Pizza Today - April 2020 - 32

IN THE KITCHEN

A Peeling Flavors
Potatoes are extremely versatile and
perfect for any restaurant or pizzeria.
Here are some accompanying toppings
and flavors to enhance a potato experience:
Cilantro, leek, artichoke, bacon, ham,
crème fraiche, dill, fennel, nutmeg, olive
oil, thyme, turnips, onions, celeriac,
sour cream-(daaa), butter, garlic, cheddar, gruyere, Parmigiano, goat cheese,
gouda, chives, pecorino, chickpeas, eggs,
chilies, kale, horseradish, marjoram,
cauliflower, carrot, basil, celery, olives,
lemon, walnuts, pepper, parsley, paprika,
pesto, onions, mint, mushrooms, coconut,
chipotle, yogurt, chocolate, vanilla, buttermilk, rosemary, sorrel, spinach, tahini,
watercress, steak, sausage, jalapeño and
wheat.

Darth Tater
You may think putting potatoes into
your menu mix is a walk on the "Dark
Side" but it is not a big, or expensive
transition. I have had potatoes on my
pizza menu for years - as an individual
topping and on several specialty pizzas.
We either buy locally in-season and easily roast the chopped pieces in our ovens
or buy frozen IQF. I've found some great
delicious international uses for potatoes in a pizzeria. Here are some great
starring roles and quick recipes for the
potato force to be with you:
* Afghani Bolani. Roast and mash
potatoes. Cut up a few leeks and roast
with oil until wilted, not burned. Cut a
bunch of cilantro finely. Add the mashed
potato, leek and cilantro in a bowl and
mix with salt and ground cumin to taste.
Roll out a large or small proprietary
dough ball into a long, oblong shape
ranging from 12 inches to up to three
feet long and no fatter than 10 inches
wide. Place the dough on parchment
vertically in front of you and place the
potato mix on the left half of the dough.
Fold over the right side of the dough and
seal with your fingers. You may egg-wash
or not and bake in a deck oven at 550 F
for 12 minutes or until golden brown.

Delicious.
* Potato Stuffed Crust. Using the
same potato mash. Season and form the
pizza round two inches larger than you
want your pizza to be. Fill the outer edge
with the potato mix using a piping bag
and fold the edge of the dough over the
potato mixture. Let proof for five minutes or more ensuring that the dough
crust will stick and not pop up. Sauce
and cheese the pizza and cook as normal.
Let cool before serving.
* Smashed Fingers. Boil fingerlings
from six to 10 minutes and drain. (Local,
fresher potatoes will cook faster.) The
potatoes will continue to cook while
cooling. After any pizza is five minutes
from being fully baked, pull it from oven
and smash the fingerlings one-by-one
with a large metal spatula or the palm of
your hand. (The skin will hold most of
the potato together even when smashed.)
Gently hoist the potato on the pizza and
continue until the pizza is filled. Bake
the pizza for the additional minutes until
cooked.
Super Potato Pie: Using a food processor cutter with a thin cutting attachment, slice the potatoes into a lexan of
water and salt mix. (The salinity should
be that of sea water.) Let the slices sit in
this salted water until limp, 15 minutes.
Rinse under cold water to squeeze the
starches out of the slices. Dry on a towel
and place the slices into a large pan with
extra virgin olive oil. Place into a pizza
oven at 475F for eight minutes to just
cook the slices. Cut, clean and finely
chop one leek and roast in extra virgin
olive oil until just limp, when cool, add
to some béchamel, (white sauce) mixed
with a small amount of ricotta and salt
to taste. Spread the sauce thinly on a
proprietary pizza dough then shingle the
potato slices around the pizza. Throw a
rope of extra virgin on the potato slices
and bake in the oven at 475 for 10 to
12 minutes or until the bottom is well
cooked and the dough is golden brown. n
JOHN GUTEKANST owns Avalanche
Pizza in Athens, Ohio.

John explores more on potatoes and menu ideas.
International Spec-Taters: Find historical and fresh new potato applications
pizzatoday.com/departments/in-the-kitchen/
Purple Potato Gnocchi: How to and recipe
Pizzatoday.com/recipes/entrees/

https://www.galbaniprofessionale.it/galbani-professionale/ http://www.pizzatoday.com/departments/in-the-kitchen/ http://www.Pizzatoday.com/recipes/entrees/

Pizza Today - April 2020

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