Subject: Pizza Napolitana
From: Unicorn (unicorn@indenial.com)
Date: Sat May 27 2000 - 02:20:55 EDT
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F O O D F U N N Y
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Thanks to reader Sidra Duran Condron for today's food funny.
A woman has returned from the grocery store in complete frustration as
her plans for that night's dinner party were unraveling. She had a
fabulous new escargot recipe and had bragged that all of her guests
would love it. Unfortunately, the store was out of snails.
She grabbed her husband, put a pail in his hand and sent him out on a
walk to the park to look for snails. The man scooped some up and
returned on his walk home. Along the way, he stopped in a bar.
Before he knew it, one drink had turned into six and minutes had
turned to hours. He saw the time and knew that his side trip to the
bar had ruined his wife's dinner party plans. He grabbed the pail of
snails and ran home. Running up sidewalk to the house, he tripped on
the front steps, and the pail flew out of his hands--scattering snails
across the walkway as the man lay sprawled on the ground.
His wife was inside fuming, but she heard the commotion and came
outside to shoot him an icy glare. The man looked at his wife,
glanced back at the snails and thought fast. "Come on, little guys,"
he shouted, "we're almost there!"
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T O D A Y ' S R E C I P E
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Pizza is now available in almost every corner of the planet, but none
is better than a freshly baked homemade pizza like the ones they have
been making in Naples for centuries.
Pizza Napolitana
1+1/4 cups (300 ml) lukewarm water
1/4 tsp (1 ml) sugar
2 packages (2 Tbs, 30 ml) dry yeast
3+1/2 cups (875 ml) all-purpose flour
1 tsp (5 ml) salt
3/4 cup (180 ml) olive oil
Corn meal
2 cups (500 ml) pizza sauce (canned, or see tomorrow's recipe)
1 lb (450 g) mozzarella cheese, grated
1/2 cup (125 ml) freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Additional toppings of your choice
Combine 1/4 cup (60 ml) of the warm (not hot) water with the sugar and
yeast in a small bowl and stir gently to dissolve. Allow to proof in
a warm place for 5 minutes. Sift the flour and salt into a large
mixing bowl. Add the yeast mixture, the remaining water, and 1/4 cup
(60 ml) of the olive oil. Mix the dough until it forms a ball and
turn onto a floured work surface. Knead the dough until it is shiny
and elastic, about 15 minutes. Place the dough into a clean bowl,
cover with a damp cloth, and allow to rise until doubled in size.
Punch the dough down and divide into 4 pieces. Shape each piece of
the dough into a circle about 10 inches (25 cm) in diameter by rolling
and stretching it. Form a slight rim around the edge with your
fingers. Dust a baking sheet with cornmeal and place the dough on top
of it. For each pizza, spread 1/2 cup (125 ml) of the sauce over the
top of the dough, followed by 1/2 cup (125 ml) of the mozzarella and 2
tablespoons (30 ml) of the Parmesan. Add additional toppings of your
choice and drizzle 2 tablespoons (30 ml) of olive oil over each pizza.
Bake on the lowest rack in a preheated 500F (260C) oven for about 10
minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbling.
Makes 4 10-inch pizzas.
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