TOSSING PIZZA NAPOLETANA…DARING BAKERS TO DO IT !!

THE CHALLENGE: You have to use the tossing method for at least 2 Pizza Crusts. If you are not comfortable with it, then you can switch to the rolling method, but you HAVE to try the traditional method and exercise it, using at least two dough pieces. You should also capture the moment by either filming or photographing yourself while tossing the dough. Do check out the recipe at Rosa’s yummy blog HERE. Great choice Rosa, & a great pizza indeed. Thanks for a super challenge!!

The dough is made in advance & rests in the fridge overnight, which potentially cuts down most of the work for the next day! Even better if you make the sauce in advance; you’ll just be tossing Napoletana’s the next day, or at least trying to!!.With some practice, I think we’ll become tossing pizzaiolos, though I think I need loads of practice & confidence. It’s worse if you want to be clicked because you just have 6 attempts…LOL!! Lose one tossed to the floor or ceiling, & it’s a pretty tense lunch that follows. My dough was a bit runny, or the temperatures were high, the dough & tosser (moi) didn’t have much success. I tossed a small toss, & the anxiety of the daughter trying to click quite did me in, but I tossed each one of them. Will try this again since the resultant pizzas were delicious, though I would very much have liked a partial whole-wheat option. That much refined flour doesn’t leave me with a healthy feeling, especially if it’s in a main meal! I kinda made up a bit on the sauce front. The sauce was a home-made tomato-mushroom sauce inspired by a jar of Catherine Cushings’s sauce that I recently won at a blog event, “Tried,Tested & True“.

I sauteed some roasted garlic paste (of about 1 head of garlic) in olive oil, bunged in some red chili flakes & oregano, gave it a quick stir. Added 2 finely chopped spring onions…stir. Added finely slice mushrooms (about 100gms) & sweated them till they released their liquid. 2 grated carrots followed by about 1/2 a kilo of peeled & chopped tomatoes & 200ml of tomato puree. Add sea salt & a dash of pepper, some white wine/vinegar, a pinch of sugar & simmer for about 30 minutes, covered. Once cool, run the immersion blender through the whole thing to give a chunky pizza sauce. Adjust seasoning & store in jars in the fridge. I think this will keep well for a week. Mine lasted 6 pizzas, with a 1/4 jar to spare!!

Toppings included chicken salami, spring onions & sweetcorn…& a blend of 3 cheeses – low fat cottage, cheddar & finally mozzarella. Fabulous crust & all! Rosa…it was truly YUMMY YUM!! A wonderful challenge that was enjoyed as lunch.The result was supremely delicious, though I did have some rather holey struggle on the toss up!! Do stop by HERE & see what other Daring Bakers have been tossing up with supremely delicious toppings.