Bottomless Pie

Just like last week's tomato pie, today's pie is another that was a long time in the making. As a beer brewer, home brewer, and all around beer enthusiast, I felt pretty silly when Ashley asked me "why I hadn't tried to incorporate beer into any of the pizza pie recipes I've come up with".

After I got past my initial huh-men-a-huh-men-a-huh-men-a's, I quickly concocted a funky, malty, beer based pie to regain my beer cred.

Beer braised mushrooms seemed like a great way to incorporate  beer flavor into a pie. The earthiness of the mushrooms would pair nicely with the maltiness and roastiness of a stout, and be able to hold their own against the other flavors of the pizza. I grabbed a bottle of irish stout (I used  Trader Joe's Oatmeal stout, which is actually rebranded Goose Island Oatmeal stout, but I digress). Pouring the stout into a pyrex dish, I added some salt, miso, and a bit of lactic acid*.

[*NOTE: Irish stouts are known for the slight lactic sourness they exhibit on the finish. Wanting to capture this, and since, being a beer brewing geek, I had a bottle of lactic acid on hand, I decided to add a 1/2 tsp of the acid to the beer braise to accentuate that sour tang in the mushrooms. Long story short, this is entirely optional.]

Knowing that I needed something a little funkier than our normal mozzarella/pecorino cheese combo, I opted to top the pie with Scamorza. Scamorza is an aged mozzarella cheese that, while still creamy, is a bit more edgy, smokey, and tangy. I paired that with a bit of sharp provolone for a little extra funk. 

With a funky cheese base laid down, the malty, tangy mushrooms on top, and a little bit of roasted garlic for good measure, the pie went into the oven. Finished with some fresh grounded pepper, and it was quite the treat, especially paired with a nice Chianti...or beer, if you like that kind of thing.

Funky Cheese pie with beer braised mushrooms

2 Portabella mushroom caps

1 bottle Irish Stout

1 tsp miso

1 tsp salt

1/2 tsp lactic acid (optional)

3 cloves roasted garlic (wrapped in foil,roasted @400 for 20min)

1 small scamorza

1/4lb sharp provolone

In a pyrex, mix the beer, miso, salt, and acid. Add mushroom caps, cover in foil and braise at 350 for 30 min. Remove from oven. Allow to cool. Chop into chunks.

Top the rolled out dough with sliced scamorza, provolone, braised mushrooms, and roasted garlic. Bake pizza at 500+ for 7-8 min.

Remove from oven, top with a generous amount of fresh cracked pepper. Enjoy.

-E