Oscar "Il Pizzaiolo" Trevizo's Pizza

This recipe is based on Nanny Jen's southern Italian style pizza. I changed it a bit based on some tips, and things I learned over time. Good stuff.

 

INGREDIENTS (makes two 12" or 14" regular pizzas or one Chicago style pizza... it depends on how you feel that day)

• 3 cups of flour (or 2 cups of regular flour plus 1 cup of corn meal for Chicago style pizza)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons of salt
• 1 cup water
• 2 tsp of dry yeast
• 1/2 tsp sugar (to proof the yeast)
• 2 Tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tsp honey (Tip from Wall Street Journal... optional, and I have been skipping the honey)
• 1 egg THIS IS A FAMILY SECRET, so don't tell anyone, ok? (and as a side note, you can also use this dough for empanadas adding a 2nd egg. Later use a 3rd egg to egg wash the empanadas before baking)
• Grease for pan (I use coconut oil)
• Oregano
• Your choice of toppings: E.g. onions, capers, anchovies, pesto, prosciutto, artichoke, salumi, mozzarella, gorgonzola, basil, tomatoes, etc. Here are some of my favorites:

1. Gorgonzola and caramelized onions
2. Tomatoes, tomato sauze, italian sausage (mix fennel in the sausage), mozzarella, parmigiano, garlic
3. Pesto, pine nuts, and mozzarella
4. Anchovies (first sautee them to make a paste), mozzarella, kalamata olives, and caramelized onions
5. Tomatoes, basil, mozzarella, parmigiano, garlic (NOTE: drain the tomatoes first, otherwise the pizza will be too juicy) 
6. Mushrooms, caramelized onions (sautee mushrooms and onions first), mozzarella, and here use truffle oil instead of olive oil on the pizza before you add the mushroom, onions, and mozzarella
7. Prosciutto, mozzarella, tomatoes, garlic

PROCESS

Step 1: Make the dough

• Mix everything (flour, yeast, salt, egg and olive oil) into the bowl of an electric mixer, all at once.
• Use the hook that came with your mixer. Mix for about 4 to 5 minutes, and you will know when is ready
• You will have a nice ball of dough. Nice, a little sticky and that means the yeast is working, my friends.

Step 2: The dough rises

• Place dough in a glass bowl or in a tupperware container (first spread olive oil around the bowl or container).
• Cover the bowl with a dry towel, or seal the tupperware with its own cover.
• Place bowl or tupperware near a warm area for about 1 hour or more.
• The dough will double in size.

Step 3: Make the pizza

• Original recipe asks to punch down the dough, knead a bit by hand. I skip that now. So instead, I shape the dough into a big ball ready to divide to make two balls. Do this gently, avoid letting the air come out of the dough.
• Divide dough into portions to make two pizzas (or keep it as one pizza for Chicago style).
• Original recipe asks to roll the dough let it rest once in a while while rolling. I don't roll it any more. I do the whole thing by hand. It's tricky and I learned by watching other pizzaiolos. 
• Have some fun and you will learn to do this with practice. Start by making a circle leaving dough in the middle and spreading to the sides. Then left it and use your fists... Before you know you will have a nice looking pizza.
• Grease pan with coconut oil. You may want to use a pizza pan, a clay dish, or even a cast iron skillet.
• Spread corn meal over pan.
• Spread dough on pan.

Step 4: Add the toppings

• If the topping has tomato sauce start with the tomato sauce; spread on surface
• Otherwise start with the cheese
• Then add oregano right away, then the rest (except for pesto)
• Add olive oil before putting in over
• Note: do not spread the pesto on the pizza before baking. The pesto will go after the pizza is baked

Step 5: Bake the pizza

• Preheat oven to 525F.
• Bake on 525F for 8 to 10 minutes, then around 4 more more on 425F. You will need to experiment. 
• Total bake varies between 10 minutes, though it varies depending on the dish, the toppings or on weather you are making one big pizza or two or three smaller pizzas (volume).
• Regular pizza pan took 12 minutes (8 mins on 525F, the 4 mins on 425F).
• Cast iron skillet took 14 minutes (525F entire time). 
• Clay dish took 10 to 11 minutes (525F entire time).
• You will know when the pizza is ready. It will have a crispy brownish color, crispy outside, soft bake inside. It will feel just right when you touch the corners.
• If you making a pesto pizza, add pesto after you take it out of the oven.