PIZZA FRIDAY: CARAMELIZED ONION, BALSAMIC & FONTINA PIZZA

When my oldest son was in his final year of pre-school, they had "Pizza Friday" once a month. Some kids wanted Pizza Friday every Friday, but their teacher thought they would surely tire of the same pizza after a few months. But pizza every Friday might not be so bad if there was some variety...not just your plain cheese pizza over tomato sauce. So occasionally, on a Friday (or leading up to it so you have time to procure the ingredients), I'd like to give you pizza with a twist so that if you're spending a Friday night at home, your "Pizza Friday" feels a little more special.

Before I dive into the pizza, I would strongly suggest investing in a pizza stone and wooden spatula. It makes pizza making and baking SO much easier. And it makes me feel so much more professional. (Insert smiling/winking emoji.) We got one as a wedding gift about 12 years ago, and this version from Williams-Sonoma is very similar but also includes a frame (which seems like a nice enhancement).  

Our first Pizza Friday is filled with onions. I love them. I inherited that love from my dad who can eat them like apples. Preferably Vidalia (sweet) onions, but he's also been known to eat a sandwich with green onions hanging out of both ends. That said, you don't have to be that extreme of an onion lover to enjoy this pizza. Caramelizing the onions brings out their natural sweetness so they're less onion-y. And cooking off the balsamic vinegar and drizzling with balsamic glaze gives this delish dish even more sweetness to enjoy. I love fresh thyme with onions and shallots, and the fontina cheese is a nice diversion from mozzarella. 

One final note: It is Friday night. So don't feel pressure to make your own pizza dough or your own balsamic glaze. I'm including recipes for both in the printable recipe card, but you can save yourself some time and stress by purchasing pizza dough from a local pizzeria or grocery store. Whole Foods sells a frozen multi-grain dough if you want to feel a little better about eating pizza. For any dough, be sure to allow it to come to room temperature before rolling out. Balsamic glaze is also available in a bottle, and I particularly love the one sold at Trader Joe's. Have a great weekend!

1 ½ tablespoons                 good olive oil
1 large                                 sweet (Vidalia) onion, sliced
1 large                                 red onion, sliced
2 large                                shallots (about 1 heaping cup once sliced)
1 ½ teaspoons                     kosher salt
to taste                               freshly ground pepper
1 ½ tablespoons                  fresh thyme, minced
¼ cup                                  good balsamic vinegar
1 teaspoon                          good olive oil
¾ pound                             fontina cheese, grated
1 ball                                   pizza dough, recipe provided (or store bought)  
                                            all-purpose flour for rolling out dough
                                            balsamic glaze for drizzling, recipe provided (or store bought)

Preheat pizza stone in oven at 500 degrees for at least 30 minutes.

Once peeled, cut onions in half through the core, and then slice about ¼-inch thick, discarding core. Slice shallots to ¼-inch thickness.

Heat 1½ tablespoons olive oil in a 12-inch non-stick skillet over medium-high heat.  Add onions and shallots, thyme, 1½ teaspoons salt, and pepper to pan. Cook for about 12 minutes, tossing every 1-2 minutes until most onions are golden brown.

Pour balsamic vinegar over onions, increase heat to high, and toss to coat for 1 minute. Vinegar will cook off under high heat. Remove from heat and set aside to cool.

While the onions cool, grate cheese into a bowl and set aside.

Prepare pizza dough. Lightly flour a wooden cutting board or smooth surface and rolling pin. Roll out pizza dough into a large circle about 12 inches in diameter to form the crust. Lightly flour wooden spatula and move crust onto it. Using your fingers, pinch a narrow rim around the perimeter of the crust. Using a pastry brush, spread 1 teaspoon olive oil over the crust, avoiding the rimmed edge.

Spread onion mixture over crust. Sprinkle cheese on top of onions. Place on pizza stone in oven for 8 minutes.

Remove from oven using wooden spatula and allow to cool on cutting board for 5-10 minutes before cutting. Drizzle with balsamic glaze.