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By Root 4062 0

visited Naples, late in the nineteenth century. The colors, tomato red, mozzarella white, and basil green, are evidently the patriotic ones of the then still-new Italian flag. Incidentally, Margherita’s consort, Umberto I, seems to have been the only ruler among hundreds in the peninsula’s nearly three-thousand-year recorded history to have had his name graced by the suffix The Good. Without any reservations, one can attach it to the topping that bears the name of his queen.

Topping for 2 twelve-inch pizzas made with this dough

THE TOMATOES

1½ pounds fresh, ripe, firm plum tomatoes (see note below) OR 1½ cups canned imported Italian plum tomatoes, drained and cut up

2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Note The authentic flavor of Naples’s pizza owes much to the very ripe, firm, fresh San Marzano plum tomatoes that go raw into the topping. In the brief season when local tomatoes of exceptional ripeness and firmness are available, omit the preliminary cooking procedure described in steps 1 and 2 below and use them as follows:

Skin the tomatoes raw with a swiveling-blade peeler, cut them into ½-inch-wide strips, discarding all seeds and any runny matter, and distribute them as they are over the pizza dough when you are ready to top it and bake it.

When working with tomatoes that do not quite meet that description, cook them down briefly, following the instructions that follow.

1. If using fresh tomatoes, wash them in cold water, skin them raw with a peeler, cut them into 4 pieces each, and discard all seeds and any runny matter. If using cut-up canned tomatoes, begin with the next step.

2. Put the tomatoes in a medium saute pan together with the olive oil, put a lid on the pan, and turn on the heat to medium. After 2 to 3 minutes, uncover the pan and cook for another 6 to 7 minutes, stirring frequently, until the tomatoes have lost all their watery liquid.

THE MOZZARELLA

½ pound mozzarella, preferably imported buffalo-milk mozzarella

OPTIONAL: depending on the mozzarella, 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil

If you are using buffalo-milk mozzarella, which is very high in cream content, or a high-quality, moist, locally made fresh mozzarella, omit the olive oil, and slice the cheese as thin as you can.

If you are using commercial quality, supermarket mozzarella, grate it on the large holes of a grater, or with the shredding disk of the food processor. Put it into a bowl with the olive oil, mix thoroughly, and let steep for 1 hour before using it in the topping.

THE OTHER INGREDIENTS

Salt

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

2 tablespoons freshly grated parmigiano-reggiano cheese

14 fresh basil leaves

1. Applying the topping: If using this topping for 2 pizzas, divide all ingredients in two equal parts, and use one part, following the instructions below, to top the dough that is about to go into the oven.

2. Spread the tomatoes evenly over the top, sprinkle with a little salt, and drizzle with olive oil. Slide the dough in the oven and bake for 15 minutes.

3. Use 2 metal spatulas, one in each hand, to take the dough out of the oven, quickly top the tomato with mozzarella and grated Parmesan, in that order, then return to the oven.

4. In about 5 minutes, when the cheese has melted, take out the pizza, drizzle with a little olive oil, as described in Step 6 of the basic pizza recipe, and spread the basil leaves over it. Serve at once.

Variation with Oregano

Oregano so frequently takes the place of basil in a Margherita topping that its pungent and stirring fragrance has become identified with pizza itself. Use fresh oregano if possible, 1 teaspoon of it, or ½ teaspoon if dried. Sprinkle it on the partly baked pizza at the same time you add the mozzarella and grated Parmesan. Omit the basil.

Marinara Topping: Garlic, Tomatoes, and Olive Oil

Marinara means sailor style. It signifies cooked in the manner used aboard ship, therefore, “yes” to olive oil and garlic, but “no” to cheese, which would be incompatible with the fresh food most available at sea, fish. Marinara is the most traditional of all pizza