The greatest thing about these things, aside from their scumptiousity and being incredibly easy to make, is their versatility. Just as with pizza, you can come up with any “topping” you like or have on hand. In this version I use a basil puree topped with pistachios, but all herbs work; tarragon is especially nice. It’s also good with goat cheese. Try a Japanesey version with soy sauce and minced ginger, or make some heavily spiced with star anise and ground fennel seed. These disappear instantly when served at parties. Makes 7 or 8 servings of two pizzettas each.
1 medium butternut squash, skin removed (see below)
2 cups basil
Kosher (or other) salt
Freshly ground black peppercorns
1 clove fresh garlic, chopped
½ cup extra virgin olive oil, plus some for brushing
¼ cup chopped pistachios
Preheat oven to 400F. Place the squash horizontally on a cutting board, and slice it into ½-inch wheels (a medium-sized squash should yield about 15 wheels). One by one, slice off the skin with 7 or 8 clean slices, leaving a kind of octagonal shape. Place on an oiled baking sheet, brush on some olive oil, and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for about 30 minutes, until almost done.
While they’re baking, add the basil, garlic, and olive oil to a blender, and blend. When the squash starts to brown and looks almost ready to eat, spoon on some of the sauce, sprinkle with pistachios, and bake for another 5 minutes. Serve very hot. I like to slice them, pizza-style, into 6 bites per pizzetta. |
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