Skillet Pizza with No-Rise Olive Oil Crust

Photo: H.B. Wilcox Photography

My mom made an olive oil dough for everything from savory tarts to double-crust apple pie. Hers was a take on my grandma’s olive oil crust recipe, and my version is another variation within three generations of recipe telephone. I love this crust for a few reasons. 1) It comes together in one bowl with four ingredients, including salt and water. 2) It requires no rest or rising; the dough is easy to roll out as soon as it comes together. 3) A generous amount of olive oil lends a deeply browned, cracker-like crust that’s sturdy and hearty, a texture and flavor profile I’ve come to crave since childhood.

Once you’ve made the dough a couple of times, try playing with the flavors. Sometimes I’ll add a teaspoon of toasted, crushed fennel seeds or freshly ground pepper into the flour. Maybe a teaspoon of dried rosemary and oregano makes its way into the mix. And a hint of cinnamon and cardamom makes a nice base for the sweeter route, like an olive oil galette with sliced pears, burst cranberries, or caramelized peaches.

Olive Oil Crust

1 cup all-purpose flour
1 cup whole-wheat flour
1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 tablespoon maple syrup
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 to 3/4 cup cold water, as needed

Skillet Pizza

1 recipe prepared olive oil crust
1 medium Japanese or Jewel sweet potato, thinly sliced (about 3/4 cup)
1 small globe or regular zucchini, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
2 small potatoes, thinly sliced (about 1/2 cup)
1 cup grated Parmesan
1/4 cup loosely packed whole sage leaves
2 small cloves garlic, grated
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon salt
Olive oil and freshly ground pepper, as needed
Optional: zucchini blossoms

Step 1

Preheat the oven to 450F with a rack in the center. Coat a 12-inch cast-iron skillet with oil.

Step 2

Mix flours and salt in a large bowl. Drizzle olive oil and syrup over the dry mixture; use your fingers to rub the oil and syrup into the dry mixture to create a pebbly, coarse-meal texture. Make a well in the center; add 1/2 cup cold water. Mix flour into water until a firm dough comes together. It should look like well-kneaded bread, not shaggy pie crust. Add more water as needed to bring the dough together — if the dough feels too soft or sticky, knead in more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, until it comes together. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface; roll into a round about 12 x 12 inches and 1/8-inch high. Transfer to a prepared skillet. Spread as evenly as possible with grated garlic and top evenly with the grated cheese.

Step 3

Toss the vegetables and sage leaves with the salt and oil; scatter over the cheese in a single layer. Bake until the crust is deeply browned and the vegetables are cooked through, 30to 35 minutes. Carefully slide the pizza onto a cutting board. Rest for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.