Piatto Pizzeria | The Stephanie Pizza

hey remember that time mr. handsome & i took a trip to the east coast, Halifax specifically, for my cousins wedding.  you know the trip.  the one where we consumed way too much pizza & lobster.  well guess what? that pizza place we went to, just so happened to pop up on an episode of 'you gotta eat here' so now i'm compelled to share it with you, because it was heavenly.

it came courtesy piatto pizzeria, and i loved everything about this place.  including the yellow vespa which i wanted to take home...

the pizza that i fell madly for was 'The Stephanie,' it combines some of my favourite flavours in each & every delicious slice of this killer pizza.

caramelized pears, prosciutto, goat cheese and balsamic reduction. 

 you'd be hard pressed not to like it and untrustworthy in my books if you ask me.

cheers.xoxo.

The Stephanie Pizza

ingredients:

dough (makes 4 pizzas)

1 1/2 teaspoons active dry yeast

2 2/3 teaspoons sea salt

5 1/3 cups "00" flour

caramelized pears

1 (19-oz) can halved pears, drained

2 tablespoons canola oil

3 tablespoon brown sugar

prosciutto

1 oz sliced prosciutto, cut into 1/2-inch squares

1 tablespoon canola oil

balsamic reduction

2 cups balsamic vinegar

1/2 cup white sugar

assembly

1/2 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

2 oz goat cheese

2 oz shredded parmesan

method:

dough (makes 4 pizzas)

in a small bowl, stir yeast into 1/4 cup of warm water (80F); set mixture aside for 2 minutes to activate the yeast.

in a second small bowl, combine 1 1/2 cups of warm water (80F) with sea salt; stir well to dissolve the salt.

add 1 cup of the flour to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a hook attachment. 

pour salted water into the mixer with the flour and stir on low speed for 2 minutes.

add yeast mixture and continue mixing on low for 2 minutes.

working in batches, add remaining flour and mix on low for five minutes, until dough pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

remove dough from the bowl and form into a ball; place dough into a greased bowl and cover with a warm damp cloth and a layer of plastic wrap, to keep the dough moist.

set dough aside at room temperature to rise from 1 hour, or until dough has doubled in size.

divide dough into four 9-ounce portions and shop each portion into a ball.

place dough into a sealable container and refrigerate for 24 hours. note: at the point, extra dough can be frozen in freezer bags for later use.

caramelized pears

slice drained pears into 1/2-inch slices.

in a heavy-bottomed pan, heat oil over medium heat.

add pears tot he pan and cook, while stirring, for 10-15 minutes, until pears are brown on all sides.

stir brown sugar into the pan with the pears.

continue stirring and cooking for about 5 minutes, until sugar melts and sticks to the pears.

remove pears from the pan and place into a mesh strainer to drain and cool.

prosciutto

heat oil in a medium pan over medium high heat.

add chopped prosciutto to the pan and cook, while stirring, fro 10-15 minutes, until prosciutto is crisp and brown.

remove prosciutto from the pan and set on a paper tool to drain the excess fat.

balsamic reduction

in a large heavy-bottomed pot, combine vinegar and sugar and heat over medium low heat.

simmer mixture for about 10 minutes, until mixture has reduced by about two thirds.

remove pot from heat and set aside to cool.

assembly

remove dough from the fridge and set aside to bring to room temperature.

place pizza stone in the oven and heat oven to 500F.

stretch dough into an 11-inch round.

brush pizza with 1/2 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil.

top pizza with goat cheesed, reserved prosciutto, reserved caramelized pears and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese.

slide pizzas onto the hot pizza stone and cook fro 5 to 7 minutes, until the edges and bottom are browned

remove pizza from the pizza stone and place on a cutting board to cool.

drizzle balsamic reduction over the pizza and serve.

yields 4 pizzas

recipe courtesy: foodnetwork.ca