Pizza
Pesto, Cheese & Fresh Tomato Pizza
Homemade pesto and fresh, ripe tomatoes make this a great summertime pizza.
Makes one
Pizza Dough, p. 27
1/2 pound (227 g) firm but ripe plum tomatoes
1/2 ounce (14 g) Reggiano Parmesan, cut in
3 tablespoons (45 ml) pesto, p. 30
1teaspoon (5 ml) extra virgin olive oil Cornmeal for dusting the peel or pan
2ounces (57 g) fresh mozzarella, very well chilled
Prepare the Pizza Dough and let rise. Position the top rack of the oven about 8 inches
(20 cm) from the top. If using a baking stone, place it on the rack. Preheat the oven to 500˚ F (260˚ C).
Bring 6 cups (1.5 L) of water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Cut a shallow “x” in the bottom of each tomato. Blanch the tomatoes in the boiling water for 30 seconds, then immediately plunge them into a bowl of iced water. When cool, slip the skins off. Slice the stem end off each tomato; set aside.
Insert the metal blade. With the machine running, drop the Parmesan cheese cubes down the feed tube. Process 15 seconds; leave in bowl. Insert the shredding disc. Use medium pres- sure to shred the mozzarella and fontina. Remove the cheeses to a bowl; toss to combine and reserve. Insert the slicing disc. One at a time, place the tomatoes in the small feed tube. Use very light pressure to slice. Place the sliced tomatoes on a triple thick layer of paper tow- els to drain.
When the dough has risen, punch down, use as is or divide into 2 equal balls. Let rest 10 minutes. Roll the dough out to size. Place on a baker’s peel that has been sprinkled with corn meal, or on a perforated pizza pan, a pizza screen or baking sheet without sides that has been sprinkled with corn meal. Brush the edges with the olive oil, then using an offset spatula, spread the pizza to
Carefully slide the pizza onto the stone (position the peel over the back edge of the stone, and use a rocking motion to shake and slide the pizza off the peel onto the stone), or place the pan into the hot oven. Bake the pizza for 5 minutes, then rotate it front to back for even baking. Bake for another 3 to 6 minutes, until the pizza is bubbly, and the edges of the dough are golden brown, puffed and crispy. Remove from the oven and let rest on a rack for 2 to 3 minutes before slicing.
Preparation: 1 hour for the pizza dough (Cuisinart recipe, p. 27); then 20 minutes plus 12 minutes to bake
Nutritional analysis per serving:
Calories 365 (from fat 33%) • carb. 46g • pro. 15g • fat 13g
sat. fat 5g • chol. 21mg • sod. 678mg • fiber 2g
36
