Neapolitan Pizza

The authentic way to make a Neapolitan pizza is in a special brick oven. The pizza produced in a brick oven is crisp, not oily and soggy. Neapolitans don't overload pizza with oil, and they don't use mozzarella when it is very liquid.If you get good mozzarella, wait a day or two before using it on pizza.  If you love pizza, invest in a pizza stone and a peel- they are inexpensive and will reward you with use.

• prepared pizza dough
• 1 (14 ounce) can Italian peeled tomatoes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 large cloves garlic, finely sliced
• 2 tablespoons dried oregano
• 1/2 cup grated parmigiano or roman cheese (or combination of both)
• 1/ 1/2 cups sliced mozzarella cheese

 

METHOD

Preheat oven to 450°F.

Spread dough in pizza pans.

Remove whole tomatoes from can, and place in bowl. Mash lightly with a potato masher. Reserve liquid from tomatoes for another use.

Using a pastry brush, lightly oil top of pizza dough.

Press garlic into dough in pizza pan or pans. Spoon mashed tomatoes over oiled dough.

Sprinkle dough lightly with oregano and grated cheese. Place mozzarella around the dough.

If baking on a pizza stone, be sure oven has preheated for 30 minutes. If not using a stone, place pan on oven floor for direct heat for 7 - 10 minutes. Check bottom of pizza for coloring. When it has darkened, move to upper shelf of oven to cook the top. When top is bubbling, pizza is done (about 10 - 15minutes),

Yield: One large or two medium pizzas

recipe from www.inmamaskitchen.com

Contributor: Al Viola for Fred Serbe

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The tools:  The pizza stone approximates the radiant heat of the brick-lined ovens in professional bakeries.  It is preheated so that the pizza is immediately cooking without rising.  The peel is that long-handled spatula (a very large one!) that professionals use to slide the unbaked dough onto the preheated pizza stone.  Both a pizza peel and the stone are excellent tools.

 

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