Pizza! Pizza!

I remember the first pizza I ordered after moving to the US - a deep dish swimming pool of cheese and tomato sauce with little swimming toppings that seemed to have stayed out in the sun too long. Why consume this chewy bread with bland tomato sauce, barely there boring toppings and molten lava cheese that scalds the roof of your mouth?

In New York, the thin crust pizzas were better, but the toppings still left a lot to be desired. What if I did not use sauce, and gave the base a better chance of staying crisp? What if the toppings were heaped like a hill, and what if the toppings were adventurous, eclectic and filled with herbs.

The dough: I mix the bread flour and all-purpose baking flour 1:1, with 1 tsp of salt and a couple of teaspoons of sugar. Dry yeast is added to warm water with honey and let it bubble for few minutes before mixing this with the flour to make dough.

Toppings:

Pizza 1- Broccolini and Peppers

Chop broccolini, red and yellow peppers and saute in olive oil, garlic, balsamic vinegar and rosemary. On the flattened dough, heap the sauteed vegetables and then add shredded mozzarella on top. Bake at 475 degrees (or 450 in convection mode) for 8-10 minutes.
The tart reduction from the balsamic vinegar and the fragrant rosemary complement the crisp base and the melted cheese.

 Pizza 2- Tomato, Chantrelle and Basil

Saute small sweet red tomatoes with olive oil and set aside. Gently brown the mushrooms. Layer the flattened dough with basil leaves, and then add tomatoes, browned mushrooms and finely shredded mozzarella. The tomato basil cheese combination gives the pizza a caprese salad twist.

Pizza 3- Swiss chard and egg

Saute chopped Swiss chard, olive oil and sherry vinegar. Layer pizza base with chopped fresh parsley. Then add the sauteed Swiss chard, crack 2-3 eggs on top of the Swiss chard, and finally the grated mozzarella cheese. Bake at 475 degrees (or 450 in convection mode) for 8-10 minutes. The soft creamy yolk balances the slightly bitter and tangy Swiss chard perfectly.


                                                                                               The dough

Bread flour and all purpose flour, 1 cup each

Add a tsp of salt

Add 3-4 tsp of sugar

Add 1 tsp of honey to a cup of warm water

Let sit for 5-10 min and let bubble

Mix above bubbling yeast mixture with flour to make dough

Cover dough and let it rise

                                                                          Pizza 1- Broccolini and Peppers

Broccolini, red and yellow peppers.

Chop and saute in olive oil

Add diced garlic

2-3 tsp balsamic vinegar

In goes the rosemary

                               

Flatten the dough 

                             

The veggie topping with shredded mozzarella on top

Bake at 475 for 8-10 min

Pizza 2- Tomato, Chantrelle and Basil

Brown the mushrooms

Sweet small tomatoes

Saute in olive oil

I used Thai basil

Flatten the dough 

Layer with Thai basil followed by tomatoes, mushrooms and cheese

                               

Bake at 475 for 8-10 min

Pizza 3- Swiss chard and egg

Swish Chard

Saute with olive oil and 1 tsp sherry vinegar

Parsley is the first layer

Flatten the dough

Topping of parsley, Swiss Chard and eggs

Shredded mozzarella

Bake at 475 for 8-10 min

Sharp parsley, tangy Swiss chard and soft sensual eggs and melting cheese.
Bon Appetit!