This shaved asparagus pizza from Jim Lahey heralds spring with rich, creamy Brie cheese and shaved asparagus, which chars and curls to become a tangle of sweet, crunchy strands on top. Done in 40 minutes. Can’t order delivery that fast.
Yes, we’re eating asparagus on our pizza. And loving every single bite. This inspired recipe from Jim Lahey of Sullivan Street Bakery juxtaposes crispy chewy pizza crust with a tangle of tender and lemony asparagus and gooey cheese aplenty. What results is so spectacular, so unexpected, so contrary to everything you thought you knew about pizza—and about asparagus—you may find yourself unable to keep up with the compliments. Especially when you daintily divvy it up and set it out with chilled white wine.–Angie Zoobkoff
What else can I add to this pizza?
While we’re perfectly in love with this gorgeous taste of spring, you might not always have all the ingredients on hand. Or you might just want to add a little extra something something, right? Lahey himself suggests a little bit of shaved truffle or a couple of quail eggs. Now, maybe you’re not feeling that fancy, so how about a sprinkle of chili flakes, a few slices of prosciutto, or maybe a squirt of lemon juice at the end?
☞ Contents
Shaved Asparagus Pizza
Equipment
- Pizza stone (optional, but preferred)
Ingredients
- Olive oil for the pan and the pizza
- 1 ball store-bought pizza dough or 1/2 recipe homemade pizza dough
- 7 ounces Brie
- 1 large garlic clove
- 1 ounce grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
- Freshly ground black pepper
- 1 pound thick asparagus spears tough ends snapped off
- 1/2 coarse sea salt
- Grated zest of 1/2 small lemon preferably organic and Meyer
Directions
- Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven and heat oven to 500°F (260°C). Lightly oil a rimmed baking sheet.
- Place the ball of dough in the center of the oiled sheet pan and gently tug the dough so that it fits the pan. If the dough is too firm to stretch, grab a rolling pin (or, lacking that, a wine bottle) and gently roll the dough to fit the baking sheet.
- Arrange 15 pieces (about 1 tablespoon each) of Brie across the dough in 3 rows of 5. Using a box grater, grate the garlic clove over the top, then scatter on the Parmigiano-Reggiano and black pepper. Drag a vegetable peeler along the length of each asparagus spear to create long shavings. It will seem like a ton of asparagus when it’s all shaved, but it collapses quite a bit when cooked. Strew handfuls of the shaved asparagus across the pizza and sprinkle everything with salt.
- Place the sheet pan directly on the pizza stone and bake until the crust is golden brown and the asparagus is charred in spots, 15 to 20 minutes.
- Remove the pizza from the oven, drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with the lemon zest. Slice and serve immediately. Originally published March 31, 2018.
Show Nutrition
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We’d love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This asparagus pizza was love at first bite! Perfectly browned and crispy crust on the bottom with a rich, melty topping and slightly crunchy, lemony asparagus shavings on top. Cooked up beautifully and the asparagus was lightly charred after 15 minutes in the oven. My new favorite pizza.
The recipe itself is very easy to follow and results in a creamy and bright asparagus pizza—I will definitely use this flavor combination again.
I don’t have a pizza stone so I cooked it on my large cast iron sheet and it worked like a charm. I’ve recently gotten into adding an egg on my homemade pizzas and I think that would be a delicious addition here. I made 2 pizzas that easily served 3 of us.
HUNGRY FOR MORE?
If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
This satisfies winter’s craving for fat (Brie! Parm!) with the added virtue of a green vegetable and some nice bright Meyer lemon to add a bit of cheer to these chilly days. It’s a great use for less-than-perfect, out-of-season asparagus. I’m not a tomato-sauce-on-pizza fan, so this suits me to a T, and there’s enough going on here that no tomato-sauce loving pizza eater will miss it at all. We have no pizza stone but our pizza was fine without. I confess my pizza dough-stretching technique needs work, so my version lacked the clean edges and corners in the photo. Just a bit more rustic a presentation than Mr. Lahey’s!
I’m enthralled with every word you wrote, Elsa. Every word. So happy you’re equally enthralled with this pizza!