Pizza Margherita to Go!
The first vending machine selling pizza has appeared in Rome. Called Mr. Go and to the horror of many Romans, the bright red machine makes, kneads and tops the dough with various ingredients. You can order a Margherita, four cheese or salame and bacon. Judging from the reaction of true pizza lovers, this assault on pizza falls flat on delivery.
This is a sign of the times that some honored food traditions could be fading. Mr. Go may make it in Rome, targeted especially to a younger crowd but don’t even think of this ever having a go in Naples, the home of la vera pizza Napoletana, where the pie is made by hand and abides by strict association rules for making it.
Ingredients
- Basic Pizza Dough
- 1- 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1-1/2 cups warm water (110F)
- 3 -1/2 to 3 -3/4 cups Caputo flour or unbleached all- purpose flour
- 1/2 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon extra virgin olive oil
- Topping
- 3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups cut in half cherry tomatoes
- 8- Oneounce ball fresh mozzarella cheese, cut into ¼ inch thick strips
- 12 fresh basil leaves
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt
Directions
- In a large bowl, dissolve the yeast in 1/2-cup warm (110F) water. Allow the yeast to proof until it is foamy, about 10 minutes.
- Add the remaining 1cup warm water, combining it well with the yeast. Add 3 cups of the flour and the salt. Mix the dough with your hands or use a mixer with a dough hook, adding the remaining flour as needed to make dough that holds together.
- Place the dough on a floured surface and knead it for about 10 minutes, or until the dough is soft and not sticky. Grease a bowl with the olive oil. Put the dough in the bowl and turn a few times to coat with the oil. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and let it rise for 2 hours in a warm place.
- Preheat the oven to 425ºF.
- Punch down the dough and knead it for a few minutes on a lightly floured surface.
- Divide the dough in half and roll each out on a floured surface into a 12-inch diameter and place the rounds on lightly oiled 13-inch pizza pans. Turn in the outer edges of the dough about 1/2 inch to form a rim. You can stretch the dough to fit an even larger pan if you wish. Place the dough on 2 wooden peels, dusted with cornmeal, if you plan to use baking stones to bake the pizza.
- Brush each round with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Divide the tomatoes and top each rounds Divide the cheese and sprinkle it on top of the tomatoes. Divide and sprinkle on the salt and the remaining 1 tablespoon of oil.
- Bake the pizza for 25 to 30 minutes, or until the top and bottom crusts are nicely browned. Scatter the basil leaves on the pizza as it comes out of the oven. Cut into wedges. Pizza recipes on www.ciaoitalia.com
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