The Margherita Pizza

     "Today’s modern pizza of tomato sauce and cheese can be traced back to an Italian pizzario, Raffaele Esposito of Naples, owner of a tavern called Pizzeria di Pietro e Basta Cosi. In 1889, he created a pizza for the visiting Italian King Umberto I and Queen Margherita. He used tomatoes, basil, and mozzarella cheese to represent the Italian flag’s colors of red, green, and white. The queen asked Raffaele what the dish was called and the smart chef replied, “The Margherita, after you, my Queen.”  ...{the} ball {of mozzarella} called fior de latte, or “flowers of milk.” Fresh mozzarella has a shelf life of about two weeks..."     -story from the Rogue Gourmet 

Cheese & Tomato Pizza { The Margherita } 

Pizza Dough: 
1 3/4 Cups All Purpose Flour *plus, extra for dusting
1 tsp salt
1 tsp active dry yeast
1 Tbs olive oil, plus extra for oiling
1/3 Cup lukewarm water

Topping: 
4-5 Thinly sliced tomatoes; romas work best
       or 1/2 Cup Chunky Tomato Basil Garlic Pizza Sauce 
6-8 oz fresh mozzarella ball, thinly sliced/torn 
3-4 Tbs fresh basil, shredded 
salt & pepper

Directions:

     Dough: Sift the flour and salt into a bowl, stir in the yeast. Make a well in the center and pour in the oil and water. Gradually incorporate the dry ingredients into the wet using floured hands. Knead the dough for 5 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place dough in a slightly olive oiled bowl, turning once to coat top of dough ball and cover with plastic. Set in a warm, draft free place for about 1 hour until dough doubles in size. 

     Preheat oven to 450. Lightly olive oil a large baking sheet. 
Place your risen dough on a lightly floured work surface, punch down and knead briefly, then roll out into a circle - 1/4" in thickness. Transfer pizza crust to prepared baking sheet and form an "edge/rim" using your fingers. *if your tomatoes are extremely "wet" you need to pre-bake the crust for 8-10 mins in oven, remove and top with tomatoes, then mozzarella and sprinkle basil over the top with salt and pepper, drizzle with a bit of olive oil (and brush olive oil on crusts edge) and place back in the oven to finish up baking. Total Bake time is approx 25-35 minutes (crust should be golden and cheese melted and browned a bit) 
    You can finish pizza up under a broiler to get your cheese well browned the last 3 mins. of total cook time.

*If you use the chunky tomato sauce OR your tomatoes are less seedy/wet then no need to pre-bake crust.


Recipe & Photos by: Diane Baker for Canning and Cooking at Home