Simple Pizza Margherita Recipes

PIZZA MARGHERITA

Steps:

• Preheat a grill or grill pan.
• Divide dough into 4 equal pieces and shape each into a ball. Loosely cover with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap; let stand 15 minutes.
• Using a lightly floured rolling pin or your hands, stretch each ball into a 9- to 10-inch round.
• Place one round of dough directly on grill and cook until bottom is lightly browned and dry, about 2 minutes. Using tongs, gently turn dough and cook for 30 seconds more. Transfer to baking sheet, browned side down, and set aside. Repeat process with remaining dough.
• Divide sauce evenly between pizzas spreading to within 1/2 inch of the edges of the dough. Top with cheese.
• Working with 1 or 2 pizzas at a time, place on grill and cook until cheese is melted and bottom is golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes. Repeat process with remaining pizzas. Transfer pizzas to a cutting board and drizzle with olive oil. Scatter basil leaves over each pizza and sprinkle with salt. Cut using a pizza wheel and serve immediately.

MARGHERITA PIZZA

Steps:

• Stretch dough into two thin 9-inch rounds. Top each with 1/2 cup crushed San Marzano tomatoes, dried oregano, salt, pepper and olive oil; bake until golden. Sprinkle with 1/2 pound diced mozzarella, torn basil and salt. Bake until the cheese melts, then drizzle with olive oil.
• How to make a pizza:
• Step 1: Place a pizza stone or an inverted baking sheet on the lowest oven rack and preheat to 500 degrees.
• Step 2: Stretch 1 pound dough on a floured pizza peel, large wooden cutting board or parchment paper.
• Step 3: Top as desired, then slide the pizza (with the parchment paper, if using) onto the stone or baking sheet. Bake until golden, about 15 minutes.
• Pizza Dough
• Whisk 3 3/4 cups flour and 1 1/2 teaspoons salt. Make a well and add 1 1/3 cups warm water, 1 tablespoon sugar and 1 packet yeast. When foamy, mix in 3 tablespoons olive oil; knead until smooth, 5 minutes. Brush with olive oil, cover in a bowl and let rise until doubled, about 1 hour 30 minutes. Divide into two 1-pound balls. Use 1 pound per recipe unless noted.
• See all 50 easy pizza toppings

PIZZA MARGHERITA

Steps:

• Place a pizza stone or tiles on the middle rack of your oven and turn heat to its highest setting. Let it heat for at least an hour.
• Put the sauce in the center of the stretched dough and use the back of a spoon to spread it evenly across the surface, stopping approximately 1/2 inch from the edges.
• Drizzle a little olive oil over the pie. Break the cheese into large pieces and place these gently on the sauce. Scatter basil leaves over the top.
• Using a pizza peel, pick up the pie and slide it onto the heated stone or tiles in the oven. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbling, approximately 4 to 8 minutes.

SIMPLE PIZZA MARGHERITA

Steps:

• Make the dough: Pour water into the bowl of an electric mixer. Add sugar and yeast; stir until yeast has dissolved. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes. Add oil, flours, and salt. Fit mixer with paddle attachment; mix until combined. Switch to dough hook; mix 5 minutes. Transfer dough to a lightly floured surface, and knead a few times with floured hands until smooth and elastic. Transfer dough to a large oiled bowl, and turn to coat; cover with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk, about 3 hours. (Alternatively, let dough rise in the refrigerator overnight.)
• Make the sauce: Pulse tomatoes in a blender until smooth; set aside. Put garlic and oil into a medium saucepan. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring, until garlic sizzles, about 40 seconds. Add shallots; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Add tomatoes, salt, pepper, and sugar. Reduce heat to medium-low. Simmer, stirring occasionally, 30 minutes. Remove from heat; let cool slightly. (Sauce can be refrigerated in an airtight container up to 3 days.)
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Preheat a baking sheet. Punch down dough; transfer to a floured work surface. Divide dough in half. Set half aside, and cover with plastic wrap. Roll out remaining dough to 14 by 7 inches, 1/8 to 1/4 inch thick. Sprinkle a pizza peel with semolina flour, and place rolled dough on top.
• Brush top of dough lightly with oil. Spread with 1/2 cup sauce, leaving a 1/2-inch border. Top with half the mozzarella. Sprinkle with 1 tablespoon Parmesan, and season with pepper.
• Slide pizza onto heated sheet in oven. Bake until dough is golden and cheese is bubbling, 10 to 12 minutes. Meanwhile, repeat process with remaining dough. Let each pizza cool slightly; top with half the basil. Cut into slices, and serve.

PIZZA MARGHERITA IN 4 EASY STEPS

Steps:

• Make the base: Put the flour into a large bowl, then stir in the yeast and salt. Make a well, pour in 200ml warm water and the olive oil and bring together with a wooden spoon until you have a soft, fairly wet dough. Turn onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 5 mins until smooth. Cover with a tea towel and set aside. You can leave the dough to rise if you like, but it's not essential for a thin crust.
• Make the sauce: Mix the passata, basil and crushed garlic together, then season to taste. Leave to stand at room temperature while you get on with shaping the base.
• Roll out the dough: if you've let the dough rise, give it a quick knead, then split into two balls. On a floured surface, roll out the dough into large rounds, about 25cm across, using a rolling pin. The dough needs to be very thin as it will rise in the oven. Lift the rounds onto two floured baking sheets.
• Top and bake: heat the oven to 240C/220C fan/gas 8. Put another baking sheet or an upturned baking tray in the oven on the top shelf. Smooth sauce over bases with the back of a spoon. Scatter with cheese and tomatoes, drizzle with olive oil and season. Put one pizza, still on its baking sheet, on top of the preheated sheet or tray. Bake for 8-10 mins until crisp. Serve with a little more olive oil, and basil leaves if using. Repeat step for remaining pizza.

MARGARITA PIZZA

Steps:

• In a medium bowl combine the flour, baking powder and salt and whisk well.
• Add the yogurt and mix with a fork or spatula until well combined, it will look like small crumbles.
• Lightly dust flour on a work surface and remove dough from the bowl, knead the dough a few times until dough is tacky, but not sticky, about 20 turns (it should not leave dough on your hand when you pull away).
• Preheat oven to 450F. I like to use a pizza stone, and preheat the stone in the oven as well. If using a round pizza pan or sheet pan, spray with oil.
• Sprinkle a work surface and rolling pin with a little flour and roll the dough out into a large thin round or oval (or you can make 2 smaller pies).
• Lay the dough out onto the oiled nonstick pizza dish or sheet pan.
• Spread the sauce over the crust. Top with cheese and place the pan on the pizza stone, bake 10 to 12 minutes or until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is cooked through.
• Transfer to a cutting board, top with basil and drizzle with olive oil, if desired. Slice the pie into 8 slices.

MARGHERITA PIZZA

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Put a jelly roll pan or a half sheet pan in the oven.
• Begin by making the tomato sauce. In a large saute pan over medium heat, add 2 tablespoons olive oil, the minced garlic, thyme and oregano. Cook until just fragrant then add the crushed tomatoes and season with salt and pepper, to taste. Lower the heat and simmer for 7 to 8 minutes to reduce and concentrate the flavor. Shut off the heat and set aside.
• Take the preheated jelly roll pan out of the oven and drizzle some olive oil over the entire surface. Cut the dough into 2 pieces and reserve 1 piece for another use. Stretch the pizza dough out so it is just bigger than the pan, then lay it inside the pan, so the dough comes up the sides to form a crust on the rim. Smear with tomato sauce then tear up the mozzarella and scatter it evenly over the top of the pie. Tear the basil leaves, spread them over the top and drizzle with a little more olive oil. Give it a final season with salt and pepper, to taste, then bake in the hot oven until golden and bubbly, about 15 to 18 minutes
• In a small bowl, combine the yeast, sugar and water and stir gently to dissolve. Let the mixture stand until the yeast comes alive and starts to foam, 5 to 10 minutes.
• If you're using a stand mixer, combine the salt and flour to the bowl and pulse a few times to mix. Add the yeast mixture, at the lowest speed, until the flour incorporates. When the dough starts to come together, increase the speed to medium and mix until the dough gathers into a ball. This should take about 2 minutes. Add the olive oil and pulse a few more times. Stop the machine periodically to scrape the dough off the hook. Get a feel for the dough as you're making it by squeezing a small amount together between your thumb and fingers. If it's crumbly, add more water, if it's sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and fold it over itself a few times, kneading until it's smooth and elastic.
• If you're making the dough by hand, add the yeast mixture to a large bowl and stir in the salt and the 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Then begin stirring in the flour. When the mixture becomes too stiff to stir with a spoon, knead in the rest of the flour by hand, adding just enough so that the dough is soft but not too sticky. As you work, squeeze a small amount of dough together between your thumb and fingers. If it's crumbly, add more water; if it's sticky, add more flour, 1 tablespoon at a time. Knead until smooth and elastic, about 10 minutes.
• Form the dough into a round and put it into a lightly oiled bowl, turning it over to coat the dough entirely with the oil. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let it rise in a warm spot (i.e., over a gas pilot light) until it doubles in size, about 1 hour.
• Remove from the oven, cut into slices and serve. .

AUTHENTIC PIZZA MARGHERITA

Steps:

• Stir flour and 1 teaspoon salt in a bowl. Set aside.
• Mix water, yeast, and sugar in a large bowl. Let stand until yeast begins to form a creamy foam, about 5 minutes.
• Stir half the flour mixture into yeast mixture until no dry spots remain. Stir in remaining flour, 1/2 cup at a time, mixing well after each addition. When dough pulls together, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface and knead until smooth and elastic, about 8 minutes.
• Lightly oil a large bowl, then place dough in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with a light cloth and let rise in a warm place (80 to 95 degrees F (27 to 35 degrees C)) until doubled in volume, about 1 hour. Punch dough down, divide into 4 equal pieces, and form each into a ball.
• Preheat oven with a pizza stone to 500 degrees F (260 degrees C).
• Stretch out and pat 1 dough ball to form a circle 10 to 12 inches in diameter. Place dough on a lightly floured pizza peel. Top with 1/2 cup of tomato sauce and spread to cover within an inch of the edge of the dough. Arrange 5 slices of mozzarella cheese on top of the tomato sauce, then place 5 basil leaves on top. Drizzle pizza with 1 tablespoon olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt to taste. Repeat for 3 remaining dough balls.
• Slide each pizza onto the pizza stone in the preheated oven. Bake until cheese is bubbly and the underside of the crust is golden brown, 5 to 7 minutes.