Bunnicorn Pizza inspired by Star Trek: Picard
Posted by admin on
A tearful reunion of two of my favorite characters AND a dish described vividly and depicted in detail? It’s not my birthday, but it sure feels like it. Follow along this week as we recreate the hilariously Trek-appropriate “bunnicorn” pizza! Ingredients
Rabbit Sausage
1 small rabbit (about 1lb of meat, or 1 carcass)
2-3 small cloves garlic
½ Tbsp rosemary
Whole fennel seeds
1 large yellow onion
½ tsp sweet paprika
Black pepper
Kosher salt
Red pepper flakes
Nutmeg
Neapolitan Pizza Dough
500 grams bread flour
8 grams kosher salt
350 grams tepid tap water
2 grams fresh compressed yeast (or ½ tsp dried instant yeast)
Tomato Sauce
28 oz can San Marzano tomatoes
Kosher salt
Method
Rabbit Sausage
Start by cutting the rabbit carcass in half and removing the 2 thin tenderloins along the back, and meat off the wings and thighs. This should only yield about 1lb of meat. You can save the bones to make rabbit stock. Alternatively, you can buy 1lb of rabbit meat.
Place meat onto parchment paper and place into the freezer for 15-20 minutes, or until the edges just begin to harden. Also put the grinding components in the freezer with the meat.
Once the meat is ready, place through your meat grinder set at a medium plate. Collect ground meat in a small bowl.
Add 2-3 small pressed cloves of garlic, ½ Tbsp finely chopped rosemary, a healthy shake of whole fennel seeds, 1Tbsp grated yellow onion, ½ tsp sweet paprika, a few twists of black pepper, and 2 tsp kosher salt. You can also add an optional pinch of red pepper flakes and freshly grated nutmeg.
Mix everything rigorously together by punching it down and smearing it together, making sure everything is evenly dispersed.
Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and press the wrap all the way down onto the surface of the sausage. Let sit in the fridge for 24 hours.
Pizza Dough
Start by placing 500 grams of bread flour and 8 grams of kosher salt into a bowl. Whisk to combine. In a separate bowl, whisk together 350 grams of tepid tap water and 2 grams of fresh compressed yeast (or ½ tsp of dried instant yeast). Once combined, add to the flour mixture.
Mix together in a mixing bowl with a dough hook on low speed for 1-2 minutes, until everything comes together and no dry clumps remain. At this point, crank the dough hook speed up to medium-low and knead for 7-10 minutes until soft and sticky.
Drop the dough ball into a lightly oiled bowl, covered with plastic wrap and let sit at room temperature for 8-12 hours. After it has doubled in size, place in the fridge for at least 24 hours and up to 72 hours.
Turn the dough out onto an unfloured worktop and divide into 3 equal pieces that weigh 270 grams each. Stretch each piece into a taut little ball, using the edges of your hands and the dough’s own stickiness.
Place all 3 dough balls in a well-floured proofing box (or rimmed baking sheet covered with plastic wrap). Let proof for 2-3 hours.
Tomato Sauce
Start by draining a 28oz can of San Marzano tomatoes. Add a few pinches of kosher salt to the can. Insert immersion blender into the can and blend together with a few until smooth, but not too smooth.
Pizza Assembly
Once your sauce and dough are ready, par-cook the sausage. Smash it into a patty and place into a preheated skillet, searing it on both sides, until brown on the outside and pink in the middle. It can cook the rest of the way with the pizza.
Coat the pizza dough generously with flour on both sides before placing on the counter and pinching into a pizza shape. Watch the episode to see my method.
Once the dough has been spread to 10-11 inches, spread a thin but confident layer of tomato sauce on top. Next, add pieces of torn buffalo mozzarella. Then, tear the rabbit sausage into pieces and sprinkle on top. Finish with basil leaves.
Place the pizza in a wood oven. The temperature should be 900°F in the back of the oven and 750°F in the front.
After 20 seconds, rotate pizza 90 degrees. Repeat every 15 seconds or so, until the pizza is evenly cooked.
