Wednesday 25 March 2015

Sweet Potato, Ricotta & Arugula Flatbread

Serves 8 to 16 as an appetizer or 4 as a light dinner
1 pound pizza dough, store-bought or homemade
1 medium sweet potato (roughly 10 ounces)
1 cup ricotta
2 teaspoons fresh thyme
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese, loosely packed
2 ounces arugula (2 big handfuls)
Salt and pepper
Preheat the oven to 550°F. If you have a baking stone, set it in the oven now.
Use your hands to gently press the pizza dough into a large oval. If the doughstarts to spring back, let it rest for a few minutes and then try again. I prefer to roll the dough on top of a piece of parchment paper to make it easier to shuttle the pizza into the oven.
Peel the sweet potato and slice it into thin 1/8" coins (or use a mandoline). Toss the coins with a little olive oil in a small bowl and set aside. In another bowl, mix the thyme into the ricotta.
Spread the ricotta mixture across the top of the dough. Arrange the sweet potato coins in slightly overlapping layers on top. (Make sure the layers don't overlap too much or the sweet potatoes might not cook through where they touch.) Sprinkle the entire surface with a little salt.
Bake for 5 minutes directly on the baking stone or on a baking sheet. Rotate the flatbread, then bake for another 4 to 5 minutes, until the edges of the bread are deeply golden and the sweet potatoes are soft. Sprinkle the cheese on top and bake for one more minute.
As soon as you take the flatbread out of the oven, scatter the arugula over top. Let it stand for a few minutes before cutting so the arugula wilts a little. Slice and serve either warm or room temperature.