Molto Gusto_ Easy Italian Cooking - Mario Batali [33]
There are regional variations in Italy from Naples to Rome, from Tuscany to Sardegna to Sicily. There are variations made in the U.S., from New York slices to Chicago deep-dish, from thin and crispy to the thick-crusted square pizza called Sicilian. There is even pizza made by a large chain with a cheese-stuffed crust and the possibility of adding pasta and French fries to the pizza as a topping. Suffice to say that in the following pages you will learn how to make what I consider to be the best pizza in the world, pizza with a soul, with a history, with a depth of flavor—and definitely without French fries. This is about our own take at Otto Pizzeria in NYC, a hybrid of New York thin-crust pizza with a crisp finish, not too puffy, light and pliant, that can be easily made in an American home kitchen with just a few pieces of equipment.
The recipes we call “classica” are based on traditional pies found at our favorite pizzerie in Italy. The “Otto” recipes are pizzas that we created for Otto within the framework of Italian food as we interpret it in NYC. We love our food simple and like to use flavorful things such as fennel or lardo, allowing them to sing their songs in unadorned ways. Like all great Italian food, pizza is a canvas upon which you should happily invent to your heart’s desire (just leave out the kiwis, please). And when inventing your new creations, always be careful not to add too much stuff—simpler is better, and less is more.
And then there are our “kids’” pizzas. When we opened Otto, we immediately realized that our own families would be among our best customers, and in an effort to engage them, we asked each child to design his or her favorite pizza. To this day, the pizzas still stand, and one of them is served every day of the week, with each kid’s name on the specials list. Some are more popular than others, but each has its own following.
Pizza Dough
MAKES ABOUT 2 POUNDS
Our dough is a little wetter than a standard bread dough, but this style produces the best results with our method of cooking: we use a hot griddle to parcook the pizza crusts. Our pan of choice is my own enameled cast-iron pizza griddle (see Sources), but you can also use a 10-inch enameled cast-iron frying or grilling pan or a smooth cast-iron pancake griddle.
1¼ cups warm water (95°F)
One ¼-ounce package active dry yeast
1½ teaspoons sugar
3½ cups “00” flour
Scant 2 tablespoons salt
¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
Semolina for dusting
TO MAKE THE DOUGH: Whisk the warm water, yeast, and sugar together in a bowl (PHOTO 1). Let stand in a warm place for 10 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix well. With the mixer on low, add the yeast mixture and oil, mixing well (PHOTO 2). Continue to mix, gradually increasing the mixer speed to medium-high, until the dough is smooth and elastic. Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and give it a few turns by hand to finish kneading it; it will still be slightly sticky.
Alternatively, combine the flour and salt in a large bowl and whisk together. Make a well in the center of the dry ingredients and add the yeast mixture and oil. Using a wooden spoon, stir the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients until the mixture is too stiff to stir, then mix with your hands in the bowl until the dough comes together and pulls away from the sides of the bowl. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead, adding only as much flour as necessary to prevent sticking, until smooth, elastic, and only slightly sticky. Transfer the dough to a large oiled bowl, turning to coat, cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap, and let rise in a warm place for 1 to 1½ hours, until doubled in size.
TO SHAPE THE DOUGH: Punch down the dough and turn it out onto