Homemade Pizza Margherita
On my 29th day of lockdown here in Rome, here are a few more observations/realizations for you:
- It's possible to be homesick for a place even if you haven't left it. I'm still in my neighborhood in the north of Rome, Italy, but any glimpses of my adopted country as it was make my chest tighten up and leaves me dizzy with nostalgia. A recent viewing of a movie shot in Naples and Rome, with its familiar sights and sounds and streets filled with people, made me teary; a glimpse of a few photos of last year's Easter trip to stunning Matera had a similar effect. Italy feels very far away, even though I'm here living in it.
- On a more comical note: the new lockdown-lens that my sister and I both seem to view things with now. The sight of talk show host Graham Norton (whose program is a quarantine-favorite) shaking hands with his guests now seems outlandish, where is their hand sanitizer?!; the mention of Clark Kent and Lana Lang attending a concert together in the TV series Smallville (a favorite when I was in middle school -- are we regressing?) immediately brings to mind the thought that the concert will probably be cancelled, no gatherings of people allowed! A cough emitted by fitness guru the Body Coach (whose workouts I've been attempting at home) automatically make me wonder if he's exhibiting symptoms, even if the video was uploaded to YouTube long before the virus came on to the scene. Anyone else operating with this kind of mindset lately, or is it just me beginning to go a little crazy in quarantine? Hmmm.
- A few main characters in the lockdown so far: Nestle instant coffee; bars of milk chocolate for snacking; the Arctic Monkeys on repeat; deliveries from my beloved Paciotti, paper bags filled with slabs of guanciale and wedges of Pecorino; Ozark on Netflix; my balcony, my phone, and my twin sister.
- "When this is all over" might be the most used sentence I've heard lately (most underused: "Where are you going for Easter?") When this is all over, and whenever its allowed, I'll walk all through the city, just because I can, ride the metro back home when I get tired, get a haircut, drink numerous cappuccini with new relish, and, in the words of my sister, "have a picnic in a park somewhere with all our friends and get tipsy." Amen to that.
But you came here for Margherita, not musings! My apologies -- lockdown has made me reflective, I guess.
Continuing with my quest to give the people what they want, i.e respond to the recipe requests made by followers via Instagram, here is a recipe for homemade pizza, which was requested by three people. This didn't really surprise* me, as pizza is one of those universally loved foods, up there with ice cream, wine, and tacos. I've never in all my 31 years ever met someone who doesn't like pizza.
(Surprising would have been getting 10 requests for a tripe recipe, for the record).*
So! I'd dabbled with pizza in the past, usually opting for a quick, no-knead dough which works well -- a perfectly respectable vehicle for your pizza toppings -- but lacks the flavor and complexity a more involved dough would provide. Pizza dough requires kneading, and resting, and rising to be at its best (a good oven and pizza stone help too), and with access to some of my favorite pizzerie cut off, and with more time on my hands, a quest for a better homemade pizza seemed like a natural choice of Saturday activity.
I'll cut to the chase: the dough here, once baked, results in a pizza that is tall and majestic -- this isn't Roman pizza --pillow-y and impossibly fluffy, with depth, and well personality, if a pizza can have that (I think it can). I used my unabashedly perfect pizza dough to make a Margherita (you say boring, I say classic) which is my usual choice at a pizzeria. The fior di latte here becomes golden brown and beautifully stretchy, filante, once put in the oven, melting over the simplest and most satisfying of tomato sauces; a little basil is a lot more than just a garnish, adding freshness to the odd bite it might have landed on, and right at home with tomato and mozzarella, two ingredients it knows well. This was perfect, in that very specific slice-of-pizza-fresh-out-of-the-oven kind of way, an alchemy of freshly baked bread, tomatoes, and melted cheese. Verdict: pizza quest completed with great success.
I'll be back soon with more quarantine-friendly recipes (translation: ones that don't require yeast or flour for those of you who did not get your hands on it). In the meantime, as always: stay safe (and home), everyone.
A couple of notes: When this pizza was finished, I consoled myself by beginning to brainstorm new combinations: salame piccante e ricotta? broccoli e salsiccia? an unorthodox breakfast pizza?! The point is, feel free to shake up the toppings here as you wish. If you use fior di latte, it will release some water while it cooks in the oven; this will mostly evaporate, no worries. If you have one, use a pizza stone/pizza pan here to ensure a crispy bottom on the pizza; I didn't have one (and couldn't run out to get one in quarantine) and as divine as my pizza was it could've benefited from this.
Looking for other pizza recipes? I've got this Roasted Asparagus and Three-cheese pizza and this Pumpkin Pizza.
Looking for more bread/pizza recipes? Click here.
PIZZA MARGHERITA
Pizza dough recipe from www.flaviasflavors.com via The Italian Baker by Carol Field. Serves 4-8 (makes about 8 pieces, so depends on how hungry you are).
Ingredients for the pizza dough:
1 ⅓ cups (320mL) warm water (100º-110ºF)
1¾ teaspoons (5 grams) active dry yeast
1 teaspoon honey
¼ cup (59mL) olive oil, plus more for oiling the bowl
3¾ cups (490 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for flouring the board
1½ teaspoons (8.5 grams) salt
Ingredients for the toppings:
1 (480 gram) can whole peeled tomatoes
1/4 teaspoon (1.5 grams) salt
A pinch of sugar
8 ounces (240 grams) fior di latte or cow's milk mozzarella
A handful of basil
Directions:
1.) To make the pizza dough by hand: Lightly grease a large bowl with some olive oil and set aside. Pour the water into a large mixing bowl, then add the yeast and honey to the water and stir to dissolve. Let stand until the mixture is foamy, about 5-7 minutes.
If using a standing mixer: follow the same procedure as above, just putting the water, yeast, and honey into the bowl of the standing mixer fitted with a dough hook.
2.) Add in the olive oil and stir to combine. If making by hand: Add in 1 cup of the flour and using a wooden spoon or dough whisk, mix the flour into the water mixture, beating out any lumps. Add in the remaining flour and the salt and stir until a dough starts to form. Turn the dough out on to a lightly floured surface and need for about 12 minutes, or until the dough is smooth, elastic, and less sticky.
If using a standing mixer: Add in 1 cup of the flour and mix at medium speed, scraping down the sides of the bowl as necessary. Add in the remaining flour and the salt and knead the dough at medium speed until the dough is soft and smooth in texture, about 5 minutes. Sprinkle the bowl lightly with flour if necessary to prevent the dough from sticking. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured board and knead it by hand about 12 times.
3.) Form the kneaded dough into a ball and place it in the oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a clean dish towel and set it aside to rise until doubled in size, about 2 hours. Once the two hours are up, it will look like this:
4.) When you are ready to use the dough, turn it out onto a well-floured board shape it into a ball; I do this by tucking the dough around itself almost (you can see an example of this here at minute 5:00) and then once that is done, dragging it towards me a few times to create a tight ball of dough. Sprinkle the dough lightly with flour, cover it with the dish towel, and allow it to rise on the board for an additional 30 minutes. After this second rise, the dough should be puffy and slightly risen.
5.) Next, take a dimensions here pan and grease lightly with olive oil. Stretch the dough as best you can to fit the pan -- I used a 9x13 inch rectangular pan -- wait a few minutes, and then stretch again (the dough needs to rest each time to allow it to become stretchier). Repeat this process until the dough comfortably fits the pan. Cover the dough with a dish towel and get to work on the remaining elements of the pizza.
6.) Preheat the oven to 250 degrees Celsius/480 degrees Fahrenheit, then get to start on your tomato sauce. Blend the sugar and salt with the tomatoes in a blender until smooth. Once you have done this, tear the mozzarella up into pieces. Rip the basil into small pieces as well.
7.) Cover your pizza with about 3/4 cup of sauce (about 12 tablespoons). Using a pastry brush (or just a spoon if you don't have one) brush the crust with a little of the sauce as well (this will give it a nice color). You will not use all the sauce, so set aside for another use. Top with the cheese, and a drizzle of olive oil if you'd like.
8.) Bake in your pre-heated oven for 12-15 minutes or until the cheese is melted and golden brown and the crust is cooked throughout. Top with the basil once out of the oven; let cool slightly, and then devour.
