Skillet Pizza

I'm slowly working my way through this new cookbook I got for Christmas.  I really love it. It's full of "real life" dishes from around the country, they've all been tested and perfected and so far, they all turn out as expected.

As you know, I am a major proponent of pizza.  However, I have determined that it's pretty much impossible to get a really crisp, thin crust in a home oven.  Clearly, restaurant pizza has better crust because of the insanely high temps that can be achieved in a commercial oven.

This new book has a recipe called 'Skillet Pizza.'  The photos looked terrific, so I had to give it a try.  The result was a very thin, super crispy crust and the toppings I chose were so good I got a little emotional.  

Now, I share with you:





Crust:

• 1 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp sugar
• 1/3 cup beer (I used Newcastle)
• 7 Tbs olive oil

Toppings:

• 4 med Roma tomatoes, seeded, cored and chopped
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1 cup Mozzarella
• 1/2 cup Parmesan
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
• 1/4 cup chopped roasted red peppers
• 1/4 chopped Kalamata olives
• 2 large jarred Pepperoncini peppers, stemmed and sliced

Toss the tomatoes and salt and then let them drain on paper towels for about 15 minutes.  Meanwhile, combine the cheeses and basil in a medium bowl.  


Combine the flour, baking powder, salt & sugar in the food processor.  With it running, slowly add beer and 1 Tbs olive oil.  Process until the dough starts to pull away from the sides and is forming a shaggy ball.  Using floured hands, form the dough into a tight ball and cover loosely with plastic wrap.  Let it rest about 10 minutes.


Divide the dough in half and roll out to a thin 9" circle on a floured surface.  Heat 3 Tbs olive oil over medium heat until just smoking.  Transfer one round into the pan.  With a fork, poke any bubbles that form and cook until the bottom is golden brown.  Turn over with tongs.  Top with 1/2 the tomatoes, any other toppings you like (see mine above) and 1/2 of the cheese.  Continue to cook until crust is crispy and browned.  I covered mine with a lid to help the cheese melt.  Transfer to a cutting board, wipe out the skillet and repeat with the other crust. Viola!