Roasted Pear and Blue Cheese Pizza with Carmelized Onions

If I were Leonardo da Vinci this would be my Mona Lisa. I know the combination of pears and blue cheese may scare some away but you would be turning away the gates of paradise if you were to snub this pizza. There are a couple of preparatory stages but trust me, it is well worth the effort to put a little bit of hard work into this pear pie.

This recipe is intended to be made on an 18-inch pizza pan.

For the dough:
1 cup warm water
1 1/2 tsp yeast
1 1/2 tsp sugar
3/4 tsp salt
2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
Olive oil (regular or extra-virgin)

For the carmelized onions and pear topping:
2 tbsp olive oil (regular olive oil will do)
1 tbsp salt
1 large red onion, cut into half moons
1/2 cup balsamic vinegar
2 bosc pears, de-seeded and sliced thin (If you can't find bosc pears, other pears will do)
Light sprinkle of cinnamon

For the cheese topping:
5 oz. crumbled blue cheese
2 cups shredded mozarella cheese
2 tbsp olive oil

Directions:
For the dough, add the warm water in a medium bowl. Stir in one at at time the yeast, sugar, salt and finally, the flour. Knead the dough into a ball in the bowl, adding a few drops of olive oil as necessary to make it more adhesive. Cover dough with a cloth and set aside (not in the fridge) for 30-40 minutes.

Carmelized Onions and Roasted Pears:
In a pan on medium-high heat, add the olive oil, salt, and red onions. Saute until the onions turn into a medium-dark shade of purple. Add the balsamic vinegar and cook for another 3-5 minutes, until it turns into a dark purple color. Remove from pan and set aside.
In the same pan (or a new one if you prefer), add a bit of regular olive oil and add the sliced pears on low-medium heat. Turn over frequently so as to get all of the pears slightly seared but do not overcook as they will be cooked further with the pizza. Set aside.

Assembly:
Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
Roll out the dough onto a buttered pizza pan, gently stretching the dough to cover the entire pan. Spread the olive oil over the dough and sprinkle the mozarella and blue cheese over the entire surface. Add the carmelized onions and then finally, the roasted pears. Bake for 16-18 minutes.