Summer Mini Pizzettas

There is no other highly popular dish served in the United States than pizza. What is there not to like about pizza? A savory dough topped off with tomato sauce and a bucket-load of cheese, pizza is the ultimate dish for any picky eater in your home. For children, pizza is often counted as one of their favorite foods while for adults, it is counted as one of the most convenient meals around. From the ability to add your favorite toppings, there is rarely a type of pizza that isn’t loved by at least one person.

These selection of cute, delicious versatile pizzettas taste light and crisp, and make a great cocktail snack, being a perfect appetizer for any occasion. The topping flavors are endless, so have fun creating your favorite. In a pizza oven, they only take 2-3 minutes or in the oven 10-12.

Ingredients

(For the classic pizza dough)

1 sachet (8 g) instant dry yeast

2 teaspoon brown sugar

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

350 ml lukewarm water

500 g plain flour, plus extra for dusting

*Tip: you can make pizza dough in advance and keep for later in a freezer.

(Four toppings)

1/2 batch pizza dough

1 cup tomato pizza sauce

1 cup pesto

1 1/2 cup grated mozzarella cheese

3 chorizo sausages, sliced

fresh herbs (rosemary, thyme, basil)

1 cup Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled

1 large fresh pear, sliced

cherry tomatoes, quartered

2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil

1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn into pieces

rocket leaves, feta to serve

Recipe

Step 1 (Preparing the dough)

In a glass or stainless steel bowl, pour 1 cup warm water; stir in the sugar until dissolved and sprinkle with yeast, and set aside for 10 minutes until the mixture is frothy and bubbling.

Whisk the olive oil and salt into the yeast mixture. Place flour in a large bowl and make a well in the center, add a quarter of the yeast liquid at a time, mixing with your fingers until the mixture is sticky and clumps together. Stir until the liquid is completely incorporated. Turn onto a floured work surface and knead until the dough comes together into a smooth elastic ball, adding more flour if needed, about 2-5 minutes.

Place the dough into a clean, lightly oiled bowl. Cover with a damp tea towel and set aside in a warm place for 45 min or until doubled in size. Remove the tea towel and knock back or punch the dough a few times to release the air, then let rise again for 30 minutes before using.

Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured work surface. Divide into 4 equal pieces and let rest for 15 minutes before using. Roll out into irregular shapes about 1/4 of an inch thick and place on a baking sheet.

Step 2

Now, when the most complicated and key part of the recipe is done, the creative part begins. Preheat the oven to 425 °F.

Divide the dough into about 12 balls, then roll out each to about 10 cm. Place the dough little rounds on large lined baking trays, leaving room for them to expand.

Step 3

Coat each round with tomato sauce and top each pizzetta with 1/3 cup shredded mozzarella.

Top each pizzetta differently: with pesto, fresh basil leaves and tomatoes, with vegetables and feta, with pear and Gorgonzola, with cherry tomatoes and chorizo sausages (mix and match according to your preferences). Sprinkle pizzettes with sea salt and pepper. Drizzle each pizzetta with olive oil. Sprinkle with herbs and bake for 10-12 minutes until golden and bubbling and until cheese is melted.

Transfer onto a serving plate or board, and decorate with rocket leaves, crumble over feta and drizzle with olive oil.

Well, there you have it!

Hopefully you have discovered some ideas of pizza recipes that you can make within the comfort of your own home. Try your hand at making your own favorite pizza from scratch, let your kids experiment with the toppings, and I know you will love it.

Good luck!