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My Current Favorite Pizza: Blueberries and Spinach With Creamy White Sauce

Food, Hot, Meal Ideas, Pizza, Savory
By Emma Chapman

White sauce and blueberry pizza Will you think I’m totally being dramatic if I say that pizza is my life?

I feel like you probably fall into one of two groups. Group one is thinking, “YES! Pizza for president! Pizza is totally my life, too!” While group two is thinking, “Pizza? Yeah, I mean, pizza is good and all, but it’s not even my favorite food.”

Trey and I agree on most things, but when it comes to pizza, we are in different groups. He just doesn’t get it. 🙂

White sauce and blueberry pizzaThere’s a farm in our community that hosts a pizza night every Thursday. I’ve only gotten to go a handful of times, but every time I do, I am just blown away with how good it is! I love brick oven pizza, and if it’s loaded with freshly grown vegetables…even better. One pizza they served when I was there last had some kind of creamy white sauce topped with blueberries, which might sound like a weird combo, but it was amazing. I love how the blueberries start to get super juicy when baked. YUM.

So, of course, I had to make my own homemade version that I can enjoy any time. This is my current favorite white sauce (for pizza) recipe, so be sure to try it even if you don’t plan to top yours with spinach and blueberries.

Easy pizza crust recipeBlueberry, Spinach and White Sauce Pizza, serves 3-4.

For the crust:
1 1/2 cups all purpose flour (you can replace up to 1/2 cup with whole wheat if you like)
1 teaspoon salt
3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
big pinch (approximately 1/8 teaspoon) sugar
1/2 cup warm water
1 tablespoon olive oil

Dissolve the sugar in the warm water. Then sprinkle the yeast over the top. Allow that to sit and activate for 5 minutes. The yeast should begin to look kind of foamy, which is a good sign. If your yeast doesn’t seem to change at all (doesn’t foam) check the expiration date on your container of yeast.

In a large bowl stir together the flour, salt, yeasty water mixture and olive oil until a soft dough ball forms. Sprinkle your counter with flour and knead 3-4 times. Lightly oil your bowl (you can use the same one) and return the dough ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about an hour or until it has nearly doubled in size.

Best white sauce for pizza recipeFor the white sauce:

1/3 yellow onion, chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
2 cloves of garlic, minced
1 tablespoon butter
1/2 cup whole milk or cream (half and half)
2 tablespoons greek yogurt
1 egg yolk
2 tablespoons all purpose flour
1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

In a saucepan sauté the onion and garlic in the butter over medium heat for about 2 minutes until the onion is very soft but not quite caramelized. Turn the heat down and pour in the milk, yogurt and egg yolk. Whisk to combine. Whisk in the flour and cheese, and cook until the sauce becomes thick but still pour-able. 🙂 Taste and add some salt and pepper.

This makes about 1 cup of sauce. For the above crust recipe you’ll only need about a 1/2 cup of sauce to cover the whole pizza. My thinking is, if you’re going to the trouble of making your own sauce, I say make enough that you can use this again another night. You can store the remaining sauce in a jar or air tight container in the refrigerator for up to a week (maybe longer, but I’ve stored it for a week before with no trouble). So just make another pizza within the week to use up the rest of the sauce.

White sauce and blueberry pizza Roll out your crust and bake at 400°F for 8-10 minutes. Then top with your sauce, fresh mozzarella, and blueberries and bake an additional 10-12 minutes. I like to add the spinach just as the pizza is coming out of the oven so it’s gets a bit wilted but not overly cooked. Make some pizza this week! xo. Emma

Credits // Author and Photography: Emma Chapman. Photos edited with A Beautiful Mess actions.

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Blueberry, Spinach and White Sauce Pizza

Servings 4

Ingredients

For the crust:

  • 1 1/2 cups all purpose flour you can replace up to 1/2 cup with whole wheat if you like
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 3/4 teaspoon active dry yeast
  • big pinch approximately 1/8 teaspoon sugar
  • 1/2 cup warm water
  • 1 tablespoon olive oil

For the white sauce:

  • 1/3 yellow onion chopped (about 2 tablespoons)
  • 2 cloves of garlic minced
  • 1 tablespoon butter
  • 1/2 cup whole milk or cream half and half
  • 2 tablespoons greek yogurt
  • 1 egg yolk
  • 2 tablespoons all purpose flour
  • 1 tablespoon grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

  1. Dissolve the sugar in the warm water. Then sprinkle the yeast over the top. Allow that to sit and activate for 5 minutes. The yeast should begin to look kind of foamy, which is a good sign. If your yeast doesn't seem to change at all (doesn't foam) check the expiration date on your container of yeast.

    In a large bowl stir together the flour, salt, yeasty water mixture and olive oil until a soft dough ball forms. Sprinkle your counter with flour and knead 3-4 times. Lightly oil your bowl (you can use the same one) and return the dough ball. Cover with a clean kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free spot for about an hour or until it has nearly doubled in size.

    In a saucepan sauté the onion and garlic in the butter over medium heat for about 2 minutes until the onion is very soft but not quite caramelized. Turn the heat down and pour in the milk, yogurt and egg yolk. Whisk to combine. Whisk in the flour and cheese, and cook until the sauce becomes thick but still pour-able. Taste and add some salt and pepper.

    This makes about 1 cup of sauce. For the above crust recipe you'll only need about a 1/2 cup of sauce to cover the whole pizza. My thinking is, if you're going to the trouble of making your own sauce, I say make enough that you can use this again another night. You can store the remaining sauce in a jar or air tight container in the refrigerator for up to a week (maybe longer, but I've stored it for a week before with no trouble). So just make another pizza within the week to use up the rest of the sauce.

    Roll out your crust and bake at 400°F for 8-10 minutes. Then top with your sauce, fresh mozzarella, and blueberries and bake an additional 10-12 minutes. I like to add the spinach just as the pizza is coming out of the oven so it's gets a bit wilted but not overly cooked. 

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