Grilled Pizza With Ricotta And Summer Squash Recipes

GRILLED PIZZA WITH HOT SAUSAGE, GRILLED PEPPERS AND ONIONS AND OREGANO RICOTTA

Steps:

• Preheat a grill.
• Grill the sausage on both sides until golden brown and cooked through, about 10 minutes per side. Brush onions and peppers with the oil and season with salt and pepper. Grill the onions and peppers until soft, about 3 to 4 minutes per side. Remove the sausage from the grill and slice into 1/4-inch thick slices. Remove the onions, separate into rings, and roughly chop. Remove the peppers and slice into 1/8-inch thick slices.
• Heat grill to high. Brush dough with olive oil, season with salt and pepper and grill for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown. Turn over and grill for 1 to 2 minutes. Remove from the grill and place on a flat surface.
• Divide the fontina cheese among the 4 pizza rounds. Divide the sausage, onions and peppers over the cheese. Place the pizza on the grill, close the cover and grill until the cheese has melted, about 3 to 4 minutes. To finish in the oven, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Place the pizza on sheet pans and bake until the cheese has melted, about 5 to 10 minutes.
• Mix together the ricotta, extra-virgin olive oil, and oregano in a small bowl and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Remove the pizzas from the oven and drizzle with Basil Vinaigrette. Top with dollops of the ricotta cheese mixture and let rest for 5 minutes. Slice and serve.
• Combine all ingredients and blend until smooth. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper, to taste.

RICOTTA, SQUASH AND HONEY FLATBREAD

Steps:

• Stir together the ricotta with a large pinch of salt and few grinds of pepper in a medium bowl. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
• Prepare an outdoor grill for medium-high heat. Brush the grill grates with oil. Toss together the squash and zucchini slices, 1 tablespoon of the oil, 3/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper in a large bowl. Grill the vegetables, turning once, until nicely marked and just tender, 2 to 3 minutes per side. Remove to the large bowl and toss with the juice of one of the lemon halves.
• Brush the tops of the flatbreads with the remaining tablespoon oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Spread a quarter of the ricotta over each flatbread. Divide the grilled vegetables among the flatbreads. Transfer the flatbreads to the grill, cover and cook until the bottoms are slightly charred and crisp in spots and the ricotta is warm, 3 to 5 minutes.
• Remove to serving plates and top each with a drizzle of oil, a squeeze of the other lemon half, some lemon zest and a drizzle of honey. Sprinkle with salt and red pepper flakes, then top with the fresh herbs.

GRILLED VEGETABLES WITH SPICY ITALIAN NEONATA

Steps:

• Heat a grill to medium and oil the grates.
• On two large sheet pans, divide bell peppers, zucchini and eggplant. Drizzle the contents of each sheet pan with 1/4 cup olive oil. Season with salt and black pepper, and toss to evenly coat. In batches, grill the vegetables, turning occasionally, until cut sides are tender and lightly charred, 3 to 5 minutes for the lettuce, 8 to 10 minutes for the zucchini, and 10 to 12 minutes for the peppers and eggplant. Transfer them to one very large (or two large) serving platters as they finish cooking.
• Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine lemon juice, anchovies and garlic; whisk until well blended. And salami, cherry peppers, olives, celery, parsley and the remaining 3/4 cup oil, and mix well. (Makes about 2 cups neonata.)
• Generously drizzle or spoon some of the neonata over the grilled vegetables. Serve vegetables warm or at room temperature, with the remaining neonata on the side.

GRILLED PIZZA WITH YELLOW SQUASH, MOZZARELLA, AND LEMON THYME

Steps:

• In a small bowl stir together garlic and oil and let stand 15 minutes.
• With a mandoline or other manual slicer, slice squash crosswise into 1/16-inch thick rounds, transferring to plate.
• Prepare grill: Open vents in lid and bottom of kettle grill and put 25 briquets on 2 opposite sides of bottom, leaving middle clear. Oil rack and position with wider openings over briquets. Light briquets. (They will be ready for cooking as soon as they turn grayish-white, 20 to 30 minutes.)
• Remove plastic wrap from 2 pieces of rolled-out-pizza dough (if grill is not large, work with 1 piece at a time, keeping remaining piece chilled) and lightly brush dough with some garlic oil. Trying not to stretch dough, carefully transfer it, oiled side down, with your hands to rack of grill. (If it's a very hot day, the dough may get too soft to transfer easily; if so, pop it into the freezer until firm again, about 15 minutes.) Lightly brush top with some garlic oil. When grilling pizzas, rotate them if 1 side of grill is hotter than the other. Grill crusts, covered, until undersides are golden brown on bottom, about 4 minutes. Flip crusts over with 2 metal spatulas and top each crust with half of cheeses, squash, and thyme. Lightly brush pizzas with some garlic oil and grill, covered, about 5 minutes, or until undersides are golden brown and cheeses are melted.
• Garnish pizzas with thyme sprigs and cut into wedges.
• In a large bowl stir together 1/3 cup water, yeast, and sugar and let stand until foamy, about 10 minutes. Stir in remaining 1/3 cup water, 2 tablespoons oil, 1 3/4 cups flour, cornmeal, and salt and blend until mixture forms a dough. Knead dough on a floured surface, incorporating as much of remaining 1/4 cup flour as necessary to prevent dough from sticking, until smooth and elastic, 5 to 10 minutes.
• Alternatively, dough may be made in a food processor. Proof yeast as described above. In food processor process yeast mixture with 1 3/4 cups flour, cornmeal, and salt until mixture forms a ball, adding more water, 1 teaspoon at a time, it too dry or more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time, if too wet, and knead dough by processing 15 seconds more.
• Put dough, prepared by either method, in an oiled deep bowl and turn to coat with oil. Let dough rise, covered with plastic wrap, in a warm place 1 hour, or until doubled in bulk, and punch down. Form dough into 4 balls. Makes enough dough for four 10-inch thin-crust pizzas.
• Lightly brush a baking sheet with olive oil.
• On a lightly floured surface roll out 1 ball of dough 1/8 inch thick (about 10 inches in diameter). Brushing off excess flour, transfer dough with your hands to baking sheet and cover surface completely with plastic wrap. Repeat procedure with remaining dough balls and plastic wrap in same manner, stacking rolled-out pieces on top of one another on baking sheet. Wrap baking sheet with more plastic wrap to ensure that dough is completely covered. (Chill dough until firm, about 1 hour, and up to 4 hours.)