Pesto swirl pizza
Reverse style NY pie with low moisture mozzarella as the base, then fresh mozzarella, tomato and homemade pesto on top.
Makes
2
Level
Medium with a grown-up
Kids cook with a grown-up. Hot ovens, boiling water and frying are grown-up jobs, and sharp knives need a grown-up’s hands too.
Ingredients
Pizza dough: 1 ball, about 10 oz
Low moisture mozzarella: 1 cup shredded
Crushed tomatoes: 1/2 cup, lightly salted
Fresh mozzarella: 4 oz, torn into pieces
Olive oil: 1 tablespoon, plus more to finish
Dried oregano: 1 pinch
Fresh basil leaves: 2 cups, packed, for the pesto
Pine nuts: 2 tablespoons
Garlic: 1 small clove
Parmigiano Reggiano: 2 tablespoons grated
Olive oil: 1/4 cup, for the pesto
Salt: 1/2 teaspoon, for the pesto
Flour: for dusting the board
Method
Make the pesto first. Blend the basil, pine nuts, garlic, Parmigiano, 1/4 cup olive oil and salt until smooth. Set it aside.
Heat the oven with a pizza stone or steel to its highest setting, at least 500°F, for 45 minutes. A grown-up handles the hot oven.
Dust the board with flour. Stretch the dough into a round about 12 inches wide, pressing from the middle out and leaving the edge thick.
Slide the dough onto a floured peel or flipped baking sheet. Spread the shredded low moisture mozzarella over the bare dough first. This is the reverse part.
Spoon the crushed tomatoes over the cheese in a swirl, leaving gaps so the cheese shows.
Dot the torn fresh mozzarella between the swirls. Drizzle with olive oil and add a pinch of oregano.
Slide the pizza onto the hot stone. Bake 6 to 8 minutes, until the edge is golden and the cheese is bubbling.
Move the pizza to a board. Pipe or spoon the pesto over the sauce in a spiral.
Slice with a pizza wheel and serve right away.
