Bacon & Blue Cherry Fig Jam Pizza

The Bacon & Blue Cherry Fig Jam Pizza. You lived a short but tasteful life. RIP.

After spending months developing and fine-tuning Cherry Republic's Savory Cherry Fig Jam,  Corporate Chef Tony Finnestad forged this tempting pizza that highlights the savory flavors of the jam, including fig, caramelized onions and roasted garlic. The savoriness is evened out by the tartness from northern Michigan Montmorency cherries, saltiness of the bacon and creamy earthiness of the Fontina cheese.

This pizza is easy to make, fun for the whole family and ingredients can be substituted to suit even the most discerning taste buds.

Total Time: 30 minutes (after 18-24 hour resting period for freshly made dough)
Difficulty: Easy-Medium
Serves: 3-4

Ingredients

• 3 3/4 Cups All Purpose Flour, and some extra for shaping/kneading
• 1/4 teaspoon Yeast
• 1 1/2 Cups room temperature water
• 2 1/2 teaspoons of Salt
• 1lb of shredded Fontina cheese
• 1 jar Cherry Republic Savory Cherry Fig Jam
• 2 strips of bacon
• Fresh basil leaves

A note from Chef Tony: If following this recipe, preheat oven to 500 degrees for at least an hour before use. If using store bought dough, follow the packaging instructions.

The most important component to a pizza is the dough. Not only does it take the longest to make, but it can make or break the taste of a pizza. So that's where we begin.

Note: If you don't have the time to let the fresh dough sit for 18-24 hours, store bought dough will work.

Instruction

1. To start, in a large bowl, mix the flour, salt and yeast. Slowly drizzle water in and work with your hands until water is fully incorporated. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and allow it to rise, at room temperature, for 18-24 hours.
2. Tip: Use a scale to measure the amount of flour your using. Reason? Flour is compressible. If you sift it, you'll end up with too little, and if you pound it down, you'll end up with too much.
3. After the ball of dough has rested, roll it out onto a floured work surface.
4. Sure, cheese is great, but flour is the most important ingredient to making the perfect pizza.
5. Developing the dough is an important step in the pizza making process, but it's an activity the whole family can enjoy. And heck, if a hole opens up, ball it up and start over! Kneading the dough develops the gluten, the network of interconnected proteins that gives structure to the pizza.
6. With slightly opened fists, slowly work your hands away from each other, spreading the dough.
7. Continue to work the dough with your fingers, starting from the center of the dough and pushing out towards the edges.
8. One of the great joys of pizza making... flying dough! Give it a shot. What's the worst thing that could happen? Yes, dough stuck on the ceiling does you no good. If a hole forms though, mend it or ball up that part and try again!
9. After topping your pizza, pop it into a 500 degree oven for 8-12 minutes.
10. Topping the pizza with chilled dollops of our Cherry Fig Jam is the perfect savory complement to the warm, salty bacon and nutty Parmesan cheese.
11. Remove pizza from oven when golden brown. Let cool for a minute then add dollops of chilled Savory Cherry Fig Jam.
12. Don't pat yourself on the back after this one. Instead, grab a slice and kick up your feet.
13. Slice and enjoy! "You better cut the pizza in four pieces because I'm not hungry enough to eat six." Yogi Berra