Three Cheese Cornmeal Pizzette Recipes

CORNMEAL MINI-PIZZA DOUGH

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500 deg. F.
• In a food processor, combine 1 cup flour, yeast and sugar. With motor running, pour in the hot water.
• Turn motor off and add remaining ingredients. Process mixture until it forms a ball, and then process 15 seconds longer to knead.
• Turn out onto a lightly floured board and knead 10 times. To make two pizzas, cut into half; wrap one half well and freeze for up to one month.
• Divide remaining piece in half. Roll or press out each half into an 8" circle. Transfer to a baking sheet and lightly brush or spray with additional olive oil.
• Top with favorite toppings, season with salt and pepper. Bake for 10 to 12 minutes, or until crust is golden and cheese is melted.
• Note1: white cornmeal works just as well. While the recipe calls for hot water, I usually use room temperature or even cool water - the action of the FP can heat up the dough quite a bit, so I would rather allow a little more time.
• Note2: toppings must be thinly sliced; meats and some veggies should be cooked - this pizza is in the oven only a short time. I've never used a pizza sauce with this - if you do and it works, let us know!

PIZZETTE - MINI PIZZA BITES WITH ASSORTED TOPPINGS

Steps:

• Dissolve yeast in lukewarm water with sugar. Let sit for 5-10 minutes.
• In a mixer bowl add flour and yeast water, give a quick stir.
• Using a dough hook attachment start to knead slowly increasing the speed.
• Add salt and extra virgin olive oil.
• NOTE: Don't add salt immediately as it'll weaken yeast quality!
• Knead for about 5 minutes.You should get a smoth and pretty soft dough. It'll be slightly sticky but manageable to handle it with your hands.
• Transfer the dough in large oiled bowl. Cover with a plastic wrap and let rise for 2-3 hours in a warm (not hot!) place.
• Past 2-3 hours the dough should double in size.
• Transfer it to a slightly floured work surface.
• Roll with a rolling pin to about 3-5 mm thick.
• Using a round cookie cutter about 3 inches in diameter cut out pizzette circles.
• Place pizzette on a baking sheet lined with parchment paper leaving some space in between.
• Cover with a linen towel and let rise for 30-60 minutes in a warm place.
• While pizzette are rising it's a good idea to prepare the sauce and the toppings.
• In a skillet pan add tomato puree/passata di pomodoro, let simmer on low heat until slightly reduced. The thickness of the sauce should be good enough to stay on pizzetta, not too liquid-y but also not paste-like.
• Add fresh basil leaved roughly torn with your hands.
• Cook for another few minutes and let cool.
• Cut, slice and pit all other ingredients that you've chosen as your pizza toppings.Here you can mix, match and be creative!
• Preheat oven to 375F / 190C
• Using your point finger press around and in the center of each pizzetta (see photo) to form a slight cavity to hold in the topping.
• Top with your favorite toppings.
• Bake in a preheated oven for 10-12 minutes until cheese is well melted and pizzette have a light golden edge. Be careful and don't overcook as the dough might become hard.

BEET, APPLE, AND CHEESE PIZZETTES

Steps:

• Preheat a gas or charcoal grill with a cover. (The pizzettes can also be baked in the oven. Place an oven rack in the upper 1/3 of the oven and preheat to 400 degrees F. Bake the pizzettes on a cornmeal-dusted baking sheet until the crust is golden, 12 to 14 minutes.)
• Dust a baking sheet with cornmeal. Set aside. Using a mandoline slicer, slice the apples and beets into 1/16 to 1/8-inch thick slices. Set aside.
• On a lightly floured work surface, roll out the dough into a 13-inch diameter circle. Using a 4-inch round cookie cutter, cut out 6 circles of dough and transfer to the prepared baking sheet. Divide the fontina and sprinkle on top of each circle of dough. Divide the apple and beet slices and place on top. Add the goat cheese and sprinkle with herbes de Provence. Drizzle with olive oil and place on the grill over low, indirect heat. Cover the grill and cook until the crust is crisp and golden and the cheese begins to melt, 8 to 10 minutes.

THREE-CHEESE CORNMEAL PIZZETTE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 500°F. Lightly grease a large baking sheet and sprinkle with cornmeal.
• In a food processor combine 1 cup flour, yeast, and sugar and with motor running add water. Turn motor off and add remaining dough ingredients. Process mixture until it forms a ball and process 15 seconds more to knead it.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead 10 times. Reserves half of dough for making 2 more pizzette another time, wrapping it in a sealable plastic bag, pressing out excess air, and chilling or freezing. Reserved dough keeps, chilled, 1 day or, frozen, 1 month.
• Halve remaining dough and on lightly floured surface roll out each half into an 8-inch round. Transfer rounds to baking sheet and brush lightly with oil. Top rounds evenly with remaining ingredients and season with salt and pepper.
• Bake pizzette in lower third of oven 10 to 12 minutes, or until crusts are golden and cheese is golden and bubbling.

PIZZETTE WITH GORGONZOLA, TOMATO AND BASIL

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.
• Roll out the pizza dough to 1/4-inch thick. Using a 2 to 2 1/2-inch diameter cookie cutter, cut out 18 circles from the dough. Arrange the circles on a heavy large baking sheet. Sprinkle the Gorgonzola cheese over the circles. Top with the tomatoes, pressing them gently into the dough. Bake until the pizzettes are golden brown, about 10 minutes. Drizzle the pizzettes with oil. Sprinkle the basil over the pizzettes. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Arrange the pizzettes on a platter and serve immediately.

TOMATO-BASIL PIZZETTES

Steps:

• Make the dough: Position a rack in the lower third of the oven and preheat to 500 degrees F. Put 1/2 cup flour, the yeast and sugar in a food processor and pulse to combine. With the motor running, add 3/4 cup hot tap water (about 115 degrees F). Turn off the motor and add the cornmeal, cheese, olive oil, 1 teaspoon salt and the remaining 1 cup flour. Pulse until the dough forms a ball, then continue pulsing until smooth but still wet, about 15 more times.
• Make the pizzettes: Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until soft and elastic, 12 to 15 times, dusting lightly with flour if too wet to handle. Using a floured rolling pin, roll out the dough into a 1/4-inch-thick disk, about 14 inches across. Using a 3-inch-round cutter, cut the dough into 16 rounds, gathering and rerolling the scraps if needed. Transfer the rounds to the prepared pans.
• Mix the olive oil, oregano, and salt and pepper to taste. Brush each round lightly with the herb oil, then top each with a slice of soppressata and 2 to 3 tomato slices. Sprinkle with the parmesan. Bake one sheet at a time, until the crusts are golden, about 8 minutes.
• Drizzle the pizzettes with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and top with the basil leaves. Serve warm or at room temperature.