Winter Pizza

The size of our apartment (600 sf), the reach of our air conditioner (200 sf), and the heat insulation of our oven (so bad it actually warps the cabinets) make pizza from scratch a winter-only meal for me. When the outside temperature dipped into the 40s, dropping our indoor temperature into the low 60s, I decided it was time to turn the oven up high and start tinkering with my favorite pizza crust recipe. I typically use America’s Test Kitchen’s basic pizza dough recipe, which is done in a food processor and kneaded briefly by hand. It makes a thick, chewy crust that would make my Italian instructors from culinary school ashamed of me. I love thin-crust, neopolitan-style pizza as much as the next girl, but I also grew up on Pizza Hut.

I’ve been weaning myself off of white all-purpose flour lately and have fallen hard for white whole wheat flour. It’s got the nutritional profile of whole wheat flour with a much milder flavor. I decided to try out Heidi’s white whole wheat pizza dough recipe, which she adapted from Peter Reinhart, king of the bread heads. I didn’t love it – if I’m going to eat thin-crust pizza, it’s got to be crispy. My crust ended up thin and chewy, almost pita-like. A hotter oven might have helped (I took Heidi’s suggestion for 450).

I tried a few different toppings – Farmer Chris has been getting ethereal white chanterelle mushrooms from a mysterious fungus hunter in western Massachusetts. I cut them into big chunks, sautéed them with butter and shallots and put them on a pizza with fontina and sage. It was earthy, delicious, and expensive so I only made one. There’s a potato pizza at Cambridge One that Jason loves, so I re-created it by sautéing some Yukon Gold potatoes until they were tender, and topping them with a scattering of minced rosemary and grated gruyère cheese. It was the definition of comfort pizza. I also did a pepperoni pizza with some lovely Fiore di Nonno mozzarella. Pizza sauce is a cinch to make and it elevates everything it touches, especially if you use real San Marzano tomatoes. Try it next to a jarred sauce and you’ll never look back.

Easy Pizza Sauce

28 oz can San Marzano* tomatoes
3 cloves garlic, minced
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Pulse the tomatoes in a food processor until finely chopped, with a few chunks left (you don’t want a purée). Alternately, you can chop the tomatoes by hand in the can with a pair of kitchen shears.

Heat the oil and garlic in a small saucepan over medium heat until sizzling, but not browned. Add the tomatoes and simmer gently for 20 minutes or until slightly thickened. A splatter screen comes in handy here because this sauce likes to travel. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Makes enough sauce for 3 or 4 medium-sized pizzas.

*Real San Marzano tomatoes can only come from Italy – look for “DOP” somewhere on the can. You can find them in any Italian or specialty market, and some higher-end grocery stores. If you can’t find them, Muir Glen crushed tomatoes are the next best thing.