Pizza Pizza
Ann says
It’s really easy to make tasty, wholesome, homecooked meals when at some point on the weekend I think, “Oh wouldn’t this food or such and such be nice this week….” I then make a happy walk to the store and get the few ingredients I need to add to the staples I already have, or to replenish a little bit. It’s so, so nice, and when I have the time to think at all I think these thoughts a lot. You know, I think a lot about food.
This week I thought about pizza a couple of times. I am not the biggest pizza fan in the world, particularly after a concussion incident when I was three led to extreme nausea at the smell of pizza followed by many experiences of pizza with way way too much sauce. I hate too much sauce because I hate the flavor of fresh tomatoes like the fury of a thousand suns. I know I am a freak.
My mom makes really really good pizza. There was one particularly memorable time when the crust was so chewy and thin and crisp and just oh so good…
So I thought, I would like some of that. Particularly, I would like it with mushrooms, thinly sliced zucchini, and sausage, and thyme. And mozzarella and Parmesan cheese. No weird cheeses on my pizza, thank you.
Making pizza dough is way easier than making other breads, partially because you only have to knead it once, and partially because there is oil in it, making it easier to handle without it getting too dry.
The pizza I made turned out to be one of the tastiest I have ever made. Again, I didn’t measure anything (aside from one whole zucchini) so I’m having a guess at some things here…adjust as you see fit. But basically, this recipe should make one large, tasty pizza.
Abe says
Guys, this is super good.
Right now my sinuses are hating me and my head is woozy, a result of a run in with a friend’s cat at an excellent dinner last night, so I am tempted to leave it at that, but doing so would be a great injustice. The crust was thin but crisp. Despite Ann’s tomato-aversion this really has just the right amount of sauce. The toppings are also many, but worth it. Aside from possessing a comfort, expertise, or luck with yeasted doughs which I do not possess, when making this I suggest picking the best Italian sausage, zucchini, and cheese that work for you, since they’re the flavors that stand out most.
Sausage, Zucchini, Mushroom Pizza (with Thyme and Onions!)
For the Crust:
2 1/2 cups bread flour (or 2 1/4 cups flour plus 1/4 cup gluten powder, like I use)
3/4 cups warm water (about 110 degrees)
2-3 tablespoons olive oil
1 packet or about 2 1/2 teaspoons yeast (regular type)
1 Tablespoon sugar
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
Mix the sugar into the water along with the yeast. Let this sit and bubble for a couple of minutes while you measure out the flour into a large bowl. Mix the salt into the flour. Pour the yeast mixture into the flour along with the 2-3 tablespoons olive oil. Mix this all vigorously until it is mostly incorporated. If it seems totally unmanageable (too wet) add a little but of flour at a time until you can take it out and knead it on the counter. Knead it on the counter for as long as you can tolerate, or about 15 minutes. Take this time to reflect on your life, and the lives of the yeast beings.
Place the rounded dough in a clean bowl coated in olive oil. Get the top oily and cover with plastic wrap. Let it sit in a warm place for about an hour. Now start to prepare your ingredients.
For the Toppings and Cooking:
1 zucchini, very thinly sliced
1/2 lb good sausage (no antibiotics please! or this pizza is perfectly delicious without meat)
2 cups crimini or button mushrooms, thinly sliced (I prefer crimini)
1/4 onion, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves or 1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
olive oil, salt and pepper
some tomato sauce, like 1/4 cup or so (I use a very thin, simple Muir Glen tomato sauce that has no chunks, which is very important to me)
1 1/2 cups grated mozzarella
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F or as high as your oven will go. If you have a pizza stone or a large, flat, cast iron grill with a flat side put that in the oven now, flat side up, near the bottom on the oven.
Heat a medium skillet to medium low heat and add a bit of olive oil, sliced onions, and salt and pepper. Cook these slowly all while you cook the following things. Stir occasionally until caramelized and delicious. Set them aside when they are done.
Head a very large non-stick skillet to medium high heat and place the zucchini in in a single layer. Cook until slightly browned and then turn over to do the same on the other side. It’s a few minutes per side. Salt and pepper, and set aside in a dish.
Next up, the mushrooms. A touch more olive oil; throw in your mushrooms. Cook until tender and until they have given up a good bit of their juice…we don’t want a wet pizza. Salt and pepper and set aside with the zucchini.
No extra oil needed, bread up your sausage in the pan and cook until done. I throw the thyme in with the sausage.
Assembly:
You have a preheated oven with a large, hot flat thing in it. if you don’t, you should roll and streatch out your dough on an appropriately sized (and oiled or parchment papered) pan. If not, do what I did. Since I used a rectangular shaped grill pan I used a long piece of parchment paper. If you have a round stone, get some parchment that will fit on that. Roll and stretch your risen (doubly) pizza dough onto the parchment paper.
Lightly brush some oilive oil onto the pizza dough with your fingers or a brush.
Next, use a spoon to put a very thin layer of sauce onto the pizza, leaving a little crust around the edges.
Next, spread the mozzarella cheese onto the pizza evenly. Not the Parmesan.
Now, sprinkle on the mushrooms and onions. Then lay out the zucchini, then sprinkle on the sausage. Oh man.
Finally, sprinkle the Parmesan all over the top.
To get the pizza into the oven, slide the parchment paper onto an upside down pan the shape of the stone or cast iron you are using. Then slide the parchment paper (with the pizza on it) directly onto the surface of the hot stone or cast iron in the oven. The pan does not go into the oven.
Cook at 500 degrees for 8-12 minutes, or until cheese is bubbly and crust is brown. Pull the pizza out by pulling the parchment back into the upside down pan. You can see how important the parchment is.
Now, eat!
Leave a Reply