I've been gone for ages and rarely come in here anymore, but this is a wonderful thread that, like a good pizza, made me come back from the dead.
Because my wife is gluten-free we normally bake our own pizza. Favorite toppings include:
- A well-made, super tasty sauce. Could be tomato-based with tons of garlic, rosemary, oregano and other herbs, or a basic layer of pesto.
- Tons of cheese: shredded cheese, could be Mozzarella, (young) Gouda, Emmental or a combination of them. Sometimes we add thin slices of Parmiggiano or Grana Padano.
- Veggies: diced tomatoes, thinly sliced tomatoes, fresh mushrooms (usually champignons), green & black olives, jalapeños, perhaps arugula.
- Meats: usually salami, spanish chorizo or ham, but once in a while smoked sausage and/or ground beef (or sauce bolognese).
- Herbs: for a final touch sprinkle fresh aromatic herbs like oregano and basil all over the pizza.
Of course that's just toppings. Here are some specific combinations that we love and keep coming back to:
- Tomato sauce + cheese + mushrooms + chorizo (our version of the American pepperoni pizza, but better).
- Pesto + 2 types of cheese + tomato slices + mushrooms + fresh cut basil.
- Tomato sauce + cheese + tomato + mushrooms + olives + ham (jalapeños optional).
Since I can eat wheat I get to experiment a bit more every once in a while. I once had chicken and bacon on a pizza and it was OK. Recently had a "chilli" (as in chilli con carne) pizza but it was too sweet and not spicy enough (for my standards). Also recently discovered kebab pizza: I'm still not sure whether this is a good idea or an abomination, but it is definitely a sort of guilty pleasure. I am indifferent towards pineapple in pizza but something about it seems wrong...
Anyway, pizza is fantastic and since we have to make our own it is also fun to try new things.