Meatless Monday – Gourmet Pizza

As I have spoken prior:

Some basic ideas, (stolen from may people and paraphrased), that I am sure will drive everyone crazy…

……..

Weekly:

• One day meatless

No, I’ve not gone total treehugger, but dropping the meat consumption by 15% (going meatless once a week) may reduce your risk of chronic preventable conditions like cancer, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity.

Beans, peas, lentils, nuts and seeds contain little to no saturated fats. Reducing your intake of saturated fats can help keep your cholesterol low and reduce your risk of heart disease. A plant-based diet is a great source of fiber, which is absent in animal products.

Foods rich in fiber make you feel full with fewer calories, resulting in lower calorie intake and less overeating. On average, Americans get less than half the recommended daily quantity of fiber. Consuming dry beans or peas results in higher intakes of fiber, protein, folate, zinc, iron and magnesium with lower intakes of saturated fat and total fat.

So why not join the movement, it really has little or no impact on your tastebuds, had a great impact on your weight, which will be compensated for by the increase of money in your wallet.

From gourmet pizza, to a Pasta Primavea, to an mid eastern mezza, to a large number of Indian dishes, the options to have a hearty, tasty meal without animal fat are boundless.

Today I’ll use a whole wheat flour for the crust, some nice plum tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, aged cheddar, sea salt, some fresh garlic, fresh basil, oregano, parsley.

Plus my massive 3/4″ think pizza stones, one on a rack at the top of the oven, and one resting on some terra cotta saucers at the bottom of the oven. A good stone, properly heated is very key to a crisp crust, and a well browned toppings.

I’ll start by preheating the oven to it’s max, and let it sit there warming the stones, while I make the pizza dough.

If you’ve ever made French bread at home, you’ve made pizza dough. Traditional, pizza dough in Italy contains nothing but flour, salt, water, and yeast.

This dough contains a few more ingredients, fat in the guise of olive oil is added to make the dough more supple, (and to help satisfy the craving my craving for fat) and honey is added to feed the yeast and give the bread a touch of sweetness. I like a simple, versatile pizza dough recipe for home baking. After mastering this simple dough, I can feel free to experiment with extra add ins.

NOTE: A gallery is to be appended later tonight.

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Preparation Dough:

1. Sift Flours and 2 tsp salt together into stand mixer
2. Add Honey to water
3. Microwave water and cool to 110F
4. Add yeast and mix thoroughly
5. Rest / Proof 15-20 minutes
6. Add yeast / water and olive oil to dough
7. mix with dough hook to combine
8. Kneed until smooth / loose from sides and bottom
9. Move to a large warm bowl misted with olive oil
10. Cover with a dish towel
11. Proof / rise for 30 minutes
12. Punch down and fold and proof / rise for another 30 minutes
13. Repeat twice more
14. Dump on to a floured peel
15. Dust with additional flour
16. Roll / Stretch to ~18″
17. Form a slight rim on the dough
18. Cover with towel and rest 10 minutes

(Toss a little corn meal under the dough before final assembly)

Preparation Sauce:

1. Crush tomatoes and dice herbs
2. Mix tomatoes, herbs and garlic in a non-reactive bowl
3. Add 1 tsp sea salt and 1 tsp Olive oil
4. Rest for 10 minutes

Assembly

1. Ladle sauce on to dough and spread evenly.
2. Top with toppings of choice

(Not too much, and your choice)

3. Add fresh shredded, (or torn) Mozzarella
4. Add shredded aged Cheddar

Baking

1. Slid onto back of hot stone
2. Bake ~10-15 minutes
3. Turn 180 degrees
4. Bake until crust is golden brown on bottom and toppings are browned (~10-15 minutes)
5. Remove from oven with peel
6. Rest 5 minutes
7. Serve