Pizza - White w/Spinach & Ricotta
WHITE PIZZA WITH SPINACH AND RICOTTA
cooksillustrated
From Italian Classics.
Makes 3 medium pizzas, serving 6.
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS:
Bread flour gave us the best texture for our pizza dough recipe and more water made our dough softer and more elastic. We chose a food processor for kneading our pizza dough recipe because it incorporates the dry and wet ingredients evenly; also, the blade kneads the dough in just 30 seconds. We found that our fingertips and hands did a better job of stretching and shaping the dough than a rolling pin or flipping the dough into the air (this may work in a pizza parlor but can prove disastrous at home). Once the pizzas were assembled and ready to bake, we found that using terra cotta tiles or a pizza stone was a must for producing a crisp crust.
Ricotta cheese and garlicky sautéed spinach flavor this tomatoless pizza.
Ingredients
- INGREDIENTS
- 1 recipe Pizza Dough (related)
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil , plus more for brushing on the stretched dough
- 4 medium cloves garlic , minced or pressed through a garlic press
- 1/4 teaspoon hot red pepper flakes
- 1 1/2 pounds spinach , stemmed, washed, shaken to remove excess water, and chopped coarse
- Salt and ground black pepper
- Semolina or cornmeal for dusting on the pizza peel
- 2 cups ricotta cheese
- 6 tablespoons grated Parmesan cheese
Preparation
Step 1
INSTRUCTIONS
1. Prepare the dough as directed in the dough recipe. Place a pizza stone on a rack in the lower third of the oven if oven is not lined with tiles. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees for at least 30 minutes. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Use a chef’s knife or dough scraper to divide the dough into three pieces. Form each piece of dough into a smooth, round ball and cover it with a damp cloth. Let the dough relax for at least 10 minutes but no more than 30 minutes.
2. While preparing the dough, heat the oil in a Dutch oven set over medium heat. Add the garlic and hot red pepper flakes and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the damp spinach, cover, and cook, stirring occasionally, until just wilted, about 3 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Transfer the spinach to a medium bowl, squeezing out any liquid with the back of a spoon and leaving the liquid behind in the pot. Set the spinach aside; discard the excess liquid.
3. Working with one piece of dough at a time and keeping the others covered, shape the dough as directed in illustrations, then transfer it to a pizza peel that has been lightly dusted with semolina or cornmeal (see illustrations 5 and 6 below).
4. Lightly brush the dough round with olive oil. Arrange one-third of the spinach mixture over the dough round, leaving a 1/2-inch border uncovered (see illustration 7 below). Dot with 2/3 cup ricotta cheese.
5. Slide the dough onto the heated stone or tiles (see illustration 8 below). Bake until the crust edges brown in spots, 8 to 12 minutes. Remove the pizza from the oven, sprinkle with 2 tablespoons Parmesan, cut into wedges, and serve immediately. Repeat steps 3, 4, and 5 with the remaining two pieces of dough and the remaining toppings.
STEP-BY-STEP
Key Pizza Steps
1. Working with one ball of dough at a time and keeping the rest covered with a damp cloth, flatten the dough ball into a disk using the palms of your hands.
2. Starting at the center of the disk and working outward, use your fingertips to press the dough to about 1/2 inch thick.
3. Holding the center in place, stretch the dough outward. Rotate the dough a quarter-turn and stretch again. Repeat until the dough reaches a diameter of 12 inches.
4. Use your palm to press down and flatten the thick edge of the dough.
5. Carefully lift the dough round and transfer it to a peel dusted with semolina or cornmeal.
6. If the dough loses its round shape, adjust it on the peel to return it to the original shape.
7. Brush the entire dough round with a little olive oil. Add the toppings. To make it easier to hold pizza slices when eating, leave a 1/2-inch border of dough uncovered.
8. Use a quick jerking action to slide the topped dough off the peel and onto the hot tiles or stone. Make sure that the piza lands far enough back so that the front edge does not hang off the tiles or stone.