.
Sprinkle a little red pepper flakes on top before eating.
Notes
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