Caviar Pizza? New High-Low Recipes for All Types of Roe

Most of us take the high road when it comes to caviar. We polish the finest mother-of-pearl caviar spoons, break out the crystal flutes, and generally make a fuss over the presentation and service. But by relegating caviar to Very Important Occasion status we are, in fact, limiting the ways we can fully enjoy those tasty, tiny fish eggs.
 
The fact is that caviar tastes just as good gilding the creamy heart of a deviled egg as it does perched on top of a wheaten blini. And with all the terrific, more economical varieties of fish roe now available on the market, why wait until New Year’s Eve or that big birthday to indulge? We say, any party is a good enough excuse to break out a tin, and especially a fall gathering with friends. Here are some of our favorite ways to experience caviar—both high and low.
 
On the High Side

• The simplest but most opulent route: pile mountains of caviar on boiled or roasted fingerling potato halves, drench with melted butter, and top with minced onion 
• Fry up some blini, mound with crème fraiche and caviar (use white flour here, not buckwheat, which interferes with the delicate taste of the caviar). 
• Top tiny potato pancakes with sour cream and caviar. Making the pancakes small and dainty is the key to a swanky presentation here. Feathery dill sprigs are nice for a splash of color. 
• Whip up a chive or dill flan and top with caviar. Chive blossoms are stunning if you can find them. 
• Any savory panna cotta makes a quiveringly elegant caviar vehicle. Thomas Keller uses cauliflower in his and you could too. Or make a creamy cauliflower soup (don’t stint on the cream) and serve with a caviar garnish.

On the Low Side

• Caviar deviled eggs! Really. Try your favorite recipe and garnish with salmon or other roe. 
• Caviar dip. Combine sour cream, chopped scallions, dill, mayo, lemon zest, and stir in some of your favorite cheap caviar. Serve with your best potato chips. 
• Move over bagels and lox. Bagel, cream cheese, and caviar is even better. 
• Hash browns are just as crispy and delectable a contrast to caviar as potato pancakes. Sprinkle some over the top and serve with fried or poached eggs for a deluxe brunch. 
• Pasta with caviar, rustic style. While your linguine boils, fry up some breadcrumbs in butter with a little garlic. Toss with pasta and garnish with as much caviar as you can afford.  
• Caviar pizza...

Caviar Pizza With Ricotta & Dill
Makes 4 (9-inch) pizzas, serving 12 as an hors d’oeuvre
 
For the dough
1 package dry active yeast
4 cups all-purpose flour, plus additional, for dusting
2 ½ teaspoons kosher salt
Olive oil, for coating the bowl
 
For the pizza
1 cup fresh ricotta
½ cup fromage blanc
Olive oil, for drizzling
Chopped dill
Caviar for serving, as much as you like, a combination of red and black is striking

1. To make the dough, combine the yeast and 1 ¼ cup warm water in the bowl of an electric mixer. Let the mixture sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add the salt and flour. Mix on medium-high speed until the dough comes together, adding more warm water as needed. You should not knead the dough, but do mix it until the dough just becomes supple and smooth. Place the dough in an oil-coated bowl and cover loosely with plastic. Transfer to the refrigerator and let rise at least 4 hours or up to 2 days. When ready to use the dough, divide it into 4 equal-sized pieces. Shape the dough into balls. Let it sit at room temperature at least 30 minutes before using; this will make a big difference in the ease with which your dough will stretch to pizza-worthy size. 
2. To make the pizza, preheat the oven to 500° F. Arrange an oven rack in the top third of the oven. Place a pizza stone on the rack. Let it heat for 1 hour. 
3. Turn a large baking sheet upside down and dust the surface with flour. Place a dough ball on a clean, lightly floured surface; dust the top of the dough with additional flour. Use the fingertips to flatten the dough into a round. Holding the dough in front of you like a steering wheel (with hands at 2:00 and 10:00), rotate the dough several times between your hands, stretching it slightly as you do so. Try to maintain as even a thickness as possible, with the outermost edges of the dough slightly thicker. Continue, working carefully around thin patches of dough to ensure that it does not tear, until you have a 9-ish-inch round. 
4. Carefully set the dough down upon the floured baking sheet. Patch any tears or holes in the dough. Working quickly, scatter the dough with blobs of ricotta and fromage blanc. Drizzle the top of the pizza generously with oil. 
5. Jiggle the pizza gently on the pan to make sure it is not sticking. Slide the pizza directly onto the hot stone; make sure to start holding the pan at the stone’s back end so that the entire pizza will fit. 
6. Cook the pizza until the underside is golden and the top is firm, 4 to 5 minutes. Turn off the oven and turn on the broiler. Broil the pizza until golden, crisp, and a bit blistery and charred in places, 3 or so minutes (watch it carefully to see that it does not burn). 
7. Use tongs to slide the pizza to a large platter. Drizzle it with oil; garnish with dill. Cut into pieces for serving (or rip it apart with your hands). Dollop on the caviar just before serving. 
8. Repeat the cooking process with the remaining dough balls and toppings.

ETC.

• If you have one of those ovens with the broiler on a separate drawer on the bottom, don’t use the broiling method. Just leave the pizza in the 500 degree F. oven until it is crisp and golden brown all over. It will take15 to 20 minutes. 
• You can make the dough ahead and freeze balls of it. It will defrost in about 2 hours if left on the kitchen counter.  Or pull it out in the morning and let it defrost all day in the fridge. It will be perfect come dinnertime. We always have some on hand. 
• If you can’t find fromage blanc, crème fraiche will work, too.

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