Pizza Today - November 2018 - 32

O

INGREDIENTS
ne of my first pizzeria visits

when I started working at Pizza Today 18 years ago remains
one of my most memorable.
The destination was Omaha, Nebraska, a
city to which I had not previously been. I
went to a family owned independent that
had enjoyed - and continues to enjoy
- longevity and customer loyalty. What
surprised me was that this spot's top selling pizza wasn't a pepperoni pie. It was a
ground beef pizza.
Ground beef may not be as trendy as soppressata or as artisan as speck, but it can be
a menu workhorse. It's tough to beat when
it comes to food cost, and its flavor profile
and texture work well on pizza, both red
and white.
I'm not suggesting you roll out a full line
of pizzas that feature the topping by any
means. However, running a ground beef
pie as a limited time offering gives you the
opportunity to promote a new pizza that
is profitable and low cost. And it might
surprise you and do well enough to earn a
permanent spot on your lineup card.
OF COURSE, YOU DON'T WANT TO BRING
IN AN INGREDIENT THAT CAN'T ALSO BE
USED IN A HANDFUL OF OTHER WAYS. Ver-

satility is never an issue with ground beef.
Check out the meatballs recipe later on in
this article that will be a surefire hit with
your customers! Use them in pasta dishes or
serve in marinara with cheese and basil as a
small-plate starter.
In terms of marrying the item to
other toppings, ground beef pairs well with
numerous ingredients. John Gutekanst
of Avalanche Pizza in Athens, Ohio, is
an avid experimenter who contributes to
this magazine and runs a variety of food
demonstrations at International Pizza Expo
in Las Vegas and Pizza & Pasta Northeast
in Atlantic City. He provided Pizza Today
with this list of complementary toppings for
ground beef:
Cream; onion; Parmigiano; jalapeño;
tomato; mushrooms; cheddar; potato; black
olives; Asiago; ricotta; roasted red peppers;
roasted garlic; beans; curry; cumin; parsley;
coriander; eggplant; green pepper; acorn
squash; cashew; curry; cauliflower; cucumber; romaine lettuce; ranch; greens; sausage;
butternut squash; sage; basil; cilantro; bacon;
sweet potato; chipotle; cinnamon; walnuts;
3 2 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / N O V E M B E R 2 0 1 8

broccoli; pineapple; mango; avocado; tortilla; lime; peanut; fava
bean; Manchego cheese; Gruyère
cheese; BBQ sauce and celery.
Those ingredients allow for a
broad range of options, ranging
from a "Taco Pizza" to a "BBQ
Beef & Cheddar." Gutekanst
suggests going high-end with a
Truffled Beef with Mushrooms
from Sienna.
"Spoodle a béchamel sauce on
your pizza dough, followed by
fresh spinach and your cheese
blend," he says. "Then add
mushrooms, cooked ground beef
and bake. When the pizza comes
out, drizzle with black truffle oil
and balsamic vinegar. Oven-ready
potato chunks rock on this pie as
well!"
IF YOU'D LIKE A GROUND
BEEF PIZZA THAT'S A LITTLE MORE "DOWN
HOME," IT DOESN'T GET ANY SIMPLER (YET
DELICIOUS) THAN THIS RECIPE. The bacon

and jalapeños work in concert to provide
plenty of flavor. This is one your kitchen
staff will be able to knock out today.

Beef & Bacon Pizza
1 pizza shell
2 ounces extra virgin olive oil
2 ounces roasted garlic
2 ounces red onions
3 ounces fresh jalapeños, chopped
1 potato, sliced thinly
4 ounces bacon, crumbled
2 ounces mushrooms
4 ounces ground beef
4 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
4 ounces provolone, shredded
Sauté the garlic, red onions, jalapeños
and potatoes in olive oil.
Open dough into a disc. Top with the
oil/garlic/jalapeño/potato mixture.
Add bacon, mushrooms and ground
beef. Add the cheese. Bake.
FINALLY, LET'S GET TO THOSE AFOREMENTIONED MEATBALLS! This is a very classic

rendition that's simple to execute. You can't
go wrong here. This recipe will yield around
100 meatballs.

Classic Meatballs
8 pounds lean ground beef
2 pounds ground pork
¼ cup finely chopped or crushed garlic
2 medium-size onions, finely chopped
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
½ cup grated Romano cheese
1 cup finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
5 cups bread torn from day-old Italian
or French bread, soaked in milk then
squeezed dry
7 eggs, lightly beaten
3 teaspoons salt
4 teaspoons black pepper
4 teaspoons dried oregano, crumbled
Combine all the ingredients in the order
listed. Mix by hand thoroughly.
Form the meatballs -- a bit larger than
a golf ball -- by rolling the meat between
the palms of your hand.
Lay a thin film of vegetable oil in a
large skillet. Sauté the meatballs over
medium-high heat in batches until they are
cooked through, turning them frequently to
brown evenly.
Once cooled, the meatballs can be
used at once or frozen for later use.
JEREMY WHITE

Pizza Today.

is editor-in-chief of
http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - November 2018

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Pizza Today - November 2018
