Monday, June 21, 2010

Pizza with Prosciutto, Peppers, and Goat Cheese

Readers, I have to say I am so excited to share with you my very first pizza made with a homemade crust!  And what a pizza it was.  The prosciutto was wonderfully salty, the goat cheese creamy, and the peppers and basil perfectly sweet.  I know I'll be making this pizza again!

The original recipe, from Williams-Sonoma, is written for a grilled pizza.  Since I don't have a grill, I've adapted it for a pizza stone in the oven.  If you have a grill, a) you're lucky and b)follow the link below for the original grilling instructions.

Enjoy!  I can't wait to share many more pizza recipes!


Pizza with Prosciutto, Peppers, and Goat Cheese

Ingredients:
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1/2 recipe basic pizza dough
olive oil
cornmeal for sprinkling
1 red or yellow bell pepper (I used half of each)
1/2 c. tomato sauce
2 oz sliced prosciutto, cut into fine shreds
2 oz. fresh goat cheese (chèvre)
1/4 c. chopped fresh basil, divided
salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste

Directions:
1.  Preheat oven and pizza stone at 500 degrees F for 30 minutes.

2.  Meanwhile, slice the pepper and saute in a bit of olive oil over medium heat until slightly softened, about eight minutes.

3.  Sprinkle your work surface with cornmeal and prepare the dough by shaping it with your hands.  Brush lightly with olive oil.

4.  When oven and pizza stone have been at temperature for 30 minutes (carefully!) remove the pizza stone and transfer pizza dough.  Use a fork to prick a few holes in the dough.  Bake for five minutes.

5.  Remove the partially baked crust.  Top with tomato sauce, prosciutto, peppers, goat cheese, and half the basil.  Bake for 7-8 minutes more, or until crust is golden brown on the outer edges.

6.  Allow to cool three minutes, then top with the remaining basil, salt, and pepper and serve.  

two years ago: another great pizza, grilled Margherita pizza