Thanks so much to Andrew and Effie for hosting a gorgeous and delicious pizza party for our New Years Eve celebration. Here I am doing Pizza Chef with my manly man pizza, which too many people thought would be too manly and meaty but was actually a party favorite (phew). Here’s Effie’s caption to this photo:
‘The “Man Pizza” by Chris. Lamb mergueza sausage rolled in pepperoni (yes, a nice touch), pepperocini, buffalo mozzarella, shitake/crimini mushrooms’
I also put on pickled hot green peppers to make it complete… what they call “Peperoni” in Germany — always a surprise when you order a peperoni pizza as an American and get a pizza with a hot pepper topping.
The pizza was super-easy to make, I think, just make sure you use a lot of flour and corn meal to make sure the pizza doesn’t stick when you’re moving it around or cooking it. Sticking is bad — here’s the recipe: Jim Lahey’s No-Knead Pizza.
No-Knead Pizza
Makes 4 individual pizzas3 cups all-purpose or bread flour, more for dusting
¼ teaspoon instant yeast (such as SAF brand)
1½ teaspoons salt
1½ cups water1. In a large bowl, mix the flour with the yeast and salt. Add the water and stir until blended (the dough will be very sticky). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rest for 12 to 24 hours in a warm spot, about 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
2. Place the dough on a lightly floured work surface and lightly sprinkle the top with flour. Fold the dough over on itself once or twice, cover loosely with plastic wrap and let rest for 15 minutes.
3. Divide the dough into 4 pieces and shape each piece into a ball. Generously sprinkle a clean cotton towel with flour and cover the dough balls with it. Let the dough rise for 2 hours.
4. Stretch or toss the dough into the desired shape, cover with toppings and bake on top of a very hot pizza stone.
