White Four Cheese Pizza With Basil And Garlic Recipes

FOUR CHEESE WHITE PIZZA

Steps:

• Remove the pizza dough from the refrigerator and allow to sit at room temperature for 30 minutes.
• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 375 degrees F with a rack set in the middle position.
• Break apart the head of garlic to expose the individual cloves (leaving their skins intact), about 10 cloves total. Put the cloves onto a small baking sheet and toss with 1 teaspoon of the olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and pepper. Bake, turning the cloves over halfway through the cooking time, until very tender, 12 to 15 minutes. Allow to cool slightly.
• Set a 2-burner cast-iron grill pan over medium-high heat.
• Once cool enough to handle, remove the skins from the garlic cloves and use the back of a knife to mash the cloves on a cutting board. Transfer the mashed garlic to a large bowl and add the ricotta cheese, Parmesan cheese, 4 tablespoons of the olive oil and the oregano. Stir to combine and season to taste with salt and pepper. Reserve.
• Divide the dough in half and lightly dust a clean work surface with flour. Stretch and/or roll each piece into an 8-by-13-inch rectangle, about 1/8 inch thick. Lightly oil the grill pan. Working with 1 rolled dough piece, grill the crust until it starts to puff and distinct grill marks appear, 2 to 4 minutes. Use a pair of tongs to flip the crust and brush the edges of the dough with 1 teaspoon of olive oil. Grill until the the dough is just cooked through and distinct grill marks appear on the second side, about 2 minutes. Remove to a baking sheet. Repeat with second piece of dough
• Turn the oven up to 400 degrees F.
• Evenly spread the ricotta cheese mixture between the 2 crusts. Sprinkle the mozzarella and fontina cheese on each pizza crust. Bake until the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.
• Dress the kale or frisee with lemon juice, olive oil and salt and pepper and top the pizza. Cut each pizza into 8 pieces and serve immediately.

CAMERON'S FOUR-CHEESE PIZZA

Steps:

• For the pizza dough: In a small bowl, dissolve the yeast and honey in 1/4-cup warm water.
• In a mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour and the salt. Add the oil, the yeast mixture, and the remaining 3/4 cup of water and mix on low speed until the dough comes cleanly away from the sides of the bowl and clusters around the dough hook, about 5 minutes. The pizza dough can also be made in a food processor fitted with the steel blade. Pulse once or twice, add the remaining ingredients, and process until the dough begins to form a ball.
• Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface and knead by hand for 2 or 3 minutes longer. The dough should be smooth and firm. Cover the dough with a clean, damp towel and let it rise in a warm spot for about 30 minutes. When ready, the dough will stretch as it is lightly pulled.
• Divide the dough into 4 balls, about 6 ounces each. Work each ball by pulling down the sides and tucking under the bottom of the ball. Repeat 4 or 5 times. Then on a smooth, unfloured surface, roll the ball under the palm of your hand until the top of the dough is smooth and firm, about 1 minute. Cover the dough with a damp towel and let rest 15 to 20 minutes. At this point, the balls can be wrapped in plastic and refrigerated for up to 2 days.
• Yield: Makes 4 (8-inch) pizzas
• For the Pizza: Place a pizza stone on the middle rack of the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F.
• To prepare each pizza, dip the ball of dough into flour, shake off the excess flour, place the dough on a clean, lightly floured surface, and start to stretch the dough. Press down on the center, spreading the dough into an 8-inch or 10-inch rounds, with the outer border a little thicker than the inner circle. If you find this difficult to do, use a small rolling pin to roll out the dough. Brush lightly with pesto and scatter the oven-dried tomatoes evenly around the inner circle of the pizza.
• Sprinkle the mozzarella and Fontina, arrange the slices of the Roma tomatoes, and then sprinkle with the goat cheese, oregano, thyme, and finally the Parmesan. Bake on the pizza stone until the pizza crust is nicely browned, about 10 to 12 minutes.
• When the pizza is removed from the oven, transfer to a cutting board and garnish with the chiffonade of basil leaves, cut the pizza into slices, and serve immediately.
• Yield: 1 (10-inch) or 2 (8-inch) pizzas; 3 to 4 servings
• Preheat the over to 250 degrees F.
• In a pot of boiling water, blanch tomatoes. Drain and refresh in ice water. Drain. Peel, core, cut into quarters, and remove seeds.
• Line a baking tray with parchment paper and arrange the tomato quarters on the tray, cut side down. Drizzle generously with olive oil. Sprinkle with thyme and garlic. In a small bowl, combine salt, pepper and sugar, and sprinkle evenly over the tomatoes.
• Bake until the tomatoes begin to shrivel, about 1 hour. When the tomatoes are cool enough to handle, transfer to a container. Pour olive oil over and cover the container. Refrigerate and use as needed.
• In a mortar and pestle, pound the basil, garlic, nuts and salt until thoroughly mashed. Add the oil, a few drops at a time, until you have a smooth paste.
• Pesto can also be made in a blender. Pour in the oil first, then the garlic, nuts, and finally the basil leaves. Blend on low to a smooth paste. Season with the kosher salt.