Mozzarella Stuffed Crust Pizza Recipes

MOZZARELLA STUFFED CRUST PIZZA

Steps:

• You can make the pizza dough up to 48 hrs before you want to cook the pizza. Warm the milk in a saucepan until steaming but not boiling. In a large bowl combine the flour, yeast, sugar and 1 tsp salt. Add 1/2 tbsp oil to the milk and leave to cool until just warm -when you place a finger in the liquid it should feel body temperature. Pour the liquid into the bowl and either mix with a wooden spoon or food mixer, until the ingredients are well combined. Tip out onto your work surface and knead for 10 mins, or continue mixing in the mixer for 5-7 mins, until you have a smooth and elastic dough. Clean and oil the bowl, return the dough and cover with cling film. Leave somewhere warm to rise for 1-2 hrs, until doubled in size, or place in the fridge for up to 48 hrs.
• Meanwhile, make the sauce. Pour the remaining oil and passata into a saucepan and add the squashed garlic, oregano and a pinch of sugar. Season well and simmer for 5-10 mins, until the sauce is thick. Remove the garlic cloves and set aside until you're ready to assemble the pizza.
• If the dough has been chilled remove from the fridge and leave at room temperature for 1 hr. Dust the work surface with polenta and tip the dough onto it. Punch the dough down to knock out the air bubbles then shape into a disk. Roll out the dough to a pizza base, about 35cm wide. Dust a large baking sheet with polenta and place the dough on top, making sure the dough can move around freely. Use 125g of the mozzarella to create a ring around the outside edge of the pizza base, leaving 1/2cm gap between the edge. Brush a little water inside the mozzarella ring then fold over the outside edge to enclose the mozzarella and create a stuffed crust. Press firmly to stick the dough in place.
• Spoon the sauce over the middle of the base and top with the remaining mozzarella. Scatter with your chosen toppings (save any fresh herbs for scattering over at the end) and brush the stuffed crust with a little oil, then lightly cover with oiled cling film and set aside for 20-30 mins, until the dough has puffed up a little. Meanwhile heat oven to 240C/220C fan/gas 9 with a large baking sheet on the middle shelf to heat up.
• When the oven is hot and the pizza dough has puffed up, quickly open the oven door and slide the pizza onto the hot tray. Shut the door and cook for 15-20 mins, or until bubbling and cooked through. Leave to cool for a few mins before eating.

GRILLED STUFFED CRUST PIZZA

Steps:

• Pour the olive oil into an 11-by-17-inch rimmed baking sheet. Transfer the dough to the pan, turning to coat it with the oil. Cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until the dough fills about two-thirds of the baking sheet, 1 1/2 to 2 hours.
• Slide your hands under the dough, lift and gently stretch it to fit the pan. (It's okay if it doesn't stretch to the corners.) For the final rise, loosely cover with plastic wrap and set aside until slightly puffy, 30 to 45 minutes.
• While the dough rises, preheat a grill for high heat - it needs to be 500 to 600 degrees F when covered.
• Stir the tomatoes, garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper together in a medium bowl until combined.
• When the dough has risen, place the cheese sticks all the way around the edges, leaving a half-inch border. Fold the dough up and over the cheese sticks until they are totally enclosed, then gently pinch the dough to seal, creating a stuffed crust. Stretch and pull the dough gently to fill the edges of the baking sheet. Sprinkle 3 tablespoons of the Parmesan evenly over the dough, all the way to the edge. Then top with the sliced mozzarella, leaving the border exposed. Spoon the tomato mixture over the mozzarella, inside the border. Top with the pepperoni and remaining 3 tablespoons Parmesan.
• Put the pizza sheet directly on the grill grates, cover the grill and cook until the crust is lightly browned at the edges, about 15 minutes. Using a large metal spatula, slide the pizza directly onto the grill grates, cover and continue to cook until the crust is dark golden brown and the mozzarella is bubbly and lightly browned in spots, about 10 minutes more. Transfer to a cutting board and let sit for 10 minutes. Top with some basil leaves and cut into squares.

STUFFED CRUST CAST-IRON PIZZA WITH SMOKED MOZZARELLA

Steps:

• For the dough: Combine the bread flour, 00 flour, salt and yeast in a mixer with a hook attachment. Whisk together the water and honey. Turn the mixer to medium speed and slowly add the honey-water mixture and olive oil. The dough will come together when a ball is formed and pulls cleanly from the sides of the mixing bowl. If the dough is too wet, simply add a touch more flour until it pulls cleanly.
• Grease the inside of a large bowl or deep container with cooking spray. Add the dough to the bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Place in a warm area until the dough doubles in size, 60 to 90 minutes. The dough can be refrigerated until ready to use, with a damp cloth over it.
• For the sauce: In a medium saucepan, heat the olive oil over medium heat. Add the chile flakes and garlic and cook until the garlic softens, about 1 minute. Add the tomato puree and basil sprigs. Bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Let cool completely in the fridge. Remove the basil from the sauce before using.
• For the crust: Preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Prepare a 12-inch cast-iron pan by greasing the interior with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil.
• Divide the dough into 2 portions and roll out 1 portion on a floured surface, making a round sheet roughly 14 inches wide. (Wrap the other dough portion in plastic wrap and freeze for another use.) Place the dough sheet over the greased pan, lightly pressing the interior corners into the pan to prevent pockets. Place the strips of smoked mozzarella around the interior of the pan, making a circle with the strips along the entire edge. Cut the dough approximately 1 inch above the level of the cheese. Roll the dough over the cheese, lightly tucking the edges underneath to form a stuffed crust. Brush the stuffed crust with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• For the toppings: Ladle the sauce into the center of the pizza, creating a thin layer that barely covers the pizza. Finish by topping with the torn mozzarella, olives, and onions.
• Place the pizza pan over medium heat and cook until the bottom of the crust begins to brown lightly, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to the oven and bake until the crust is golden brown and the center is bubbly, about 20 minutes.
• Use a large metal spatula to remove the pizza, then top with the torn basil and a drizzle of olive oil. Allow it to cool for 10 minutes, then cut into portions and serve.

MOZZARELLA STICK STUFFED CRUST PIZZA

Steps:

• For the pizza: Put the pizza dough in a large bowl and coat with the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it sit in a warm place until slightly puffy and at room temperature, about 30 minutes.
• Spread the butter all over the inside of a metal 8-by-8-inch baking pan and put the dough in the middle. Starting from the middle of the dough, and using your fingertips, push the dough out to the corners of the pan and all the way up the sides.
• Make a pepperoni border (slightly overlapping the meat) around the bottom edge of the dough (about 8 pepperonis per side). Put 1 cheese stick on top of the pepperoni on each side, then fold down the dough from the edges of the pan to cover them. Push the dough with the pepperoni and cheese inside back tightly against the sides of the pan. Seal the dough around the pepperoni and cheese by pressing and pinching the dough together. You now have a stuffed crust. Cover the dough in the bottom of the pan (but not the crust) with the remaining pepperoni.
• Pull each of the remaining 4 cheese sticks into 4 long pieces. Put half the cheese pieces evenly on top of the crust along the edges of the dough so that they are touching the sides of the pan. Put the remaining cheese pieces over the pepperoni in the middle. Sprinkle the entire pizza with Parmesan. Cover with plastic wrap and keep in a warm place until puffy, about 30 minutes.
• Position an oven rack in the bottom third of the oven, put a baking sheet on the rack and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Put the pizza on the preheated baking sheet and bake until edges are dark golden and the cheese is melted and bubbling, 15 to 20 minutes.
• Meanwhile, make the meat sauce: Heat the oil in a small saucepan over medium-high heat until shimmering. Add the sausage and cook, breaking it up with a wooden spoon, until lightly browned, about 4 minutes. Add the garlic, bell pepper and onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until the moisture has evaporated from the pan and the onion is soft, about 3 minutes. Add the tomato paste, 3/4 cup water, a pinch each of red pepper flakes and salt and several grinds of black pepper. Bring to a simmer, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, uncovered, stirring often, until thick, about 5 minutes.
• Remove the pizza from the oven and loosen the sides and bottoms from the pan with a metal spatula. Slide the pizza onto a cutting board and spoon the sauce in the center of the pizza. Sprinkle with more Parmesan and cut into squares for serving.