Main Meals Recipes

Sourdough Margherita Pizza

Simple, classic, completely delicious. You could pimp it out with any toppings you wish, or just keep it as is.

The trick is to have a very thick pizza pan or a pizza stone. These retain the heat when you put the pizza on to cook, resulting in a crispy base. I use a cast iron pizza pan, which can seriously retain its heat.

Use my sourdough base recipe, picking up after the 30 minute bench rest.

Makes 3 pizzas

Ingredients

  • 300g passata
  • 150g buffalo mozzarella
  • 3 springs of fresh basil
  • Semolina and flour for dusting

Method

  • Preheat the oven to maximum temperature (mine is 275°C fan) and place a heavy bottom tray/pizza stone in the middle of the oven. Allow the oven to reach temperature and wait a further 10 minutes to ensure the tray is fully heated.
  • Dust the work surface with semolina, take a ball of dough and place it on the semolina and finely dust with flour.
  • Using your fingers, press around the edge 1 cm in to form a crust.
  • Using the palm of your hand, press inside this line to flattern the dough in the centre.
  • When you can press it no more, pick the dough up and using your knuckles, gently ease the dough out so it becomes thin and slightly transparent. Take care not to rip the dough. Ensure the base has an even covering of semolina.
  • Transfer the pizza base onto a pizza peel.
  • Add 100g passata over the base, up to but not on the crust part of the dough.
  • Tear 50g buffalo mozzarella into large chunks and scatter over the passata.
  • Transfer the pizza onto the tray in the oven using a strong and decisive forward and back motion to slide the pizza off the peel.
  • Cook the pizza for anywhere between 6-9 minutes depending on the temperature of your oven. The pizza should have very dark golden blistered crusts, and the mozzarella and passata should be bubbling and start turning golden.
  • Remove the pizza, and scatter with fresh basil leaves.
  • Best eaten straight away.

Per whole pizza: 1028kcal/ 13.3g fat/ 7.2g saturated fat/ 145.4g carbohydrates/ 12.3g fibre/ 38.6g protein

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