Melon, Salami, and Spinach Pizza
May 21, 2017 by Nicole Collins
Greetings from Florida!
I'm about halfway through my trip, and I'm having the BEST time!
This trip has been 100% about food. You thought I couldn't stop talking about my St. Michaels trip? Well, there's a good chance I'll be talking about this Florida trip for the rest of the year. #sorrynotsorry
I've only been here for 2 days, and I've already had some of the best food EVER! I've been getting so much recipe inspiration. I can't wait to put my brain to work and see if I can recreate some of the yumminess back home. I'm not saying I'm ready to go back home though. Just want to make sure we're on the same page. In fact, I might just stay here. Too much good stuff to eat!
Today's agenda includes a visit to Epcot. That very well may be my favorite Disney park. I go back and forth on which is better: Cinderella's Castle at Magic Kingdom or Spaceship Earth at Epcot. But, I think Epcot wins because of the World Showcase. Anywhere that allows me to eat and drink around the world in a matter of hours is a super duper homerun in my book. That's the plan for today, before ending the evening with a moonshine flight. I hope I can remember the dishes I need to recreate when I get home!
I promise to give you a full play by play of all the yummy food I encountered once I get back. But today, I want to tell you about one of my favorite Disney meals that I re-imagined and make for myself at home.
There's this Italian restaurant in Italy at Epcot, Via Napoli, that I seem to end up at on every visit to Florida. It's a favorite dining spot for my friends. I feel like I get the same thing every time: arroncini for appetizer, prosciutto e melon pizza for my meal, and zeppole for dessert.
The pizza is so yummy. It's got a lot of different things happening. You've got the hot/cold contrast from the warm fire brick oven toasted crust but the cold melon slices laying on top. There are lots of different textures: soft, crunchy, gooey, chewy. You're getting salty and sweet flavor profiles. It's just so good. I had to make a version at home, because I need that pizza in my life more than once a year.
In the Via Napoli version, they use prosciutto and arugula. For my version, I use salami and spinach. I'm totally obsessed with salami, so I wanted to switch up the meat. I also prefer spinach over arugula, so it wasn't hard for me to make the change. I like to make mine on naan bread instead of fooling with pizza dough. In all honesty, I don't have the patience for yeast doughs most of the time, so I'd rather let someone else do the work for me. I pretty much use naan bread for all of my pizzas.
This pizza is totally cheesed out too. The sharp fontina mixed with the creamy mozzarella is such an incredible combo. And as if it couldn't get any better, I think this pizza is just as delicious as a cold leftover as it is straight from the oven.
I know I'm not going to get any of this amazing pizza from Via Napoli today, but I can't wait to see what else I find around the world! I know I won't be disappointed. I'll just make some more of this pizza for myself to recreate the memory.
I know you'll love this! And if you've ever had that incredible pizza from Via Napoli, I hope you'll appreciate this as a close substitute.
Let's eat!
Melon, Salami, and Spinach Pizza Serves: 4 Print
Ingredients:
1 pack original naan bread (2 breads)
1 cup fontina cheese, shredded
½ cup mozzarella cheese, shredded
4 slices of a cantaloupe half, thinly sliced about 1/8 inch thick
½ cup fresh spinach
4 slices salami, cut in quarters
½ tbsp olive oil
salt and pepper, to taste
Directions:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Brush the bubbly side of the naan bread with water. Flip, and brush the flat side with olive oil. Season each bread on the olive oil side with a pinch of salt and pepper.
Mix cheeses together in a small bowl or plate. Divide evenly between two flatbreads leaving about a ¼ inch border. Bake for 10-12 minutes on a sheet pan until the cheese cheese melts, and the crust begins to turn golden brown.
After removing from the oven, immediately top naan breads with spinach, cantaloupe, and salami in that order. Allow to sit for 5 mins before slicing. Cut and serve.
Recipe notes:
*Allowing the toppings to sit before cutting helps them melt together and stay on.
*This recipe would work just as well with regular pizza dough. I just really love naan bread pizzas.
*I like to line a sheet tray with foil for easy clean up for these pizzas.
*Since I don't use the whole block of fontina for this recipe, I like to wrap the leftover cheese back in its wrapper, place it in a sandwich bag, and store it in the freezer. When I want to use it again, I just remove it from the freezer the day before I need it. That way, I don't feel bad about splurging on specialty cheese, because it doesn't get wasted. And, the texture stays the same even after being frozen!
