Categories: pizzas, summer, vegetable
Ingredients
- Processor Pizza Dough, or this easy handmade dough, or 1 pound frozen bread dough
- Olive oil
- 1/4 cup store-bought or homemade pesto
- 2 cups grated mozzarella, sharp Cheddar, or Fontina cheese
- 2 large tomatoes, halved, seeded, and thinly sliced
- 1 to 2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
- Pepper, to taste
- PIZZA DOUGH
- 1 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water (105º to 115º)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (a 1/4-ounce envelope) active dry yeast
- a pinch of sugar
- About 3 cups unbleached flour
- 1 1/4 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
Directions
-
PIZZA DOUGH
- Pour the water into a small bowl and sprinkle the yeast and sugar over it. Let the mixture stand until it becomes slightly foamy, then stir it until the yeast dissolves. In a large bowl, combine the flour and salt. Add the yeast mixture and the oil to the flour and stir until a soft dough forms.
- Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Dust your hands with flour and knead the dough. Add a little more flour if the dough is too sticky to handle, but not so much that it becomes stiff and dry. Continue kneading until the dough is smooth and springs back when pinched, about 10 minutes.
- Lightly oil the inside of a large bowl. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it over once so that the top and bottom will be coated with oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set it in a warm place until the dough doubles in volume, about 1 1/2 hours.
- Flatten the dough with your fist. Cut it in two and shape each piece into a ball.
-
PIZZA
- Prepare the dough and set it aside to rise. Punch it down and knead it briefly on a floured surface. (If you’re using the frozen dough, thaw it for several hours in a plastic bag at room temperature.) Divide the dough in half, shaping each half into a ball. Let it rest for 5 minutes.
- Start your grill. If you are building a fire, bank the coals on one side, so one side is hotter than the other. Lightly oil a large baking sheet and set it aside.
- On a floured surface, roll each dough ball into a 9- to 10-inch circle no less than 1/4 inch thick. (If the dough tends to spring back, let it rest 5 more minutes before proceeding.) Lightly brush olive oil on both sides of the dough circles and transfer them to the baking sheet. Let them rest 3 to 4 minutes.
- Using both hands, carefully set one of the dough circles over the hot side of the fire. (If you’re not using banked coals, just set your grill to medium heat.) Grill for 1 1/2 to 2 minutes undisturbed, so the bottom has a chance to set – the top will bubble. Using a large spatula, flip over the dough and grill it for another 1 1/2 minutes on the hot side of the grill.
- Slide the crust onto the cooler side of the grill and immediately spread it with 2 tablespoons of pesto. Quickly top with 1 cup of the cheese, then cover generously with 1 sliced tomato. Continue to grill for 2 to 3 minutes in the cooler area, sliding the pizza around, if necessary, to brown the bottom evenly. (Don’t let a little charring bother you.)
- Slide the pizza onto a platter and top with the chopped parsley and pepper. Repeat for the other dough circle, slicing and serving the first one as the second one grills. Makes 4 servings.