Ember & Vine Pizza with Roasted Tomato Jam
TRANQUIL • LUMINOUS • ROOTED
Stories from the studio, reflections on process, and the art of the handmade
When the Studio Pantry becomes the palette.
At the beginning of this year, I became enamored with the idea of making my own pizza dough.
I was after something very specific: a beautifully browned crust with a crisp exterior, both underneath and around the edges, but with enough character that I could choose between a thinner pie or something a little more substantial.
I knew enough about pizza to imagine all sorts of toppings. That wasn't really the challenge. What I was searching for was the right canvas.
And, as often happens in my kitchen, I went down the rabbit hole.
Eventually, I arrived at a homemade crust I really loved. But there was one problem. Making it was essentially a three-day adventure, and for the two of us, I wasn't sure I wanted pizza badly enough to begin planning it several days ahead every time.
Then I discovered Poco Bero.
Finding the Foundation
There is so much I like about this dough: how it is made, the individual portions, the way it arrives frozen and carefully packed in dry ice — and perhaps most importantly, the convenience of having really good pizza dough waiting in the freezer.
Suddenly, pizza could become something spontaneous again.
The dough still requires a little planning for thawing and proofing, but the difficult part has already been done. I can concentrate on what I enjoy most: deciding what goes on top.
And this is where something clicked for me.
If the pizza dough was the canvas, the Studio Pantry could become the palette.
That idea fits perfectly into the way my Studio Kitchen has been evolving:
Studio Pantry → Foundations → Compositions
Poco Bero dough became one of my Foundations — something dependable that could carry whatever was happening in the Pantry at the moment.
Ember & Vine Meets the Pizza - Roasted Tomato Jam
For this pizza, I reached for Ember & Vine, my roasted tomato jam. A pizza with roasted tomato jam.
Ember & Vine isn't really a pizza sauce, and I didn't want to treat it like one. Its flavor is much more concentrated — roasted tomatoes cooked down into something sweet, savory and deeply tomatoey.
Rather than covering the dough completely, I spoon it over the surface in small swaths, leaving spaces between. Those little pockets of tomato become part of the pizza rather than simply disappearing beneath everything else.
From there, I kept the ingredients deliberately restrained: Fontina for its beautiful melt, a little mild Italian sausage, and then, after the pizza comes from the oven, fresh arugula and a scattering of Cougar Gold.
That's enough.
And I think that's part of what I'm learning about these Pantry compositions. When one ingredient already carries a great deal of flavor, everything around it doesn't have to work quite so hard.
A Different Way to Think About Pizza
The most interesting part of this experiment isn't really the pizza.
It's realizing how useful a good Foundation can be.
Making every component of dinner from scratch isn't necessarily what makes cooking creative. Sometimes creativity comes from knowing which things are worth making yourself and which things simply need to be exceptionally good.
I want to make Ember & Vine.
I want to roast the tomatoes, watch them collapse and concentrate, adjust the seasoning and tuck those little jars into my freezer.
But I don't necessarily need to spend three days making the dough beneath it.
That distinction has given me much more freedom in the kitchen.
And because the dough is waiting in the freezer, I can look through the Studio Pantry and begin imagining:
What would happen if I put this on a pizza?
That question opens up all sorts of possibilities!
For now, though, Ember & Vine Pizza is a lovely place to begin.
Studio Notes
Poco Bero provides detailed instructions for thawing, proofing, stretching and baking its dough, so rather than duplicate those instructions here, I follow their method and begin my recipe once the dough is ready for toppings.
Heat matters. I preheat my oven to 475–500°F and give it plenty of time to become thoroughly hot before the pizza goes in. A properly heated oven helps the crust begin cooking immediately rather than slowly drying out.
The baking surface matters, too. A pizza stone or steel is wonderful, but it isn't essential. I use my HexClad pizza pan, which heats evenly and has given me a beautifully browned, crisp underside. Yes, this pan is an investment but something you will have for life. Whatever you use though, choose a surface designed to transfer and hold high heat well.
Studio Pantry:
Ember & Vine - Foundation: Poco Bero Pizza Dough - Composition: Ember & Vine Pizza. Ember & Vine should be used more sparingly than a traditional tomato sauce. Leave a little open space between spoonfuls so the crust, Fontina and sausage each have a chance to be tasted.
Add the arugula and Cougar Gold after the pizza comes from the oven. The cool pepperiness of the greens against the warm pizza is part of what makes this composition work.
Studio Pantry: Ember & Vine Foundation: Poco Bero Pizza Dough Composition: Ember & Vine Pizza. Simple ingredients. Thoughtful preparation. Gathered at the table.
Take It to Your Kitchen
I've included two versions of this recipe for you to enjoy.
Studio Page: A full-color keepsake designed for your Studio Kitchen collection.
Kitchen Print: A simple black-and-white version made for everyday cooking, easy printing, and slipping into a favorite recipe binder.
New to the Studio Kitchen?
If this is your first visit, I invite you to begin with Welcome to the Studio Kitchen, where I share the philosophy behind these seasonal recipes, pantry staples, and stories from the garden.
It's the place where this collection begins.
This is where I'll preserve not only the harvest, but the recipes and stories that accompany it.
From the Studio
The Studio Kitchen grew from a simple idea, that creativity doesn't end at the studio door.
Sometimes it takes shape in handmade books, collage, and paper. Other times it begins in the garden, continues at the kitchen table, and ends with a recipe shared among family and friends.
Whether you've arrived here through my artwork, the Studio Kitchen, or simply a love of thoughtful making, I'm so glad you're here.
Thank you for spending a little time with me today.
From the garden • Through the studio • To the table
Melanie Grant — Northern Idaho
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