Garden Party Pizza Night

So every Sunday, my fantastic friend Rachel bakes these scratch made delicious pies, pecan is my fav.  My friends and I gather to eat, drink wine and catch up.  Sunday Pie Nights are the best nights!  Well this particular week I had given Rachel a reprieve from her baking duties and turned Pie Night into Pizza Pie Night because God knows I can't bake sweets.  Well in my preparations my genius (and dashingly handsome) boyfriend suggested we host the dinner in my courtyard garden.  I made a total of five pizzas that night, and not one slice was left over!

Here were my basics...

Pizza Dough- Buy It! Don't bother making it yourself, you can get it at almost any supermarket and it is good.  I bought mine frozen and left it out all day to defrost.

Sauce- So I am Italian and am a total snob about sauce. It is so easy and cheap to make yourself why bother buying the crap in the jar.  Over medium heat, saute one small diced onion with salt and pepper in a saucepan until it is translucent, then add two to three cloves of garlic.  Add a 1/2 teaspoon of sugar and 1/2 cup of red wine and let reduce.  Now add a small can of tomato paste and let it brown (not burn, should be a dark red color). Add two cans of whole plum peeled tomatoes that you pulsed in your food processor a few times and 1-2 cups of water.  Bring to boil and reduce to simmer.  Let it cook for about 30 minutes on low heat.

Cheese- I had three kinds of Mozzarella and a lots of Parmesan.  I purchased shredded mozzarella (the Kraft kind in the bag, I know it is Kraft but it melts well), fresh mozzarella in the water and smoked mozzarella.  If you never had smoked mozzarella, go out and buy it immediately, it will change your life. 

Other Ingredients: Roasted Cherry, Prosciutto, Arugula, Tomatoes, Lemons, Truffle Salt, Cooked Crumbled Hot Sausage, Chopped Frozen Spinach (defrosted and water squeezed out), Caramelized Onions, Fresh Plum Tomatoes, Fresh Basil

Here were my pies...

1. White Pizza (Fresh Mozz, Smoked Mozz and Parm) and Prosciutto.  After finished cooking I pile it with arugula that has been dressed with lemon and olive oil.

2.  Roasted Cherry Tomatoes, Lemon Zest and Truffle Salt (no cheese)

3. Classic Pie- Lots of Cheese, Sauce, Sliced Fresh Tomato and Basil

4.  Sauce, Cheese (Shredded Mozz and Smoked Mozz), Sausage, Spinach and Carmelized Onions

5.  Everything- Prosciutto, Sausage, Sauce, Cheese, Caramelized Onions, Spinach etc. This was cooked in a cast iron skillet in the oven.

                                              

How to do it...

I use my pizza stone and have a wooden paddle.  Line the bottom of your oven and the racks with tin foil, just to keep it clean.  Heat oven to 500 degrees with the pizza stone in the  oven.  Stretch the dough in your hands or with a rolling pin on the floured wooden paddle. Add your toppings for that particular pie. Transfer the pie to the pizza stone by slowing shimmying the paddle over the stone until it slides off. If you are new to this technique, you will probably mess it up a bit.  It takes some practice. Have some friends close by with spatulas to help you.  Brush edges of the pie with some olive oil and let it back.  Usually about 15 minutes or until edges are golden brown.

I highly suggest lots of wine to go with this meal.  My friend brought this amazing summer salad with peaches, fresh corn and balsamic that we had a side dish.  The fresh fruit and vegetables were a real nice addition.

Enjoy! And if you do dine in your garden, try not to piss off the neighbors!