Salmon seasoned with sage and briefly seared, smoked anchovies, shitake mushrooms and mozzarella cheese top a whole wheat crust brushed with garlic-infused olive oil.

The base for this elegant, satisfying pizza is a baked crust brushed with olive oil. This year, we’ve been experimenting with whole wheat crusts, and in this particular recipe it is perfect. Baked on a pizza stone, the whole wheat comes out light and crisp. The sage adds a wonderful aroma and flavor to this dish. This would be a great pizza to cook on a charcoal grill or in a cast iron frying pan with a lid in camp.

Ingredients:

• 1 pizza crust, pre-baked
• 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese
• 1/2 pound salmon fillet, skin on or off, cook’s choice. We prefer skin on.
• 1 tin (2 oz) smoked anchovy fillets, oil drained and fillets separated
• 2 tbsp tbsp pine nuts
• garlic cloves. Small cloves can be left whole, large cloves cut into smaller pieces to make about 20 pieces of garlic.
• two or three shitake mushrooms, sliced thin
• 1 tsp dried sage
• 1/2 tsp Italian seasoning
• ground pepper
• 3 very thin onion slices, cut in half
• 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, preferably infused with garlic, but plain olive oil is fine
• 1/2 tsp powdered garlic
• additional Italian seasoning, to taste

Directions:

1. Place a pizza stone on oven’s center rack and preheat to 400 degrees F.
2. Ensure all bones are removed from salmon fillet. Rub sage into skinless side of fillet and set aside.
3. In a medium-sized frying pan, heat a tablespoon of olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions, shitake slices, 1/2 tsp of Italian seasoning and ground pepper and briefly sauté. Onions should still be slightly crisp. Remove mixture to a plate to stop cooking.
4. Return pan to medium heat and add garlic cloves and pine nuts. Sauté until garlic just turns soft and edges are light brown. Remove mixture to a plate to cool.
5. Return pan to medium heat. Place salmon fillet sage side down and sear for 30 seconds. Use your hand or a spatula to apply light pressure to the fillet to ensure that it is evenly seared. Turn fillet over and sear the other side for 30 seconds. Remove to a cutting board to cool.
6. Place 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil and 1/2 tsp powdered garlic in a small bowl and mix together. Using a pastry brush, brush olive oil onto the pizza crust.
7. Sprinkle mozzarella cheese on the crust.
8. Evenly sprinkle the mushrooms and onions atop the cheese.
9. Arrange the anchovy fillets in a pinwheel on the pizza.
10. Use very sharp knife to cut/separate the salmon along the grain of the fillet. Pieces should be 1 or 2 inches long. Arrange these pieces on the pizza.
11. Add the pine nuts and garlic, and finish with a sprinkle of Italian seasoning.
12. Bake for 10 minutes. Crust should be browned and the bottom should be crisp. Rest pizza for a few minutes before slicing to allow toppings to set.

Enjoy this pizza with a lightly-chilled Chardonnay or a cold Amber Ale.