The Perfect Margherita Pizza Napoletana at Home

What is a Pizza Napoletana?
Despite its name, it's not made out of chocolate, vanilla and strawberry.
Neopolitan ice cream and neopolitan pizza are both named in honor of the food expertise of residents of Naples, but that's about the extent of their similarity.

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For those who have been lucky enough to taste an authentic neopolitan pizza (pizza napoletano), they know that it is only a distant relative of standard American delivery pizzas. It is an authentic italian evolution of pizza, that is so coveted a tradition that it is regulated by an international association. Its final state is that of a naturally sweet (buffalo mozzerella), fresh (basil, tomato, olive oil) flavor with crispy naturally sweet crust topped off with a visual presentation reflecting the colors of the Italian flag.

There are a few variations of the classic pizza napoletana, our favorite is the classic margherita. At first glance, this recipe may be mistaken for "plain cheese" as its name is commonly misused in pizza restaurants across America - in reality, margherita is anything but plain - it is the ultimate test of pure excellence in ingredients and execution.

Cominciamo (let's begin):
To start in line with Italian tradition, choose the best ingredients you can find - they should be aromatic, flavorful and fresh. If you don't want to eat it in a salad, don't put it on your pizza. Margherita means a bread-flour crust topped with the highest quality tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, a dusting of olive oil, fresh basil and a sprinkling of salt. The quality of these ingredients is the first key to success.

Baking your pizza in the hottest oven that you can find is another key to success. At home, setting your oven to 550 degrees (or as high as the dial will go) is often the best you can do, and that is adequate for this homemade version. Some people go to the length of building a brick pizza oven in their yard, which you can do if you have the time and the space, but for city-folk it isn't necessary to make a separate oven to create a neopolitan pizza that is pretty damn good.

Step One:
Pre-heat oven to as high as it will go (ours goes to 550F).

Step Two (Most of the effort):
Pizza Crust:

1. Start with the water, then add flour to get it to the right consistency.
2. Start with 1 cup of tap water. Heat in microwave for about 50 seconds (microwave times vary) to get to about 120F. 
3. Put hot water in mixing bowl and add 1 table spoon of sugar and 1/2 tablespoon of instant yeast. Mix for about a minute to dissolve sugar.
4. Add a 1.5 cups bread flour (you want bread flour because it is better at forming gluten, which makes your dough chewy instead of cakey), 1 teaspoon of kosher salt and 1 teaspoon of olive oil.
5. Mix with a mixing attachment (if you have a kitchenaid) for 3 minutes on the lowest setting. It will still be goopy.
6. Kneading: Add 3/4 cup additional flour and switch to the dough hook attachment (kitchenaid) and mix for 5 minutes on a medium setting.
7. Let rest for 5 minutes.
8. Knead again for another 5 minutes with dough hook.
9. Let rest at least 10 minutes (10-40 minutes- the longer it rests the more it relaxes) before getting ready to roll it out.
10. Knead by hand for a while. Form into a round ball by pushing the bottom up from underneath. Let sit for 30 minutes.
11. Flatten dough ball into a circle and stretch while rotating (see picture series). 
12. Toss dough (see pictures).
13. Place on steel mesh pizza grate (see picture), you can also use a pizza stone, but the grate will allow crispier dough cooking from underneath.
14. Fold and unfold for ease of use (see pictures). Fold around the edge to create a slight crust uplift.
15. Lightly salt and spray olive oil on outer crust. It is now ready to decorate!

Step Three:

Toppings:

Use a subtle tomato sauce or make your own (using one with artichokes in it is particularly good because the artichokes will increase the natural sweetness. Note that this is NOT a traditional neopolitan ingredient). Spread sauce lightly on dough - too much sauce will make it soggy.

Cut the mozzerella di bufala de campagna (available at whole foods, trader joes, Molly stones and other higher end grocery stores) into pieces that are about 1inch x 1 inch. Spread evenly across the pizza - this is the only cheese that will go on the pizza! Add fresh leaves of basil in open gaps between the cheese. Sprinkle olive oil across the top.

Step Four:

Cook at 550F for 5-6 minutes (550 is very HOT!), shorter if your oven is hotter.

Eggs Benedict with Artichoke Olive Tapenade and Tomatoes Provencales

Articholive Benedictissimo

This is a variation on the eggs benedict concept with a southern european twist.

Levain

Good olive oil

One egg per benedict

Canned, peeled whole tomatoes

Garlic (fresh or frozen)

Basil (fresh or frozen)

Freeze dried onion (light-house brand is what I used - small flakes of freeze dried red onion)

Salt & pepper

Bacon (one slice per benedict)

Shredded parmesan or pecorino romano

Prep easy-at-home tomatoes provencales:

Mix the canned whole tomatoes and their juice in a bowl with 2 cloves of fresh crushed or squares of frozen crushed garlic, finely chopped basil, and salt & pepper. Let sit for a few minutes. Slice the tomatoes in half, still in the mixture. Microwave for 45 seconds (just to get it slightly warm).

Prep boiled water for poaching eggs.

Grill slices of levain in olive oil (one per benedict). Spread the articholive tapenade (see previous entry) on the levain. Place half a tomato on top of each, making sure it isn't too wet (you don't want to make it soggy). 

Sprinkle on a fine layer of grated parmesan on top of each.

Cook bacon - one slice per benedict. Cut in half and place on top of each benedict. 

Poach the eggs (one per benedict), making sure that they are cooked enough that they aren't runny. Remove from boiling water and let water drip away (using a large spoon with holes in the bottom is useful), and place directly on top of bacon. 

Serve immediately. 

You'll have a lot of tomatoes provencales leftover. Stay tuned for other uses!

Pineapple Chicken Tajine

A twist on a Moroccan tradition, this recipe we invented!

boneless chicken thigh filets
pineapple
sweet onions
white raisins and cranberries (not required)
moroccan spice mix (an orange-colored spice mix from a middle eastern market will do, usually featuring curry powder, tumeric, cloves, cinnamon, cardamom, chili, and other special spices)
honey
splash of white wine

Brown onions and pineapple chunks in a big stove pan (big le creuset) using high heat.
Add chicken, raisins, cranberries, honey, moroccan spice mix and a splash of white wine onto the side. Mix until everything is damp.
Turn down heat and let simmer for 1 hour.

Serve and eat immediately.

Ashley's Articholive Tapenade

Ashley's Articholive Tapenade

One jar of artichokes in brine (not marinated and not in oil - my favorite is cucina d'amore)
One quarter jar of pitted Kalamata olives
Pecorino Romano, parmesan, asiago or similar hard italian cheese
Good olive oil
Fresh basil leaves (5-10)
Fresh or frozen garlic (2 cloves fresh, 2 cubes frozen)

Combine ingredients in food processor. Cube cheese so that it's about 1 cm x 1 cm. Make sure there are no stray olive pits from the pitted olives. Process until tapenade consistency.

Serve on or with fresh baguette, levain, or other flavorful fresh bread with a crispy crust. For a party appetizer, serve in a little bowl with a little spoon on a cheese board with a row of sliced baguette, a little bowl of olives, and a set of rich soft cheeses to pair (such as d'affinois or Caseificio dell'Alta Langa).