Pizza Napoletana
Share
Pizza Napoletana
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Category
Italian
Prep Time
24 hours
Cook Time
30 minutes
How do we define "pizza"? The word "pizza" was first recorded in 997 CE in Gaeta, Italy, but we understand the dish to be far. older. Flatbreads with a variety of toppings carry deep, ancient roots: as early as 19 BCE, Virgil in the Aeneid references fleeing citizens so hungry they ate the stale bread on which their meal was served, with Ascanius declaring "see, we devour the plates on which we fed". Throughout the subsequent centuries, Italians ate many combinations of vegetables and herbs atop a stone-cooked dough.
Our modern understanding of pizza of course involves tomatoes, which arrived from the New World to Italy in 1522. Residents of Naples were reportedly the first to add this new ingredient to their pizzas, and the classic Neapolitan pizza was born. Today, a true Neapolitan Pizza consists of buffalo Mozzarella and a very specific tomato grown in rich volcanic soil near Mount Vesuvius.
This recipe will make you a traditional Pizza Napoletana, with a combination of herbs that may be as ancient as pizza itself!
Ingredients
-
1 teaspoon Marinara spice blend
-
1 can San Marzano tomatoes
-
2 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (preferably Italian)
-
1.5 cups room temperature water
-
4 cups Type 00 Pizza Flour (you can use regular flour, but it will not leaven as well)
-
2 teaspoons salt
-
1/4 teaspoon dry yeast
-
8 oz fresh buffalo Mozzarella, sliced
-
Fresh basil leaves
Tomato Sauce
Pizza Dough
Toppings
Directions
At least 24 hours before you plan to serve your pizza, make the dough. Dissolve the salt in the water, then add about half a cup of flour. Add yeast and mix thoroughly. Once combined, add more flour half a cup at a time, continuing to mix. When the dough begins to stick together, turn out onto a lightly floured surface and knead in remaining flour. Knead for 15-20 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and springy. Cover with a damp towel for 2 hours. Then, divide the dough into 4 balls and leave in an air tight container for 24 hours.
Make the tomato sauce. Heat 2 tbs olive oil in a saucepan. Add 1 teas of the Pizza Seasoning and then immediately add tomatoes. Bring to a boil, then lower heat and simmer until tomatoes are soft.
Place pizza stone (if using) in the oven. Preheat the oven to 500
Sprinkle a cookie sheet with semolina flour or cornmeal and then stretch the dough into a circle, placing on top. Add tomato sauce and sliced Mozzarella.
Transfer the pizza to the hot stone, then cook in the oven for 7 minutes, until the crust is slightly darkened
Remove from stone and place basil leaves on top. Serve hot.