Pizza Alla Marinara Recipes

PIZZA MARINARA

Steps:

• Place the dough in a large bowl, then cover it with a cloth and store it in a warm place for two hours.
• Once at least six hours have passed, take a ball of dough, place it on a lightly floured surface.
• Arrange the topping as follows; First, place the crushed, peeled tomatoes in the center of the pizza, then, with a spoon, spread them all over, except the rim, in a spiraling fashion.
• Place the pizza on a pizza peel and then slide it into a wood-fired oven with a quick wrist motion, so the topping stays in place.
• The finished pizza should have a thick tomato sauce, with garlic and oregano that have developed an aroma and have browned but are not burnt.
• Dissolve salt in water, then add the yeast to the water and mix to help it melt. Immediately add a portion of the flour to the water and mix. Add the remaining flour in batches, gauging how much flour is needed.
• After two hours have passed, shape the dough into balls weighing either 200 or 280 grams (7-10 oz), depending on the size of the pizza you're making - a 22-24cm (8.5-9.5-inch) or a 28-35cm (11-13.5-inch) one.
• Pressing on the ball of dough with the thumbs of your fingers, starting from the center and going towards the edges, shape into a disc, turning the dough several times in the process.
• Next, scatter the slices of garlic evenly across the surface, followed by a sprinkling of oregano, and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, which should be applied in a circular motion, starting from the center outwards.
• Bake for 60-90 seconds in a wood-fired oven at a temperature of about 485°C/905°F, checking the doneness by carefully lifting the edges of the pizza.
• Knead for a minimum of 15-20 minutes, but ideally, 30 minutes - the dough is of ideal consistency when it's sticking a bit to the hands and to the sides of a bowl you're mixing it in.
• Once you've shaped the balls, place them all on a plate and cover them with a damp cloth and let them prove for a minimum of six hours.
• As a result of this action, you should end up with a disc that has about a 1-2cm (1/2-inch) raised rim and a center that is approximately 0.3cm (1/8-inch) thick.
• Also, the pizza should be rotated as it bakes but kept in the same cooking area, so every part gets baked evenly.
• Shape it into a ball, then lightly coat with flour, to prevent losing moisture as it rises.

PIZZA ALLA MARINARA

Steps:

• Place a baking stone on the middle shelf of the oven; preheat oven to highest setting for at least 1 hour.
• Flour work surface and hands; shape dough ball on counter; transfer it to flour-dusted pizza peel.
• Spread ½ cup of tomato sauce over the surface of the dough, leaving ¼ inch border.
• Spread half the garlic over the sauce, then top with 2 tablespoons grated cheese.
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over the surface, spiraling it from the center.
• Sprinkle half the oregano over the top.
• Carefully slide the pizza from the peel onto the baking stone; bake 7-9 minutes.
• When it is done, the crust should be puffy and slightly charred on the edge and thinner in the center.
• The underside of the crust should be brown and crisp, not white and soft.
• Remove pizza from oven and serve it whole (usually 1 pizza per person). or let it cool for about 2 minutes before slicing and serving.
• Repeat with the remaining ingredients to make the second pizza.

PIZZA MARINARA

Steps:

• At least 45 minutes before baking pizza, put a pizza stone or 4 to 6 unglazed "quarry" tiles arranged close together on oven rack in lowest position in oven and preheat oven to highest setting (500°F-550°F).
• Thinly slice garlic. On a lightly floured surface pat out dough evenly with your fingers, keeping hands flat and lifting and turning dough over several times, into a 9-inch round. (Do not handle dough more than necessary. If dough is sticky, dust it lightly with flour.)
• Dust a baker's peel or rimless baking sheet with flour and carefully transfer dough to it. Jerk peel or baking sheet once or twice and, if dough is sticking, lift dough and sprinkle flour underneath it, reshaping dough if necessary. Working quickly, top dough with sauce, spreading with back of a spoon to within 1/2 inch of edge. Scatter garlic and oregano over sauce and drizzle with oil.
• Line up far edge of peel or baking sheet with far edge of stone or tiles and tilt peel or baking sheet, jerking it gently to start pizza moving. Once edge of pizza touches stone or tiles, carefully pull back peel or baking sheet, completely transferring pizza to stone or tiles (do not move pizza). Bake pizza 6 to 7 minutes, or until dough is crisp and browned, and transfer with a metal spatula to a cutting board.
• Cut pizza into wedges and serve immediately.